Unique jewelry

I am always on the lookout for interesting jewelry.  Last week, I stumbled upon Dora Rae Boutique.  It is a beautiful store tucked away in a little office complex in Sandy Springs.  I am now obsessed with this ring -

I love the combination of the architectural wooden base and the sparkly double star -

I also really like these bracelets by Chan Luu -

Both of these pieces have a great balance between sparkle, which makes you happy, and organic, which keeps you grounded.

A little something from Dora Rae would make a great gift for Valentine's Day (hint, hint).

And...done.

All Christmas gifts have now been purchased.  I have been scrambling for the last few days to finish my Christmas shopping, because next week my schedule will shift into high gear with Christmas events (including a Company Christmas party at my house, which is causing a bit of a panic).  So, I was excited to go to the re-inspiration store today (http://www.reinspirationstore.com) to check off my last few items.

The first thing I purchased was this -



It is a candle that smells like campfire.  They also have candles that smell like dirt, fresh cut grass, gunpowder and other manly scents.  They were invented by this boy as a joke and a desperate attempt to buy a new bike, but they have really taken off -

The next items that inspired me were these -

They are books made into secret hiding places -

I didn't buy one, but my oldest daughter would love this as a gift.  Maybe next year.

I wasn't going to buy anymore jewelry, but I couldn't leave the store without this necklace made by Jill Fagin (www.jillery.com) -

Even though I really want to keep it, I can't buy anything else for myself right now.  So, I'm going to give it to someone who might be reading this.  If you don't like it, feel free to re-gift it to me next Christmas.

Chastain Park Arts Festival

I had a wonderful time at the Chastain Park Arts Festival (open until 6:00 today and again 11-5 tomorrow).  I've been to enough arts festivals this season that the vendors are starting to remember me.  I went to this festival intent on actually buying some items for Christmas presents, but I also ended up buying something for myself and learning about new artistic techniques that I would love to try one day. 

The first artist I came across was Patricia DiBona (www.dibonadesigns.com).  I love her paintings and prints.  They include layers of beeswax, which gives them an interesting look and feel -

And she makes beautiful antique looking jewelry that include initials or prints of her paintings -

Next, Julie Sola's layered ink prints (http://www.fatcrowpress.com/) intrigued me -

She carves the image into a block of wood and then prints them onto paper using a press or hand rubbing -

I bought one of her bird prints for my daughter's bedroom -

I think it looks good next to my "angry pink" painting -

Let me divert for a moment into the fashion of this Arts Festival.  Every woman seemed to be wearing scarves and sporting boots over their skinny jeans (actually the same outfit I was wearing).   I am fascinated when I go somewhere and everyone is wearing the same thing.  This sweater stood out from the crowd -

It was very cold, so the fingerless gloves were popular with the artists -

She bought them from www.sundancecatalog.com.  The funny thing is that this is the second time I've photographed this jewelry maker's clothes, and both times we've talked so much about the clothes that I forgot to take pictures of her jewelry.  If you read this, send me your website info, so I can plug your jewelry.

These fingerless leopard gloves belong to Kristi Hyde (www.kristihyde.com).  She purchase them at Urban Outfitters.  I loved the bird necklace that she had on display -

I thought Maggie Grier with her Fall colored scarf looked so pretty sitting in the sun that I stopped to take her picture -

Here is her beautiful artwork (maggiegrier@aol.com) -

Sarah Tams' jewelry (www.routethirteen.com) is just my style (and I thought she looked cute in her scarf and glasses) -

  Even though I was trying to shop for other people, I bought myself a little something -

I also loved the jewelry of Delias Thompson (www.deliasstudioinc.com) -

If anyone wants to buy me something for Christmas, you can shop at either of those last two vendors (especially the circle necklaces from Route Thirteen or the star necklace pictured above). 

I bought a Christmas present for one of my younger family members from Tom Kat Originals (www.TomKatOriginals.weebly.com).  I can't reveal exactly which one in case they read this, but here are some of their leather accessories -

And finally, I have to mention Alan Mogensen (www.alanmogensen.com), because we had such a nice conversation about art and photography.  He still uses film and emphasizes the eye of the photographer over the equipment.  Here are a couple of the beautifully colorful photographs that he had on display (photos were obtained from his website) -

If you get a chance, stop by to see these wonderful artists in lovely Chastain Park.