Spring time jewels to get you in the spring state of mind

Its Spring! We have longer days, nicer weather, lollipops and rainbows. Actually we have none of that. I live in Southern California, and its hot one day and rainy the next. This indecisive weather pattern will continue until June. I have friends who live on the East coast and they can tell me it sure as hell its not lollipops and rainbows yet, more snow and coldness. But who cares? All the retailers and magazines are pushing bikinis and floras on us, so I guess we have no choice but to go with it.

So what are the big trends in fashion and jewelry to make us feel more "spring-y"you ask? Pastels, flowers, and prints. This goes for your nails, to your pants, and your jewelry. Lets start with the jewelry, naturally! I have always loved Turquoise, especially for the summer. Looks amazing on a white eyelet sundress and can glam up your little black dress. We just made these drop Turquoise earrings that will work on every lady. Not too much bling, not too long, and appropriate for all ages.

Natural Turquoise and diamond earrings, 0.50cts of diamonds.

 They even make these orchids look more even more fashionable. These are simple enough not to over power your look, but will get every one's attention. What a unique way to wear your "something blue" for your spring time wedding? Turquoise is such a versatile stone, easily dressed up or dressed down.

Natural Peridot, 4.0ct, and diamond, 0.75ct, ring. 

If you are looking for a pop of color to wake you up this spring, look no further than Peridot! This is the August birthstone, and pretty much every single August baby I have ever met hates peridot. I don't blame them, all they have ever seen is the milky pale (excuse my language but this is the only word I can think of to properly describe the color) pee-pee green color that the mall jewelry stores carry. The peridot in my photo is much darker, richer, and has a life to it. Set in a beautiful pave diamond halo setting, its a modern way to show off this magnificent peridot.

Continuing with the green theme, lets take nails. I am the kind of girl who spends an eternity choosing my polish at a nail salon, with every bare nail covered in a different swatch of polish. This time around I caught a quick glimpse at this color and I knew it had to be mine. It just screams spring time polish! I'm currently sporting the adorable pastel OPI polish by the name of Gargantuan Green Grape.

http://www.iknowallthewords.com/2012/01/notd-greener-shade-of-pale-comparison.html

I was a little nervous to try it, but it is so pastel that it plays as neutral.Very lovely color, and works on all skin tones. I would probably add some gold glitter somewhere, either on the base of the nail or all over one random nail, because I need my nails to be blingy too. Its a problem, I know. You should see my kitchen table after craft night with the girls, glitter EVERYWHERE. Somehow it always ends up on my husbands eyebrow or something. Adorable? I think so. Husband doesn't seem to share the same sentiment.

So embrace spring with these pops of color. Even if you are currently under a snow storm, or a gloomy rainy day, when people see your pastel polish and your pop of color gemstone ring they will be reminded that its spring somewhere and to think warm thoughts.

*If you are interested in purchasing any of the jewelry on my page, please e-mail me elissasommers@gmail.com 

Story of your life, in diamonds

Are you married? Do you have kids? Yes? Awesome, this article applies to you. Are you single? Do you have work or other successes in your life that you are proud of? Perfect, because this article is for you as well. I am talking about stackable bands people. I love this look, so much so that I am sporting it. I like the idea of wearing all my bands together to make it look like I have one giant custom piece of jewelry on. The best part of this "trend" is that it tells a story. A band for every child (this is what I'm going for), a band for every milestone in your marriage, a band for every new big account you landed (look at you Miss. fancy business mogul you), or a band for every time you walked into a jewelry store and found an adorable band that you just couldn't live without. Whatever the story of your life that you want to celebrate, this is a creative and fabulous way to commemorate that.

These are my personal stackable bands that I wear everyday. Ok lets start from right to left. 1. My wedding band 2. Engagement ring 3. Anniversary band (10 years together and 3 years married anniversary)/ Push present 4. Not my ring...yet... Look how good it looks with all my other bands! This picture is promptly getting sent to my husband.

You can go about this many ways. Three bands, two bands, five bands! Go nuts! I would probably say that once you start getting too close to your knuckle, and can no longer bend your finger, you have gone to far. Also don't be afraid that all the bands do not match. PLEASE make them all different styles! This is what makes the look work. If you do all three pave bands, it will still be lovely, but will defeat the purpose of the look of rings that you collected over time. Here is one photo that I just stumbled upon Pinterest (my addiction btw, you will find me pinning at all hours of the day).

http://relaxdeco.com/2013/12/01/engagement-ring-wedding-band-a-band-for-each-childs-birth-each-different-and-unique-love-this-idea/

See how she has four different bands, all different styles and one is even sans diamonds (gasp!), but this is fabulous. Also, if you are not in the mood to sport your giant rock, you could just wear the bands alone. Who are we kidding, we all would wear that beautiful emerald cut diamond everyday of our lives if we owned that bad boy! Stunning!

You should not limit yourself to all one color of metal either. Go all yellow or all white, or mix and match with some rose gold. If you want to have some color stones in there as well, go for it. Are you sensing a pattern here? Be bold! Don't be afraid, and be adventurous. Try something like this..

Yellow, with white, AND rose gold? Love. 

My goal is to get one for every child I am going to have. When I have more children, I will keep you posted on my ring collection. Until then, have fun with this trend and mix and match. When you invest in nice, good quality pieces, they will last you a lifetime and will each represent a great moment in your life. 

Antique engagement rings and why you should rock these old rocks!

My all time favorite trend in jewelry at the moment has to be antique jewelry. I'm talking OLD stuff. Cameos, old mine cut diamonds, pearls that have turned a beautiful yellow/gold color from years of perfume and hairspray. I can't really call it a "trend" because we all at one point found an old broach or pendant at a yard sale or our mother's jewelry box and wore that vintage find with pride. However, the "antique" trend is making its way into Bridal jewelry. Once brides get a hold of it, Pin 50 of the same ring on their "Future Mrs." board on Pinterest, its officially a trend in my book. Who am I to judge? My original dream engagement ring was inspired from an Edwardian era Platinum and diamond ring. Did I get it? Well, not really. My husband came in the store while I was on vacation with a dear friend, and he picked out a beautiful ring. He proposed, 3 months after he purchased the ring BTW, which is a crazy long time but I had already waited 6 years, what was another 3 more months haha. So he had told me I can make the ring I wanted. We made the ring, it was beautiful, but I didn't want it. It wasn't the ring that he picked. It wasn't the ring that he brought his mother into the store to help him choose, not the ring that my father showed him, not the ring my youngest sister had to keep secret for 3 months from me. The ring was made, but it wasn't for me. Maybe on our 10 year wedding anniversary we will design something together. I guess I'm all sentimental like that. 

Anyways, lets talk about some of my favorite antiques that we have. I have photos! These two are both Platinum and have old mine cut diamonds and are both very old. We are thinking some time around the 1940's. When I say "Old mine cut" diamonds, this is referring to the way the diamond was cut. Both a brilliant cut (a modern cut) and an old mine cut both have the same number of facets, 58, but the old mine didn't follow any uniformity in the cutting like they do today. One side of the diamond could be thicker than the other side, the facets might not be the same size or symmetrical to its opposite side. This creates a very unique look, something that I always am looking for in a piece of jewelry. If you want to learn more, check out this great article from a trade magazine, Rapaport Magazine. 

So consider an antique ring for your engagement ring! It will be unique, and has a story to tell. Even better yet, if you have a family ring that is being passed down to you, have it restored instead of trading it in. Its a lovely way to remember a family member, and to keep the jewelry in the family. 

Earring cuffs, and the average woman

Are you looking to spice up your earring routine, but feel you are not hip enough to pull of this trend? Why not?! I say that if anyone tries hard enough, they too can pull off this trend like any hipster (minus the Cosby sweater and high wasted acid wash jeans. No one should have to try to pull that look off. Its called laundry day). This is a such a versatile trend, and you can wear it everyday or for a special occasion. This is also a great look for woman with short hair. A great example of short hair and the earring cuff was beautifully displayed by Lupita nyong'o at this years Oscars.

She is exquisite isn't she? Don't we all want to chop off our hair now, but who are we kidding? Look at that bone structure! She has on these amazing yellow gold and diamonds cuffs. Honestly, if the diamonds were not so big, you could wear this everyday. It can easily replace your hoops, or dangling earrings. 

Now if you don't have the guts/the bone structure to cut off your hair, no worries, you too can rock this style. 

Sandra Bullock, can we take a moment to just admire how stunning she looks...are we done? Need more time? Ok me too :) She is beautiful, a great actress, and an all around cool girl who we all want to hang out with. Sandra, because we are on a first name basis apparently, is a style icon. She has been rocking the pulled to one side, look at my amazing earring cuffs look for awhile now and I simply love it. This is a great look that most woman with medium to long hair can pull off, and it works for most ages as well. 

I have been dying to try earrings like this, and I am currently working on making some for our store. I am converting a pair of dangling earrings into this cuff style. Check back in the next day or so, and I will have updates and photos. I also want to make more in silver and possibly turquoise. Ohh, that would be fun for summer! Ok, this is going to be a fun project. 

Well hello there people of the internet

This is my very first blog post, and I'm super excited! I want this to be a fun blog that will be a place you can come to learn about jewelry, fashion, motherhood, makeup, and silly cat photos (of course). A little about me. I am the eldest of 3 girls (its a good thing our father is a jeweler). I am married to my best friend, whom I met in high school but didn't start dating until we started college so I don't think that makes us high school sweethearts but either way, we have a love for each other that is more than I ever thought I was going to get in this lifetime. We have an adorable little boy, whom we have declared to be a genies (he will be the next Einstein, Hemingway, or Seinfeld one day, I'm sure of it). I am also a jeweler! Amazing right? I'm not the "I purchased a beading kit from Target" kind of jeweler (not that there is anything wrong with that) but I am the real ruby, surrounded by real diamonds, set in real gold, made by a real hand kinda jeweler. I have a degree from GIA, and BS in Business from UCR, as well a degree of "Watching and learning from my dad and uncles" my entire life. The good ol' fashion way a jeweler was made, by apprenticeship.

I run a retail and wholesale jewelry business in Southern California WITH my family. Do I deserve a medal, yes. Is there an honorary Nobel Prize for working with your family, and not having a break down...I sure hope so. All joking aside, we are a huge family that loves each other very much and the jewelry business.

Ok enough about that, lets look at some diamonds shall we?