Jewelry Designer Blog

November 30, 2010

Jewelry Design Success Stories

Filed under: Success Stories — Tags: , , , — juanita @ 10:20 am

Meet Brandy Thomason of Bella Vita

The “who, where, and how” behind fabulous jewelry designs is just as interesting and inspiring as the jewelry itself. This month we’d like you to meet Brandy Thomason of Bella Vita Handmade Jewelry. Brandy is a successful and free-spirited jewelry designer living near Little Rock, AR, with her partner, Matt, and their adventurous puppy, Arlo. Her online store encompasses three very distinct lines of jewelry that feature semi-precious gemstones, vintage glass, and found objects. Brandy’s jewelry is breathtaking and quite an inspiration.

Check out her designs at www.bellavitajewelry.net. Become a fan of Bella Vita Handmade Jewelry on Facebook. And, peruse her blog, where you’ll get lost in her rich, colorful photos and meet her darling puppy, Arlo.

We managed to catch up with Brandy and ask her a few questions. Here are her answers:

When did you discover your talent for jewelry design?
I discovered my love for jewelry design early. When I was 12 years old I made friendship bracelets with seed beads on floral wire. By the time I was 14 I practically lived at the local bead store where I learned to macramé, properly crimp beads and much more. I received many compliments on my jewelry and began selling it in high school. I thought my interest in jewelry was just a phase and that I would soon get tired of it. I went away to college and earned my degree in Interior Design. I enjoyed it, but after my first job in an architecture firm I decided it wasn’t for me. Before long I found myself heading to the local bead store in Little Rock to fill out a job application! I started there the next week. Then I dug out my old bead boxes and made enough jewelry for a little Christmas show at a friend’s house. I got so much praise I decided maybe I should pursue jewelry design. I started Bella Vita Jewelry in December of 2008. Over the last two years I have come to realize that this is what I am supposed to be doing. It comes so naturally I couldn’t imagine doing anything else.

(psst . . . click on the link below to read more).
(more…)

November 29, 2010

Thanks for All the Wonderful Silver Charm Ideas

Filed under: philanthropy — Tags: , — juanita @ 12:26 pm

We were very happy with the results of our silver charms and food drive for the Thanksgiving Season. We received over 50 suggestions for silver charms that we’ll turn into a $100 donation to the Alameda County Community Food Bank. Some of the silver charm ideas included: baby buggy, deer antlers, envelope, frog, scales of justice, and a postcard. There were many great ideas. And, with time you may see some of them in silver! Thanks so much for your participation. Support your local food banks.

Alameda County Community Food Bank

November 24, 2010

Silver Charm Thanksgiving Bracelet

Filed under: Customer Service — Tags: , — Anna @ 9:44 am

Here at Nina Designs our business is Silver Charms and Pendants, but our passion is beauty! November has come again, and I was just getting used to the idea that it was October, but isn’t it always that way. Time has shortened our days, increased our need for hot beverages, yummy treats and shiny packages topped ribbons and bows. Amidst the flurry of holiday preparation, it is nice to slow down, at least for a moment, and give attention to the ideals behind the traditions and treats.

Gratitude Bracelet

This is a time of giving thanks for what we have, who we are , and what we can give. A time for appreciating what is and letting go of what is not. When the job market, metals market, and much else feels out of balance, it can seem like a time to be thankful for nothing. But I think if we all just listed a few things we do have, instead of what we don’t, the perspective shift can change everything.

Professionally, I’m grateful for all of you! Without our loyal customers none of what Nina Designs does would be possible, and there wouldn’t be an office full of wonderful women for me to come to every morning. To give thanks, we are offering free ground shipping (or $7.00 off any other type of shipping you prefer) for all of our customers with coupon code: thanks! Just enter the word “thanks” (without the quotation marks) in the coupon code section on your order form. It is good for one use only, expiring at the end of December 2010.

Personally , I appreciate that I can breathe deeply (not always an option for me), that I have loving friends and family, a wonderful, kind, new husband who makes me laugh everyday, a small, usually messy home, and a stinky dog who tends to eat all our food if we don’t watch him like a hawk. In honor of all this I have a made a bracelet to remind myself in those bleaker moments of all the wonderful things I have in my life.

What are you grateful for this year? We look forward to sharing your responses and spreading the positivity!

November 22, 2010

Sterling Silver Charms Give Thanks

Filed under: philanthropy — Tags: — nina @ 9:44 am

Sterling Silver Charms from Nina Designs come in hundreds of shapes but we are always looking for new ideas. We also like to give thanks during this holiday season by making donations to prevent hunger. We thought it would be fun to combine our passion for silver charms with a food drive. Just leave a comment with your idea for a new silver charm and we will donate $1 to the Alameda County Community Food Bank. We’ll donate another $1 if you find Nina Designs on Facebook or Twitter, and leave your silver charm ideas there too! We have had requests for football charms, bear silver charms and kitchen utensil silver charms. What is your silver charm request? Think about it while you cook and feast. We will run this silver charm/food drive through November 28th. Bon Apetit!

An excerpt from Alameda County Community 2010 Hunger Study: “Children make up the largest group of people receiving emergency food in Alameda County. Alarmingly, this study reveals that demand among minors is escalating at a rate disproportional to the population in general. Seniors also remain particularly vulnerable to hunger. For low-income seniors, many of whom are already susceptible to chronic diseases and disabilities, a lack of access to nutritious food often triggers depression”.

Alameda County Community Food Bank

November 19, 2010

Silver Jewelry Findings – Plan Ahead for the Holiday Season

Filed under: Customer Service — Tags: — juanita @ 8:30 am

Have you just started planning your holiday jewelry projects only to realize that your silver jewelry findings are running low? Don’t worry. You’re not alone. We’ve answering a lot of questions regarding how quickly we can get orders out the door. Planning around holiday shipping schedules can be challenging. To make things easier you’ll find Nina Designs’ Holiday Shipping Schedule below.

NORMAL SHIP PROCESS: We process orders Monday through Friday from 9am to 5pm. Though we try our best, depending on our order volume, your package may or may not go out the same day they are received. As long as we get them by 2pm Pacific Standard Time, expedited orders requesting UPS Overnight, UPS 2 Day, or UPS 3 Day will go out the same day they’re received. Orders requesting UPS Ground and USPS Priority are processed after expedited orders and then in the order they’re received.

Monday is always our busiest day with the order volume decreasing as the week progresses. This means that a UPS Ground order placed on Sunday may not ship until Tuesday or even Wednesday. Mondays are usually spent processing expedited shipping orders placed during the weekend. After expedited orders have been processed, we move on to UPS Ground and USPS Priority orders. Keep in mind this means any expedited orders placed on Monday might be processed before we get to a UPS ground order placed on Sunday.

HOLIDAY SHIPPING: We are currently in the middle of our busy season. Though we are processing a high volume of orders everyday, we are not able to process all orders received the same day. Also keep in mind that UPS and USPS are moving a lot more packages during holiday season.

To see details on Holiday Shipping Dates, click here: (more…)

November 17, 2010

Root Bound Tree of Life Silver Pendant Necklace

Filed under: Inspiration — Tags: , , , — Laura @ 10:56 am

Our hand carved mother of pearl tree of life silver pendant inspired me because of it’s colorful shimmer and the vast symbolism of trees. I have been in northern California for a year now and feel that I, like a young tree, am beginning to grow roots here. I have been blessed by a good home and friends and, more recently, a fabulous job here at Nina Designs. As I’m sure many of you know, the ladies in the office are very creative and passionate about making jewelry, and while I’ve always loved wearing it, the actual construction of jewelry has been a mysterious art to me. I’ve been working here just three months, but in that time I have learned so much.

Macrame Root Bound Necklace

My new interest in jewelry design started with the smaller details of construction, like figuring out what silver crimp beads and silver jump rings are all about and how to add the perfect silver clasp to really pull it all together. In this necklace I used different colors and thicknesses of silk cord as a backdrop for the regal gold vermeil beads and the super funky interwoven silver chain. These gold beads paired well with the square knot technique used in macrame. I can’t wait to further explore this technique using these materials. What weaving techniques have you applied to jewelry design?

November 15, 2010

Sterling Silver Pendant Bails Demystified

Filed under: Tips and Techniques — Tags: , , — juanita @ 8:30 am

Sterling silver pendant bails offer jewelry designers an elegant way to hang pendants from a silver chain or a necklace. You can find over 40 different gold vermeil and silver pendant bails for sale at Nina Designs. In addition to your traditional pendant bails, we’ve designed a number of pinch pendant bails, tube pendant bails, and removable pendant bails. Traditional pendant bails and tube pendant bails are made to slide over your chain, silk cord, leather cord, or wire wrapped gemstones while you are composing your necklace. Once they are placed where you want it, there it stays.

Removable pendant bails offer maximum versatility. If you have a favorite pendant you like to wear often, this is a good choice for you. On a day you’re wearing your favorite jeans and a t-shirt, you can hang your pendant from chain. That evening on your way to the opera, you can easily remove your pendant from the chain and hang it on black silk ribbon worn as a choker. We offer a good variety of removable pendant bails, some quite fancy & embellished with marcasite, others understated & minimal.

One we get a lot of questions about is the simple s-shaped removable pendant bail pictured below. It causes some confusion and took some explaining for me to get it too. It is designed to use with front-drilled pendants, like front-drilled gemstones and artisan pendants made of resin, clay, glass, or shell. But as you can see from our design, you can use it in many ways. The thing to remember is that it’s made for use with any pendants whose holes or rings are front facing.

For comparison purposes, I’d like to introduce a unique silver charm holder that looks almost like this removable pendant bail. The main difference is that it’s made for use with silver charms whose ring faces to the side. They both offer designers a minimal looks that doesn’t interfere with your overall design, but is effective, simple, and secure. Try them today and see for yourself.

Removable Pendant featuring pendant with front-facing hole.

Same Pendant, simply switched to a more dramatic cord.

Removable Pendant Bail - for pendants with sideways facing holes.

November 12, 2010

Feather Silver Charms Evoke a Tribal Spirit

Filed under: Fashion Friday, Inspiration — Tags: , , — Marcy @ 8:30 am

Tribal Spirit Earrings

With the feather silver charms in mind, I was inspired to create statement earrings with a Native American flair. Maybe it’s because I’m really drawn to it, but I’ve been noticing an overwhelming presence of earthy, tribal looks on the fashion scene lately. For as long as I can remember I’ve always loved this look. Growing up, my family would travel to Montana every summer and we would go to pow wows and Indian reservations. I was always in awe of the beautiful traditional jewelry with turquoise, silver and intricate bead work.

With these memories in mind, I was inspired to create tribal spirit earrings using feather silver charms and silver earring findings. I love working with leather, so I cut some leather cord into 2″ strips and poked holes at the top and bottom with an awl. I wire wrapped turquoise stones to connect the feather silver charms to the leather. Then I used silver jump rings to connect the leather to the silver earring findings so they would hang like fringe. I wanted the earrings to be long and have a lot of movement like the flow of the feathers on the headdresses worn during dance ceremonies. These earrings are fun, fashionable and remind me of those long road trips to Montana.

Tribal Spirit


Tribal Spirit by MarcyKentz featuring butterfly jewelry

November 10, 2010

Gold Plate Charms vs. Gold Filled

Filed under: Learn Something New — Tags: , — nina @ 8:30 am

Gold plate charms are widely represented in our collection. Our Vermeil style plating has a gorgeous finish that compares favorably with solid high karat gold. Occasionally we get requests for more Gold Filled items. While we do sell a selection of Gold Filled chain and jewelry findings, we prefer to carry gold plated beads and findings because there is a lot more precious metal in our gold plate than there is in gold filled items.

Gold Plate, Gold Filled, and Sterling Silver


Gold Filled findings have a core of base metal (typically brass) and are covered in a layer of 14 karat gold. Hence, the gold is “filled” with a base metal.

Industry Standard Gold Plate is typically a base metal core (brass, copper, nickel) that has a thin wash of solid karat gold. This type of plating has a layer of gold that is typically 7 micro inches thick.

Nina Designs’ Vermeil style Gold Plate begins with our sterling silver findings that are plated with a thick layer of 98.5% pure gold (24 karat). Our gold plate charms and findings have a layer of gold that is 40 micro inches thick and is considered a gem quality plate.

Our gold plate charms and findings are of the highest quality and are far above the industry standard. Try working with any of our gold plate findings and we’re sure you’ll become a fan. With greater durability and hundreds of styles, what’s not to love? Read more specifics about our plating here.

November 8, 2010

Silver charms help support little artists at Half the Sky orphanages

Filed under: philanthropy — Tags: , — juanita @ 1:37 pm

Women who are drawn to jewelry design, who love working with beautiful silver beads and whimsical silver charms, are artists. We imagine and sketch jewelry designs inspired by nature and the things we love. Everyday we create objects of beauty we can’t wait to wear and share with our friends. We are lucky to have found an outlet for our artistic flair and to have that interest recognized, nurtured, and supported by those we love.

Thank you for your support!

This recognition and support of the promise in each and every one of us is exactly what Half the Sky Foundation does for orphaned children in China. Through your support on Facebook, this is why Nina Designs is happy to send Half the Sky a check for $500. Institutionalized children often shut down, feel scared and alone, and, having retreated within themselves, are hard to reach. Through infant nurture, responsive listening, and art exploration these children open up, learn to trust and communicate. No longer shy and reclusive, they become expressive young adults. And, when they show an interest in art that interest is recognized and supported like our families have done for us.

Through generous donations, Half the Sky is able to offer some scholarships for college tuition for kids brought up in their programs: “My name is Luo LiNa and I grew up in the Chengdu Children’s Welfare Institution. As far back as I can remember, I often admired and observed nature around me. Whenever I had spare time, I would take a pen and begin to draw. On July 27th, 2006 I received a letter of admission from Chengdu Technological University. My overwhelming joy quickly changed to fear. Fear that I couldn’t afford tuition and would have to pass on the opportunity I had always dreamed about. Just when I was about to give up on my dream, the institution director told me: “NaNa, Half the Sky will provide you with a scholarship for your tuition!” I was so ecstatic to hear this news that my eyes filled with tears.”

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