Hot off the bench this week!

This week has been going by so fast. In between working behind the bench and doing some gardening I haven't had much time do pursue my other endeavors. Not sure if I am suffering from allergies, but for the first time ever I wake up with teary and itchy eyes every morning, and in addition I feel extremely tired. If this persists I'll have to get an allergy test done.

I usually don't make a lot of rings, but this week I made a batch of 5!

Agua Nueva Agate, Golden Rutilated Quartz, Mexican Lace Agate and Red Forest Plume Agate. All are now listed in my Etsy shop!

I also finished this one:

and this ocean jasper one:

I also made three gemstone bracelets, great for everyday wear and to pair with others:

All of these items are now up for adoption!

So, head on over to my shop and "snaggle" yourself up some beauties! :)

xx Sabine

New Work

I have this intense need to only craft botanical items these days. I also want to push myself to create larger statement pieces. There'll definitively be more of these kinds. I worked on this baby for the most part of yesterday. It came out so beautifully that I almost gasped after giving it the final patina and polish. I can honestly say that this is one of my all time favorite pieces I have made to date. A true labor of love which shows off all the elements that inspire me.
It will be listed later on today in my Etsy shop!

I also made this one. The amethyst needs to be set yet properly. I purchased this huge vintage amethyst in France two years ago. It's the best quality, clear, without any inclusions. Been working with tapered settings, which I don't normally like making. However, I think it's important to step out of ones comfort zone, in order to grow and get better. There can not be any progress in a boxed-in state of mind. 

On my bench are still a couple of necklaces and rings in the making. Hope to have them finished tomorrow. 

Thanks for stopping by!

xx Sabine

Giveaway Winner

I contemplated advertising my giveaway on other high traffic blogs, however, I had done that in the past and in what seemed like a couple of hours, I had dozen and dozens of comments from people that I have never seen or heard from before, and afterwards never "saw" again. So, I realize that my blog is fairly new and still has some growing to do, which is just fine by me. No need to rush anything.
Well, I received four comments, all from very dear people. Thank you so much for visiting my blog, for your interest and support in my work! I really appreciate it!

John chose the winner, which is Pam T.!! Congratulations!!! <3

I'll have one giveaway a month from now on!

I wish you all a very happy easter weekend!

Much love,
Sabine

Happenings and a SALE

It's finally BBQ season, which couldn't make me happier!

Yesterday we took out the BBQ, and the grill season officially started! It makes things quite easy for me when all I have to do is fire up the Grill instead of spending hours behind the stove making dinner. As odd as it sounds, but I am grateful for being able to purchase good cheeseknacker sausages and all sorts off other BBQ meats, which was impossible to find in Norway ( no offense my dear Norwegian friends ). Germans usually eat their big meal at lunch time, but I just can not get used to that. Although I often dislike having to leave the bench to make dinner. Oddly enough I get my most inspiration in the evening hours or very early in the morning. My attention span peaks usually at 2PM. If the creative flow doesn't happen I don't force myself to continue. I usually take a walk or run errands during that time.

The pergola behind the house

I usually work on several items at the same time. I'm just like that. I tried to change that in the past, but it doesn't work for me. Why force it?

Here are a couple of new items I finished this week:

A labor of love, sterling silver and green chalcedony: Just listed here 

*SOLD* Woodland necklace with beautiful royal imperial jasper, Baltic amber, various etched botanical elements and a hand cast horse in silver. One of my all time favorite pieces!

Unique diamond shaped earrings in silver and rose quartz beads

Oak leaf earrings in sterling silver with funky embossed pattern

Dalmation jasper earrings in silver.

The earrings will be listed shortly!

Head on over to my shop where you'll receive a 20% discount on all items ( $40 dollar minimum purchase ). Use the code EASTERSALE @ checkout! Sale lasts until Monday! :) This will be my last big sale for a while!

Good friday everyone!

xx-Sabine

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Tuesday This and That

Here are some finds that put a smile on my face:

I am just in awe of these incredible pictures: Music to the eyes

This one touched my heart and made me smile: First time flyers

This magnificent area is what I get to see when I go for my morning run- blooming fruit trees...never mind the smell!

I will have to get some of these: Postcards with coasters

My favorite food blogs: http://iamafoodblog.com

                                       http://www.loveandlemons.com

                                       The Kitchn

Here you can find some beautifully made wreaths. They have some cute easter inspired ones right now, that, if you live in the US you could still get in time for easter: Bunny Wreath. Check out the rest of the shop as well: The Bakers Daughter

I love these mirrored bird hooks ( especially for that price ): Bird Hooks and this Bird Shelf

I also listed two new items in my Etsy shop today:

Beautiful Agua Nueva Necklace in Sterling Silver 

Ocean Jasper Necklace in Sterling Silver

Thanks for reading!

xx- Sabine

New Work

For the past three months I have been slowly building on a simple, everyday style jewelry collection. I wanted to keep the items simple with a modern trendy edge.
Here's a collage of a collection that I will be offering in my shop from now on. There will be more to come, such as mixed metal items. Most of these items will be kept brightly polished, however, you can have the option to purchase the item oxidized as well.

At this point I am not entirely sure yet if I will keep all these items in my current Etsy shop, or if I'll open a new shop. I don't like cluttered shops, with too many pages to go through. We'll see how it goes. What is your opinion on this? Would you keep them all in one place, or would you rather have them separate in another shop?

 Most of these items are now available, and the rest will be listed periodically over the course of this week!

I just got in a large shipment of agua nueva agates again. Can't wait to use them!

Hope you all have had a great start into the new week!

Thanks for reading!

xx Sabine

GIVEAWAY

I've been thinking about having a giveaway for quite some time now, but I just never got around to it. I think I found the perfect piece to give away this time. It's a beautiful landscape jasper heart, hand fabricated by me and set in sterling silver. It comes with an oxidized finish, for that modern rustic touch. A little bit bohemian with a contemporary style.

I'll keep it simple. The only thing you need to do is to go to my Etsy shop and pick out a piece of jewelry that you like most, and let me know about it in the comment field below. *Please include your e-mail address. You are, of course, free to share this giveaway with your friends! 

The contest closes on Friday, April 18th. I'll announce the winner here on my blog!

Good luck!!

xx- Sabine

*Post Edit: You do not need to include your e-mail address in your posting! The winners name will be announced here on my blog.

Bench News

Hi all,

It's been a very productive week here in my studio. It's odd how the muse sends me into overdrive one week and puts on the breaks in the next.
I think the change in weather has been very helpful in terms of creativity. I don't take many days off in between, but make sure that I nourish my other interests as well, so that I have a healthy balance of work and fun.
For the first time in my life I have a vegetable garden, which I am excited about! It will be nice to harvest the fruits of our own labor.
It's been great to experience such a warm spring in comparison with the cold in Norway. However, I really miss Scandinavia. It has it's own unique charm. The south of Norway is actually quite wonderful in terms of "milder" winters compared to north of the arctic circle. No one could ever get me to live there again. It's too isolated. I need to know that I can sit in the car and be able to drive to another city within at least an hour.
Now we live in a small suburb in the heart of the black forest, in the deep south of Germany. I grew up here, and funny enough, I always said that I would never ever move back here. Yet we did, well for a year or two, and then our adventure will lead us once again to another place. Not quite sure where, but somewhere where one can thrive easier being a self employed artist without the hassles of so much bureaucracy. I had forgotten how hard it actually is here, in that regard.
But in the meanwhile, while we are here, we will be traveling quite a bit. Strasbourg in France is just a  20 min. drive from here and Basel in Switzerland just a mere 45 min.! Would love to take a drive to Lake Como this summer. There are so many ridiculously beautiful places here in Europe, and because we live so central makes it easy to get around.

Now we are taking a little walk through our yard:

Room with a view.

John repurposed a old fiber glass oil tank into a spring bed. 

I think it's perfect, and serves the purpose,

                                    and in addition, it won't end up on the hills of a dumpster.

John mowing the lawn this afternoon.

Little spring blooms

Tulips in their full glory

I also made some jewelry:

Rustic Moonflower Necklace with Blue Chalcedony

Sunflower Necklace in Oxidized Silver and Yellow Agate

Tree of Life Necklace- Agua Nueva Agate in Etched Silver

Custom Order Pansy Necklace in Silver with a Gorgeous Blue Chalcedony

 

Botanical Necklace in Silver and Aqua Chalcedony

Prudent Man Agate Necklace in Silver with a partially handmade chain.

Pansy Necklace with beautiful pink druzy stone. 

This slice of Amazonite is the best quality there is. I could not capture the true intense color of this beauty. It's set in sterling silver. 

Most of these items are listed in my shop already! The other ones will be added to the shop this weekend!

Well, it's BBQ season and I need to finish my potato salad!

Have a super duper weekend ya'll and thanks so much for stopping by!

Psst... there will be a give-away posted tomorrow!! 

So, come on back to check out what's up for grabs!

xx Sabine