It’s all about the earrings!

For many years I have been making statement necklaces – which hopefully make an understated statement

‘My aesthetic is modern and bold with simple clean lines. My pieces are comfortable and wearable. They are often matt with subtle colourings. My aim is for my pieces to make an understated statement.’

During the current lockdown I have discovered the joys of working with Jesmonite and combining cast Jesmonite pieces with silver and stones. Somehow this has led to a shift in focus – I’m definitely not leaving behind my statement necklaces but recently I’ve loved making earrings. Like so many of us, I have lockdown fatigue at the moment. Designing and making has been good for the soul! The processes involved are almost meditative and I’m so grateful to have been able to access my studio.

Looking back I realise that the necklace has always taken centre stage in my work and often earrings have been an afterthought – a small pair of earrings to compliment a statement necklace. Even in my Design Ranges, earrings have always felt like an add on.

My initial idea was to make a Jesmonite pendant and use that shape as a template for new earring designs. You can see some of my ideas and designs here.

I’ve run with this and suddenly the main focus of my creative energy has been on designing and making earrings. I’ve made long, dangly statement ones and a variety of styles on posts. Some are silver, some are silver and semi-precious stones, some are silver and Jesmonite and some combine all three materials.

I think so many of us are communicating online at the moment over Zoom, Facetime, Teams etc and fab pair of earrings is an easy way to express individual style. It might sound trite, but it can provide a quick uplift. I think the movement of an earring adds interest and they can really ‘frame’ the face.

A pair of earrings can make make a great gift – I’ve noticed many customers recently buying them for friends and family. It’s somehow harder to buy a necklace for someone else and often bracelets and rings have to be sized.

A downside is that long earrings can become tangled in masks and I do think we will be wearing them for some time to come. The solution? Change to a pair of simple studs or add a butterfly to the back of your ear hook. This works a treat – if you buy a pair of long earrings from me let me know if you’d like me to include a set of butterflies with them, either silver or clear plastic (no extra charge).

Adding butterflies has led me to ask – would it be useful to have an add on section in my web shop where customers can buy some butterflies, longer handmade ear hooks, handmade extension chains for necklaces and longer chains (perhaps 24” rather than the usual16’ or 18”)? I would make this offer at cost price & P&P – it’s not a money making idea. Do let me know if you think this is of interest?

As a thank you to my very supportive mailing list subscribers I’m going to give away a random pair of my new earrings. If you’d like to ‘win’ a pair, head over to my contacts page and sign up to my mailing list. I’ll be sending out details in the next few days.

https://www.angelalearoydjewellery.com/contact

I’m currently photographing my new earring designs and uploading them to by web shop. Hopefully when restrictions ease you will also be able to find them in the shops and galleries which stock my work. I’m not enjoying the online world although it’s been a lifeline for many of us in recent months. I’m not sure if events and fairs will be able to go ahead in 2021 but hopefully retail will be able to open up. It will definitely be a time to support our local independent businesses, shops and galleries……but that’s a whole new blog post…..

Bye for now,

Angela xxx