Mini Sunglasses Necklace

It was like my inner nerd, librarian, and beach babe all needed to express themselves through jewelry, and this is the sparkly little bauble that they agreed on.

Light, mini sized, and made from either a 14K gold fill/gold vermeil combo or solid sterling silver.   

And it's here in time to enjoy some summer sun.  Find it with many other treasures at the Daffodil Boutique.

New Design Sneak Peek

As a treat for the Everything's Coming Up Daffodils followers, here's a first look at a new necklace design coming soon to my Etsy shop.  Naturally, it's simple, available in gold or solid sterling silver (shown), and a little bit quirky.  And in line with all of my other Daffodil Boutique pieces, it will also be very reasonably priced.

New Photos of a Classic Piece: Gold Tiny Signature Circle Necklace

I love crossing things off my to-do list, even if that list is a mile long and only exists in my head. This week I checked a big item off: re-photographing the Gold Tiny Signature Circle Necklace.  During my first time around with this necklace, I was a wee bit obsessed with those super crisp, white backgrounds in professional jewelry photography.   For a novice photographer (who doesn't want to bother setting up a light tent), they're almost impossible to achieve unless you want to devote hours to the highly tedious task of editing out less than pristine white backdrops by hand - which I used to do however is completely out of the question now.   Here is the first round of photos.




Let's critique the obvious.  They're small, the quality is grainy, the color looks flat and dead.  Ugh. I could go on and on.  And it's such a shame because this is a beautiful necklace.  It's whisper light and elegant, and the combination of shapes and lines beautifully accentuates these qualities.  And because of these awful photos, it never sells.  Except for last week when an Etsy customer saw something captivating beneath that photo quality disaster and took, from their perspective, a risk and clicked "Buy".  Making the necklace again gave me new impetus to do it justice.  And here's the result.

You can see that I'm definitely over the pure white background.  Ah, who knows.  Maybe I'll jump back in there one day and edit it out because I love how it makes golds and silvers pop.  But gray isn't bad either and if Saks uses it, who am I to thumb my nose at that?

One more, this time with a gradient and shadow.  I can't help getting a little fancy here and there.

This necklace retails for just $26 and is available for sale with many other eye-pleasing jewelry pieces at the Daffodil Boutique. Thanks for taking a moment to check out my shop.

Daffodil Boutique Necklace Giveaway at Fantabulously Frugal

A big thank you to the lovely Liz at Fantabulously Frugal for featuring Daffodil Boutique!   Head over to her style-savvy blog for a great scoop on how to get Aly's celebrity look on the new hit CW tv series, Hellcats.  

Photo: CWTV.com

Liz has parsed together some great fashion steals to come up with a look that is spot-on Aly but also very you and me too. I have a real weakness for fashionable, comfortable and washable (I am a pratical girl at heart) clothing, and this ensemble certainly fits the bill.

Now this look needs a finishing touch. Our fearless heroine has something sparkly around her neckline.  What would complete her style?

Photo: CWTV.com

Nothing other than the much acclaimed Large Wishbone Necklace in Gold  or Sterling Silver.

 

Both versions are for sale now at Daffodil Boutique, and one lucky winner will nab one for FREE!  Just go to the post at Fantabulously Frugal and comment, tweet and/or mention on Facebook for your chance to win.  The contest ends Wednesday, October 7 at 12:00 noon ET. You can enter once per day, so return and repeat, repeat, repeat to up your chances.

A special welcome to the Giveaway Scout visitors too!  Giveaway Scout is a free site that lists thousands blog giveaways, contests and sweepstakes in one place. They scan a large number of giveaway blogs and update every hour on their site and through email.  

Thank you again for the spotlight at Fantabulously Frugal and good luck to all the participants!

FREE Ice Cream at Cold Stone Creamery on Sept 30th

I love a deal that helps support an amazing charity and throws in a lil ice cream too!  Mark your calendars on September 30, 2010, because just such an event is happening at Cold Stone Creamery locations around the nation. 

All through the month of September, Cold Stone Creamery has been  partnering with the Make-A-Wish Foundation to grant wishes for sick kiddos.   This is a cause that I love and I support with part of the proceeds from my own Medium Gold Wishbone Necklace.  It's a demure matte gold wishbone just under an inch long and made from luxury, durable materials. 

But back to the FREE ice cream!

Now in its charitable efforts, the Make-A-Wish Foundation granted a wish that has very tasty derivatives for all.  Kate is an 11 year old girl whose wish was to be an official Cold Stone Creamery TasteMaster for a day.  (Nice wish, Kate!)

From 5 pm - 8 pm on September 30th, the fruits of her labors, titled Kate's Creation, will be served in 3 oz portions to each Cold Stone Creamery patron for FREE. 

And just what is in Kate's Creation? It's a mouth-watering combination of Caramel Apple Ice Cream, chocolate shavings, Graham Cracker pie crust, and apple pie filling. Get a look at this dessert. 

Kate, you shouldn't have! 

And the sweetest part?  85% of the donations acquired during the ice cream giveaway will be donated to the Make-A-Wish Foundation.  So while it is free, be charitable and contribute a buck or two or more if you can. Well done Kate, Cold Stone Creamery, and Make-A-Wish Foundation!  Can't wait to participate. 

And don't forget to check out the Daffodil Boutique for a second look at that Medium Gold Wishbone Necklace and many other sparkling niceties too.

Wishbone Necklace Giveaway: Winner Announced!

The response to the Daffodil Boutique Wishbone Necklace Giveaway at Fantabulously Frugal was waaaay beyond expectation!  With over 70 entries, it was quite an exciting contest and entries continued to come in right until the last hour.  The comments posted were so kind and inspiring.  Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who entered and for making it so fun.
And without further ado...

The winner of the Gold or Silver Large Wishbone Necklace is entry 41, Nancy Houston!

Nancy please contact me at sales {at} daffodilboutique {dot} com to confirm your prize and shipping information.  I hope you're 100% delighted with your new necklace.  It will be a delight to make it for you!

And as a special thank you to everyone for viewing, commenting and participating, I'll be offering a 25% discount on all Daffodil Boutique jewelry good through September 27, 2010.   Just convo me through Etsy with the piece(s) you'd like, mention the code EverythingDaffodils, and I'll create a custom listing just for you.

Thank you again to everyone who entered.  Let's do this again soon!  In fact - take a look at the Daffodil Boutique collection and comment below about the piece that you'd like to see featured in the next giveaway.

New Design: Secret Garden Key Necklace

Remember the scene where Mary Lennox finds the key in the novel, The Secret Garden?  This is what I imagine it looked like.

I liked the size and weight of this solid sterling silver key when I found it.  And it looks just right on the patterned sterling silver chain.  At 18 inches in length, this necklace rest just right on the neckline and looks every bit as polished as much more expensive versions. You'll be able to find it on Etsy soon.

All images are property of Daffodil Boutique.

Daffodil Boutique Jewelry at FantabulouslyFrugal

It's always hard to come back after a three day weekend, but this time it was a tad bit easier.  OK, it was a A LOT easier!  

This morning I got an email from guest blogger Megan that Daffodil Boutique jewelry is being featured on Fantabulously Frugal today!  What a treat and an honor!

I'm just thrilled with the response and the kind words from each commenter - Each of you is honestly making my day. A few of the readers' favorite pieces mentioned are the Modern Key Necklace,the Gold Branch Necklace, and my personal fave the Ethical Diamond in the Rough Necklace.

As part of the spotlight, there will be a FREE necklace offered to one reader. The lucky winner will have the choice of a gold or silver Wishbone Necklace. 

This is one of the most raved about Daffodil Boutique pieces, and it could be yours!  Go to the blog post on Fantabulously Frugal and comment/tweet as described here to win.

Comment about what your favorite piece is in Daffodil Boutique’s collection. Also, tweet about this giveaway for an additional chance to win. Don’t forget to leave a separate comment that you tweeted! You can comment and tweet once per day. Oh, and the contest ends Sunday, September 12 at 12:00 noon EST.

As an aside, Megan from Everyday Nonsense from a Nonsensical Gal offers some great reads with heart-to-heart sentiments on life as a newly wed, more giveaways, and some pretty darn cute sewing projects.  I highly recommend you check her out.

Thanks again to Fantabulously Frugal and Megan from Everyday Nonsense from a Nonsensical Gal. Everything about this experience has been superb!

A special welcome to the Giveaway Scout visitors too!  Giveaway Scout is a free site that lists thousands blog giveaways, contests and sweepstakes in one place. They scan a large number of giveaway blogs and update every hour on their site and through email.

Daffodil Boutique Jewelry at StyleMePretty

If you've been browsing the wedding blog of wedding blogs, StyleMePretty, then you might have spotted some of my jewelry.

In an array of color, playful whimsy, and sweltering mid-Summer heat in hot, hot Alabama, my sister married her true love last June. I was honored to create the bridesmaids' necklaces and the bride's something blue, a two-strand, Swavorski pearl necklace with a turquoise blue tie. 

The bride looked like a she'd walked out of a magazine - and the editors of StyleMePretty agreed. See the inspiration-worthy highlights of the big day here.

Here's a sampling of them for you.

For the inside scoop on how this wedding came together from the dress down to the wedding favors, check out The Blue Sky Bride.

All images are from photography talent, Lauren Kinsey.

The Long Sterling Silver Clover Necklace

This layering chain is a customer favorite at the Daffodil Boutique.  For too long, the photos of this piece have been mediocre.  Today I tried photographing on a new backdrop, sheet music.  Hopefully this technique will play into its elegance and a lovely symphony will result.  (Those are the last of the music puns, I promise).

These were photographed in natural indoor light, which in my opinion does the best justice to polished sterling silver. Here are a couple of teaser photos. See more on the Etsy listing.

All images are property of Daffodil Boutique.