Recycling Roses

No, I'm not going crazy and attempting to use rosebuds in my jewelry. Though, that gives me an idea about pressing small flowers and encapsulating them in resin...

Ahem. Pardon my random trains of thought. :)

BUT--continuing on the upcycling trend, I've made a new set of earrings that follow an elegant vibe.

Version 1--Long Elegance

This pair of earrings was the starter piece of the collection. It started out as a project for a "bunch"-type earring, but when the beads just didn't lay right, I tore everything apart again and reconstructed them from the beginning. And voilá--a new kind of elegance! Long, delicate and prim & proper, these can be worn to church, prom or any dress-up function. The texture of the rose paper makes these pop and will be certain to gain compliments. They almost bring back memories of Grandma's old trunk full of jewelry.

Version 2 - Cheeky Elegance

This pair of the collection was a spin-off of the original "Long Elegance" earrings. Adding a whimsical silver and several pearls to the mix, the beads were shortened to allow the pearls to bounce the eye down the earrings and end at a full-bodied rose texture that still spells "formal".

Version 3 - Playful Elegance

An ode to the original starter idea for this collection, this pair of earrings stars two altered grape-bunch clusters of rose paper beads and pearls, and a large freshwater pearl balances in the middle of each to give it that final touch. The chunky silver beads on the ear wires gives it that playful note, while the rose texture and pearls keep the feminine side alive.

All of these compose the Rose Blush Collection. You can visit my Etsy site (see the link on the side toolbar) to view more pictures and purchase any of this set.

Recycle to Repurpose

How many times have you looked at that stack of magazines in the living room and wonder, "Why did I ever order those? I never read them" or maybe "I've got so many cardboard boxes I could construct a house"?

I know I've done it countless times.

Instead of tossing them in the garbage can or even shoving them in the recycling bin where it will cost companies hundreds of thousands of dollars to re-pulp, re-bleach, and re-sell for higher prices, why don't we reuse those magazines and boxes for an even better purpose?

REUSE!

Throwing things in the trash these days is now tantamount to crime, so why not help out the rest of the environment by recycling all our old things into something reusable or even beautiful? Be eco-friendly! I created inner envelopes from sewn magazine pages, fused plastic grocery bags, and even cardboard Girl Scout cookie boxes. I also created jewelry from magazine paper--and look how cool that turned out. There is no end to what we can do for the environment, and on top of that if you're repurposing old paper as jewelry you're boosting the local artisan business by not using newly created resources. There are even jewelers who only use recycled metals that have been separated out by metal refiners. Did you know that mining an ounce of gold creates up to 62 tons of acidic waste rock?

Yep, and all that is draining into your local sewers. Are you thinking twice about purchasing a brand new metal item?