Nicolette’s Design Diary

Need a great place to store all of your jewelry? Check out this lovely George Nelson Inspired Jewelry Case by Angie Johnson. You can find the instructions to make your own version on the Design*Sponge blog.

I’ve been complaining for the past couple months that I hadn’t had time to knit anything for a long time. I think the last things I knitted were baby blankets for my nephew and my first godson. They both just turned four last June and November :(. I’ve even stopped getting issues of Vogue Knitting just to keep from feeling so guilty.

Well, I think I’ll be able to squeeze this knitting project in. The instructions on how to make these really cute knit bangles are over at the See Me Knit blog. I think the author said that someone saw a cashmere set knitted bangles in a French store for about $180?

Looks like I can tackle these without too much time investment. I’ll have to warm up the needles and give them a try. If there are any knitters here on the blog, you can check out the instructions here:
http://mimsie.typepad.com/knitting/2007/07/so-a-few-days-a.html

Having a mother that works in IT, you sometimes run across some interesting trash…busted keyboards, old chips, and fried motherboards. After seeing this tutorial on how to make a bracelet out of fried motherboards at the Instructables web site…I’m going to have to go through Mom’s stash. Very tech geek chic! Check it out at:
http://www.instructables.com/id/EM5LA8JF35G4Y30/?ALLSTEPS

Technorati Tags: bracelet, computer parts, how to, jewelry, recycling

I love jewelry that’s made out of a mixture of conventional and unconventional materials. This pendent made out of sterling silver with a concrete center was designed by Brooklyn jeweler Tami Brooks (why does it seem that a bunch of cool artists are from Brooklyn?). Her line of silver and concrete jewelry also includes unisex rings. Check them out on her website, tam aura designs.

Technorati Tags: silver, pendants

Who says that jewelry just has to be pretty? The Subtle Safety Ring, made of a combination of acrylic and sterling silver has a point that can be rotated out. Instead of using your keys for self-defense, just wear this baby, rotate out the point and POW! Imagine the damage you can do with more than one. Check out this ring at Red Start Design.

Technorati Tags: jewelry, rings, self-defense

Oy…I thought I was hard on my Barbie doll as a kid. The last time I played with my Barbie, I had washed her hair and ended up burning it off all when I tried to dry it over a light bulb. That’s nothing compared what jewelry artist Margaux Lange does to her Barbies. The Brooklyn artist makes all of her earrings, bracelets, and pins out of Barbie and Ken doll parts carefully framed in silver.

Margaux’s work appears to be simultaneously clever and whimsically sinister at the same time. In her artist’s statement about her work she writes that she:

“…enjoy the funny juxtaposition of wearing the body, on the body. Barbie has become the accessory instead of being accessorized…”

Indeed. Be sure to check out the Margaux’s portfolio on her newly redesigned web site. My favorite are her Barbie “ear” rings….you’ll get the joke when you see them.

Technorati Tags: Barbie, jewelry

This post from post from the Kardemumma blog reminds me that cute jewelry isn’t all made of gold and silver. If you have basic knowledge of crochet, you can make a fun bracelet just like this in a couple of hours by following this tutorial.

Thanks to the CRAFT Magazine blog for this link.

Technorati Tags: bracelet, crochet

The one piece of jewelry that I’m not too fond of making are rings. I’ve never really enjoyed making them ever since I’ve made a set of three in my college Jewelry and Metalworking class as part of a series assignment. Bracelets can be hard enough to size, but it almost seems like everyone has a different sized finger, in which to create a single design.

So I’m always admiring someone who’s willing to take on the job of designing really cool rings. This particular ring is made by Crazy Dreams Studio and is called the “Be Mine Ring”. It’s made out of buttons and sterling silver wire. Very cute!

Technorati Tags: jewelry, rings

My mother-in-law has recently returned from her annual trip to the Philippines. Every year in January she spends a month in the Philippines to visit family and to attend Ati-Atihan, which is the Filipino version of Mardi Gras. And every year she comes back with all kinds of goodies. This year she bought me a bunch of beads to use in my jewelry and and these two cool little bracelets.

The top bracelet is made out of wooden beads decorated with pictures of saints, apostles, and other religious figures. The Philippines has very deep Catholic roots. It’s estimated that about 81% of the population are Roman Catholic, so there are a lot of references to religious figures and religious objects. In fact Ati-Atihan, the festival my mother-in-law attends when she makes her annual visit is a festival that’s dedicated to Santo Ni