Cruelty-free feathers - and a preview

At last! I have finally found a source for cleaned, cruelty-free feathers.

 6 Brown with Orange Wing Rooster Feathers by LetsGetFeathered on Etsy

In keeping with my vegetarian principles for my jewellery, there are a number of animal-derived materials that I don't use. Most feathers that are available for craft work have come from who-knows-where (most likely a slaughterhouse). Having no desire to support or be associated with the slaughterhouse industry, I have been searching for many months for a source of high quality, sterile, cruelty-free feathers. On Etsy I found LetsGetFeathered, a shop that supplies a variety of feathers from a variety of birds – parrots, pheasants, cockerels, guinea fowl, turkeys, etc. – and all feathers are moulted or taken from birds that died of natural causes. All of the feathers are hand selected to ensure their quality, then cleaned and sterilised; so all the work has been done for me and I can get on with creating. Perfect!

10 Green Blue Iridescent Peacock Feathers by LetsGetFeathered on Etsy

On Friday I received my first order from LetsGetFeathered, and I am very pleased with it. The feathers are gorgeous, clean, very usable, and in very good condition. Here's my first creation with their feathers:

This 'Autumn Bird' hairband uses two types of rooster feathers.

In January I mentioned in this blog post that I would be introducing some new Silverlight Jewellery product lines this year. You've just seen a preview of the first new line: a collection of embellished hairbands.
I'm quite excited about this new product line. There'll be a number of challenges inherent in creating these hairbands, since they're a bit different from anything I've made before; challenges such as using feathers and doing photoshoots with live models! However, making this first hairband was a lot of fun, and I am looking forward to the challenge of creating this new line and getting it listed.

Stay tuned for more previews ...

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Rebranding of Silverlight Jewellery - sneak peek #2

The new tagline for Silverlight Jewellery will be 'soft gothic'. 

In the first sneak peek, I described the aesthetic I'm aiming for in Silverlight Jewellery's new look. In this post, I want to give you a more visual idea of that aesthetic. 

So here is a collection of gorgeousness from Etsy that gives some idea of the intention behind Silverlight Jewellery's new look. I have deliberately stayed away from images of jewellery, because I want you to see the 'feeling' of the aesthetic rather than any particular design ideas. (Those will come in sneak peek #3!)

Gothic Calla Boutonniere by AprilHilerDesigns

Chat Noir - a fine art photography print by Raceytay

Fiery Autumn fine art nature photography print by Raceytay

12pcs Small bleached and eggshell color dyed peacock FEATHER eyes by pegasus22

Recycled Wine Bottle - Elegant Yellow Gothic Arches (Set of 6) by GreenRoseDesigns

19th Century Graveyard Angels print by Gothicrow

Cemetery Roses, Artisan Perfume Oil Sample Ampule by SteamBathFactory

Interlude (4x4 inch reproduction print on wood or canvas) by stilettoheights

Gothic Amsterdam Building - Fine Art Photography by EyeShutterToThink

Mask-Handmade Masquerade/Costume/Halloween/Mardi Gras Mask -Vechi Singe Feminin- by effigymasks

Corvid Otherworldly Gothic Angel Graveyard Pro Photo by Gothicrow

Iron scroll cyanotype fine art photo by onepointsixphoto

Entrance to Saint Patrick's Cathedral - Fine Art Photography by EyeShutterToThink

Twilight - 8x10 Fine Art Photo Print by A2SeaPhotography

Sneak peek #3 will show you some of the actual jewellery designs. Stay tuned!

Rebranding of Silverlight Jewellery - sneak peek #1

Next month, Silverlight Jewellery will be undergoing a revamp. New look, new style.
Previous Silverlight Jewellery pieces have been all OOAK - one of a kind; no design repeated. They have also had a rather scattered aesthetic, including vintage and vintage-inspired pieces, steampunk-inspired pieces, bohemian, classical, and whatever else my fevered brain would spout.

The new look is one that I am very excited about. Here's a sneak peek at the new branding.

The sticker design above was created by my graphic artist, DrRiptide. He has designed all of the web banners for the new brand, plus the new business cards, free shipping cards, and stickers for packaging. He's a perfectionist, like me, so he didn't mind me endlessly saying 'Can we change this?' or 'I can't decide ... let's come back to it later'. 

As you can see, the tagline for the new brand is 'soft gothic'. 'Gothic' means, among other things, 'of or pertaining to a literary style characterised by gloom, the grotesque, and the supernatural'. I've also heard it defined as 'characterised by a preoccupation with death'.

I'm going for a softer, less gloomy but still introspective and thoughtful feel. Gothicism without the harshness, grotesqueness, or the preoccupation with death. Don't think spikes or vampires; think black and silver, wings and keys, leather and crystal, black velvet and black satin. The night sky, frosts, creaking old iron gates, black cats, stars, the poetry of Keats and Tennyson, snow, and the moon. With occasional touches of scarlet, crimson, gold, saffron, indigo, and purple, for extra drama. A somewhat bohemian aesthetic, influenced by the Pre-Raphaelites and the New Romantics, the neo-goths and the romantigoths. (Yes, 'romantigoth' is a real word! Isn't it scrummy?)
A bohemian gothic. A romantic gothic. A soft, classy, elegant gothic. 

Designs will run from simple, relatively conservative pieces with just a hint of gothic charisma, so that they are suitable for wearing to work, to bold, unabashedly bohemian showstoppers that are only suitable for rock stars and those blessed people who are so secure in themselves that they can handle the gaping stares.
There will also be a greater emphasis on masculine and unisex jewellery in this brand, with some plain leather wrap bracelets and very un-girly pendants. The font I chose for the branding is intended to reflect this 'gender neutral' feel.

There will be further previews before the big launch in September ... stay tuned.

Whiteleaf Jewellery update

A few more things to look forward to in my new brand.
I'm very pleased with the photographs. For some reason the Whiteleaf jewellery has been shooting much better than the Silverlight stuff.

The launch is on Monday. I have this evening and tomorrow to work on it (I don't work on Sundays, in order to avoid burnout), and then it's The Big Day. (To be followed in a couple of months by another Big Day: the rebranding of my Silverlight line.)
I've been gearing up for this for so long ... I'm actually nervous. This is how I make my living, after all.
The first two shops will be on Felt and Zibbet. Eventually I plan to have Whiteleaf shops on Etsy and possibly ArtFire too. I can't wait to see how they look - with their gorgeous banners expertly designed by Doctor Riptide to match my business cards and stickers - filled with the beautiful earthy jewellery I've been designing for the past two months or so. Will the look be coherent? Will everything meld together as I have planned it to? Will people like the new style and lower price points?
Right, I've got to go and make jewellery. My first order from Happy Mango Beads arrived last night and so I have new treasures to play with ... er, make stock out of.
Three sleeps until the launch.... 

Coming soon ... Whiteleaf Jewellery!

It says in my profile that I have two brands of jewellery. Well, this is mostly true. Or it will be true shortly. Because, ladies and gentlemen and others, on this day next week I will be launching my second brand: Whiteleaf Jewellery. (Trumpet fanfare)
Oh, the excitement! The terror! The enormous amount of work still to be done!

Here's a sneak preview:

Seriously, it is a bit scary. It is a little like starting my business all over again. This time, however, I know what I am doing.
I think.
I am very excited about the new brand. It is wonderful because it has given me a chance to do a lot of things that I have chosen not to do with Silverlight Jewellery. With two brands, I feel as though I can have the best of both worlds.
I could go into enormous depth about all the different decisions I have made, and what led me to start up a new brand, and the long period of preparation invested before one actually gets anywhere near the point of being ready to launch, but that would really only be interesting to another jewellery designer. Instead I shall simply say that more details about this new brand will be forthcoming later this week.
Stay tuned!