Greetings. I hope this finds you well and happy and enjoying the Spring.
NEW ITEMS:
The longer I design jewelry, the more I find myself dissatisfied with the type and quality of jewelry findings that are available. This is especially true of copper jewelry findings. I love working with copper. It's a metal that has a nice rosy glow and bright warmth that looks good with every skin tone and also with most colors of pearls and gemstone beads. It gives a piece a casual feel even when working with upscale components like pearls. Mixing pearls with copper is a great way to make those pearls every day wear. I really believe that your cool jewelry shouldn't be held in reserve for special occasions.
I've been learning to make my own copper jewelry findings from raw copper wire so that I can have exactly what I want to use in my designs. Then, once I've perfected a technique in more affordable copper I can also transfer the technique to sterling silver or gold-filled jewelry wire. They say that necessity if the mother of invention. I think you'll find my designs are becoming more and more unique all the time.
This week I had the pleasure of participating in Career Day at my son's Elementary School. I gave 6, 15 minute presentations to K-2nd graders. I was prepared with lots of strands of gemstone beads and pearls to pass around for "hands on." The main question of the day seemed to be "How do you make the gold?" I'll be posting some photos on my blog next week. Thanks, kids, you were lots of fun!
http://suerunyondesigns.blogspot.com/
I HAVE A WINNER!
I'm happy to announce the winner of my $10 Sue Runyon Designs Gift Certificate Drawing for April. It is going to Gayle P of Michigan. Congratulations!
JEWELRY TIP--Cleaning your jewelry:
Do you have delicate jewelry such as pearls or opals that require special care in cleaning? You may be able to drop your diamond and gold ring into a harsh cleaning solution and scrub it with a stiff brush, but do that just once with opals or pearls and they are ruined forever. What about those pieces strung on silk thread or satin cord? What if it's made out of bakelite or plastic?
The truth is that sometimes you need to clean different components of the same piece differently or treat the entire piece with special care.
For your convenience, I now carry these very special gentle cleaning cloths:
Unlike other polishing cloths, these are not impregnated or coated with abrasive jewelers' "rouge" or other chemicals. These are soft, lint-free, textured cloths for buffing and polishing those ear wires, clasps or other components without harming pearls or other delicate components. They work quite well. They are also perfect for removing fingerprints from gemstones. Furthermore, once they become soiled, you simply wash them and use them again. I'm selling them in sets of two so that you can keep one in your jewelry box for those last minute buffs and polishes and one in your travel kit--or give one to a friend.
As most of you know, you can visit my PEARL CARE GUIDE on my website at any time. In fact, I strongly encourage it if you have any type of pearl jewelry. You should protect your pieces by knowing what can damage them.
I've added an information page for those interested in wholesale purchasing to my website:
http://www.suerunyondesigns.com/wholesale.html
TEACHER GIFTS:
It's coming up on that time of year again--time to think about those end of the year teacher gifts. I've got many nice options for $10-20 including gift certificates.
We got the word recently that we'll be moving to Utah in mid-summer this year. Since we're only moving a day's drive away, disruption in service should be minimal. I'll let you know more in my next newsletter.
