New shop item: chrysoprase bracelet

A new bracelet added to the shop! This one is "Pamela," named after one of my cousins. She features a focal stone of chrysoprase and two white round pearls, on an 8" sterling silver link chain that I got from the gem show. I love this chain - it's very light and delicate and so pretty.

I have the day off today and I had all these plans to be productive, but I ended up napping on the couch with Moxie cuddled next to me while "Price Is Right" was on TV. I'm still not used to seeing Drew Carey's mug in front of that giant wheel, screaming about showcases and presiding over Plinko.

I'm now off to think about some lunch...happy Friday everyone!

Goods from Home Goods

I absolutely love Home Goods, even though Mr Hazel calls it "the junk store." But as they say, one person's junk is another person's treasure, so I'm okay with that.

For instance, the other week I got a burst of energy to clean up my messy home office/jewelry studio, so I picked up these pretty paisley storage boxes to help me organize my finished pieces and mailing supplies.


And then I saw this flea market-type clock, and seriously, knowing me, how could I resist? I mean, look how pretty it is!

And then I wanted to pick up some props to use for my jewelry pictures, so I found this pretty pitcher. I think it will also be great as a vase, holding a bunch of daffodils on the kitchen table.


I also love this black and cream sugar canister with its antiquey, old-world kitchen vibe.


Turning to some exciting jewelry news, the Marnie was snapped up last night as soon as I put her up! I was so excited - that was the fastest a piece has ever sold. She was bought by my friend Ahila, doctor extraordinaire, so a huuge thank you for your support, Ahila!

New shop item: turquoise bracelet

This new bracelet is "Marnie," made of pretty blue turquoise and a silver toggle clasp. She's named after my writer friend from college, who was originally a pair of turquoise earrings but I changed that name to "Meridith" to match the accompanying necklace (named after another college friend who, and I'm not making this up, had Michelle Pfeiffer sitting in her office the other day. I was jealous).

So Marnie gets a new namesake. More details and pictures are available at the shop!

On the train today I was sitting next to a mom and her toddler daughter. I overheard the mom ask the kid, "What did you eat today?" And the kid replied at the top of her lungs, "Ass! Ass! ASSSSSS!"

I thought to myself, "That couldn't have been very appetizing."

It turned out she was trying to say "eggs."

Toddlers are funny.

P.S. on comments

My sister suggested that instead of moderating comments to avoid spam, I should use the word verification feature instead. This does seem like a much better idea, so as Captain Picard says, "Make it so."

A note on comments

Recently I have gotten a rash of spam on the comments section of this blog, and I suspect that some of them might contain viruses. In an effort to cut down on these types of comments and to protect you guys, I'm going to have to start moderating the comments.

This means you won't see them right away, but I'll do my best to get the legit ones up by the end of the day.

Thanks for your patience and understanding!

New shop item: pearl choker | earrings

So I thought it was time to unveil these pieces on Etsy - the "Karmela" necklace and matching earrings! I made them back when I first started this blog, but for the longest time I could not get good pictures of the pearls, so I bided my time.

The time is now!

Karmela, named after my awesome sister, is now available at the shop with more details and pictures.

And in the good news front, I made another sale today! My sister-in-law Alissa bought the Ella. I am so excited - thank you so much Alissa!

SPRING FEVER

Many of you know how I've also been biding my time for another event...spring. Seriously. I am so sick of winter and this crappy cold. So as I was scouring the weather blog today, looking for words such as "70 degrees," "budding tulips," "spring showers," and "warm, sunny and delicious," I came across this:

"Daylight saving time arrives in 11 days (Mar. 9). The first day of spring is just a hop, skip and a jump after that (Mar. 20). And not far behind is the [baseball] home opener (Mar. 30). Yet, all three surefire signs of spring seem far away on a chilly, windy day like today. The breezy chill continues tomorrow, followed by slowly rising temperatures for Friday and the weekend."

CRAP.

Well, I suppose that there are hopeful signs on the horizon...

New shop item: more pink earrings

These earrings are "Bella," named after one of my favorite aunts who actually has a much longer and more complicated name, but I thought Bella was a pretty appropriate derivative. She is similar to the Elizabeth earrings, only the glass briolettes are translucent instead of opaque and I used gold-filled wire and vermeil earwires instead of sterling. I thought this picture, where the earrings reflect the words off the pages of the book, was pretty cool.

More details and pictures of Bella are available at the shop!

I've been keenly following the events in Pyongyang from the last day or two, with the historic arrival of the New York Philharmonic. This article made me teary. As a universal language that embraces all cultures, music really is a powerful tool that brings two disparate countries and cultures together. I would really love to watch this concert, especially because part of the repertoire is Dvorak's 9th Symphony (the famous "New World" Symphony), one of my all-time favorite pieces of music.

I still remember sitting in my room as a kid, listening to the magical, soaring, haunting largo movement over and over again. I hope the North Koreans love it equally well.

New shop item: blue and white necklace

I found this pretty, blue enameled chain and thought it would look nifty paired with a white flower and a glass pendant. And the "Michele" necklace is born, named after one of my friends! More details and pictures are now available at the shop.

I made three sales yesterday - the Sophie necklace that was reserved by my sister (thanks sis!) and the Lisa and Stephanie earrings, purchased by my friend Lisa. The exciting part is that Lisa, who is a television personality, would like to wear the Stephanie on air! I am hoping this will be great exposure and that her viewers will want to know where she got her earrings. A huuge thanks, Lisa!

On my way home today I stopped by Trader Joe's to pick up a few items, and couldn't help but stand there and admire the profusion of spring flowers they now have on display - pink and blue hyacinths, daffodils, and several buckets of tulips in pink, white, and red. I almost bought the entire lot. And, a very exciting thing happened - I bought a bottle of red wine to use for the chicken cacciatore recipe that I made for dinner tonight, and the cashier did not card me. This is the second time in a row I didn't get carded - the restaurant on Saturday also did not card me.

I must finally look like a grown-up.

New shop item: sky blue earrings

Ooh, I love how these turned out. It's very rare that I work in gold, but these stones definitely called for some fancy gold components. And blue and gold remind me of Versailles.

These earrings are the "Stephanie," named after another good friend of mine. She is made of sky blue quartz briolettes, gold-filled wire, and gold vermeil earwires.

More details and pictures of Stephanie are available at the shop!

My sister also requested "Sophie" with a chain instead of the blue ribbon, so I'm happy to say the revamped Sophie is now available on reserve.

Mr Hazel took me to a fancy new steakhouse downtown for dinner last night. I ordered raw oysters for my appetizer (I love me some oysters) and requested some vinegar to go with it. I expected them to bring out a bottle of plain old vinegar like they do at Red Lobster (yes, I admit, in addition to the high brow, we also do low), but instead they brought out this fancy aged vinegar dressed in chopped garlic. It was to die for. Oh, and the steak wasn't too bad, either. For dessert, I had the crepe souffle, and a grapefruit martini for my cocktail.

Yum.

New shop item: a bracelet!

I had planned on posting the matching "Kathleen" necklace today, but then decided to wait a couple of days instead so as to space out the pictures for visual variety on Etsy.

In the meanwhile, a couple of people have asked about bracelets, so I am happy to say that I've been busy working on them. Here is the first one - "Alissa," named after my sister-in-law. She is made of green chinese chrysoprase and alternating silver links, with a decorative toggle clasp.

More details and pictures of Alissa are now available at the shop!

New shop item: serpentine earrings

As you can probably tell, I am in love with these Hill Tribe leaf charms. I found them at the gem show and bought a bunch, so you'll probably see them in a lot of the new designs.

These earrings are "Kathleen," named after the bravest, smartest, kindest, and most wonderful woman ever. She also comes with a matching necklace, which I will post tomorrow. Made of these pretty pale green serpentine beads (another gem show find that is a new stone I've never worked with before), they dangle together with the leaf charms and chains to form a pretty cluster.

Kathleen is now available at the shop!

So today I got my 27th heart, but this one was from a "secret admirer." Oooh, who could it be?

I made two more sales! The "Alexandra" set and the "Elizabeth" necklace were both snatched up. And today I hand delivered my friend Michele's jewelry purchases when we met up for lunch, and I got all anxious, hoping they live up to her expectations. Selling stuff you made is nerve-wracking sometimes.

Thanks again, Michele!

New shop item: pink glass necklace

This pretty piece is the matching necklace to the "Elizabeth" earrings. She is made of the same opaque pink glass briolette wrapped in sterling silver wire, and I've added a Hill Tribe silver leaf charm and a Swarovski crystal.

The "Elizabeth" necklace is now available at the shop!

Brrr...it was an insanely cold day today. All I wanted to do when I got home was get into my pajamas and fuzzy slippers.

Although, I'm cautiously optimistic because this morning I noticed that my neighbor's tulips are starting to come out of the ground. Every year, this is one of the earliest (and most welcome) signs I have that spring is just around the corner. Soon our cherry blossom tree will burst into bloom, and then spring will truly be here. I'm waiting with bated breath...but 'till then...brrrr!

The owls are here! The owls are here!

Can you tell I'm super excited about these earrings? They are so adorable I can't contain myself. I named them "Joy," after my cousin Joy (and another cousin's middle name), because how could these not bring a smile to your face? Seriously - they just scream joy to me!

I am going to make myself a pair, too.

Oh yes, to the description: the owls are vintage plastic, accompanied by a pair of Hill Tribe silver leaf pendants and white carved beads, all on French hook earwires.

Heart count to date: I'm up to 24 now! Yippee!

Wow, "Sarah Connor Chroincles" was so good last night. We saw the future! It was great!

New shop item: coral necklace and earrings

This new necklace is "Alexandra" and she comes with matching earrings. Made of coral beads, she has one filigree charm on a pretty sterling silver chain. The earrings are made of matching coral with a smaller filigree charm on sterling silver earwires.

Alexandra's namesake is actually Alexander (or Alex) in real life, but I'm not going to tell Alex that not only does he have a necklace named after him, there are also earrings involved. Alex is a fan of Star Wars and Transformers, so the news that he is namesake to girly girl items might not sit well.

This afternoon I went to the bookstore to look for a French novel to use for my photo backgrounds. This was actually Mr Hazel's idea, but the two French novels I owned have gone missing, no doubt from multiple packing and unpacking from various moves over the years. Unfortunately the bookstore didn't have anything I could use, so I turned to some children's literature and poetry instead, but didn't have much luck there, either. So it looks like I'm going on a treasure hunt...

On free bread, gem shows, and publicity

Whew! What a day! In the morning I had a hair appointment (apparently I haven't gone in 3 months, which accounts for my highlights turning a bit on the brassy side and my gray hairs popping up like weeds), but I managed to publicize Hazel Designs to my hairstylist by giving her one of my cards. I'm trying to spread the word as hard and as fast as I can.

After leaving the salon (feeling, of course, like a new woman), I headed to the gem and jewelry show. It was a huge space filled to the brim with all manner of rings, diamonds, gemstones, beads, and even one booth selling purses (I almost bought one until I remembered I shouldn't really be buying purses at a bead show). I was able to access the wholesalers' section, open only to people "in the trade," and I felt so privileged. The best part was there was NO TAX whatsoever! I could get used to this no tax thing.

I was there for hours and my feet were ready to fall off by the end, but I managed to score a bounty of goodies - including chalcedony in blue, pink, and green, which I have been looking for for months now without any success. I also found a lot of gorgeous sterling silver chains and findings.

(And, as a bonus, they cleaned my wedding rings for free).

So expect the shop to be stocked with new designs in the coming weeks. I truly felt like the proverbial kid in the candy shop today.

I also managed to score a free loaf of bread. Not at the bead show, but at my favorite bakery - I discovered this place by accident a few months ago, and found out that they serve THE BEST challah ever. The. Best. So I made a special trip today to get some, but to my dismay, they had run out. The baker guy must have been able to see the tears of disappointment forming at the corners of my ducts because he very gently suggested trying their white bread instead, which he claimed to be just as good as the challah. At my skeptical look he said I could have it for free to try out. Yay, free bread! It's not as good as the challah, but it's pretty decent. Especially because it's free.

And lastly, on publicity: please check out the official Etsy CREST team blog, of which "Astrid" from my shop is pictured (yay!), and also this list of CREST team shops, of which my shop is also included.

New shop item: flower earrings

This adorable pair of earrings is "Ali." The piece features vintage periwinkle glass flowers, baby pink aventurine, and white jade, hanging about 1/2" from sterling silver ear wires. The real Ali is even cuter in real life!

Ali is up at the shop now so please check out her pictures.

Today's shop heart count to date: 21!

Tomorrow I am planning on braving one of the biggest gem and jewelry shows in the country, hoping to find some cool new treasures. It so happened that last weekend I visited a new bead shop that I've never gone to before and the owner gave me a coupon for free admission to the gem show, so really, how could I not go? So, duly armed with my free coupon, my wholesaler's license, a water bottle, and some snacks (I'm not usually this well-prepared), I will now get a good night's sleep so I'll be fresh and awake for tomorrow...

I love you, too!

For Valentine's day, Mr Hazel got me a dozen of my favorite flowers. They're so pretty and cheerful that I feel almost taunted - look at us, we look like it's spring outside, but really it's only February and freezing cold and you have to wear coats and scarves and hats, and the warm weather and cherry blossoms are actually weeeeeeeeks awaaaaaay! But, I love my flowers. In spite of their taunts.

Then I got this gift that I found in Mr Hazel's sock drawer a few years ago. He had been meaning to give it to me for Valentine's one year but had forgotten about it, and after I found it in his sock drawer he didn't want to give it to me until I forgot about it. Except I would remember every year without fail, and I would ask him, "Where is my ceramic Valentine thingamajig?" I finally got it this year. It's so dorky and I lurve it.

There is also a third gift but it's very mysterious - it won't arrive for a while. I have no clue what it is.

And my fourth gift is the sweetest of all - Mr Hazel gave me a printout of an email he had written to the Etsy administrators, telling them that he wanted to do something Etsy related for me for Valentine's day since I had gone "absolutely nuts for Etsy" since opening my shop (hee hee). So he asked if there was something he could do to make me a featured seller on their front page, or, barring that, if he could buy a week's worth of Showcase space for my shop without me knowing ahead of time. Unfortunately there wasn't a way to surprise me with it - but the gift is a week's worth of Showcase space that I am going to arrange.

I got him something Derek Jeter-related. Derek Jeter is his #1.

For warm fuzzies, check out this lovely article about a stray dog in Iraq who was brought to the U.S. by the SPCA with the efforts of the soldiers, and just in time for Valentine's day. Now that is a love story I can get behind.

Finally, Nomad and Moxie wish you and yours a love-filled day!


XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

New shop item: turquoise earrings

These are the "Marnie" earrings, a matching piece to the "Meridith" necklace. Their namesakes are also my college pals.

Marnie is a pair of puffy oval turquoise earrings wrapped on sterling silver earwires, and is now available at the shop.

The fierce ice storm we had here last night has finally gone. In the midst of it, I spent about 10 minutes along with several other people scraping the thick layer of ice off our cars on the roof of the parking garage. And then driving home at 2 mph. And then trying not to break my neck walking across the ice to my front door.

I hate winter.

Doing my civic duty

Today was an exciting day! Voting is so much fun. Although there wasn't the same party atmosphere as during a general election (no one for me to heckle while in line, for instance), it was still great fun casting my ballot. I have to admit - I felt a little emotional as I stared at my candidate's name on the screen. I've been waiting to see that name for years now and to finally see it was a great day indeed.

Mr Hazel and I voted differently, in spite of my threats and attempts at coercion and blackmail for him to vote my way. Apparently I'm not very good at threats, coercion, or blackmail. Luckily for him, I am a forgiving woman and will still cook him his dinner tonight.

Today was another awesome day for sales! I sold three things today. My sister, who is fast becoming my super customer, snapped up pretty Elizabeth. Don't forget to get the matching necklace too when she's available, okay, sis? Heheh. Also, my friend Michele bought Celia and the Ahila earrings. Thank you Michele!

I'm happy to say that since I've sold a total of ten items to date, we are now up to $30 for donation to the American Institute for Cancer Research. Yay! Thank you to all who have contributed so far. This promotion will last until Valentine's Day.

Lastly, my heart count to date: 18 hearts! The prevailing advice when selling on Etsy is to try to list a new item on a regular basis, preferably daily, and I've been trying to do this and largely succeeding. I've listed many items in a row for a couple of weeks now. I noticed that my heart count would spike the day after I list a new item, so this is added incentive to get my butt moving even faster!

New shop item: pink glass earrings

This pretty, pretty pair of earrings is "Elizabeth," made of these really gorgeous, glowy pink opaque glass briolettes, carefully hand-wrapped in sterling silver wire. She dangles approximately 1/2" from sterling silver ear wires.

Elizabeth is an absolute cutie in real life too, and she, along with her brother, are the apples of my eye.

The matching necklace will be following soon.

Today was a great day for sales! A huuuge thank you to one of my biggest supporters, my awesome sis, for purchasing two more pieces - Mandy and Mariel! Whoohoo!

I've also placed a new Celia on reserve at the shop for my friend Michele, who requested another of this piece. Thank you Michele for your support!

It seems like I spoke too soon - winter is back with a vengeance. I didn't believe the groundhog when the proclamation came last February 2nd, but now I guess he was right. Stupid groundhog. And here I was almost getting ready to break out my flip flops.

New shop item: flower earrings

This whimsical pair of "Lisa" earrings is made of blue glass trumpet flowers and white jade. The flowers hang about 1" down and the white jade beads hang 1/2" from sterling silver lever backs. Lisa is now available at the shop!

Also, I took new pictures of Ella. I think these turned out much better!

On March 17, my shop will be the featured shop on the Etsy CREST team blog. More details forthcoming!

Is it really Sunday already? I can't believe how fast the weekend flew by (especially as I had a 3-day one). I'm hoping the weather stays as mild as it has been. I have developed excruciating spring fever.

We also watched "Disturbia" on DVD last night. This one was highly recommended! Shia LaBoeuf isn't your typical hot studly leading man, but he's a cutie nonetheless and has a certain charisma about him, so I'm glad he gets all the hot chicks at the end (as in this movie, and also with Megan Fox in "Transformers"). I can't wait to see him in the new Indiana Jones!

New shop item: aventurine earrings

This delicate pair of earrings, "Ahila", is made of light green aventurine briolettes and silver filigree charms, all carefully hand wrapped in sterling silver wire. They dangle about 1" down from silver ear wires. Ahila is up at the shop now so please check her out!

And lookee here - the New York Times wrote an article about using blogs as a tool to grow and market a small business. They say:

"To its true believers at small businesses, it is a low-cost, high-return tool that can handle marketing and public relations, raise the company profile and build the brand."

It seems that I may be on the right track after all. I did notice that many of the Etsy vendors maintain blogs, where they not only feature their products but also talk about their lives as a way for their customers to get to know them better. Such personal relationships, even online, can be really good for business!

And on that note, happy weekend everyone!

Jewelry care tips

Most of the pieces I create are made of sterling silver. If not cared for properly, sterling silver will most likely tarnish. To prevent this, it is a good idea to limit exposure to air as much as possible by always storing your jewelry in plastic or cloth pouches (I like to use small zip lock bags for all my sterling silver chains and wires, which work great in preventing tarnish).

If your silver does tarnish, you can use a polishing cloth to bring back the original sheen. I've heard that the 3M Tarni-Shield Silver Polish is good, though I've never tried this personally so I can't vouch for its effectiveness myself. You can also find silver polishing cloths at jewelry stores - Tiffany has a really good one that works very well on my sterling silver jewelry. They are available at Tiffany stores and come in a pretty blue envelope.

Finally, avoid rubbing your jewelry pieces against each other by keeping them in their separate compartments.

These will ensure that you will enjoy your jewelry pieces for years to come!

New shop item: aquamarine clusters

This new item is an aquamarine cluster necklace called "Nikki", named after my very cool cousin whose birthstone is aquamarine. The stones are really pretty - translucent and pearly, in varying shades of white, brown, blue, and light green, carefully hand-wrapped in sterling silver. The cluster is approximately 2" long. As you can probably tell, the cluster design is quickly becoming my favorite.

Nikki is up at the shop now so check her out!

A NOTE ON CUSTOM ORDERS

I've had several people ask about items that have already been sold, so I think this is a good time to put an announcement up here and at the shop about custom orders. If you guys see stuff that you like that are already in the 'Sold' section of the shop, just send me an email or a "conversation" on Etsy about it. If I have the supplies, I will gladly make another one for you. And since everything is handcrafted, no two necklace will be exactly alike, but they will be similar in style and color so you can still claim your individual piece as unique! Some of the beads were found in bead shows so those won't be repeatable, but some will be, so just let me know and I will check if I can repeat the design.

I've had requests for another order of Abigail and Celia, two styles that seem to be very popular, so yay! I've also had a request for a style similar to Sophie, except a silver chain in place of the blue ribbon. I also will be posting some more earrings just as soon as I fix a couple of pictures that didn't come out right.

Super duper Tuesday

I had a rather late night today so I'm going to scrap my plans to add another item to the shop (it usually takes a while) so I can catch up on Super Tuesday results.

Before I do that, though, I wanted to report that Abigail has been sold! Whoo hoo! My sister bought her today. Thanks, sis - you rock!

Also please visit the Etsy CREST street team page. If you click on "Favorites" and then "Favorite Sellers," you can see the shops of the members who belong to this Etsy team (yours truly being one of them!). And I actually don't know if the "Favorite Items" will change periodically, but right now it looks like Kate has been featured as one of the favorite items. Yay Kate!

I now have a total of ten hearts! Thanks to heathersbeadshop, bisquee, YStudio, and my very own friend Meridith for hearting Hazel Designs. I heart you back!

Lastly, I scored these adorable vintage owl beads from an Etsy vendor. I have big plans for them - are they cute, or what?

Happy Mardi Gras everyone!

New shop item: turquoise necklace

This necklace, "Meridith", is a reworked piece from a while back (it wasn't originally a fan favorite, so I decided to simplify by making it into a straightforward choker). Hope it works better this time around! The stones are really gorgeous - the green is so vivid and fresh.

You can check out "Meridith" at the shop if you click on her picture on the left-hand bar.

Turning to some TV talk, does anyone else watch the Terminator: Sarah Connor Chronicles? Mr Hazel and I love it. I think the best part, at least for me, is that the Terminator - the one originally played by Arnold's character - is a woman! Or, more accurately, a slender slip of a girl who looks like she's anywhere between 17 to 25 years old. And She.Kicks.Ass. Literally and figuratively.

I also love Sarah Connor's character, who's a mix between a sexy biker chick and a warrior queen. She and the Girl Terminator are the central characters, more so than John Connor, and I love how they're the ones who are protecting John and not the other way around. They're smart, strong, fiercely capable women who can take care of their own shit and kick the bad guys' collective asses, all while wearing low-slung jeans and leather jackets and looking damn good doing it.

The best line of tonight's episode (Sarah to her son): "If you want to be a hero, you'd better learn how to drive stick!"

Priceless.

Lastly, I wanted to send huuuuuge congratulations to my friend Stephanie, who just became a new mom over the weekend! Best wishes to the new family.

New earrings

It's been a long time coming, but I've finally added earrings to the collection. Yay! This first offering is "Mandy," a companion piece to the "Mariel" necklace (see, I told you guys a lot of my friends have names that begin with M!).

"Mandy" has been added to the shop, so check out the rest of her pictures.

And, last but not least, a huge, huuuuge thank you to Mom2Amara for her purchase of "Rowan"! Thank you so much for your never-ending support!

Revamped!

I revamped my store by taking brand new photographs, some with new backgrounds. I dug up my violin sheet music (thank you, Bach!) and bought five different kinds of scrapbook paper (I had to stop myself at five because they were all so pretty that I couldn't decide which ones to get.)

I'm really loving this new camera, especially the super macro feature. After a rough start I think I've got it under control, and if you compare my first few photographs from when I first started this blog, to now, I think you will see a vast, huge improvement on my photography skills.

I decided that for the "front page" pictures I would do an extreme close up of the piece, sometimes not even showing the whole thing. I found that when I browsed on Etsy, the pieces that were extremely close up were the ones I would click on because I couldn't tell what the whole piece looked like. I was intrigued. So I hope this happens with these new photographs as well.

Here are are some of my favorite shots.








I was a busy bee today and there are lots of new goodies going up in the shop within the next few days. I'll give you a hint: EARRINGS!

Etsy find of the day

The Etsy site is literally a treasure trove of cool, unusual, and unique things and it's so easy to get suckered in for hours looking through them. I've hearted about fifty shops on here - which reminds me, thank you so much to bannerbee and xenya for hearting my shop! That was much appreciated. I get so giddy when someone hearts my shop - I now have a total of five hearts! Yippee!

Recently I joined the Etsy CREST street team, both to expose my shop as much as possible to the Etsy world and to meet my fellow Etsy sellers.

One of the members of Etsy CREST, xenya, has a shop of photographic works called Forgotten Beauty, and I was blown away by some of the photographs on here. I love her concept of taking pictures of forgotten things and places, which sort of has that flea market, antique-y, distressed vibe that I love so much. Her work is just gorgeous.

I found two photographs that I'm thinking of buying and I'm just trying to decide between them:

I think these would look amazing with a wide white mat and a black frame. They also come in different sizes. What the heck, maybe I'll just get them both.