Upcycling vintage jewellery, I just CANT get enough!!

Ohhhhhhh its So Vintage!

Im getting to be obsessed with my vintage brooch collection! I now have lots of them and im just messign about with ideas atm. My facebook page may go quiet as i am sitting staring at my beautiful jewels! I just cant stop upcycling... Its a blooming good job Vintage Gems Jewellery shall only be making upcycled beauties next year! To clear out my remaining vintage inspired collection ill be attending Littleborough Farmers Market this Sunday so come and say hello and pick up a special handmade christmas gift or two!

Upcycling vintage brooches..... Ohhhhh so pretty, very very pretty!!

Its almost CHRISTMAS and with christmas comes sparkly items galore..... As im starting a new range in 2012 just concentrating on vintage ive been collecting brooches.... Ohhhhhh soooooo pretty brooches to upcycle for all your jewellery needs!

As you can see ive been busy!!! Now a moment of silence to enjoy!!

Upcycled Vintage Jewellery. A cuff to rival all others

WOW as you know i love bling & vintage goodies.
My new creations are just getting bigger and better all the time and this baby really steals the bling crown!
Its set on a adjustable cuff base, it really can be squeezed and opened with pressure and nothing will drop off (unlike many items out there on the high street!). Its a cluster of all things shiny so magpies watch out! Vintage earrings, brooches, necklaces etc all make this cuff so special. It is £120 so my most expensive piece but Oh. SO.Pretty!!

Manchester Christmas Markets 2011... Handmade vintage Jewellery COUNTDOWN

I <3 MCR!! Lets hope it feels the same about me!! Ill be based on King Street THIS weekend selling my beautiful handmade vintage jewels!! I will also have a small selection on these fab cuffs, rings & necklaces!!
I shall be facing House Of Fraser from the 17th-20th November so if your local why not pop down, grab a tasty sausage, a beer or mulled wine & do some Christmas Shopping at Vintage Gems~Inspired by the Past!! Handmade vintage jewellery xxx

She's BACK baby!!

Hi all!!

Gosh totally neglected the blog! Im soooo sorry!!
Its kinda crazy ATM at Vintage Gems HQ. With all my uni coursework, keeping the page running, making xmas stock for the Manchester Christmas Markets & of course looking after my house & my boo i dont have time for ANYTHING!!

Ive been working with a lovely chap called Dave who is going to be building me a website after Christmas, i wasnt that impressed with my last one & wanna go really professional so Dave is gonna help :-)

Talking of Christmas im getting OBSESSED!! Just 5 weeks to go till the EXCLUSIVE Manchester Christmas Markets.. Im soooooo nervous!! Its going to be really hard work, but hopefully worth it!! You will notice if you are attending that my stock is themed.... I just thought it would be easier to display, but dont worry you can still pick up a vintage find at a bargain price!! I am going to make Christmas Shopping VERY easy for you!!

I have also made a special piece, which is going to be the most expensive piece on display, but also the most amazing!!!

Hope to see you all there!!

And i said what about Breakfast at Tiffanys??

OMG my new retro range is WELL under way!!! Im LOVING this Audrey Hepburn handmade earrings arent you??

They took awhile to make as i kept messing about with the design.. THESE deserve perfection dont you think?? Anyway these are availablt to buy on my facebook page Vintage Gems~Inspired By The Past... At just £12 plus postage.. what are you waiting for???!!

Rocking Retro Rules!!!

Ok so everyone knows i LOVE vintage treats & treasures!! Im currently in love with all things 50's!! Im hunting down 50's things like a woman POSESSED!!

It basically started last week after watching the amazing Grace Kelly in the equally amazing Alfred Hitchcocks rear window... Her beautiful dresses, jewellery and charm made me fall in love, so here i am now thinking of 50's themes like there is NO tomorrow!!

Look out for my new "Rocking Retro" Items to be coming shortly, they will be vintage & vintage inspired & all OOAK!!

I cant WAIT!!

Long time no BLOG!! Ive been going COLLAGE CRAZY!!

Hi all!! Today I just had to update my blog as not wrote in it for ageeeeeessss!!!

Ive been so busy with custom orders & trying to build a stock pile!! Ive also started to go a little Collage Cazy!! Collages are sooooo much fun, i think anyone who has an eye for colours & designs can do it!! Although i do think you need a bit of passion for each piece you create, to me i dont design jewellery to make me money, I do it as i just love seeing something so beautiful & unique that I created!! Ive today ordered some new cameos from America... Im in love with all things American ATM as it seems they are less seen than over here, ive also stepped away from Ebay....... This is due to a number of reasons~

A~Paypal shut down my account~I have zero clue why & have not been told why!! How can they do that to a business? Anyway cloud & silver lining i now use Ebay less so my blanks are more special & my customers use google checkout instead which is fast!!

B~As some know i have had problems with a "Single White Female" who is copying my designs (or trying). In a way im really thankful to her as its making me work so much harder, im thinking totally outside the box & im also thankful i dont have a bunny.......

C~ THE FEES!!! Enough said!!

Anyway look out for my new ideas coming soon... The christmas range is going to be BREATHTAKING!!

1000 fan giveaway!!!

As we are now over 900 fans its time to announce the "1000 fan giveaway" This is to win a bespoke filigree cuff all you need to do is help us get to 1000 fans by recommending the page to people you think will ♥ us... then when we get to 1000 fans sum up Vintage Gems in no more than 20 words... The best one wins the cuff & gets their slogan on our website & page :-)

SO this can be yours for FREE!!... just LIKE our facbook page..https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Vintage-Gems-Inspired-by-the-past/226923857324502

Happy 4th July!!

Just wanted to give a huge shout out to my American Friends, Fans & Followers and wish you all a happy safe & FUN 4th July!!!

Please check out my jewellery set dedicated to you lovely Americans!! Found on facebook~VINTAGE GEMS INSPIRED BY THE PAST!! Love to you all xxx

Cupcakes

After jewellery & making jewellery i LOVE to cook & bake!

I made my sons 1st birthday cupcakes & boy did it take some effort~i think it was worth it tho as you can see from the pic.

Anyway as much as i loved the finished creation it was too much hard work. SO for his second birthday i got in the "professionals" I had used this company before for 40th birthday & valentines cakes but what she did for my son was EXTRA special.

My son LOVES bob the builder and loved these cakes soooo much. They are so yummy also. My FAV are the bakewell ones!! They are available from "Oh Crumbs Cupcakes" based in Manchester. She also will deliever for a small extra charge for in and around Manchester. She is professional, helpful & makes the most yummy cakes......

WHich brings me onto why im writing this blog.... When i reach 1000 fans im having some more... so come on guys get liking on https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.384083652193.162757.570502193#!/pages/Vintage-Gems-Inspired-by-the-past/226923857324502 and dont forget to check out "Oh crumbs Cupcakes" too www.ohcrumbscupcakes.co.uk.

DELISH!

OOAK lesson!

OOAK?! What the heck is OOAK!? I kept coming across this word/abbrevation esp on American sites and i guess i chose to ignore it (didnt have a clue move on quickly LOL)

That was until i added my new Inspired By Alice Cuff to my FB page and was asked if it was "OOAK" rather than saying "I beg your pardon??!!" I googled it and there it was... google actually finished my sentance before i could finish it. SO what is OOAK....

Google tells me its basically a one off orginal items. Well ALL my pieces are one off's and originally so i would like to officially annouce, although it sounds wrong and weird "I do OOAK!!"

This piece is available to buy from www.vintagegemsjewellery.com for £35 or $56 US dollars xx

Tiara Making... Jezzz Louise!!

Ok so in my wedding blog i wrote about how expensive wedding jewellery is. One of my friends paid over £500 for a tiara "ARE YOU CRAZY?" I asked?! Shoes~Ok, Tiara~WHAT?

So i then get the idea in my head i want to make a tiara, want to get it out of my system and see just how on earth people can dare charge sooooo much.....

Well today i did!! OMG!! £500? Worth every penny... i am telling you that is one hard slog!! Beading work over and over, threading onto a wire constant & twisting till perfect. No thank you!! So if anyone asks if i make Tiaras my answer will be depends on how much sanity i have left!!

This however is the finished piece, hope you like... Im off to eat ice cream whilst wearing my Tiara... Its may not of cost £500 but the labour that went into it is surely worth a few quid!!

Cuff Crazy!!

Ok so i often get asked what is my favourite piece to make?? I love to make custom designs more than anything if im honest! The feeling you get when you recieve a lovely comment about your work~something that you have created especially with someone in mind is great! ATM im making some drop vintage earrings for a lady who contacted me about an order to match her shoes... NOT just any shoes!! Some amazing brown GINA shoes completely encrusted with Swarovskis!! Now not only do i need to do myself justice but those AMAZING shoes :-)

When im not making custom orders i LOVE to make cuffs. I started off making swearovski encrusted cuffs in various colours & most where custom orders as you can see below

I still love making these cuffs but i wanted to raise my game & take my jewellery ideas and love of vintage to the next level. So i have been working on reworking & creating vintage parts and adding them to cuffs in a collage style. These are quite hard to make as so much design gos into them & then the actuall putting together of the cuff.... Trust me some parts DO NOT want to be put on a cuff!! Queue some shouting at the vintage pieces from me..... I hope you like these new cuffs!! They sold out within minutes of going on my facebook page... i didnt even have time to add to my website http://www.vintagegemsjewellery.com/!!

Flea Markets Mean HAPPY DAYS :-)

Well everyone should know by now that i just love vintage~not just jewellery but alsorts of vintage stuff!!

Flea markets are so fab!! Many people dont like rummaging around (my mum hates it) but i totally love it!! There are a few flea markets near me & i go as often as my business will allow me to!

I went to one though today and i went straight to the lovely man who i usually get my jewellery from when i want to buy something for moi! Anyway pevious to seeing him today he allowed me to buy the WHOLE stall again :-)!! Its amazing!! A lot of it TBH i dont use as i dont tend to work with beads unless they are vintage (and by vintage i can assure you i dont mean whole beads from China like some other people claim) so with the stuff i dont use i resell. I dont charge a lot for the resell items as i know that someone would get so much joy out of them and i just dont have the space!! Here is a bag thats on Ebay atm~also includes over 10 watches!!

Someone is going to have fun with all that!!

When picking out what i like i usually go for clip on earrings, scarf holders & cameos. I LOVE cameos!! Then i sort them and pop away in my little office/workshop. As you can see by just ONE of my boxes (i have several) i try to keep things as neat as possible... This box shown is my bead & cabochon box. The picture beneath it has been sorted into the things i want, but not sorted out proper!! For the time being i just wanna make things~as shown a finished ring made from a clip on earring. Totally vintage, totoally unique & totally affordable at £10 :=)

Festival "CHIC" jewellery

Ok so im not the best person to write this article as ive never been to a festival... Nor do they appeal to me at all!! However i do love to see what all the celebs & us mere mortals have been wearing!

Personally i like the funky look, not a trend in general but a bit of everything thrown in for good measure.The boho head to toe look is dated and i think even Sienna Miller is getting bored of it! I guess wellies are a must also!! Hunter wellies are my fav but they are expensive... unless your a bargain hunter like me who spots them occasionally in TK Maxx!I think Kate Moss always rocks up a storm & also like Daisy Lowe (or maybe just her boyfriend Matt Smith AKA Dr Who.

Anyway what jewellery to wear at a festival?? I think cuffs are a must!! Bangles layered up look cool but surely they will rattlle a lot & get a tad heavy which is never a good thing when your trying to have a dance. The cuff i have just made is such a vintage treasure brought up to date. Its funky, unique, lightweight & chunky! Made from old vintage earrings & swarovskis this screams out 80's glam with a tribal twist... And at just £15 plus postage you will have enough for a nice refreshing beer (held of course by an ultra glam arm!)

Available to buy from vintage gems~inspired by the past on FACEBOOK or http://www.vintagegemsjewellery.com/

Wedding Season.... HOW expensive??

Ok so first & foremost i have never been married.... Thank god!! Looking at the prices this day & age i really dont think i could afford it! Whilst i was researching vintage wedding hair pieces i couldnt believe the prices!!! What is it about weddings that automatically lets people assume they can charge whatever they like?? PAH! Economy crisis has everyone forgot about that?

So i decided to add a wedding section to my jewelley range. Affordable, unique & chic! I will be designing pieces with brides & guests in mind and stepping away from the traditional fasinators to incorporate vintage with new. I hope you like my new range and as always custom orders available. Contact me on here, on facebook~Vintage gems inspired by the past or on my website http://www.vintagegemsjewellery.com/.....

Until then step away from the £1000 tiara!! Love Gemma xx