Fabergé jewellery - eggcellent!

Until today I had not paid much attention to Fabergé, to be honest. Of course I've heard of them and I've seen things in the windows of antique shops and jewellery shops, but I envisioned them as a little.... dated, perhaps?

But today I saw something that made my heart race [and made it straight on to my wish list]. A rose gold Fabergé egg necklace pendant. This one... [£2,073]. 

Isn't it spectacular? I can even be engraved with a message, which looks really nice. Of course this got me looking around the rest of the website and there are some rather lovely things to look at. Here are my favourites [all of the pendant come without a necklace/bracelet and this can be purchased separately]... 

1. Palais Tsarskoye Selo Turquoise Charm. £2,665. 

Isn't this charm pretty?! It is from the Heritage Collection and is made from 18 karat yellow gold with turquoise guilloché enamel. 

2. Boris Red Cufflinks. £2,600. 

Although I have absolutely no use for them, I have a bit of a thing for cufflinks at the moment. These ones are stunning. Made from 18 karat gold, cherry red guilloché enamel, and 0.08 carats of white diamonds. So, so beautiful. 

3. Palais Yelagin Forest Green earrings. £16,000.  

These come in a few colours but I like these ones (yellow gold, diamond, and Forest Green enamel) and the next ones (white gold, diamond, and Royal Blue enamel). 

4. Palais Yelagin Royal Blue Earrings. £11,846. 

5. Palais Tsarkoye Selo Turquoise Diamond Locket Pendant. £14,000. 

This pendant is super-cute and fun. It is made from 18 karat yellow gold, turquoise enamel, and 0.47 carats of white diamond (60 diamonds on total). Isn't it beautiful? 

6. Zenya Emerald Egg Pendant. £28,135. 

This pendant isn't exactly to my taste, but it shows the skill of the craftsmen at Fabergé, because the stones are so beautifully placed. It has 366 round white diamonds, and 203 round emeralds, totalling 2.49 carats, and 2.77 carats. It comes in an all-diamond version which has 567 diamonds, totalling 5.8 carats of diamond! 

7. Treillage Diamond Rose Gold Matt Ring. £2,400. 

I can't explore a jewellery designer without taking a look at their rings, obviously. I like the matt finish that Fabergé offer on their rings and the subtle 'quilting' which matches some of the eggs in their collection. This one is the thinner of two band widths on offer. 

8. Devotion Amethyst 6.55cts Ring. £15,000. 

Again, this isn't entirely to my taste but it has a couple of details that I adore. It has a mighty fine cushion cut amethyst which is just beautiful. I love the shape of the claws and the fact that the ring has a couple of dual-tone parts, like the claws and the side-diamond bezel, which I love. 

There is a 'story of Fabergé' link HERE so you can have a read about the company and where is has come from. Take a look at the jewellery and please share your favourite piece in the comments below. 

I hope you've enjoyed this introduction to Fabergé as much as I have enjoyed writing it. 

L. x 

Digby & Iona - my favourites

Happy Sunday! The weekend is here, the daffodils are starting to show their faces, and the sun is trying to peek out from behind the clouds. We went rummaging around antique shops yesterday to find goods for my new Etsy shop - The Velveteen Box [Trinket Box], we also had a hot chocolate and a sausage roll and it was a lovely day. 

But enough about all of that, I am here today to share one of my favourite jewellery houses with you [I did mention them back in 201]... Digby and Iona. One of my wedding rings is from D&I and I just love their quirky style. Here are some of my favourite pieces... 

The Ambro .70ct. 
This stunning example of a watermelon tourmaline speaks directly to my heart. I am hoping that 2015 is the year that I own a watermelon tourmaline and it may be in the shape of this ring, who knows? This ring is made from 18k rose gold and has D&I's wonderful wave engraving on the band. Perfection. $1330. 

Here's a sneaky picture of another one of D&I's watermelon tourmalines, this time an aqua coloured version...

Convict love token necklace. This charming necklace is exactly that - charming. It can be personalised with your and your partner's initials, which I think is just lovely. It is made from oxidised bronze and comes on a rope [I'm not too keen on the rope - I'd put it on a chain]. As with most of D&I's designs, there's a lovely history to accompany it. $190 with initials, $150 without. 

Ouroboros signet ring. Anyone who knows me knows that mixed metals are my thing. I've been mixing my metals since a time when it was not considered the done thing and items like this signet ring make me happy. The snake also helps. Snake jewellery is wonderful. The signet ring is made from sterling silver and the snake is solid 14k rose gold that has been inset. It's a pretty big, statement piece, but I think it's beautiful. $280. 

Mens wave band. We discovered, when shopping for The Husband's wedding ring, that it is surprisingly difficult to find interesting bands for men. There are trays upon trays of plain bands, with absolutely no character and seeing something like this band from D&I makes me smile. I think it would make a perfect wedding band. $920. 

Battle diagram ring. Another one for the men; the battle diagram ring. I think it's very interesting and again, would make a lovely wedding band. Sterling silver. $150. 

Boat wave studs. These lovely little studs match the above rings perfectly. $360. 

There we have it, some beautiful pieces from this lovely brand. Perfect if you're looking for that vintage sailor look. 

Until next time, folks... 

L. x

Catch up - the one with the vintage milk glass necklace.

Good morning everyone. 

I am so, so very sorry that it has taken me so long to update you all. All my focus has been on crazy wedding planning and doing silly hours at work. But here I am, on a Saturday morning, wanting to say hello. 

My obsession with jewellery has not lessened in the past few months, if anything it is stronger than ever. I can't wait to share my wedding jewellery with you, but the wedding is still in the future so I'll keep that to myself for a while longer. 

Since my Sean Leane splurge I've not spent too much on jewellery, I've had to spend every spare penny on the wedding and wedding-related things, but I did buy a beautiful 1930s milk-glass necklace this week that I am desperate to share with you... 

Isn't it precious? It has a lovely weight to it and the glass makes a lovely noise at it clinks together. It also warms really quickly, which is comforting. It needs a bit of love and might need to be restrung sooner rather than later, but it's from the 1930s, so that's pretty good-going. 

I'm really into vintage at the moment, a phase which I hope never ends. Actually, if it never ends then I suppose it's not a phase... anyway, let's not ramble.

My future husband has finally picked and purchased his wedding ring, which is quite exciting. I'll share that with you post-wedding, because it's AWESOME. 

What else has been happening with me? Oh yes, my little sister had a baby! You might be asking why this is jewellery related, well... of course I bought her some baby related jewellery! 

I bought her the Duchess necklace from Merci Maman. I picked this out the second I found out that she was pregnant and I ordered it the day that my gorgeous nephew was born. It has the initial of the Dad on the little heart, the baby's name on one side of the disc and the baby's date of birth on the other side, and then you can have a little boy or little girl charm. It's available on a variety of chain lengths and in sterling silver, or sterling silver with gold plate. The writing is hand engraved, which is quite important to me - I'm not too keen on the uniformity of typical "font" engraving. I didn't take a picture of the final piece, because I was too excited, so you'll have to make-do with some of the photos from Merci Maman's website. 

I think I bought my wedding nail polish yesterday. I think it's an unusual choice, but I like it a lot. It's my first Essie (I'm an OPI lover) and it is in the colour Rock the boat. Here is a really dodgy photo of the bottle, which I think is awesome at the same time (you can see my blog behind the over-exposed hand). 

Are you interested in what's featured on my Pinterest lately? Yes? Well, let's go then... 

I am loving this necklace by Kenneth Jay Lane, currently on sale at The Outnet. It's a bargain at £128 (was £320) but I just can't justify it at the moment. It is made with black resin beads and I think it's just so glamorous. I love the catch, even if they are just faux pearls! 

These Liberty print jewellery rolls by Dana Levy are amazingly beautiful. They have a beautiful ribbon to tie them up, they come in different fabrics, and they have the sweetest little charms on each of the zips. £110. My choice would be the brown and pink because the metal (zips and charms) are gold-coloured instead of silver. 

Finally, this 1970s faux turquoise bracelet, sold by vintage jewellery seller Susan Caplan. Isn't it perfect? 

There you have it. I'm going to leave you now because this post is far too long, but I hope you've had a good time and I will update you all again soon. I'm hoping my updates will be more regular after the wedding. 

Thanks folks. 

L. 

Sunday spotlight - Mociun

Happy Sunday! I wish I could say it was a "sunny Sunday" but nope, we've had a visit from the April showers today. But hey-ho, it has meant that I have been able to obsessively research things for the wedding & cook a lovely roast pork dinner. I'd love to take credit for the roast pork dinner, but the ingredients came from Waitrose and I don't think anyone could cook a bad meal from Waitrose ingredients! 

Anyway, back to the jewels. An email from YLANG23 reminded me that I've not shared one of my favourite designers with you yet - Mociun [pronounced motion]. 

One of my favourite things about Mociun is Caitlin's use of turquoise. I love the stuff; it's vibrant & eye-catching and pairs so very well with gold and diamonds, and Mociun uses a lot of all three of these things. 

As it was inspiration from YLANG23 that encouraged me to write this blog entry, it's only fair that I start with my favourite items from their website.

Mociun's mismatched stud earrings are delightful. I adore mismatched jewellery, and these are a great balance between being fun and not cheap! 

Squares: 14 karat yellow gold; turquoise and two baguette diamonds; £542.47. 

Triangles: 14 karat yellow gold; turquoise and diamonds; £246. 

[There are also oblongs and circles, and triangles in black onyx and lapis] - black onyx and lapis are another two of my favourite stones. 

Peach sapphire mix ring: One of a kind; 14 karat yellow gold; peach sapphires; £2,031.11. 

Now on to the Mociun website... 

I discovered Mociun when I was shopping for my wedding rings. The following ring was in my top two and lost out only to the one I finally ordered. I am at peace with this as I think I'll still buy it one day. 

Single band moon and stars ring: $734. 

Turquoise and diamond ring: $1,587. 

Etched lines band: $345. 

Stacked sapphire ring [with red diamonds]: $874. 

Moon and stars ring: $2,277.

 Turquoise and diamond square circle triangle necklace: $1,898. 

There we have it, some of my favourite pieces [not all, I need to save some for another time]. I hope you've seen many things that you like. 

What else have I been looking at today? Well... 

This beautiful running fox locket from Heather Scott. It's hand engraved and just perfect, in my opinion. It even has a lovely heart on the catch. 

I've also been eyeing up some vintage Chanel pieces. I need to have at least one piece in my life pretty soon. Here's a gorgeous bracelet for us to look at for now. Don't even get me started on all the lovely earrings and necklaces. 

Finally, from Anthropologie, I cannot stop popping by to look at this Azolla bib necklace. I'd love to team this up with a black maxi skirt and black vest. 

 

And I was going to treat myself to these bracelets, but the website says they run small at only 6.5 inches. My wrists struggle with a 7 inch, so it's a no go for me, which is sad. 

We've also spent part of today looking at vintage watches and tie pins for my Groom to wear for our wedding. I'd give up new before I gave up vintage. There are so many lovely pieces already out there for us to enjoy. 

Anyway, I've rambled enough. I'll be back soon...

Thanks for reading, 

L. x

Mr Gingerbread man - foodie necklace

I thought I'd keep it short today, so here is the necklace that I wore to work. It's one of my favourites and I actually won it from Alex Monroe in a Twitter competition. Here is a link so that you can buy one of your very own [£180] >> LINK and here is the description from Alex Monroe >> 

Yes, you read that correctly, he has 5 black diamonds for eyes and buttons. Cute, huh? He comes in silver or gold vermeil. Finally, here are a couple of my own photographs [the one of me wearing it is from today - please excuse my uniform] and there is also one of Mr Gingerbread man riding his Alex Monroe bicycle! I'll tell you all about the bicycle next time I wear it. 

Do you have any food-inspired jewellery? If so, please comment. If not, please say hi anyway. 

'night folks. 

Thanks for reading. 

L. x

Today's purchase = my first purchase from Notonthehighstreet.com

I just got home from a typical Monday at work and I was pleasantly surprised to find a parcel on the doorstep. It was my new earrings from Lisa Angel [via Notonthehighstreet.com]. I ordered them on the 26th of Feb, they were dispatched on the 28th, and arrived today - not too bad! My first purchase from NOTHS.com and I'm impressed so far. 

Since getting my new pearl studs for Valentine's day I have rediscovered a forgotten love of stud earrings. I've only worn earrings [and dangly ones at that] in my primary holes for many years, neglecting my second set of pierced holes, but last weekend I decided to try earrings in them again. They had healed over a little bit, but I sorted that out [ouch] and I needed a pair of studs to keep them open again. I searched high and low, looking for a tiny pair of studs before discovering Lisa Angel on NOTHS.com. They came in Small, Medium, and Large, so I got the small ones and to be honest, they are still too big for what I wanted them for, so I'll have to begin the search again. I've got my eye on a pair though, so watch this space. 

They came in two lovely illustrated paper bags, inside a jiffy bag, inside a nicely illustrated box. They are listed as "turquoise" and "onyx" [two of my favourite stones] but they feel very light, so I'm not sure what they're actually made of, but they were only £9 a pair, so I'm not feeling cheated. They have sterling silver posts, I believe. 

Anyway, enough of my rambling, here are some photos for you, because that's what you really want. Oh, and I must not forget to do some links for you lovely people. 

Watch out for lots of posts coming up, I've got so many lovely things to show you and I've made plans for future posts, but I don't want to drown you with lots and lots of information, so I'm trying to play it cool. But before I go, I can at least share with you what other jewellery I wore to work today... I wore... 

My favourite earrings from Alexis Dove: Belle Hook Earrings in gold vermeil. Seriously, if you ever only buy one thing from Alexis Dove [which I do not recommend - buy LOTS of things from her instead] then these would be an excellent choice. They are so, so very pretty and I get compliments on them all the time. They are very unusual in their shape but they are just wonderful. I wear mine all the time. This picture is borrowed from Alexis Dove [also link to earrings]. They can be yours for £105. Not my ones though, no, they're mine. 

What else did I wear? Oh yes, I wore this ring, also from Alexis Dove [link]. £90. It's very dainty and pretty. I wore it on my ring finger instead of my engagement ring. 

I wore my usual silver rings too [cat ring and 3 handmade silver bands] and this mushroom necklace from Alex Monroe... 

It doesn't look like it's currently for sale on the Alex Monroe website, but here is a picture of it [it's sterling silver with 18k rose gold plate and 5 x 1mm diamonds on top]. It was about £180, I think. 

So there we have it, I really will go now, but I hope you enjoyed having a look at these lovely, pretty things; thanks for reading. 

L. x