On May 3 2010, one of TV’s sexiest mothers, Gossip Girl’s Lily van der Woodsen (Kelly Rutherford), was dripping in drama. The stylists for Gossip Girl selected our Diorissimo necklace to offset Lily’s man troubles with Serena’s (Blake Lively) father. The 24K gold necklace is stunning on brunettes, and amplified even more on blonds like Kelly Rutherford.

As a special tribute to Gossip Girl and the fashions the show promotes, we will be running a 25% fashion discount from May 3rd to May 5th. Enter LILY at checkout for 25% off your entire purchase of M. Sturman Jewellery and treat yourself to some Gossip Girl fashion. And treat your mom to some jewelry for Mothers Day. She will love anything you pick. Shop for the Diorssimo necklace at M. Sturman Jewellery (it’s a limited edition piece) >

We can also act as personal shopper help you pick something special, so contact us for personal attention.

This necklace is made of vintage yellow stones ordered by Dior from Swarovski after WWII.  The stones are bezeled with 14k gold-plated seed beads and suspended from a chain woven of the same beads.  All of it handwoven, totally one-of-a-kind fashion and totally Lily van der Woodsen, played by Kelly Rutherford.

Shop for the Diorssimo necklace at M. Sturman Jewellery >

Artist Made

Last evening, I attended an event at the New York Public Library featuring the author, Barbara Kingsolver, promoting her newest book in nine years, The Lacuna.  I’ve been to many such events, but was captivated by this intelligent and charming woman.  She began by discussing how the public, before the advent of radio, used to read books for pleasure and how this particular pleasure has largely been replaced by radio, tv, and the internet. She went on to describe her involvement with her work, the research done, the trips made, the notes taken and consulted.  I was struck with the thought that this description of her craft was very similar to that of artists of handmade art.

Recently, I watched the new series on PBS, Craft in America. I marvelled anew at the work done by “craft” artists, at how they invest themselves in each type of material they touch. These are potters, glass blowers, wood turners, and, yes, beadworkers, each of whom has spent most of their life pursuing their craft, because they HAD TO do it. I have often mused that so much of the buying public simply doesn’t understand or appreciate this inherent value — the investment of time, love, emotion, with which any artist, including Barbara Kingsolver, infuses their work.

A somewhat apocryphal tale has often circulated among beaders, about a bead artist who was selling her beadwork at a fair.  A visitor stepped up, browsed through the work displayed, selected a piece, looked at the price, and, complaining that it was too costly, insisted that she could replicate it with one hand tied behind her back!  In the blink of an eye, this consumer totally negated the time spent learning and practicing her craft, her investment in time and materials, her dedication to the work.

Yes, we are in hard economic times; yes, spare cash is hard to come by; and yes, artist made works generally cost more.  And in the upcoming holiday season, consumers will have the choice of buying decorative glass, wood, and pottery items as well as jewelry at the big box stores that have been spit out of foreign factories for pennies;  or of purchasing handmade items at fine craft galleries or at holiday craft shows, such as the one mounted in Bryant Park behind the New York Public Library.  Perhaps, but not necessarily, a consumer will pay more for handmade — but won’t both gift-giver and -receiver appreciate the unique quality of a handmade gift of art?

I’m a visual person, my husband is an audio person. Like Jack and Jill, together we make a great team: when we went to a Broadway production of La Boheme a few years ago, he raved about the music of this classic opera. I responded “what music?” because the production was staged by Baz Luhrmann and was so resplendent in colorful imagery that I was completely, visually, enchanted. He hadn’t noticed!

Likewise, the striking opening images of the film “Frida”, the purple/pink hues of the mesas in the morning in Tucson, the shades and shapes of Dale Chihuly‘s glass installation at the Phoenix Botanic Gardens – all of these get me to raving about the overwhelming magnificence of color.

I could never understand women in my early beadwork classes wanting someone else to pick the colors of beads for their projects for them – they felt incapable. We were clearly in different places! Maybe this is because early on, in one of my early careers learning flower design and arrangement, I was required to take a class in color theory. I was so turned on by this class – when we had to make our own color wheel for credit, I nailed it! Likewise, when I tried my hand at oil painting, I had the best time mixing the tints and hues of the paints to achieve the exact shades of the still life set up by the teacher.

A friend of mine has always said that any color of flowers look good together, no matter their color. While that may be true, why not play with the colors for sensational effects? The colors available in nature are always spectacular and all wonderful. Natural, untreated colored stones and iridescent natural pearls offer amazing potential for combination and the flash in Swarovski crystals offers innumerable possibilities for stunning colorways. How can one go wrong? – the possibilities are infinite and deliciously challenging.

I have my favorite colors and color combinations: sometimes I love neutral palettes or sometimes I’ll pick up a hint of blue in a rough stone; I love pairing oranges and purples, browns and blues; I always love greens, but I’ve never appreciated yellows.

What colors do you love?