"Breath of Deep Winter" on Indie Artisans

These beautiful Cobalt Venetian lampwork and brushed Sterling silver earrings, the essence of deep winter are
featured in this months Indie Artisans page "A Breath of Deep Winter" and are available on the following links:

http://www.artfire.com/modules.php?name=Shop&op=listing&product_id=2251149

http://barbaracromer.artspan.com/large-single-view/lampwork%20earrings/1001231-29-80211/Jewelry/Noble%20Metals/Earrings.html

holiday treats for your ears

I can't tell you how much fun I am having coming up with Holiday party earring designs, for Holiday parties that I will not be going to. I am just not invited to parties, even though I love a good Holiday party. Now that I'm out of the corporate world, and working from my home studio, I don't get the same invitations to Office Parties and vendor parties like the old days when I was a corporate Interior Designer. So instead, I'm imagining the kind of earrings that I, or my former colleagues, would want to wear. For me, it's as much fun as holiday baking and a lot less fattening. Also, they can be enjoyed for many future occasions

Calorie free ... And they ship for free in sophisticated eco friendly gift boxes

see these and my other creations: www.BarbaraCromer.com or http://BarbaraCromer.artfire.com

rainbows of earrings

Color makes the world go round for me, so I have just spent several days editing my ArtSpan earring galleries by color.
Each page is a little rainbow of color.
Please stop, by and let me know what you think.
www.BarbaraCromer.com

evening glamour comes to my ArtSpan site

Just in time for holiday glamour, I'm adding my line of modern evening /event earrings made with Swarovski crystal creations crystals. If you're looking for sparkle that says young and modern, look no farther.
www.BarbaraCromer.com

A very exciting day for me today. Officially www.BarbaraCromer.com goes to my new and expanding www. BarbaraCromer.ArtSpan.com site.

Also, I'm in volume 34 of Ornament magazine, in an ad, along with my artisans in arms, Ann Brooks and Sharon MacLeod. We're on page 4.

Barbara Cromer moves to ArtSpan

After the demise of 1000Markets.com, I have moved my original inspirations in modern jewelry designs to a new website.
Please visit me at:

http://www.BarbaraCromer.artspan.com

also at:
http://www.artfire.com/users/BarbaraCromer
http://www.zibbet.com/cstudio

C Studio jewelry at Takoma Park, MD event

I will have a booth at the Takoma Park, MD Folk Festival on September 12th, 10:30-6:30. If you're in the D.C. area please come out. It's always a great event.

Artisans/Jewelry Designers, Ltd.: FEATURED MEMBER FOR SEPTEMBER 1-15, 2010 - BARBARA...

Artisans/Jewelry Designers, Ltd.: FEATURED MEMBER FOR SEPTEMBER 1-15, 2010 - BARBARA...: "WELCOME TO OUR FEATURED MEMBERFOR SEPTEMBER 1-15, 2010BARBARA CROMER HERE ARE SOME OF BARBARA'S FABULOUS DESIGNS What a very unique and s..."

cubes + arcs = pure geometry

Cubes and Arcs are my new obsession and now my new line of earrings.
While being a basic element of design, the cube can be hard to work with for jewelry.
I decided to have them stand alone like little buildings, only attaching to the body with the more sensuous form of the arc.

I think that they are very direct, and yet elegant.

Less is More

Earrings of Venetian style lampwork and Sterling silver

I've been working on new designs for the summer craft show market. I, at last feel that I am honing in on the personal style that was my original goal. 4 years ago when I decided to take my design career and background into a new direction by making jewelry, I had a concept but it wasn't fully developed. I started out by buying everything that I liked at the Washington Society Bead show and from the typical internet purveyors. I trained myself by experimenting, reading, observing at the ACC Baltimore show, MOMA, SFMOMA, The Smithsonian Crafts shows, etc.

One of my recent creations is a pair of earrings that are great in person, but they are impossible to photograph. They really need to be modeled and I don't want to get into that. Probably half the job of selling jewelry on the internet is photographing the work. I'm really trying for a museum look for my photos. Slowly the work and the photos become a unified look.

I'm a "Less is More" disciple. I buy materials that speak to me, and I want them to stand out, nothing tarted up.

And I also find that naming them, is lots of fun!

Quotations for an artist to follow:

"simplicity is the ultimate sophistication" ~ Leonardo di Vinci

I was reminded of this quote today and decided it should be added to my list of favorites which include:


"Less is more" ~ Mies van de Rohe

"I am always satisfied with the best" ~ Oscar Wilde ( I think that this does not necessarily mean the most expensive, just the best solution)

"Color is like food for the spirit- plus it’s not addictive or fattening" ~ Issac Mizrahi

"One should be a work of art or wear a work of art" ~ Oscar Wilde

~ As an artist these are words I try to live by. If you use the best materials with clarity of form, there is no reason to add unnecessary extras.

peace for men

I'm having fun making new peace jewelry for men, with new old 60's stock, found in a warehouse, that I am transforming into items that can be worn by men, or anyone, for that matter.

Wear more Red

vintage Red trade beads on sterling silver

These were a surprisingly big hit at the ACC Baltimore show. The American Crafts Show in Baltimore is the largest Craft event in the US. The show is always held in late February, a cold dreary time here on the mid east coast. I decided that I needed something to cheer myself up, and to show off a little bit , while I toured the show. So, I made these for myself to wear. Surprisingly, I was stopped repeatedly and complemented on my earrings. I even had one fellow artist try to buy the beads off of me. The beads are old, and apparently rare, figure 8 shaped beads from Africa. They were such a hit that I made another pair to sell in my C Studio shop. I only have enough beads for 2 pairs. Only 2 pairs will exist.. mine and these.

These are gorgeous red vintage tribal beads that interlock together along the length of a hand hammered sterling silver marquise wire.

One of my motto's is "wear more red." It make you feel better and is a very powerful color.

planning for warmer weather

I'm trying to stay warm inside and work on summer and warm weather jewelry


www.cstudio.1000markets.com

snow bound and keeping busy

Keeping busy while snow bound, I've just updated one of my most popular designs " Black Webs", with new photos and more silver.
www.cstudio.1000markets.com

still dreaming of sunny Italia

Still dreaming of sunny Italia.

dreams of sunny Italia

Why do all Venetian made beads look like something good enough to eat ?
Maybe it's because Italian life centers around food.

I realized when up -loading new items made from Venetian glass, that I always describe them in terms of fruit or other gastronomic terms . They're just luscious. The intense colors, the smooth texture. A pleasure for the senses.

Of course I do know that winter in Venice is also grim, gray and rainy, and very depressing, not sunny. But in my memories it's always sunny.

Or, maybe I'm just dreaming of warm climes and summer time fruit. After the second 2 foot snow in 2 months I'm looking for an escape.
And more snow is predicted!
It's not supposed to be like this in eastern Maryland.
Yes I'm trying to be inspired by my work , but it all seems to be reminding me of sunny Italia.

surviving winter, with creativity

Alas .... winter. For me it's always been an agony to endure, but this year I'm filling my world with lot's of color in my studio. One way to survive these gray days is to begin to work on the gorgeous colors awaiting me on my work bench. I've begun preparing early for spring and summer crafts festivals, mostly because we've really been snowed in so much this winter in Maryland. When you're not a "winter person" you need to focus elsewhere and to keep something WARM and nurturing to look forward to. I love my work. I love making jewelry, the whole creative process. Finding inspiring stones or materials and then dreaming and imagining how to celebrate their uniqueness and have them fit into my artistic vision is a perfect occupation for me. I'm already applying to local regional shows. When I first started, they were a bit overwhelming, but now "Shows" are becoming an exciting prospect. A chance to share my work with others, and talk about my design process is really a great feeling. I really love interacting with customers, whether they're "just looking "or seriously buying. The feed back is really important and it's really a great to feel the positive energy they give freely. Makes me understand, on a very small level, that buoyance that a performing artist receives from the audience. So this creative window is what I am trying to focus on, while we await the oncoming 2 feet of snow the DC region has been promised for the second time since December. These storms are supposed to occur only about once every 10 years.
Maybe we won't have any snow now for 20 years!

update on Just Jewelry book

Well it's official . My work is to be published. The book will be available late February
There is a new link which connects to all of the featured artists' websites. Come by and see me.



http://www.new-art-review.com/Jewelryartists.html

my work to be published!

I have just had three of my jewelry pieces accepted for a new book being published by the New Art Review called "Just Jewelry". I am thrilled to have my work published.
It can be purchased at:

http://www.new-art-review.com/bookstore.html