A Big Surprise In A Little Shell

Here's one way of happening on a collectible of value, so to speak. Florida couple George and Leslie Brock, decided to stop into Dave's Last Resort & Raw Bar during a day at the beach. Mr. Brock was about halfway through a dozen clams when he chomped down on something hard - a rare iridescent purple pearl. At least one expert said the find could be worth thousands. “Few are round and few are a lovely color, so this is rare,” said Vermont gemologist Antoinette Matlins. “I think they have found something precious and lovely and valuable.” The gems occur most frequently in large New England quahogs, clams known for violet coloring on the inside of their shells. Brock's $10 plate of clams came from Apalachicola in the Florida Panhandle, said restaurant manager Tom Gerry. The Brocks, of Royal Palm Beach, plan to have the pearl appraised and said they'll sell it if it's worth a lot of money, so be on the look-out for this if you collect rare jewelry pieces. For the original article, click here, and if you are looking to get organized for the new year, create your inventory list and manage your collections on iTaggit!

New Jewelry Affiliate Offers Handcrafted Nepalese Jewelry That Makes a Difference!

iTaggit is proud to announce its new affiliate partnership with Adambha Jewelry! Their entire selection of jewelry is handcrafted in Nepal without any modern equipment of any sort. Their artisans craft jewelry using the same methods that have been passed down through generations for centuries. Every piece in their collection has a unique flare not found in other mass-produced jewelry collections. And, Adambha Jewelry donates 3% of their sales to support the children in Nepal. Hats off to Adambha Jewelry for making a positive difference in our world!

Treasure Tuesday - Avon Jewelry

Quite by accident, I have discovered a new love affair with Avon Jewelry. A couple of years ago, I found a fabulous necklace at an Antiques store, and noticed it was signed Avon.

A little research online has revealed that Avon's vintage jewelry is quite collectible - not worth a whole lot $$ wise, but very cool.

Last week, iTaggit released an awesome new feature that allows you to post an item for sale on ebay in a few clicks.

I posted this necklace, on a whim. I had never sold on ebay - can you believe it? I was amazed that someone purchased it! So while I was on ebay, I looked around for pieces I wanted to buy, and found another amazing Avon necklace.

In one week I sold and purchased my first items on ebay - it was very exciting! The new piece is super awesome - 1970s deco style (deco refers to 1920s to 30s style - geometric, urban and angular with a few fancy flourishes). This is all the rage right now in fashion.

Now I have added the new necklace to my Funky Vintage Necklaces collection, and plan on selling and buying a lot more on ebay soon! Check out our online Help section for step by step guides to all the things you can do on iTaggit!

DIY: Jewelry Screen Project

This Wednesday's project is super easy, and super useful! How many of us gals have piles of earrings laying around - in a drawer or on a dresser, all tangled up? I wanted to make something pretty to hang my earrings on, and this Jewelry Screen is what I came up with!

Difficulty Level: 3 out of 5

Estimated Cost: $20 - assuming you have some of the basics on hand

Materials:

• Picture Mat that fits frame
• Wire Screen (usually sold as repair item for a screen window or door)
• Foam Core
• Hot Glue Gun & Glue Sticks
  
• Craft Scissors and X-acto Knife or Rotary Cutter
  
• Ruler
• Optional: Paint and Brushes to decorate Picture Mat
• Optional: Paper for background
  

Step One: Preparing the Frame

Take the frame back off and set aside, make sure to attach the hanging wire, if necessary. Discard or reuse the glass for the frame. Now you can decide if you want to paint or decorate the mat - you can buy them in colors, but many frames will come with a plain mat. I chose to paint mine a pretty coral color with acrylic paint - you could decoupage it, stamp it, glue fabric on it - the sky is the limit!

Step Two: Preparing the Screen

Roll the screen out, and hold it flat with some heavy objects. Place the back of the frame on top, and cut the screen to the same size with your craft scissors. The screen's edges can get sharp, so be careful.

Step Three: Preparing the Foam Core

(get your pet to help!)

You will need 4 pieces of foam core. Use your ruler to measure the width and length of the long side of the mat - cut 2 of this size. Then, lay those two pieces on the mat, and you will have a space left for a top and bottom piece. Measure and cut these 2 pieces. The best way to cut Foam Core is with an X-acto Knife or Rotary Cutter, using a ruler as a straight edge. *The pieces of foam core are more clearly shown in the next photo...

Step Four: Assemble the Mat, Screen, and Foam Core

First, plug in the hot glue gun! Lay the mat decorated side down, then lay the screen on top and hold it in place with a heavy object in the middle. Squirt hot glue onto one of the long sides of the mat, and press the foam core on top. Repeat for the other long side, then do the top and the bottom. This will hold the screen in place, and give you necessary space between the screen and the frame back to hang your earrings.

Step Five: Finish the Project!

Place the Mat, Screen and Foam Core "unit" face down into your frame. This is where you decide whether you need a background color or pattern. If you do - place it down first, and then put the back of the frame on. Close it all up, and hang it!

I am new at writing these tutorials - so please send me your feedback! Was this easy to follow? Was my "level rating" on target? Send me pictures if you create one!

New Funky Vintage Jewelry Collection!

So for those of you who don't know - I collect jewelry. I started adding my extensive collection to iTaggit last week - and it was so fun!

I can remember where I bought most pieces, or who gave them to me. I like being able to write the history of each piece on iTaggit.

I wanted to feature a few of my favorite pieces today

First is this huge necklace that my friend Jasmine gave to me. I love the organic feel it has, and it makes any t-shirt immediately dressy.

Second is my "wooden delight" necklace - I scored it at a Thrift store for a few bucks, and I get SO many compliments on it.

Read more of my blogs on Jewerly, Art, Crafts and Antiques here!