Blog entry
Make It an Artisan Handmade Christmas - 2022 - Week 1
Posted September 20, 2022
Wow! It seems like Christmas was just a few months ago. It’s very hard to believe that Christmas is only 95 days away according to the ever ticking Christmas clock. With that in mind, it's definitely not too early to start thinking about all those people on your Christmas shopping list. What should you get them??? A perfect place to start looking (and buying!) is the 12 week Countdown to Christmas 2022 collections. Hosted by Julie and Harry of Blue Morning Expressions on their Shopify blog, the collections will be filled with a wide variety of artisan handmade / designed gifts. A new collection will be added each week through the first full week of December. This week, there were 27 shares from 9 handmade artists: unique jewelry of all types (earrings, bracelets and necklaces), baby gifts, party stickers / gift tags, fun thumbtacks / magnets, Halloween gifts and more. A good motto to follow through these weeks leading up to Christmas: SHOP EARLY, SHOP OFTEN! And, most of all, SHOP HANDMADE to support small indie businesses!
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New Jewelry - Necklaces and Earrings Handmade by Shadow Dog Designs
Posted December 21, 2021
It has been a very long time since I last shared new necklace and earring designs from my SHADOW DOG DESIGNS jewelry shop. Between doing shows, the holiday rush and other commitments, I've had a hard time pulling anything together. Until now! Featured are a baker's dozen of new jewelry designs: seven necklaces and six pairs of earrings. They are all one of a kind designs. If you are interested in anything and want more information, be sure to click the photo or the link below the photo to be taken to the item. I hope you enjoy the new artisan handmade beauties.
Necklaces and Earrings - New Handmade Jewelry by Shadow Dog Designs
Posted August 12, 2021
I've been working hard these past several weeks crating and adding new jewelry into my SHADOW DOG DESIGNS shop. Below are the latest necklaces and earrings that have been listed, an even dozen, all unique and all one of a kind designs. You’ll find a wide variety of styles, from boho to elegant . . . with some designs combining both! Also you'll find two new pieces from my "dog / cat rescue jewelry" line, where, when purchased, one half (1/2) of the purchase price is donated to an animal rescue group. If something catches your eye and you want to see more photos and information, please click the item photo or the link below a picture to be taken to the listing. I hope you enjoy each piece. And remember . . . Christmas is only 134 days away! It's never to early to stary holiday shopping. Yikes!
Menagerie - Animal Inspired Handmade Jewelry by Shadow Dog Designs
Posted July 29, 2021
Menagerie: a collection of animals, frequently exotic, kept for display. The term was first used in 17th-century France, in reference to the management of household or domestic stock.
Anyone who knows me knows I love animals in all shapes and sizes - always have, always will. So I wanted to share a collection of animal jewelry with you that can be found in my Shadow Dog Designs handmade jewelry shop. Even though these animals found on these earrings and necklaces are not alive, they can definitely be termed a menagerie since there is a wide variety, from exotic animals, such as tigers and giraffes, to domestic animals, like dogs and cats. If something catches your eye and you want to see more photos and information, please click on the photo or the link below the picture to be taken directly to the item. I hope you enjoy this menagerie of one of a kind jewelry!
Make It a Handmade Mothers Day - Week 2
Posted March 17, 2020
Week 2 of the Mother’s Day Countdown 2020, hosted by Julie and Harry of Blue Morning Expressions on their the Blu Print blog, quickly came and went. A total of 48 unique items were shared - each one a perfect Mother’s Day gift - from 16 handmade artists. Since Mother's Day will be here before you know it - about 9 weeks from now - this is the perfect time to start thinking about and buying a gift(s) for your Mom. Browse all the wonderful handmade shares for Week 2, visit the shops of the artists featured and buy your Mom a beauty that was handmade from the heart.
Shadow Dog Designs - New Handmade Jewelry
Posted March 4, 2020
It has been a good while since I showcased my newest jewelry designs - since December, methinks. Wow! Where does the time go? Here it is already March. I picked out a baker’s dozen of new earrings and necklaces, not everything that’s new in the shop, but ones that certainly draw my eye - and hopefully yours. Please stop by to see all the jewelry, both new and old, at SHADOW DOG DESIGNS. I hope you enjoy this selection of new beauties.
Valentines Gifts: Handmade Jewelry by Shadow Dog Designs
Posted January 17, 2020
Valentine’s Day is rapidly approaching, less than a month away! Now is the time to start thinking about / purchasing Valentine’s gifts for the ones you love. How about giving a one of a kind, handmade piece of jewelry this year? My Shadow Dog Designs shop is filled with unique necklaces and earrings, each one carefully handmade with quality artisan components and other top notch items, such as gemstones and Swarovski crystals. Some of these designs are brand new and some have been in the shop for a bit. You’ll find many hearts featured in the designs, but each one can be worn year round and can’t be pegged just as “Valentine’s jewelry.” If something catches your eye and you want more information, please click the picture or the link to be taken to the listing. Enjoy!
We Have the Blues - Artisan Handmade - Three for Thursday
Posted August 22, 2019
Blues is a tonic for whatever ails you. I could play the blues and then not be blue anymore.
B. B. King
Even though the above quote by B. B. King is about music, it can also be about the color blue. According to psychologists, the popularity of the color may take root in our evolutionary development. In the early hunter-gatherer days, those drawn to positive things - like clear blue skies and clean blue hued water were more likely to survive. Over time, this preference for the color blue may have become hard-wired. To this day, the color blue is still a favorite color worldwide.
Colours by Donovan - Three for Thursday
Posted July 25, 2019
A couple of days ago, while I was picking up some veggies and fruit from our local Whole Foods, I keyed in on a song that was playing in the background - a song I loved waaaaay back when. When I got home, I looked it up on YouTube, played the video and then let the mix of music from the mid-60’s to early 70’s continue playing. Brought back to many happy, and some sad, memories. One of the songs that played was Donovan Leitch’s “Colours,” a song I adored then and still adore now. I get lost in the peaceful lyrics, the lovely simplicity of the folk guitar accompaniment and Donovan's hauntingly beautiful voice. The song was released in 1965 and, 54 years later, is still a classic. I have played it over and over since “rediscovering” it. The lyrics are shared near the end of the post.
Here’s a link to the YouTube video (version without harmonica):
And here’s an incredible live version of the song with Pete Seeger sitting in on banjo:
Unique Jewelry, Artisan Handmade - Three for Thursday
Posted January 3, 2019
Buy Handmade - Be One in a Million, Not One of Millions
I don’t know about you, but I HATE to buy jewelry that everyone else can buy. I don’t want to see a stranger three states over wearing a piece of jewelry that I might be wearing. That doesn’t happen, however, because I have almost always worn artisan handmade jewelry that is one of a kind, whether the earrings, bracelets or necklace are created by another artist or created by me. There is something so soul satisfying in that, knowing that I’m the only person in the universe wearing a particular design - unless an evil twin in an evil alternate universe is up to her evil copying of designs.
The three handmade artists that are features in this new “Three For Thursday” blog all make one of a kind jewelry designs: Mary of PrettyGonzo; Julie of Blue Morning Expressions; and me, Catherine of Shadow Dog Designs. I hope you enjoy this small sampling of the one of a kind jewelry designs that are in their shops. Please visit each shop for more eye catching and soul satisfying beauty. I hope you enjoy these selections:
