Flower Beauty & Jewelry to match

Inspiration comes in many forms.

Flowers.
Salt water.
and Free Winged Creatures.

Hello Beautiful Readers~

I'm obsessed with Hydrangea (these are from my garden) & peonies. There aren't too many girls who aren't as I've noticed the flood of gorgeous flower pictures on Instagram. I am right there with you girls. I am smitten with flowers of all colors.

The Jewelry I chose to wear in the photo above are all inspired by flowers and salt water! Fashionable Lavender Druzy with a Silver Spike & White Freshwater pearl (3 necklaces in one); and a large juicy Sea Green Fluorite (healing gemstone) & blue opal pendant necklace. (I'm wearing a Tahari shirt/ and Fila sunglasses as a headband).

Below is the Lavender Necklace close up with two other necklaces I've designed. Inspiration from not only flowers and the sea filled my soul for these, but, also beautiful free winged creatures.

I'll blog again about the modern Fluorite cube designs I'm making like the one above. I am wild about fluorite and it's natural beauty. A healing gemstone with the most beautiful natural hues of green, aqua green, sea blue and purple. Another photo of my hydrangea bouquet was needed below. It was huge! Bigger than my head and so very beautiful.

The Pitcher/Vase (Delft Blue, from Portugal) is from Tiffany. A wedding present from my sister. I always use it for floral bouquets.I Love Delft Blue.

These Necklaces (above) are also inspired by floral beauty. Rich jewel tones of Raspberry and Lavender. (you can click on photo to find them or go back to my website for more information).

Best for last! I'm offering another savings in my online Jewelry Shop for you. Save 20% in my shop. (Minimum purchase of $20 and cannot be combined with my personal gift certificates). Coupon code is: Sparkle15 ! If you have a chance to pick a flower, I hope that you do. Or support a local florist and buy a few blooms. 

Be Kind. Be Real and, yes, Be Sparkly. 

~Marissa T xo

Sparkle During Exercise, Purple Flowers & Pink Drinks!

Greetings Beautiful Readers~   (There is a surprise at the end of the entry..so keep on reading)

Summer is in full swing and I hope you have been having an awesome summer so far! On some days I feel like I live in California again. (I am originally from Southern California and lived there through college, before I moved to the east coast). Well, it feels a bit like California because we have had some very warm days in coastal Washington (on the island I live on)!  I still have to get out there and exercise; so it is a must to stay hydrated! I drink at least 8 glasses of purified water a day (always been a big water drinker). After water, I have been drinking a lot of this delicious flavored water beverage.  It comes in many pretty berry flavors, zero calories (my kind of drink). My favorite these days is the "Pink Grapefruit." Great for parties! In addition to your cocktail bar, this would be a refreshing non-alcoholic drink (for the kids too) for a fun summer outing. The colors are beautiful. 

Pink Drink, "Cascade Ice." Nail polish mentioned in next photo. Because I adore turquoise! and jewelry (& photo) well, you guessed it, by, me!

 Staying cool is essential and it's not always easy to look good while doing it! I dressed up my wrist (arm party) with my yoga & beach bracelets. They are so easy to put on and look fabulous with practically everything. I recently posted on instagram (the next picture below) and mentioned how awesome these bracelets are and how I literally throw on one or two (& a cute necklace, really, I do) before I head out to power walk (I wouldn't recommend all my handmade jewelry when exercising, but, the yoga and beach bracelets & many of my necklaces with stainless steel chain are perfect for MELLOW exercise). 

There is nothing like the feel of real (of the earth) organic gemstones on your skin. Real gemstones have such vibrancy and wonderful healing properties (according to folklore). Let's face it, they are really fun to look at and add beauty to your style, and pretty self.  I wear a lot of casual clothes (don't get me wrong, I LOVE fashion and beautiful clothes {affordable however, sales are this girls' best friend}) around the island; so adding a beautiful necklace (or two, or three) and some bracelets to my outfits really feels good & adds that extra sparkle. Do you always grab some jewelry before you leave the house (like I do)? A lot of the women I see on this island have wonderful taste in jewelry and wear it daily! I love that.

Jewelry & photography by me, Marissa T Designs. My favorite sneakers for power walks these days are, New Balance, and I'm in love with this turquoise nail polish called "Brisk Blue," by Sally Hansen. (Those lace cap hydrangea are so beautiful and blooming in my backyard)

I'm in love with all the purple, blue, and pink hydrangea growing on the island right now (not to mention the lavender & lilies). All the beautiful hydrangea in the pictures are from my home garden. They really make a statement (don't you think?) and have always been my favorite flower (it is a toss up between hydrangea and peonies). I think they may be upstaging my new necklaces (in the picture below)! wink wink. These necklaces (Druzy Quartz, Silver Spike and Circle Love Necklaces, coming to my etsy shop soon) are strung on beautiful silver stainless steel which looks like platinum, will never tarnish, and has the durability for, yes, you guessed it, power walking or mellow exercise!

I love the purple & blue palette. Here are the colors of my hydrangea flowers (the best flowers to have around the house). They are very hardy. They grew in abundance on the east coast and thrive out here in the Pacific North West. Great flower to plant! They will give you many lovely bouquets and dress up your garden beautifully!

Signing off for now. Here I am (below/Purple Druzy with Aqua Spike Quartz Necklace & Caribbean Aqua Blue Apatite Petite Earrings, available in my shop) giving you a smile, because I am happy that you are here. Send me inquiries or ask me product or jewelry questions anytime.

Thank you so much for following me. 

"Stay real. Be Kind. And above all else, Be Sparkly."

~Marissa xo

COUPON CODE! Coupon code going on now in my etsy shop! Code : BeSparkly15 (use during checkout). *****Take 20% off anything in my Etsy store ($20 minimum purchase). ***** See anything here you want (and it's not in my shop yet)? Message me on Etsy, Direct message me on Instagram, @MarissaTDesigns,  or feel free to leave me a message here!

Happy Spring! Happy Bling! Who doesn't love Flowers and Jewelry!

Happy May Beautiful Readers!

Flowers Everywhere!

I love this time of year when everything around me is blooming! Flower buds are everywhere. Color is everywhere. Every plant seems to have new buds popping out.  What was sleeping during winter is waking up and saying hello to the sun. Can you tell I am loving spring time in Washington?

The Pacific North West, (my new home for the last 6 months now), has a long beautiful spring season. The enormous & gorgeous fir trees are always green too. Knowing they are there, giving color and oxygen is a good feeling. On the east coast, where I used to live, there is usually a very short Spring and a VERY LONG Winter. So, for me, to have evergreen trees literally ALL around me in the winter, is a breathe of fresh air. Spring on the east coast is unfortunately too short. You blink and then it seems as if you just survived a brutal winter and then comes the blistering summer heat and humidity. I kid you not.

  To my surprise, I had no idea flowers started blooming early here, in February and March. We had tulips bursting through back in March. The colors and varieties are exquisite. Being a flower and nature lover (and someone who lived for a long time on the east coast) I am appreciating and soaking up this special time. 

I went to the spectacular Skagit Tulip Festival (a month ago) that is very well known in Washington State. It is comprised of dozens of fields and fields of incredible tulips (Many farms are involved).You literally feel like you are in tulip heaven. There are some below and some other pictures I snapped around the island of the flora.  If you adore nature or just flowers (I don't think I know any girl who doesn't love flowers) you may find the pictures a petite feast for the eyes. 

Being a jewelry artist (& amateur photographer), nature is one of my primary inspirations for my creativeness. I have added some really lovely new jewelry pieces (I've recently made). All of which are inspired by flora and fauna. Or just simply, nature.  (Most of the jewelry listed is available for sale in my etsy shop for affordable prices).

Below are some fabulous pendant necklaces that I made. The one on top is a big gorgeous Ruby in Fuchsite natural gemstone. Like this one, many of my pieces are one-of-a-kind. The colors are like red tulips and its soft green petals. Click on photo if you wish to see all the interesting details. The middle one is not listed yet. The blue one is. It looks like a lovely feather to me. It is a natural agate druzy geode slice. I adore this one and I love bringing you luxury for less or better know as lux for less. They truly are statement pieces.

One more of the Feather necklace. It is amazing what natural organic gemstones look like. I added a cobalt blue druzy gemstone to accent the feather shaped gemstone. I believe the copper chain adds a bohemian and artistic feel to it. The warm color of the copper compliments the coffee colors in the pendant nicely. What do you think?

 These lovely earrings are very much nature inspired. Both the sea and flora are constant forms of inspiration for my jewelry designs. These natural gemstones are like looking into the sea. Beautiful flower colors too. If you look closely, they are not only blue, but have hints of purple  in them too. I added some tiny flower pink tourmaline stones as well. Click the photo for more details if you wish. 

I have always included a small handful of fresh dried lavender in organza bags (my packaging when I mail jewelry to my customers). Ironically, the last batch of lavender I had bought from Etsy and brought to Washington IS Washington grown lavender! Hmm, fate telling me something. The lavender on this island grows in abundance. Some varieties of it started blooming several weeks ago. Power walking on this island is like walking through some of the loveliest flower markets in Boston or New York City. It smells like heaven & looks like it too. I already bought some local dried lavender from our island, for future customers. There is a lavender farm on the island. 

I think two more pieces of bling are in order before I sign off. I've made this necklace with a one of a kind dreamy slice of lavender amethyst druzy. Modern. Chic. It is truly a statement piece (Lux for less). 

I sold these earrings not too long ago and made another pair. You can see below.  I call them, "After the Rain Earrings." One of my all time favorite gemstones is labradorite. It's a magical gemstone. It's grey, and when the light hits it, these amazing flashes of iridescent blue come out (a jewelry tip, it has to be very good quality labradorite to have the flashes of blue, green and sometimes even yellow and red). Modern. Simple. Gorgeous.  The spectacular intense purple of the herb, lavender, reminds me of this gemstone. If you like simple, modern, yet unique, maybe they're the pair for you.

I am off to my studio to create more pieces of jewelry. But, first, a vibrant power walk through town to get my adrenaline pumping and soak up more floral inspiration.

Smell the flowers. Wear a Colorful Necklace. Enjoy spring. You are beautiful, like a flower.

Oh yes, and above all else, please don't forget, 

Be Sparkly~

Marissa T. xo

Happy "Tuesday Tulips" & The Benefits and Beauty of Powerwalks on the Beach.

Hello Readers~

I received the most beautiful red tulips from my husband today for no special reason. He said, "Happy Tuesday Tulips." Who doesn't love flowers from the man they love? It really put a huge smile on my face and my heart. Since moving from the East coast to our new coast, the Pacific North West (it's only been 4 months), my husband and I have been doing a lot of wonderful new things to get to know the island (all in good time). We have also tried to keep some of our everyday rituals (to create more structure in our new lives, since both our routines are completely different now). Some of our small traditions (if you will) are, simple, but, so important. One is , we often exercise together. We go for brisk power walks. (Which we did on the east coast too. We often saw the ocean there too as we lived on a peninsula in a very pretty but, very overpopulated seaside town). Now we can go for brisk power walks on many different glorious beaches (it's especially an amazing workout when you lunge through soft wet sand). You feel the burn in your legs, buttocks, and back!

My husband, Daniel, also used to give my flowers (when we lived on the east coast) for special occasions and also just because he felt like it. So, "Tuesday Tulips," reminded me of some east coast moments of joy (tradition). 

The Tulips! Nothing like fresh flowers to brighten your mood. Add a splash of beauty inside! They do something beautiful to your soul too. Don't you think?

Some of the beaches we power walk on in our new digs, "The Pacific North West." What does the sea do for you?

Do you exercise? I know it's often hard to find the time. But, do you squeeze some cardio in there, somewhere?

Do you live near the ocean? I feel blessed. Never take it for granted and well, keep pinching myself that we live here. 

 

 Daniel was off taking in the sun on a much needed break, We had been power walking for more than a hour already. Time for a selfie.

 

Power walking is so good for you. As I'm sure many of you probably now this! Let's inspire each other! Not only are you getting the benefits of a great cardio workout (brisk walking/arms moving/walking in sand) you also (at least for me, maybe for you too) get the glorious benefits for your soul & mind. Your mind becomes more clear. I become more centered (like after I do yoga/the feeling is amazing). I feel invigorated from the cool air, the brilliant & dreamy scenery, super energized from the fresh briny sea air, and uplifted from the sounds of the waves and birds. Did I mention we have eagles everywhere here? They are magnificent to see in person.

I have been very very busy creating new jewelry pieces (and working on my website. *I will be launching that soon. I'm very excited). The sea is a constant inspiration for my life and my jewelry creations. 

A new bracelet (below) I made of many delicious sea turquoise colored gemstones. Available in my etsy shop now. I call it "Hope Bracelet." The gemstone I used the most of in it, is Amazonite. It is an amazing gemstone because it comes in a variety of green and blue shades...it is also said to be the "hope stone."  Folklore says it inspires confidence and hope. Also said to be the gemstone of courage and said to be named after Amazon women warriors. Only $44 US. Natural lavender/blue druzy crystal and ocean jasper, and amazonite. Fancy Sterling silver beads and heart shaped toggle. Special details and a meaningful piece for your jewelry collection.

*You get to be the first to find out about this new promotion starting now! I ship world world, (see etsy listings. but, It applies to Europe, U.S., Mexico, and Canada) . If you buy more than one item from my shop (so 2 or more), You receive FREE shipping from me.* 

Offer lasts through May 2015* I credit you the shipping costs after purchase. It can be a wonderful savings! More promotions coming soon. Bloggers and Instagram followers, and Pinners are likely to hear first!  Different promotions will be listed in different social media platforms.  

Happy Exercising, Jewelry shopping , flower buying! Or you can be the someone special and treat yourself. Or pick some fresh flowers for your flat, out in the garden! 

Smell the flowers, Smell the fresh air. Get that heart rate up. Shop some bling with amazing values , handmade with special care and gorgeous gemstones . Oh yes, and above all else. Be sparkly. ~Marissa T. xo