Swirl Power + Giveaway Winners!

I hope you all had a great week. Things have been pretty busy for me. Aside from the two giveaways that concluded (I will name the info and winners in just a few), I'm volunteering at a local community center as a mentor and finally got to meet my mentee this week, which was really cool.

I also had a fund raising and awards dinner to attend this Wednesday with my husband at the Chicago Cultural Center, which is worth checking out if you're ever in town. Our event was in Preston Bradley Hall, which has amazing white marble walls with stunning blue and green colorful mosaic inlay patterns. The most gorgeous part was this awesome Tiffany Dome, which is constructed of what has to be hundreds of small but colorful Tiffany glass tiles. It was so beautiful, and quite awe inspiring.

I also updated the site a bit with some new products! I found some cool Murano glass specimens a while back, and thought they would be perfect for spring. These black and white swirling glass earrings are a particular favorite of mine.
And now to the winner of our Charming Giveaway: Jennifer from Irvine, CA! Her prize is the lovely sterling silver gemstone charm bracelet shown below worth over $100.00. All she had to do was sign up on our mailing list, and she made it in our drawing. No purchase was necessary. I'll be hosting more giveaways, and the entrants will be chosen from my mailing list subscribers, so if you'd like the chance to win gorgeous handcrafted jewelry just like Jennifer, sign up for my jewelry newsletters. Just don't forget to confirm your e-mail address!
I was also working with another great blog called The Giveaway that had a concurrent giveaway going on. The prize there was one of my most popular designs, these cool turquoise howlite drop earrings. And The Giveaway winner is: Telisha from Overton, NV!
So congratulations on your win ladies! As mentioned above, there will be more giveaways in the future for Zurina Ketola Designs. Don't miss them! Make sure to sign up for the newsletters, and I will let you know of any other promotional giveaway partnerships in the future right here and in the newsletters. Have a great weekend!

Spring Jewelry Sale + A Charming Giveaway!

I hope Spring has finally found its way to your doorstep, as it has finally found its way to Chicago... Well, mostly anyway ;)

To celebrate these lovely days filled with subtle warmth and blooming buds, I am hosting a fantastic sale and giveaway at my shop! Read on for more details.

The Annual Spring Jewelry Sale:
From now until May 1st, you can enjoy savings from 20% - 50% off our most popular designs from past collections and even new designs from our current Spring 2009 line. Below you'll find a couple items that are on sale. To get the full scope, check out our Limited Time Special Offers category.

step cut aquamarine ring
original price: $89.00
SALE price: $53.40

slender onyx drop earrings
original price: $59.00
SALE price: $29.50

A Charming Giveaway:
Also until May 1st, you can enter to win this beautiful sterling silver gemstone charm bracelet, valued at $112.00! This lovely specimen is a favorite of mine, and features a carved Chinese turquoise elephant, a lemon chrysoprase crescent moon, a carved citrine leaf, a super lustrous mother of pearl clover, a smooth lapiz lazuli drop, faceted peach moonstone, and a smooth trillion rutile quartz drop.
Did I mention that no purchase is necessary? All you gotta do is sign up for our jewelry newsletter by May 1st. Already on my mailing list? Well then, you're already entered to win! A winner will be chosen on May 2nd, and will be contacted soon after. If I do not hear from you within two days, then a new winner will be chosen. Please make sure we are in your address book!

There are a couple Restrictions:

• You must sign up by May 1st!
  
• Entrants must live in either the US or Canada. My store only ships to these locations, so this contest is only open to these locations.

Good luck everyone, and have a wonderful Friday!

Ring in Spring!

Designs for Spring '09 are here! I'm am so happy to finally update my site. Things have been so crazy since the move (see previous post), but thankfully things are smoothing out and getting back to normal. The new city is fantastic, and inspiring me in so many ways. We had an unseasonably warm day today - nearly 80 degrees! This was a huge surprise, especially considering we had temperatures in the low 20's last week. While I did get out for a walk this afternoon, I didn't let the warm weather stop me from getting new jewelry on my site!

This Spring I wanted to focus on interesting and refreshing details in my stones and metal work, and I was inspired by the seriously fantastical materials I have come across over the last few months. I have been scouring my sources for the most luscious, colorful finds to introduce for spring, and am so happy with the results. As always, here are a few of my favorite things!
I am absolutely in love with this beautiful step cut chrysoprase ring! I found a stunning strand of unusual step cut chrysoprase nuggets, and had to create this gorgeous ring. Each nugget is free form, so each handcrafted ring remains unique. Another plus? While it is shown in sterling silver, it is also available in gold-filled.
This cool, asymmetrical smooth smoky quartz chip ring another one of my favorites. I love the ensuing effect when combining free form stones together. This almost reminds me of a dark flame, or dark natural crystal formation.
Another favorite is this truly stunning lapiz lazuli nugget ring. Back in November, I came across a really amazing graduated strand of faceted lapiz lazuli nuggets, and had to get it. Because the strand is graduated, there are only about four beads that can be used for rings. I haven't decided what else I'm using the remaining beads for yet, but check back. You're likely to see more of this heriloom quality lapiz in my store this Spring or Summer!
I love a simple idea with subtle embellishments, and these lovely mystic pink quartz earrings speak to that idea. I have gotten in the habit of handcrafting my own earwires over the last year, and have added a slight scrolling detail for the drops to suspend from. One of the other things I love about these earrings is the sparkle - it's tough to distinguish in the photo, but there is actually an iridescence to the stone which is quite beautiful.

And last but not least, you may notice a trend of bold, black onyx and agate jewelry on the site. It's somewhat of a continuation from Fall that I wanted to expand on. Spring is full of bright colors this year, and black is a fantastic way to anchor some of the brightness. I love these black agate pillow cut earrings. I found the shape to be so unique, and very graphic.

Now that things have settled, I'll be adding more jewelry to the site as time goes by. I have some fun new designs in store, and I can't wait to share them.

one extreme to the other

I hope everyone had a fantastic New Year! I know it has been a while since my last post, and figured an update was in order. Let me start off by saying the last few months have been a pretty serious whirlwind of non-stop action, hence the belated update. My husband and I took a sudden, fairly crazy leap of faith, and decided that our time in Phoenix had run its course. Where did we end up, you ask? The Windy City: Chicago, Illinois!
We both have been quite enamored with the city for years in fact, since we started dating actually. It's hard to believe that was almost nine years ago already! Anyway, we have always wanted to make it our home. There is just something about this city that draws us in, and makes us really happy. I love being able to walk places again, and have access to round the clock public transportation. Not to mention, Phoenix was just too hot for us. While I admit, the winters could be nice, they weren't worth the summers for us. We were there for a few years, and neither one of us could get acclimated to that heat. This is our first winter here, and I've heard it's the coldest Chicago has had in the last 15 years or so. I got my first taste of sub-zero temperatures last week, and I have to say they weren't too bad. Our gas bill on the other hand, that's a different story ;)

In Fall Effect - Fall Line Now Available!

The last week has been a busy one. I've been spending my time getting everything together for the Fall Collection, and I'm happy to announce that it is now available online. This season, I focused on showcasing gemstones that possess particularly unique cuts or qualities.

Take these beautiful long and lean onyx drop earrings, for example. I found them at the Tuscon Gem Show this year, and immediately loved their uniquely long length (about 1" long) and their super chic, slender shape. From your favorite little black dress to a more casual look of jeans and a cute top, they'll work with just about anything.

This cool tourmalinated quartz necklace is another favorite from my fall collection. I was lucky enough to find these absolutely gorgeous, very large (approx 1") faceted tourmalinated quartz drops at a local supplier, and "wrapped" the top in sterling silver rope. Then I paired the roped drop with some very cool heavy chain. It's difficult to see the chain detail, but each link has a beautiful fine texture to it. I have one of these necklaces myself, and it's such a versatile piece. I get compliments on it all the time! Oh, I guess I should note that there is only one left.

To see more of my favorite fall looks, check out my Seasonal Style Guide for Fall 2008.

Going Green

I had the pleasure of finding some beautiful chrysoprase beads recently at one of my favorite bead shops here in Phoenix. This gem in particular can be hard to find, so I was quite happy to come across such lovely specimens. These graduated nuggets were really an amazing find. They are so smooth to the touch and are of great quality. And let's not forget the tell tale bright electric green hue, which I absolutely love.

A quick tip about this stone; despite its bright and vivacious color, it is surprisingly versatile. I've found that it works well on many skin tones, so I was very pleased to have the chance to work with it again. I have always heard that this stone stimulates creativity, and I have to say I think that is true. After my purchase, I happily brought them back to my studio and experimented a bit. Check out the results below:

First up we have the necklace. I paired gems with vermeil beads I acquired at the Tucson Gem Show this year and I finished the design off with a textured vermeil toggle clasp. The pairing of these decadent stones with gold is just so gorgeous that I opted for gold again in my next piece.

Here, we have an endlessly chic bracelet. I offset the chrysoprase with textured diamond and circle links and added a large lobster style clasp. The large stone in the middle is a very pure green, with hardly any surface inclusions. Seriously, these stones are just decadent!

As always, you can find each item on my web site. In general, everything in my shop is produced in very limited quantities, but these pieces in particular are a little different. Since I only was able to purchase a single strand of these beads, these items are distinctly one-of-a-kind.

Translation: If you love it, don't wait! I don't think they'll be around too long.

On the off chance that they are around for a while, well then, I'll just have to make room in my personal stash ;)

Did you have some work done ? ;)

Well, I have to say, it's nice to be back. I had a such a nice and productive break from blogging over the last few months. School was particularly crazy this semester, which is what put the blog on hold. I ended up doing great, though. While I did manage to give myself a short break after finals, I started work on a complete site redesign for my jewelry boutique. This is a project that I've been thinking about it for a while, and am pretty happy with the results. Check it out for yourself right here.The redesign made it possible for me to add some cool new features. One of my favorites is the Seasonal Style Guide, which is a page that showcases my favorite jewelry for the current season. The pictures posted here showcase a couple designs featured in the guide. From top to bottom, we have my lapis lazuli and inverted vermeil fan earrings, and the raw citrine trio necklace. Another cool feature on the site is the Gemstone Almanac, a useful guide to the beautiful gems and stones used in my jewelry. Along with the colors and general aesthetics of the stones, I've also included some information on the mystical properties of gemstones, their history, and birthstone info.

Some of you may have also noticed some new decor right here, as well! I was inspired to change things up a bit when I was finished with my site redesign. Along with my visual updates for the blog, I'm changing the overall focus for things here, too.

Instead of the generalized product review blog of the past, I am going to be experimenting with a more personal and creative flavor here. I want to write about the creative process of my work, and how it fits into my life. From inspiration, to design and creation, expect to read posts about my life as a designer. Of course, since I'm in an exploratory phase, I may detract from time to time. In any case, I'll try to post updates twice a month or so. We'll just see what works. In the meantime, thanks for reading :)