You can imagine how excited I was when Andrea Forte, the editor of Gladys Magazine invited me to be a contributing writer for their spring 2011 issue. As most of you know by now, I am a writer at heart. My passion for writing started at an early age, just slightly after my interest in and intrigue with jewelry kicked off. Yes, I wrote my first novel the

Green Jade & Freshwater Pearl Bracelet

summer of my tenth year, pecking away at an awesome upright typewriter that my parents surprised me with that very same year. And, in those days, most of my hands-on jewelry experience came from spending time with my Auntie Opal who was a real girly-girl. She was the one who taught me the thrill of layering bracelets and necklaces - boy, she did it with style. She also shared her talent with taking pieces apart and making a new design from the components of the old. I so loved spending time with her, that I would feign illness just so I could skip school and stay with her while my mom worked. I just remember laughing a lot while we played with jewelry, beaded tabby slipper socks so they would match our capris, and sipped our Coca-Cola from glass bottles! But I digress...back to the assignment of creating an article for Gladys Magazine - oh did I mention, this is their wedding issue?

Maid of Honor Green Jade Earrings

I have been really lucky to be involved in the design and construction of bridal jewelry over the years, I had never really thought about my motivation to suggest and design the style of pieces I do. After the invite from Andrea, it didn't take long for me to stroll back to my own wedding back in the "dark ages." I remember having to fight to have the things I wanted - like a mix of roses and daisies in the bouquets (blasphemy), a wedding cake made from my favorite fudge marble ("oh, we can't do that"), music played on a guitar and a dress without an inch of lace in its design. While I got the flowers and cake I wanted, I acquiesced on the music and the dress. That being said, I think my struggles all those years ago color my thinking when I am asked to participate as the jewelry designer in weddings today. Luckily brides-to-be seem to be much more confident in their choices and much more vocal with those who might not agree. In my mind...that's a very good thing.

Bridesmaid One Green Jade Earring

 While most of my jewelry pieces are one-, two- and sometimes three-of-a-kind, when asked by a bride I can usually make the number needed for the bridal party. And, in many cases, the jewelry starts with one of the pieces on the site and gets tweaked a bit to personalize it for the occasion. Last year I worked with a bride who got married in a winery on the east coast - the girls' dresses were made from the warmest chocolate fabric and each dress had a different neckline. The bride had chosen a mix of greens and oranges for the flowers - perfect for the fall season. We settled on the green jade bracelet shown above, all girls wore that design. Then we mixed it up with the earrings, with each pair being designed to work with the neckline of each dress and accentuate the personality of the maid wearing the earrings. Since the necklines on the dresses weren't conducive to necklace-wearing - there were no necklaces - as simple as that. Of course, we couldn't forget the four-year-old flower girl, so I scaled a bracelet similar in design to the big girls just for her. The one stumbling block - the bride had her heart set on wearing an orange beaded bracelet with her lovely ivory-cream dress so I crafted a multi-strand number from the prettiest lacy-looking Botswana agate and freshwater pearls. While she loved the bracelet, her mom felt that she needed to wear a simple pearl bracelet.

Maid of Honor Green Jade Earrings

So, in order to appease...the bride chose the pearls over the agate. All and all...it was a lovely affair and I do think everyone was happy. Although, I wonder, will the bride look back on the day and wish she had worn the orange bracelet she so had her heart set on? Time will tell.  

If you are planning your big day - my only suggestion is that you wear the jewelry that makes you happy and is comfortable; jewelry that defines who you are as a woman, not just on that day but every day of your life. If that means a simple and classic strand of pearls then that's what it should be; but if in your everyday world you lean toward bolder pieces of jewelry with colored gemstones and beads then that's what you should wear for your wedding. I've highlighted a few designs here that would look lovely on any bride and her maids - and unlike the dresses, there's a good chance designs such as these will actually be worn long after the wedding fete has ended.

Flower Girl Green Jade Bracelet