Awhile back, I had a delicious and fun brunch with some lovely lady friends (side note - it's incredibly uplifting when you experience first hand, women supporting women - Yay!). Anyhoo's... I was wearing a Swarovski Crystal necklace that I handmade myself, and I hear from across the room...I love Harmony's necklace, I need one just like that in my life!

I was deeply touched that she liked my jewelry style and to be honest, when you hear something so nice about your creative work, you just never forget it! Right then, I was inspired to make her one! Fast forward a couple of months later, because you know, life gets busy...it's her Birthday and what a perfect time to surprise her with her very own necklace. Oh what fun it is to be able to make gifts for the people in your life that you know will sincerely appreciate them!

Let the creativity begin...

When you're making jewelry for someone else, either as a gift, or for resale, I believe the best place to start, is to draw their unique personality into your heart. Then think about who they are, their lifestyle and what they like to wear. Ultimately, all of these aspects come together to reveal what they are drawn to and how they express themselves. This is an excellent foundation to begin creating something distinctive just for them, that you know they will truly love.

This particular friend is a tough woman, with lots of talents, she's a personal trainer (her muscles don't lie :-) She's also an esthetician, a wifey, and a mom, so I wanted to make her something that was bold, but not too bold, pretty, but not overly feminine, and something somewhat simple, so that she could wear it with all of the proverbial "hats" that she wears. Here's what I came up with...

The color pallet that I chose was Grey. I'm sure all of you hip fashionista's know that grey tones have been wildly popular in the last couple of years. It's true what they say; Grey is the new black, so I thought this would be a perfect tone to compliment her wardrobe style.

I started with the 6106-22mm Swarovski Crystal Pearshape Pendant in the new Graphite color. This was the going to be the focal point of the necklace, and I incorporated similarly colored crystal beads to compliment this influence.

I didn't want this crystal necklace to have a pattern, I wanted it to be asymmetrical to give it a little bit of an edgy look.

I added the 5328-4mm Swarovski Crystal Bicone Beads in Graphite. I also used the 5328-3mm, 4mm, 6mm & 8mm Swarovski Crystal Bicone Beads in Black Diamond and Black Diamond AB. I utilized the Swarovski Crystal 5000-4mm & 6mm Round Beads in Black Diamond and Black Diamond AB,  as well as the Swarovski Crystal 5000-5mm & 6mm Round Beads in Crystal Satin.

There are three different grey tones that Swarovski offers in their 5810 Round Crystal Pearls and I chose to use the Grey color. It's a medium tone that works well in this piece, but I also could have also easily used the Dark Grey.

I integrated one larger bead on one side to give it some depth and distinction, which was the Swarovski Crystal 5650-16mm Cubist Beads in Crystal Silver Shade. I love this style and the light sparkly hues of the Crystal Silver Shade create an extra touch of elegance.

For the final details, I included a few thin silver-toned flower spacers throughout the piece, especially where the crystals met the pearls. This helped to unify the silver toggle clasp with the sprinkles of silver throughout the necklace.

Overall, I loved how it turned out and more importantly, SHE did too!

Her eyes lit up and she put it on right away! Even though we were camping, hiking and playing games in the beautiful mountains of Colorado, she wore it all day!

Happy Friend = Happy ME :-)

I've been making handmade gifts for friends and family ever since I can remember, and it honestly never gets old! That same fantastic, fuzzy feeling pulses through me as I eagerly watch them open.....and....YAY! Excitement and gratitude are abound!

I hope this inspires you to make your own handmade jewelry as gifts, or resale, because you really can't ever go wrong by surprising someone with SPARKLES! I'm always happy to help you with any color, style, or design combinations you may be interested in!

Shine Bright Sparkle Tribe!

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