JEWELRY ICON: CATALINA VERONICA

 I was lucky enough to stumble upon Catalina Vornica's beautiful fashion blog Armoire Ideale. She has eclectic and daring style and I fell in love with her bold choices with jewelry.  I had the pleasure of interviewing her and here's what she had to say.

Your blog is wonderful and I adore your sophisticated personal style.  What would you say is the best part about being a blogger?

Hmm….the best part… free drinks and canapés at events? Kidding

Thing is, this is one of the best/fulfilling parts of being a blogger! It motivates me to continuously improve my work when I see it’s being appreciated. I know it sounds corny, but there is something genuinely heartwarming in receiving your feedback, when people who read my blog stop by and say: ‘Hey, I like this’ or ‘You inspire me’, I feel great, it’s so fantastic.

So, thank you Heather for expressing your appreciation and interest in my blog.  

I see you are not afraid to mix it up and be bold with your jewelry, which of course I love!  How would you say you choose pieces to be worn together?

 I usually don’t spend much time choosing the accessories I am about to wear I simply pick something and try it on to see if it matches my outfit, but I pay attention at colors,  shades, patterns and proportions.

Do you have a favorite piece of jewelry or a piece that means the most to you?

Yes, I know what you mean, I have one of those precious little things. It’s a vintage zebra shaped brooch which I simply hart.  You will see her in the photos, she’s absolutely gorgeous.

Now on to the more fun questions.  Just quick of the top of your head answers will be perfect.

What is your favorite thing to do on a Sunday?

Enjoying my loneliness far away from all the hustle and bustle of the city.

So where did you have dinner last night?

I dined at a friend’s.

Dive bar or night club?

Night club.

The 20’s or the 70’s?

Jazz age, speakeasies, pearls, feathers, gloves and hats, authentic glamour, oh yes the roaring twenties!

Vintage or New?

Gosh, this is a tricky one, question that is. J

A little bit of both.  A completely vintage outfit may look old, like grandma old, on the other hand wearing only new clothes is totally…dull. I feel the urge to mix&match, but that’s just me.

Thank you Catalina and please don't forget to visit her amazing blog Armoire Ideale.  

MENS WEDDING BANDS

You've picked the perfect dress dress, locked in your dream location, and have even broken the news to your fiance that there will be NO beer bonging at the reception.  And even though he sometimes mistakes the bedroom floor for the clothes hamper you love him, and need to pick out the perfect ring for your soon to be hubby.  Well, I'm here to help make that decision even easier with a collection of mens weddings bands that I find the perfect mix of originality and masculine.  

 Starting with the Woody ring by St. Kilda.  Your crafty stud would be proud to be seen on the job site sporting this ring.

St. Kilda's Men's Loved ring is such a special way to incorporate how you feel about him in a way only he can see.  

 This Thoothed Band by Claire Kinder is just fierce enough for your guy.  It kind of reminds me of a bottle cap, don't ya think?

 This is the perfectly imperfect ring for your perfectly imperfect guy.  This Concaved Ring is by Satomi Kawakita.

Is your man a bad boy or just super slick?  Than St. Kilda's Endless Love ring is the one for him.

   

STREET STYLE: JEANS AND JEWELS

As much as I love new seasons there is always a little part of me that misses the one that is ending.  That is how I'm feeling about Summer right now.  I LOVE Fall, I really do but this week as I was walking along the beach all bundled up in a sweater and boots, I longed for the tank tops and flip flops of just last month.  So in a last stitch effort to hold on to the little bit of warm weather we have left I thought I would reminisce on this Summers uniform of what seemed to be every girl: jean cutoffs and jewels. 

 

 

All images via Mr. Newton

D.I.Y. NECKLACE

Get creative with Erica Domesek of P.S. I Made This and model Crystal Renn and watch as they show you how to make D.I.Y. necklaces!  Don't forget to check out Erica's other amazing D.I.Y. projects on her blog P.S. I Made This, and you can also visit another one of my posts about a personal necklace I made from old keepsakes.  Tell me do you have a piece of jewelry with meaningful charms?

JEWELRY ICON: RIHANNA

Rihanna shy away from jewelry? Never, and we love her for it!  Along with her daring clothing choices she loves to rock big, bold jewelry and earrings are definitely one of her favorite accessories.  Earrings are a great way to keep attention upwards and can help transform or enhance the shape of your face.  There is just nothing sexier than a bold earring with a naked neck, and Rihanna does it perfectly.  Check out this look on Rihanna and see how amazing she looks. There were so many looks to chooses from it was hard to make a decision but these are the earrings I narrowed it down to.

all images via Style Bistro

DIY: $260.00 Arielle De Pinto Chain Earrings for $6.00

Today's post is from Jess James from Inked & Sewn.  A lovely fashion blog with style advice, fashion finds, and amazing DIY projects.  I invited Jess to do a jewelry DIY project for us here and she did not disappoint.  I'll be making these stunners very soon.

A piece I have been DYING to recreate is these looped chain earrings by Arielle De Pinto retailed at $260.00. When the Charlton Girl from The Cultivated One asked me to do a DIY jewelry project, I knew it would be perfect.

The materials you need are:

-A Thin Chain -Flat Pins -Sterling silver studs -Construction paper

-Spray Paint (in a color of your choice) -Hot Glue -Metal Glue -A wire Cutter

First tie your chain in a knot and hot glue it to the flat side of the pin. Continue to wrap and glue it on the flat side until it covers the entire surface.

Grab a piece of construction paper and make a loop then secure it with hot glue. Leave about a ½ inch space and start to wrap the chain around the construction paper until you can no longer see the paper.

Glue the loop of chain you have just created around the portion already glued to the pin. Organically wrap the excess chain that is left to get the look you want (and remember the way you are wrapping it to duplicate it on the other earring). With the loose end, glue it to the back of the pin.

Take the Wire cutter and snip off the “pin” part so that your earring now just sits on a flat piece of metal. Use hot glue to fasten your sterling silver stud to the back and reinforce it with metal glue.  When the glue is finally dry use the spray paint to cover the upper portion of your earring to give it the two-toned look. I chose silver to go with my grey leather jacket.

Thanks again Jess, and don't forget check out her blog, Inked & Sewn.

CHANNELING WONDER WOMAN

 Ahh Wonder Woman, she is the epitome of a strong sexy female, and don't we all want to be strong and sexy.  Check out these celebrities as they channel their inner super hero.  These cuffs may not be bulletproof but they sure are hot!  Which one is your favorite? 

images via Style Bistro

HOW TO PICK OUT AN EVERYDAY NECKLACE

Meet my cousin Paige.  Paige meet my lovely readers.  As lovely as the picture of her is there is something very very wrong.  Do you see it???  Yes, she is not wearing a stitch of jewelry.  We had to correct this problem and fast.  Like many of you Paige wants a piece of jewelry that she can always keep on and not have to think about.  So, we set out on our journey to get her a simple necklace and here are our top options we found.

Our first stop and one that had great options for necklaces under $10 for the budget conscious was Brandy Melville.  The single crystal drop would be a perfect choose for just a bit of sparkle.  I recommend that you check their jewelry on their website or in one of their many locations.

  The other option that we loved were these Dogeared necklaces we found at Modern Romance Boutique.  They are a bit more expensive at an average of $66 but well worth it.  I mean you're going to be wearing this necklace everyday, so you want it to last!  The thing I loved most about these options is that many of them are two toned metal colors.  This way no matter what other jewelry you wear with these pieces they will always match.  

Now take a look at Paige above, doesn't she look so much more polished. It's amazing that the addition of such a small necklace can make such a big difference.  Tell me do you have a necklace that you wear everyday?

OH ALICE

image via Retroraunt

Even Alice Cooper needs his jewels.

HOW TO CHOOSE JEWELRY FOR YOUR PREPPIEST OF FRIENDS

 If you know anything about your friend Bitsie's it's that she lives and dies for polka dots and popped collars.  It's her birthday and you can't figure out what to get her.  Well, worry no more because I have come up with a collection of the perfect jewelry to give your polo loving pal.  I guarantee that Bitsie is going to absolutely swoon when she receives any one of these options at her Bellini brunch at the county club.

 I mean come on, it's an argyle bangle!  How perfect is that!  You can find it at J Crew for $28 and comes in brown and pink as well.

With all the hand talking Bitsie does she's going to die over this classic Marc by Mark Jacobs Katie ring in rose gold for $68 at Shopbop.com.

This Venus Fly Trap Necklace by J Crew for $85 is just the right amount of sparkle under the popped collar of a button down shirt.  Gorg.!

How adorable are these Twinkle Bloom Earrings from Anthropologie for $28?  Too sweet, right!?!?

JEWELRY STORAGE: BRACELET EDITION

I've posted about jewelry storage before as you can see here and here, but today I am focusing on bracelets.  There are advantages and disadvantages to storing cuffs, bangles and bracelets.  One plus is that they don't get tangled but a minus is that they can be big and bulky.  Things like a pretty dish, special box are beautiful options, or you can do what I did and use a jewelry tree like the one pictured above from Urban Outfitters.  These are all great solutions, and as I always say whatever you do display it, it's too pretty to be in a drawer!  How do you display your bracelets?  I'm always on the look out for new ways to display my jewelry.

All images via How I Met Your Style