Brooches and pins sometimes get a bad rap – memories of PTA ladies with giant costume pins perhaps?
Brooches really don’t deserve that – in fact, there are lots of great indie designers producing hip, trendy and fun pins.  Check out this whimisical little brooch from Etsy seller Tiny Art:

image: Tiny Art

Here’s another jewelry pick for the girl who prefers her heart jewelry with an…. edge:

Or at least a pair of crossbones!
The heart & crossbones necklace is handmade from glass and features teensy little crossed bones behind the heart.  It’s strung on a hand-oxidized necklace (after all, silver chain just won’t do – you really need the black chain for this one
It’s also available in several different colors.
image: Shanalogic

Tomorrow, February 6th is National Wear Red Day – how come?
“The Heart Truth campaign is the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute’s (NHLBI) initiative to raise awareness of heart disease and give women a “wakeup” call about their risk of heart disease – the #1 killer of women. While this is an ongoing campaign, NHLBI puts a big focus on heart disease awareness during February, American Heart Month.”
In honor of Wear Red – we’re having fun with red jewelry today!  Red makes a statement, adds a bold pop of color to your wardrobe and shows your confidence as a woman.
Acrylic …read more

Resin is such a popular jewelry medium these days!  You can find everything from whimsical cake-sprinkle rings to high-end designer jewelry made out of it.
The resin jewelry by Fernworks definitely caught my eye.  Each piece is a combination of found objects and hand-painted artwork, all embedded in resin.
Here’s their “Bird Flying Over Red Berries” pendant:

And their “Quiet Pale Stars” pendant:

I love how they’ve layered the images to give the illusion of 3-D.  You certainly don’t see resin work done this beautifully every day!
images: Presents of Mind

In honor of the inauguration, I felt it would be appropriate to have a red, white and blue day on Gleaming Things!
Today’s first pick?  The iconic Barack Obama poster, turned into a pendant by The Gilded Lily:

The pendant is actually a re-purposed Scrabble tile, with the image sealed into it with resin.
image: The Gilded Lily

This is the time of year when I like to browse through my archives and share my favorite posts with you, my lovely readers
There are fashion & jewelry trends I like, celebrity fashion and some “just because” picks.
In no particular order…

I love most of Paraphernalia’s jewelry, but this series of bold necklaces is particularly yummy.
Finding celebrity jewelry is a challenge sometimes, but I think this jewelry from the Sex and the City movie is worth it!
More movie jewelry – I had several reader requests to find jewelry from the latest James Bond flick “Quantum of Solace“.  I tracked …read more

Lulu Smith is a jewelry designer who creates bold and colorful pieces using sterling silver and resin.  Each piece of jewelry is one-of-a-kind and hand-crafted.
Her inspiration runs from traditional Japanese crafts:

“Big Temari” pendant
Bold pop art:

“Albers” bracelet
And check out the stunning “Bauble” bracelet:

images: Lulu Smith

No it’s a Labbit ring!

Labbits are part of Tarina Tarantino’s “Kidrobot”collection, a collaboration with Frank Kozik.  The rings are a strictly limited edition – and they’re sold blind, so you don’t know what kind you might get!
image: Tarina Tarantino

Before I get to the jewelry – I just have to mention that this is my 100th post for Gleaming Things   Can you tell I’m tickled pink to be writing this blog?
Okay, now the jewelry…
My passion for vintage-look flower jewelry continues unabated, so today’s pick for jewelry that makes Chloe drool is the “Bloom” necklace from Shanalogic:

They’re created by layering beads and vintage plastic and metal flowers together, and then strung on a sterling silver chain.
image: Shanalogic 

Amber is one of my favorite materials for jewelry – I’ve got a few pieces of it… but this ring is sure begging to become part of my jewelry collection
It’s a clear and black resin ring, with little chunks of Baltic amber embedded in it.  The ring is  hand-created by Sylwia Calus Design in Poland – check out the rest of her Etsy shop, she’s got some great jewelry pieces in there!

image: Sylwia Calus Design