Lark Crafts

Raise your hand if you’re ready for spring!

Now raise both hands if you’re ready for spring accessories!

You and I both know we don’t have to look far when it comes to pretty eye candy on Etsy, and with the delicate, sweet, light colors of spring, Etsy is a treasure trove of delightful, pastel earrings.

So off with your overcoat and on with the pretty jewelry—three cheers for spring!

Thanks to the Etsy sellers featured above and below for giving us all something sweet and springy to cheer about!

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Brass Chevron “Fin” Earrings :: ILIOS

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Jade Teardrop Earrings :: LoveLittleDarling

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Wooden Geometric Earrings :: LiKeGjewelry

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Pastel Flower Earrings :: HelgaYutt

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Jade Dipped Brass Earrings :: AcuteDesigns

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Pretty early in the process of producing Suzanne Golden Presents, I learned that Suzanne is kuh-razy about footwear. (No surprise, you’ll spot bead-encrusted shoes in the book—those would be by artists Nick Cave, Tom and Kathy Wegman, and Marina Dempster, who all make other types of art as well.) To celebrate the book’s release, I asked Suzanne to share with us 4 or 5 pairs of her current favorite kicks. (All photos courtesy of Suzanne herself.)

Shoe by Simone Rochas

Shoe by Givenchy

Shoe by Prada

Shoes by Calvin Klein

Another shoe by Simone Rochas

Click here to check out Suzanne Golden’s website and view her extraordinary beadwork.

Read my previous post about Suzanne here.

Suzanne Golden Presents features artwork by, and interviews with, 36 trailblazing bead artists from around the globe, with all content curated by Suzanne Golden. It’s currently on deep, deep discount online at a ridiculously low price—less than $5!—so order your copy before the price goes back up.

You probably know that the incredibly cool book Suzanne Golden Presents releases in stores in roughly 10 days. Yaaaaay! In honor of Suzanne and her book, I’ll be posting Q&As with her for the next few weeks.

Nathalie We’ve worked together on this book for more than a year, and between all our emails and phone calls, I’ve gotten to know you a little bit. So I’m aware that you work out with some frequency and that your gym is currently featuring you in its advertisements, which are appearing both in magazines and across New York City. What, currently, are your favorite songs to work out to?

Suzanne I don’t work out by myself—I’m always in a class and listen to what the teacher plays.

• Give Me Everything, by Pitt Bull with Ne-Yo
  

  Double vision: Suzanne next to a phone booth displaying an advertisement for her gym.

• Crazy In Love, by Beyonce
• Just Can’t Get Enough, by The Black Eyed Peas
• Rolling in the Deep, by Adele
• Knock on Wood, by Ami Stewart
• Rain Over Me, by Pitt Bull featuring Marc Anthony
• Take It Off, by Ke$ha
• Grenade, by Bruno Mars
• S&M, by Rihanna
• New Divide, by Linkin Park

Click here to check out Suzanne Golden’s website and view her extraordinary beadwork.

Suzanne Golden Presents features artwork by, and interviews with, 36 trailblazing bead artists from around the globe, with all content curated by Suzanne Golden. It’s currently on deep, deep discount online at a ridiculously low price—less than $5!—so order your copy before the price goes back up.

When it comes to Saint Patrick’s Day, there’s a pretty clear theme: GREEN. Green everything! Lucky green socks, green shamrock glasses, green everything-you-wear, green food, green beer, green green green. (One more for good luck: green!)

In the festive spirit of St. Patty’s Day and its green, green theme, I took a stroll through Etsy and feasted my eyes on these lovely necklaces. From a pale, delicate seafoam to a deep, forest pine, there’s quite a beautiful spectrum of greens to be found, and these pretty accessories truly capture a variety of styles, textures, shapes, and personalities.

Thank you to the Etsy sellers mentioned below for sharing these charming green necklaces, and Happy Saint Patrick’s Day to you all!

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Apple Green Wooden Bead Necklace :: JullMade

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Chunky Green Necklace :: stavroula

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Spring Fling Howlite Bead Necklace :: ZolieDesigns

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I’m going to come right out and tell you, I set out to do a gardening post today. Maybe some ideas for gardening in small spaces or instructions for building a wooden planter of some kind. After all, it’s getting to be about time to start our seedlings. But, for most of us, it isn’t quite time yet. And I just wasn’t feelin’ it yet. So, instead of forcing it, I’ve decided to collect a bunch of fertile, seedy beauty from around the Etsy-sphere to help us all get into the gardening mood. (Thanks for the brilliant idea, Beth!)

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Once while standing in line, I happened to overhear a woman talking about her diamond engagement ring to a friend. She turned to greet her acquaintance and, as she flung out her left hand for view, pronounced, “Check out my rock!”

It was an interesting moment for a couple reasons, though I was especially intrigued by her reference to the diamond as a “rock,” which I realize isn’t uncommon, but still caught my attention. Yes, diamonds are rocks and they come from the earth, but when I hear the term, my first thought isn’t of precious gems–it’s of smooth river stones and pink canyon walls and the little shifting pebbles lining the campus path of my alma mater. To me, those are rocks, and they do beautiful credit to the classification.

We’ve just celebrated a Season of Love (of course, arguably, that season is year-round), and I’ve been reflecting on the ring as a symbol of love. In this, my fourth and final day of this symbolic exploration, I’ve decided to meander through Etsy in search of compelling rings reminiscent of the unexpected and literal interpretation of “rock.”

Geodes, topaz, concrete, beach rocks, and pretty little river stones all contribute to this delightful exploration, and I thank the artists mentioned below for creating such beautiful pieces in celebration of the natural wonder we find in our midst.

(Want to read my other ring posts? Visit “Put a Ring on It: Turquoise Rings, Day 3“  “Put a Ring on It: Resin Rings, Day 2“  “Put a Ring on It: Petite Rings, Day 1“)

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Geode Agate Slice Ring :: popins

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River Rock Ring :: CinagroFarm

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 Cosmic Blue and Purple Druzy Ring :: hannahnaomi

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Dry River Stone Ring :: carriegarrott

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When they retired, my lovebird grandparents enjoyed traveling to destinations near and far, and my always-on-trend grandma often returned home with a signature piece (or pieces) of jewelry from their journeys. When she passed away a few years ago, I inherited a few of her beautiful treasures, including some turquoise jewelry from a trip she made to the southwest with my grandpa. There’s just something about turquoise—both the stone and the color—that appeals to me, and I love being able to wear jewelry that my grandma held dear.

In this Season of Love, I’ve thought about my one-of-a-kind, fearless, loving grandma and the tangible things of hers I can still hold and wear that link me to her memory. As I embarked on this four-day foray into the world of unexpected, eye-catching, dazzling rings as symbols of love, I found myself drawn to pieces that highlighted turquoise and its evocative hue.

Whether it’s a pale aqua stone in a Victorian setting or a striking geometric mosaic made of turquoise blocks, the work featured below caught my attention and simply wouldn’t let go. These rings are all so different from one another, yet they share a color family rich with significance, which might be why I like them all so much—they possess a commonality, and yet for the maker and the wearer, each ring is its own story.

Big thanks go to the inventive, talented Etsy artists who made these rings—seriously, you’re amazing.

(Want to read my other ring posts? Visit “Put a Ring on It: Petite Rings, Day 1“  “Put a Ring on It: Resin Rings, Day 2“  “Put a Ring on It: Rock Rings, Day 4“)

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Zuni Cluster Turquoise Ring :: wildearthshop

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Blue Peruvian Opal Ring :: lsueszabo

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22k Gold Turquoise Ring :: MonBedo

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Chrysoprase and Turquoise Cluster Ring :: MercuryOrchid

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You know you’ve got a good thing going on when you’re asked to write a blog post about your favorite Lark books, and it takes you all of 10 seconds to come up with the list.

Here are my top five “staff picks” and why I love them dearly, as in, I can’t imagine my life without these books. Please excuse the personal element of all my stories, but isn’t that why anyone falls in love with a book? Because of some special little connection, quote, or start of something new…

1000 Rings

This book introduced me to Lark. I wanted to design my own wedding ring and needed inspiration—1000 Rings offered more than I could have imagined. It sparked my creativity for a design and began my path to a job in the publishing world. I discovered that Lark was in Asheville, North Carolina, by reading the copyright page (dorky, I know). In fine print, it says that if the reader has any questions to contact Lark, and the address follows. In fact, yes, I do have a question: Will you please hire me?! I stalked several editors until they let me in the door, finally landed a scary group interview, and soon moved south with my fiancé in tow. It’s five years later and those editors are my beloved colleagues and friends—all because of a ring (or 1000 of them, I guess).

A is for Apron 

I love this book because it gave my co-workers and me a reason to get together and sew during lunch breaks one winter. We all decided on an apron to make, lugged our sewing machines to the office, and set up shop on the top floor of our building. During those lunches, we yapped about life, discussed office politics, and somehow ended up with several adorable creations. It was the perfect (and totally unexpected) example of that happy little place where team building meets therapy!

We're so proud of these beautiful aprons!