Gold bangle bracelet with green crystals

Whenever I make a new piece of jewelry, I like to experiment with interesting color combinations. One of my favorite ways to do this is to simply take colors from the same family and mix them. When I was a kid, I used to like to do this with paint cards when my parents were at the store choosing wallpaper. It amazed me to see just how many shades of purple or blue or even white even exist. We may only see seven colors in a rainbow, but there are probably millions of colors between each band.

For this bracelet, I went with a green theme. I'd gotten new gold wire that I'd never worked with before -- 16 gauge square -- and really liked the combination of the yellow with green. But I didn't just want to go with one sjade of green, so I went for several and chose crystals of forest green, kelly green, grass green, yellow green... you get the idea. I then made a simple bangle bracelet, alternating the green cubes, but in the end, they look like one unit.

Though I'm not Irish, I'll probably wear this for St. Patrick's day this year because this bracelet is the perfect accessory to wear when welcoming the spring. And remember, when looking at a color, note that there's more to it than meets the eye.

To see or purchase my jewelry, head to Naomi's Designs or Naomi's Studio.

Silver necklace with green Swarovski crystal hearts

I'm in love -- with Swarovski crystal hearts, that is. I got a bunch of these little guys on sale a while back and think they're so, so pretty. I love heart-shaped gems, anyway, but seeing them in all of these different, shiny colors just about sent me over the edge.

I've been waiting to get the right inspiration when it came to designing with these Swarovski hearts. I didn't want to just hang them on a wire and call it a day; I wanted to do something special with them. I'd already designed a multi-colored cuff bracelet with them, but looked forward to coming up with more great ideas.

This particular necklace came about due to me wishing it were spring. This winter has been terrible, because of the snow and multiple colds for me, so I'm longing for some warm days ahead. To me, spring is a happy season filled with sunshine, flowers and a lot of green. That said, this necklace with the light green hearts represents my love - heh -- of nature and of things coming back to life after a long winter.

To make the necklace, I used 18 gauge silver wire and twisted it into a simple vine shape. I originally wanted to make an entire necklace out of the vine pattern, but it kept getting tangled and looked more like poison ivy than a beautiful, winding leaf. I nixed that idea and went with a simpler version of the design; I then hung five green Swarovski crystal heart "leaves" onto the vine. The end result is that it looks like a tree is just starting to bloom.

This spring, I have a lot to look forward to -- my wedding anniversary, a trip to Greece, long days outdoors. This necklace celebrates that.

To see or purchase more of my jewelry, head to Naomi's Designs or Naomi's Studio.