Giveaway: Fizz Candy Jewelry

And the giveaways continue! I love hosting these giveaways from independent, Etsy shop owners because then they are able to gain some exposure and more people learn about their products.

Take this week's giveaway, FizzCandy. I was amazed when I heard that the jewelry in the store is created by Payton, a middle school student. I think it's great that Payton already has started her own business. Even better, the jewelry she creates is outstanding!

All of my followers know how obsessed I am when it comes to jewelry. However, I struggle to find jewelry appropriate for a college student--some pieces seem too young for me, while some seem too old.

Payton has managed to create classic, elegant pieces that are appropriate for any age group. I haven't seen any Etsy jewelry store yet that appeals to all demographics--hers is a first! She has colorful pieces as well as ones that are more muted.

Payton says that her signature pieces are her stackable bracelets.  I can see adding a few of these to my stack! The bracelets pictured above are (starting from the top left and going down):
--Watermelon Tourmaline Slices bracelet
--Signature Multistrand Pearl bracelet
--Tin Cup Silver Chain and Freshwater Pearl Double Bracelet

The green bracelet in the middle is the Green Watermelon Tourmaline Slice bracelet and the other is the  Starfish Charm bracelet.

She also creates unique necklaces, like this Robin's Egg Blue Teardrop necklace. What I found so unique about this piece is that Payton mixed materials--Chrysoprase and pearls--to create something I've never seen before. The drop necklace would look great with any fall sweater or turtleneck.

Above are a few other necklaces that I love. They are, starting from the lower lefthand corner and going clockwise:
--Smoky Brown Quartz Pendant Necklace
--Freshwater Pondslime Baroque Pearl Necklace
--Orange Sardonyx Firestone Necklace
--Focal Angelskin Coral Necklace

Finally, Payton also sells earrings. For anyone wanting to venture from their worn-out pearl studs, Payton's earrings would be perfect for you! I love these Kasumi-style Pearl Earrings--they remind me of Japan for some reason, even though I've never been there! Maybe it's the gorgeous black and red beads attached to the pearls, which resemble the colors of the Japanese flag to me.

I also like these orange coral teardrop earrings. The colors are gorgeous and perfect for fall. The shades of orange, brown and beige remind me of falling leaves.

Payton has been kind enough to offer one of my readers a signature bracelet of hers, this "Crazy Lampwork Bead Bracelet. I just love the variety of beads used in this bracelet. And look at the cute packaging the bracelet comes in! The fizzy candy adds a nice touch, and goes great with the theme of the shop.

Enter via the Rafflecopter widget below. The giveaway ends a week from today (September 14th) at 12:01 A.M. As always, I will contact the randomly-drawn winner, who has seven days to get back to me before I choose a different winner. The giveaway is also open to only US residents only (sorry!)

a Rafflecopter giveaway
Fizz Candy currently offers free shipping on everything. So what are you waiting for? Enter the giveaway contest and go to Fizz Candy right away to see all of the jewelry this inspiring entrepreneur (and artist!) has created!

Also, Fizz Candy is offering Preppy Premed readers 15% off for the month of September. Just enter the code "preppy" at checkout! 

Stitched Tegan Jewelry

I've discovered another fun Etsy shop for you all: Stitched Tegan Jewelry. I'm obviously a jewelry fanatic, so I was so excited to find that the shop owner, Jeanna, sells classic pieces that would look fashionable when worn with anything.

What struck me first when I discovered Stitched Tegan Jewelry was the number of products available, especially when it comes to bracelets. I'm a fan of the "stacking bracelets" trend, and here are a few that would make great additions to your stack.

Starting from bottom lefthand corner and going clockwise:

• Chunky Gold-Plated Diamond Bracelet
• Gold and Black-Diamond Plated Chunky Bracelet
• Black Wrap Bracelet with Wishbone Charm
• Pearl Beaded Bracelets, set of 3

My favorite bracelet from Stitched Tegan would have to be this Sterling Silver Steampunk anchor bracelet. The nautical trend is huge right now, but this bracelet is unique--it's different than any nautical-inspired piece I've seen before. You'd certainly make a statement wearing it!

StitchedTegan Jewelry also sells an array of necklaces and earrings. 

These bronze owl post earrings are adorable! I would wear them to class almost everyday. I love the crystal and black gems that Jeanna added to it.

Long necklaces are great when worn with solid colors. I'd wear this Floral Essence Long Necklace with an Oxford shirt or a plain sweater, to give my outfit a little oomph.

If you love what you see, you can check out Jeanna's blog and her Twitter to keep up with all her new products.

Twitter: twitter.com/barnyardchic

Blog: barnyardchic.blogspot.com

Also, Jeanna is offering the coupon code BLOGSPECIAL for 40% off of your entire purchase! If you're even hesitant of buying a piece from StitchedTegan Jewelry, now would be the time to purchase it!

What's your favorite piece from Stitched Tegan Jewelry?

Friendship Bracelets

Want some new "arm candy" (aka bracelets) but don't have the cash to pony up for them? That's exactly the case I found myself in this summer, so I decided to whip up some bracelets on my own. There's all kinds of bracelet tutorials on Pinterest, but I decided to keep it old-school and simple: by making friendship bracelets.

(Today you get some lovely Instagram pictures, since my camera is at my home 150 miles away).

I've made tons of these since the beginning of summer, using up a kit of cotton thread at my local craft store that cost $4. That's what I love about these: they're so affordable and you can whip them up really quick!

Over the years, I've done many variations of friendship bracelets. I have some great memories of weaving these during summer camp (didn't we all have to make them?) Even though I'm in college, friendship bracelets have seemed to become stylish for the older crowd.

Via

I followed this tutorial from Honestly WTF, only I've been using four colors rather than six. Using less colors makes a thinner bracelet, which I like the look of better.

The bracelet on the top is one that I made by tying knots over and over again, creating a spiral staircase pattern. Why does it look so strange? Well, it may or may not have accidentally run through the wash, hiding in my jeans pocket. Oops.

Friendship bracelets are an easy way to add something to your stack, too! See how it looks with the other bracelets?

So, what do you think? Any of you going to try making a friendship bracelet again? They're not that hard, I promise!

Summer 2012 Wishlist

I made this set way back in early May, when summer was still a little ways off. Now summer's in full-swing...it's already July!

1. A summery sundress [pictured: Cope Linen Sightseer Dress and Pins and Needles Backless Lace Dress from Urban Outfitters]
--CHECK! I bought some nice sundresses in Rome that I still have to show on this blog.


2. Colorful bangles [pictured: Kate Spade New York Make a Splash Idiom Bangle, out of stock]
--I'm starting to really like wearing bracelets, and I love simple ones such as this Kate Spade piece.


3. Colored/patterned shorts [pictured: Lilly Pulitzer Callahan Short]
--Like everyone else, I LOVE Lilly Pulitizer's You Gotta Regatta print and would love a pair of shorts with it.


4. One-piece ruched swimsuit [pictured: J.Crew Off-the-Shoulder Tank]
--CHECK! I bought a similar piece at Target. I don't know why I love the ruched detail so much. I just think it looks good on everyone.


5. Nook Color Case [pictured: Lilly Pulitzer Falling in Love Nook Color/Tablet Cover]
--It's pretty unpractical for me to buy a new Nook case, but some of the new ones Barnes and Noble came out with are so cute.


6. Brown sandals [pictured: Jack Rogers 'Georgica' Sandals]
--Though I would love a pair of Jack Rogers, it's really easy to find similarly colored sandals at DSW and TJ Maxx. The color goes with many of my summery outfits.

There you go, my summer wishlist! What's on your summer wish list?
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Also, check out Kasia's giveaway at Koju Bofu! She's giving away three of her watercolor paintings. Go enter!

100th Anniversary of Titanic Sinking

Can you guys believe it? 100 years ago today, the Titanic sank. 100 years ago! By now, everyone who was on that ship and survived is gone. Wow.  Anyway, I have some Titanic-related news for you all.

Via

 Many of you probably saw my previous post know how obsessed I am with the ship. I saw the movie Titanic last week and, yes, it was a completely new experience to finally see it on the big screen. The 3D was absolutely pointless though: ten minutes into the film I forgot I was watching a 3D movie. It was that subtle. If you want to see the movie in theaters again, see it in 2D so you don't have to pay the 3D surcharge.


This new miniseries from Britain aired yesterday on ABC and will be airing the final part tonight. Personally, I don't know why the world needs another Titanic miniseries...I know there's one from 1996 already. And this looks almost too similar to the 1997 movie. But it does have a cool concept: the first three parts each follow a different person and lead right up to a cliffhanger. Then, in the final part we learn who survived and who didn't. Kind of neat.

Finally, I made some outfits inspired by Rose's dresses in the Titanic movie! I tried to make the outfits be somewhat preppy--something I would wear myself--rather than making them too costume-y.

I wasn't a fan of the hat myself, but KT liked it, so I thought, why not?

I love the purse in this outfit. I included the butterfly headband because there's a scene in which Rose is wearing a butterfly clip in her hair (yeah, I've watched the movie way too much) and I thought it went well with the outfit.

For these outfits I combined the yellow color of her dress with lace that is reminiscent of the time period. And of course I had to add the Kate Spade bracelet and anchor earrings.

Tell me what you think! Any of you guys going to watch the Titanic miniseries?

Charm Bracelets

There's something I love about charm bracelets. They just have so much sentimental value to their wearers. Every charm in a charm bracelet has a specific meaning. A charm bracelet isn't just another piece of jewelry--it's a picture of a person's life.

Via

When I was in Girl Scouts in middle school, the Girl Scouts of America was trying to replace badges for older girls with charms. Every time you completed a project, you earned a charm for your charm bracelet. I thought my charm bracelet was the coolest thing in the world, and I still have the braclet to this day. Every charm symbolizes an accomplishment: there's a suitcase for when my troop traveled to Savannah, Georgia, the birthplace of the founder of Girl Scouts. An emblem, symbolic of when I earned my Gold Award, the highest honor a scout can earn. And, my favorite, a little mirror that I can actually see my reflection in. I forgot what I earned it for, but I do know it's cute.

Via

My sister Katie is graduating high school soon. For her graduation present, my mom and dad are putting together a charm bracelet for her (to, of course, replace the one she lost...). Since my sister is big into theater and has been in almost every school play for the last four years, each charm represents a play that she was in.

Here are some of the charms she's getting:

Ruby Slippers Charm: she was Dorothy in "The Wizard of Oz" one summer

Rabbit Charm: I don't remember what play it was, but for some reason she was playing a singing rabbit

Hairspray Can Charm: for playing the crazy Bible-thumping mom in "Hairspray"

Anchor Charm: My favorite! (gotta love the nautical flair). She was Hope in "Anything Goes"

House Charm: She played the lead in "Our Town" last fall

Puerto Rico Charm: Most recently, she's playing Maria in "West Side Story" next week! Wish her luck, it's her final high school production.

Do any of you have a charm bracelet? I really should start wearing my Studio 2B one more often, I forgot how cool it was.

--Becky