Sparkle at your Holiday Soirees

With all of the holiday parties coming up it is important to

get your jewelry clean and sparkling!

Here is a tip from Arlene Weinrich, a Spectrum jewelry artist,
on how to get your silver jewelry looking as good as new!

"Gently clean your silver jewelry with baking soda.
Simply apply the baking soda to the silver with a dampened finger,
rubbing lightly and then pat the jewelry dry with a towel."

It is so simple, you will be dressed to impress in minutes!

For Arlene's silver jewelry with 24k Gold foil:

Arlene has used several coats of clear lacquer to protect the designed surface of her silver and 24k gold foil jewelry. You should not use any jewelry cleaners, cloths or polishes on the fronts of this jewelry. Just wipe the pieces carefully with a damp cloth from time to time. Keep your Arlene Weinrich 24k gold foil jewelry from contacting hairspray and perfumes, as these substances will damage the protective lacquer.


For EXTRA dirty jewelry and fine jewelry with pearls, diamonds and gemstones come by and have Scott, our master goldsmith, clean it for you free of charge.

Get your ring "back to factory specs"
for only $15 for a ring with no stones
or starting at $35 for a ring with stones!

(Back to factory specs includes cleaning, stone tightening, polishing and buffing
...getting your ring to look better than the day you got it!)

-Taylor

Beaded Bliss compliments of Starsong

Nancy has made some STUNNING new Starsong jewelry
so I decided to take a break from work and play dress up this week!
I picked a few favorites to show you.

Every Starsong creation is hand-crafted, by Star Sosa and Nancy Noel May, right here at Spectrum Art & Jewelry. They travel the world to hand-select the exotic gems, pearls, art glass, silver , gold and vermeil that are blended together in their one-of-a-kind designs! They are also the perfect Christmas gift! Looking for a certain color or style that you can't find? That's not a problem. We will make whatever your heart desires!

Here's a closer look at the necklaces:

Peridot and Pyrite knotted necklace
(In a variety of colors and gemstones)


White freshwater pearls
Gray Pearls
Peacock pearls
(3 necklaces can be worn separate
or together as pictured above)


White freshwater pearls
with quartz and SS Bail

Gold Fill Chain with pearls
and multicolor gemstones

Turquoise and SS Beads


Multicolored pearls


Aquamarine and
multicolor pearls
(Can be worn multiple ways,
two ways pictured above)

-Taylor

Tis' the season

I can't believe it's November already! As the holiday's approach I get more and more excited about all of the wonderful things to come...time with family, the smell of Christmas trees, twinkling lights, great food, gift giving, warm fires and more!

Despite all of the excitement of the next two months the thought of all of the preparations, cooking, shopping and gift buying can seem like an ominous task. Although nothing can truly quench my excitement all of the preparations threaten to distract my focus from what really matters during this season.

So in honor of a simple, peaceful and joy filled season I will be dedicating the majority of the blog posts for the next month or so to holiday ideas. The hope is to make your life more simple this season with things like recipes and gift ideas!

I would love and appreciate any ideas, recipes and holiday tips that you have; please post them on the "The Daily Sketch"!

-Taylor

Congratulations Susan Drake: 2012 AGTA Spectrum Award Winner

The winners of the 2012 AGTA Spectrum Awards contest were just announced this week! Spectrum Art & Jewelry designer Susan Drake won in the category of business/day wear for platinum innovation!

About the AGTA Spectrum Awards:

"The AGTA Spectrum Awards™ is considered the most respected and prestigious creative award for the design industry. Launched in 1984, the AGTA Spectrum Awards™ honors, recognizes and promotes designers whose work utilizes natural colored gemstones and cultured pearls in finished fine jewelry design. It has become the benchmark for jewelry designers striving to gain recognition for their work. It is a true contest of workmanship, creativity and innovation. Winners set the standards of excellence for our entire industry. The Spectrum Awards competition has launched trends, increased visibility for designer jewelry, and inspired great innovation in use of color and materials. The Spectrum Awards is considered the finest jewelry and gemstone competition in the world. The judging panel changes each year and consists of experts from different disciplines within the jewelry industry. Each piece is examined by hand with an eye for craftsmanship and quality of the materials used."

Susan Drake's winning design in the category of
business/day wear for platinum innovation:

To learn more about the American Trade Gem Association and The Spectrum Awards visit the AGTA website

-Taylor

Recycled Art

Tripp Gregson, a Spectrum gallery artist and resident of
Greensboro, NC has found an interesting way
to recycle old road signs and license plates.

Recently we had a customer that had several old license plates from different states they had lived in. They really wanted to do something special with them. Having seen Tripp's work here at Spectrum they asked if something could be done with their personal plates. They weren't exactly sure what they wanted at first so we worked with Tripp to decide what the best options for their particular license plates would be.

Here is the finished product:



They are so fun and personal!

If you have any old license plates laying around that you have been wondering what to do with this is a creative option that makes for a great gift!

-Taylor

55 Chevy

"55 Chevy", Acrylic on Canvas, $595

"When Star asked me to demo in September, I sorted through some recent photos and planned to paint a landscape or still life. I had just returned from a family reunion in Pennsylvania and had snapped a picture of my cousin Ray's 56 Chevy as I was leaving town. He's had it over 35 years and keeps it in perfect, original condition. When we hear it rumbling up the road, we know that Ray has arrived."

"Susan Drake talked me into painting it for the demo because it would be fun and it really was! I saw purples and lavender in the shiny blue hood and even magenta reflections in the gleaming chrome bumpers and wheels. Sometimes, the creativity just flows and the painting just 'paints itself'. This was one of those times. It's that spontaneity that gives a loose and fresh feeling. I'm looking forward to painting other classic cars!"

-Ann Hair

If you or someone you know has a classic car Ann will do a commissioned painting of your car!

Contact Spectrum Art & Jewelry for more information.

910-256-2323 or info@SpectrumArtAndJewelry.com

See more work by Ann Hair

Spectrum Art & Jewelry presents: Mike Rooney – Loose & Colorful Plein Air Workshop

October 12-13, 2011, Spectrum Art & Jewelry sponsored our first ever painting workshop. It was an incredible experience for all who participated! After months of planning, advertising, back and forth emails…we were all set to start our learning experience with Mike Rooney.

A North Carolina painter, with a love of plein air style painting focusing on coastal images, Mike proved himself to be an exceptionally skilled teacher. I knew Mike could talk a good game, but I was so impressed with the ease, clarity and great sense of humor he used in sharing his immense knowledge of painting techniques.

The skill level in our workshop was varied and Mike addressed the majority of his lessons to the beginners. But don’t be fooled into thinking it would be boring for the more advanced. Everything Mike talked about was informative and for some of us, things we had never heard expressed in that particular way. Lots of “ AH HA” moments for everyone!

This workshop was considered a #101 class and Mike has expressed interest in teaching a #201 class next fall for us. I’m ready, how about you? (contact me at nancy@spectrumartandjewelry if you are interested)

Paint on,

Nancy Noel May

I would like to share a few reviews written by our workshop artists.

"First of all, thank you and Spectrum for putting the workshop together and starting off with such a wonderful artist and teacher. It was something I should have had years ago to start me off on the right path. You're right about the many valuable things we learned from values, single and dual vanishing points, scale, then taking it outside and putting it all together to come up with a painting. It was very hard for me, as such a beginner, but it was exactly what I needed. Everything fell in to place and now I have to practice, practice, practice." (MW)

"As a novice, I would give the experience an excellent review... it was a great presentation by Mike and the location and all were outstanding. I hope that Spectrum will try other workshops...I got a lot out of the class, hope to get to paint more and not embarrass myself. Thank U" (MD)

"Mike Rooney is a dynamic instructor, dedicated to imparting his knowledge and skill. He generously shared his love of painting with clarity, patience and a sense of humor. Mike was very effective at teaching a variety of skill levels in the class. What a wonderful way to begin my first painting class! I left the workshop with new painting skills and a new way to see color, light and shadow!" (KG)

"I would like a DVD to follow up the information taught!!! It was the single best workshop I have taken in 30 years and gave me the tools I need to become a better painter. These are the rules of art and color and creation! Thank you for your insight and your gift to teach! And thank you Nancy for seeing the need and bringing Mike to the table!" (RB)

See Paintings by Mike Rooney