Lately - Happy Days

Lately I have been investing my time in to a new website that combines my shop and blog, appreciating the gentle transition from a humid Brisbane Summer to a rainy Autumn, seeking out tell tales of that change, spending as many hours at the bench as I can around a toddler with a tummy bug and a newly minted four year old full of 'character', while also working on custom orders and training my new intern. (My oh my, how long a tummy bug can last and how much character one four year old can have!)

Meanwhile I have missed my much loved blog and the opportunity to take photographs just for the sake of it. Though I love faffing jewellery and directing photoshoots, my first photography love was capturing everyday moments. Just for the joy of looking, noticing and capturing. As in the photos above. Mushrooms found among the grass in our back yard. Four year old feet ready to jump from a cubby house. The first sprinkle of yellow leaves amidst the rain indented soil. I am looking forward to pointing my camera at more beautiful and mundane moments, and sharing them with you while I snuggle back in to this safe, warm space and share my musings, inspirations and creations.

Ah, happy days indeed.

Photo Shoot Loving

Have I mentioned that I love working on jewellery photo shoots? So much goes on behind the scenes. The research - products, style, location, model. The gathering of props, the organisation of people, the dash of 'unknown' that each shoot brings with it. I'm always awash with excitement and nerves when we get started, worried that my ideas won't work together, and I'll have nothing to show for everyone's hard work. Even with six successful shoots under my belt now, those nerves are just as crazy each time. I like to think that nervousness is what keeps you on your toes and shows you that it is important to you. Once the shoot starts the nerves melt away and only the excitement and satisfaction remain.

I was heady with excitement and butterflies twice recently, as I worked on a Mother's Day and Easter photo shoot with photographer Trudi Le Brese. The first, we collaborated with the talented Louise of Floralovely Calligraphy at Vieille Branche to create a floral feast of creativity. Louise shone in my jewellery as she hosted one of her sold out calligraphy workshops. Beautiful, talented and generous, she was a dream to work with. Once a florist, she styled my jewellery, flowers and props with professional flair. It was such a joy to share the shoot with her. 

Last Monday I spent two hours sourcing quail eggs in order to fulfill my creative vision for Easter inspired images. I was up in the early hours of the morning polishing the final pieces, before driving around to three shops and one warehouse on the hunt for quail eggs. It was well worth the effort, as we shot more beautiful, original content, featuring the Wilderness Collection.

Keep your eyes peeled on my newsletter and Instagram account for the finished images!

Aiming High For Business Success

It's a week of meetings this week. Photographer, intern potentials, marketing and graphic designer meetings. I've been flipping between my 'maker hat' and my 'manager hat'. I'm looking at the future direction of the business and creating action plans. Working out where my time is best spent and where I can bring in other people. Getting my head around letting go of some parts of my business, while remaining the designer and creative director of the whole. Anticipating ways I can grow my business while staying true to my vision. My brain is bursting with ideas and excitement!

I am so pleased to be surrounded by such creative and talented women, whom I consider friends. By combining our skills and talents, Christina Lowry Designs is going to become the best jewellery designer, manufacturer and retailer in Australia. 

Watch this space!

xx

'The Wilderness Collection' Release!

The Wilderness Collection

Botanically Inspired Fine Jewellery

 "Reconnect with nature through the botanically inspired 'Wilderness Collection.' Each piece in this range has been created using twigs cast by way of the traditional burn out method. The organic shoots are surrounded with plaster, which is heated until they are completely burnt out and only a hollow in the plaster remains. Molten metal is poured in to these cavities to produced finely detailed replicas of the original twig, meaning no two are alike. Designer and jeweller Christina Lowry then transforms these precious metal pieces in to beautiful, textured jewellery."

View the collection in store now!

Christina xx 

Photos: Trudi Le Brese Photography

Model: Rochelle Vaisanen

Product photos: Christina Lowry

Collections, children and crowns

Sneak peek from Friday's photo shoot with Trudi Le Brese Photography

There is so much to learn about running a small business, and I am definitely still learning. I was listening to a podcast at the end of November last year, which mentioned that small businesses should be beginning preparations for Valentine's day. I think I nearly choked on my cup of tea. Late November I was preparing for Christmas! With a photo shoot completed, Christmas cards for clients printed and ready to be sent, orders coming in and an 11 day holiday in Coffs Harbour on the horizon, Valentine's had not been on my mind at all! Until that point I thought I had been really quite organised. Thus, when January began, I was home with three children, planning and prototyping a new collection with the hope of having it ready for Valentine's Day.  

I set a goal of releasing my first collection for the year on the 1st of February, to give my lovely clients time to purchase for Valentine's Day if they so desire, and so I had a deadline to work with. I find I work well with a deadline. My husband and sister said I was crazy. At this point there were two weeks left of Janurary (and I was looking after three children full time.) One week to make and finish all the jewellery in the collection, and organise a photoshoot, during nap times and night time. Followed by one week for the photographer to edit the photos. 

Two hours before the shoot I was still polishing the last pieces of jewellery. I felt really nervous and was questioning all the creative decisions I had made for the shoot, from the location to the model, from the theme to the props. I didn't want to waste the photographer and models time. But as soon as I saw the first pics on Trudi's camera, I knew it had all fallen perfectly in to place and I relaxed and enjoyed the shoot. I was so proud of both the first and second shoot, but I think this one is the best yet and I can't wait to share all the photos - it's so hard to wait until the 1st of February!

Meanwhile I have been working all the behind the scenes things one does before a launch - photographing and editing each product image for the shop, creating new Facebook and blog headers, designing a catalogue and order form for my suppliers, writing product descriptions, blog posts, newsletters etc. in between trips to the park, building blocks and referring my seven and three year old - who are struggling to see eye to eye after six weeks together without the daily enforced break school brings with it.

So stay tuned, there's one week until the launch and I can't wait! 

If you want to be the first to see the new collection, sign up to my newsletter and keep an eye on your inbox! xx

Casting Nature

Ideas, inspiration, designs, they are all strange things, aren't they? How do you work with them? Quite often I find I design my jewellery first in my head and it stays there for awhile before I put pen to paper. A concept will float around in my mind for weeks sometimes before I pin it down and write a few words in my journal, or sketch a quick sketch in my notebook. I'll keep musing on it, adding to the jottings and sketchings, before starting to play with my ideas in metal or wax. So often the designs change direction as they make their way from my mind to my hands. So often once I begin I suddenly 'know' the answers I was asking myself about texture, scale, gemstones etc. The key is always just to begin.

What a joy it is, this whole process. This way of living in my creative mind while doing the dishes, having a shower, feeding the cats - tasks where I can let go of my focus and allow my subconscious to express it's self. What a joy it is to notice the details in the day to day, and absorb their beauty. A yellow leaf against a grey gutter. A white pigeon perched on a hills hoist. Spilt milk like a comet surrounded by constellations. Or the delicate detail of a twig, which will become lost forever amongst the leaf litter, except for a scarce few which have now been cast in silver.  

And so my new collection is coming to life, capturing the organic detail of a handful of twigs, to create jewellery to be treasured.

Workshop Tour

My unassuming workshop means the world to me. It's my space. My office/ studio/ workshop. My workshop was once a very ugly bar area in a rented house that had seen better days. That's how I first saw it, when I came to view our home during the pest and building inspection. My husband and I were both so over looking at houses at that stage. We'd sold our last house and were living with family, I was pregnant with Emerson, and we just wanted to find our new home. But the right home eluded us. We knew where we wanted to live, we knew what we wanted to find, it was just a matter of finding it. We thought we had found it a couple of times, but highway noise and gigantic cracks had put us off a few properties. In the end my husband viewed the house without me, on his way home from work. He put in an offer and signed the paper work before I had even seen it. But I trusted him.

The first time I saw my workshop I was a little in shock. We had wanted a house that was a fixer-upper. But I had not bargained for a home that was full of asbestos and needed a new roof and ceiling. As the building inspector pointed out all the faults, I walked around the weed filled back yard with it's millions of pot holes from a bored staffy, thinking I might cry. Dave was enthusiastic, despite the fact that we couldn't move in until the asbestos had been cleared, carpets removed, floor polished, walls painted and so on and so on.

When we viewed under the house I saw my workshop with it's marine grade carpet, large wooden bar and brick walls. And I saw it's potential. Dave and I argued discussed in the car on the way home as to who had rights to the bar area. Dave saw it as having great man cave potential, and had mentally relegated my tools to the garage. I on the other hand had the financial argument on my side - that my workshop was capable of returning money, while his man cave was not. My husband is a good man, and I got my workshop. 

Many thanks to the lovely Trudi Le Brese for coming and photographing my unassuming, well loved space. 

Christmas Photo Shoot

There are so many things to love about running your own business (although a guaranteed income is not always one of them) high on the list of pros is most certainly creative freedom. Only in my own business can I be a designer one moment, jeweller the next, social media marketer before lunch and a copy writer after lunch. Much like Mothering really, where one moment I am referee, next I am nurse, then I am counselor, and then cook. If I wasn't born this way, then having three children has definitely made me a multiskilled multitasker. 

I remember when I was an employee at jewellery stores, I watched with interest as photographers picked up and returned jewellery, then returned once more with product and lifestyle photos. It was all very exciting and out of the ordinary for me. Especially seeing those images in print, and having brides-to-be bring in magazines and point out our ads. I once watched on from the sidelines as a high end jewellery catalogue was produced - models and locations chosen, jewellery pieces designed and created, days spent photographing on location and in a studio while the Marketing Manager apparently sat around bored, as she was bound by insurance to wait with the jewellery. 

But now, as a multiskilled multitasking small business owner, I can create my own photo shoots for my own jewellery pieces, and have an absolute ball while doing it! There is a lot of tea and laughter involved when photographer Trudi Le Brese and I get together for a photo shoot. While Trudi specialises in portrait and family photography, she was brave enough to throw herself in the deep end with me when I proposed our first photo shoot - a product and lifestyle Look Book of my jewellery. I bribed my beautiful yoga teacher at the time, Harriet, with jewellery so that she would model for us, another friend allowed us use of her library and garden as our location, and together we stumbled our way through our first shoot and produced photos that I am still so proud of!

This time around, with a little more confidence, I decided to tackle a Christmas shoot to create content for the holiday season, and broke the rule again about working with children and animals! As Harriet had moved overseas (please note jealousy) I put myself in the firing line, together with my youngest two, with my kitchen and dining room as our location. Together we baked, decorated, faffed and styled our way through the shoot. And I think, for two self taught multiskilled multitasking Mama's we did a darn good job at creating some amazing images!

Her Canberra Lust List

I am thrilled to be included in the HerCanberra Lust List, along with my beautiful stockist Timber & Tailor. You can snap up a pair of the 'Follow Your Dreams' earrings in the Braddon, Canberra store, or pop over to my online shop.

New in the shop - $25 Rings

Can you believe it is the last day of November today? December always creeps up on me, no matter how organised I am! I am so looking forward to the season of celebrations! There are birthdays, holidays, beach escapes and Christmas day to look forward to.

I have a little something else to share with you today - two new rings designs! I've popped them in to the shop today, though I have been wearing them and loving them for the past two weeks, and I know you will love them too.

The 'Ava' ring is a sweet spotty daring and the 'Elsa' ring is equally winsome and wonderful. Both are now available in Sterling Silver for $25 each, with free shipping.

Not sure of your ring size? Add a ring size gauge to your cart for $2, and I will post it out first.

Taking Stock In October

Travelling Companion Studs

Topaz Jane Eyre Ring

Maeve Rings

Making : animals from play dough, sticks and leaves with the children
Eating : blueberries, when the kids haven't eaten them all first
Drinking : less wine, and buying flowers for the garden instead
Reading: about homeschooling, and incorporating those ideas in to the experiences I plan with the children, and the way I handle school homework
Wanting: to make the most of the cooler evenings before Summer comes and makes the nights uncomfortable.
Looking: at all the pretty things in Frankie and Country Style magazines
Playing: rocket ships, robots and water play with my imaginative toddler.
Deciding: my garden needs more flowers
Wishing: I had a cleaner who would take care of the dishes and the bathroom for me - least favourite jobs
Enjoying: feeding the ducks with little friends
Waiting: with excitement for the photo shoot images to be ready, while trying not to rush the photographer!
Liking: rainy mornings that make me want to stay in bed and read all day
Wondering: what would happen if I just DID THAT, just stayed in bed all day, the world would keep turning, right...
Loving: seeing my jewellery being worn by lovely ladies
Pondering: my goals for the next five years
Planning: Photoshoots for next year already 
Buying: stationary online - thus avoiding shopping with the little ones and impulse buys...
Listening: to the new podcast - Thrive By Design
Hoping: my sister gets her job promotion
Marvelling: at the way my oxygen bottle runs out in the middle of soldering a project and never at the end
Taking: time to rock my baby to sleep and then just sit with him in my arms and breathe him in for awhile before putting him down
Needing: a hair cut - thank goodness for messy buns
Questioning: whether to decorate for Halloween this year?
Smelling: wet leaves and cool breezes
Wearing: a pair of my 'Travelling Companion' Studs, and loving them
Following: The Black Hen on Instagram, and wishing I could pop over to Tasmania and wander around their gorgeous store
Noticing: the Jacarandas in bloom all over the neighbourhood
Knowing: that our Mulberry season is over, but there is still a stash in the freezer
Thinking: that there will be another Mulberry Crumble happening soon
Admiring: 50 of poetry's most poignant lines
Sorting: out all of my paper work and finally getting it all up to date. Phew! (Now to keep it that way)
Meaning: to cull the number of newsletters I get in my inbox
Bookmarking: Ellie's blog for A Week Of Slow
Coveting: half the Kikki K store
Opening: bills and bills and bills and bills
Giggling: at the way Miss three says, 'once uponce a time'
Feeling: so good about going to yoga one night a week and making it a habit
Snacking: on honey Macadamia nuts. Yum!
Trying: to get my book club book read... 
Hearing: 'Happier' by Gretchen Rubin - which I have been binge-listening too and loving! So good! Start at episode one and go and listen right now, ok?!

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Joining In with Pip to take stock.

Follow Your Dreams...

'Follow Your Dreams'

New!

Follow your dreams in style with these casually sophisticated drop earrings. Add a touch of uptown sensibility with a down town edge as you confidently cross from conference to coffee date!

These solid sterling silver studs are handmade by Christina Lowry and are approx. 12mm wide, with a 30mm drop. They are available in three variations featuring oxidised and hammered finishes. Over time the blackened finish may soften to a gun metal grey colour, depending on wear and care. These natural changes add to the charm of this design.

Now in the Shop!

Future Heirlooms

Is there a loose pearl or gem stone sitting in a drawer at your house? A sapphire your Grandfather unearthed up North, a pearl you brought on your travels - like this client, or perhaps an old ring you no longer wear that you'd like redesigned? This is my specialty! Together we can create a unique piece that frees your precious items from the confines of a drawer and allows you to wear them! 

Email me a pic to start the design and quote process. I'd love to create a beautiful, quality piece especially for you. xx

christina-lowry@hotmail.com

Sneak Peek

I made these 'Follow Your Dreams' earrings are from sterling silver, and they feature a peacock oxidised finish. These, and three other variations of this style, will be available in the shop soon!

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Mailing list subscribers receive first preference on new releases and sale items. Be first in line by adding your email address to the list!

Back In Stock - 'Haiku' Necklaces

The collection of nine simple and interesting 'Haiku' necklaces sold out in the first week that I released them. They are now back in the shop and available for order. Each design is a beautiful addition to any outfit, and makes a wonderful gift. 

Visit the shop to make one yours!

Finding Your Ring Size Made Easy

Don't forget, if you are wondering how to quickly and easily check your ring size, you can purchase a Ring Sizing Gauge from the shop for $2 including postage!

Sneak Peek - 'Follow Your Dreams'

 Hand made Sterling Silver stud drops

I have been working on a new collection of everyday earrings, in a minimalist circle and oval design. Each piece will feature different finishing touches, from polished to hammer finished, brushed to oxidised. I will be releasing these handmade sterling silver earrings to my newsletter subscribers soon, so if you want to find out more, add your email address to the list!

Best Seller for Anniversaries?

History Class Signet Ring

The Signet ring is such a classic item of jewellery and one that transcends so many styles. Its basic design can be reinvented in so many ways. From feminine, understated, minimalist and vintage to modern, bold, and covered in bling, depending upon how it is personalised and what it is paired with.

It really is the perfect canvas for personalisation. Initials, dates, names, crests and symbols can be hand engraved on top or below the plate. While gemstones can be set alone, in pave, or in a pattern. There are so many possibilities to make this handmade ring unique to you and your loved one. It is such a lasting way to express your love and celebrate a milestone.

For all these reasons it has become my best selling anniversary gift!


Love it too? Pin it to your wish list!

Finished Custom Made Pearl Ring

Some pieces are more difficult to let go of...

A Golden Pearl with a Golden Leaf

The raw materials

Rolling the silver to shape

The ring formed up and ready to be shaped

Checking the depth of the setting

 With the addition of the 9ct gold leaf

 Ready to be polished and for pearl to be set in place

Sometimes a job just flows from start to finish. There are no complications. Just a calm and joyful sense of achievement at each step of the process, as you channel years of learning and practice in to the making of an item. And so it was yesterday, making this beautiful pearl ring for a client. 

She had emailed me an inquiry about creating a piece for a Golden South Sea pearl that she had brought on her travels. I asked a few questions about what she had in mind, I sketched a few ideas and gave her a quote. She gave me further direction on the design and I produced a few more sketches, then she selected the design you see before you.

I love that technology gives me the opportunity not only to work from home and sell online, but also to work with clients all over Australia, and even all over the world, to produce custom made pieces.

This ring came together seamlessly yesterday during the babies nap time, and then after dinner. The customer has already given me her approval, as I sent her these progress shots as I went so she could see her piece being made. So today I need only polish it up, and glue the pearl in to place, before sending it off to its new home.