To celebrate the long anticipated arrival of summer in Oregon I decided to dress up my uniform of Frye boots, an Anthropologie cardigan, and summer frock with a little dose of chic in the form of a Laurel Denise leather bracelet.  Since 2005 Laurel Smith has been designing an urban remembrance of jewelry as an expression of the soul with delightful quotations to wear that spark imagination and creativity.

She proclaims her art form as “accessorizing the accessory” because she engraves words and phrases onto necklaces and bracelets.  The idea first came to her in a dream, which accounts for the whimsical nature of her designs, and has transformed into our favorite NEW line of jewelry!  These bracelets from her Texture line make great gifts, and sister bracelets.  All of the girls at NEWTW!ST purchased matching bracelets with the words ”she lives life in her own little fairytale” to remind us of our friendship and artistic sensibility.  Thank you to Laurel for brightening up our summer!

Jane Diaz has been a staple in our store for years, but her story is one I always find inspiring. New York city native Jane Diaz has collaborated with Nepalese metal smiths for fifteen years to create a unique hand-made line of jewelry. Drawing from her background in anthropology, fine art and dance, she has created a jewelry collection that honors ancient technique while maintaining a modern, wearable charm. As the industrial world seems to be endlessly expanding Jane Diaz values the distinction offered by the “human touch” in each individual piece. From these light as air Whisper Earrings to this substantial Mobile Necklace, each handmade piece is easy to wear, affordable and you can take pride knowing that the jewelry you are wearing is handmade with love and tradition. We are loving the new pieces we just got in, check them out here!

This past week Collen, Jodi and I (Andrea) made the journey North to Seattle to hand select one-of-a-kind Jamie Joseph rings! It was a fun-filled adventure full of laughter, great food and of course, rainbows of Jamie Joseph rings!  No obstacle was too big. The Pacific Northwest rain didn’t slow us down. The realization that NONE of us had ever pumped our gas before as the gas light turned on? Nothing Colleen couldn’t handle. We were women on a mission!

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Soon we arrived at the studio and it was like being a kid in a candy store. There were so many unique and beautiful pieces to choose from! Armed with wishlists from our customers and a passion for beautiful stones, we whirled through her collection, pulling pieces left and right that we knew would find a good home in our store and on our customer’s fingers!

I hope the lovely folks at Jamie’s studio realize just how lucky they are to be surrounded by beauty all day long! (We were in awe!!) Here is Jamie rocking her latest favorite, THE most gorgeous rainbow moonstone we have ever laid our eyes on.

Can you guess what these are?? Our beloved, most cherished, Peruvian Opals!! Isn’t it amazing to see the before and after? Everyone in her studio is so incredibly talented and just breathes life and beauty into stones.

A sneak peak at Jeremy’s hidden stash.

This is where all of the magic happens at the studio complete with a flying trapeze!  Jamie is such an inspiring artist, and we are so proud to be able to share our enthusiasm for her work with you.

Thank you to Jamie, Jeremy, Naomi and the rest of the studio, for taking the time to show us around and help send us on our merry way back to Oregon with our own amazing stash of your beautiful jewelry. We love you guys!

Today a sweet customer came into the store looking for the perfect gift for her niece’s very special 13^th birthday.  She immediately fell in love ( like all of us at the store already have! ) with these fun, colorful bracelets by Litchi.  The bracelet pictured above on Jessie is adorned with fun good luck charms, one of them being the number 13, which is perfect for a 13^th birthday present.  We are also loving Litchi’s long necklaces, worn above by our very own Ildiko.  Come in to NEWTW!ST and we’d love to show you more of this fun, whimsical line!

-Hannah

Working at a jewelry store you can imagine it is impossible to pin down one favorite artist in an environment that is filled with so many great artisans, but if I had to select one designer that transcends convention and reinvigorates my love of jewelry with every new piece it would be Melissa Joy Manning.  All of her earrings are lightweight and universally flattering like these gold hoops. The stacking rings and diamond bands, worn alone or layered together, are an effortless way to enrich any jewelry box and outfit. Manning employs a unique variety of natural stones and found materials, like this fossilized wood necklace, as pendants on feminine and delicate chains that combine for a modern look without conforming to any trends. With an emphasis placed on one of a kind and limited edition pieces Melissa Joy Manning’s jewelry is as unexpected and beautiful as the woman wearing it.  In her own words “My jewelry is not an accessory, but an expression.”