My Newest Etsy Listings!

I've added a bunch of stuff to my shop! Here are a few!

Copper And Agate Necklace

Hammered Brass Earrings










Silk Ribbon Earrings









Chrysophrase and Copper Necklace











And Much More! Go Take A Look!

Habit Boutique is Closing :-(

I have been selling my jewelry in Habit boutique for the past 5 years or so and  now they are closing.  It was the first (and only) boutique that I've sold my jewelry so it has a special place in my heart. Plus, the owner was always so friendly and she loved my work and let me know it all the time. So sad to see it go. And I have been looking for other stores and boutiques to sell my jewels but haven't quite found any other places yet. Most of them have been saying that they're happy with the designers they have now. Oh well, I'll keep looking and hopefully something comes up. Meanwhile, goodbye Habit and thanks for the support!

My Newest Etsy Listings!

I just added a few items to my shop today and I plan on adding more during the week! Check them out:
Chunky Carnelian and Brass Bracelet

Recycled Leather and Agate Cuff

Simulated Aqua Blue Chalcedony Earrings

My Ice Cream Castles Treasury on Etsy!

I made another treasury and it's called
Ice Cream Castles! I hope you like it and please feel free to comment and click!

My First Treasury Attempt!

So I decided to make a treasury! Let me know what you think! And make sure to click on the items and  comment on the treasury on the actual treasury page on Etsy (and feel free to comment here too).

Sooo.....I have Another Tumblr!

I created my first tumblr (soapfiending.tumblr.com) last month and I really like it. However, "soapfiending" is dedicated to soap and only soap. So I wanted to create another one (jazjewelz.tumblr.com) so that I can engage in (and reblog) other topics besides soap. If you have a tumblr  please let me know and I'll follow!

20% Off Everything!

I am having a sale on my Etsy site (jazjewelz.etsy.com). 20% off of everything and the prices have already been reduced. So shop away  and enjoy your holiday weekend!

Local Indie: Products Of The Earth!

Products Of The Earth is a local Chicago company that sells haircare and bodycare products. They were selling their items at an event that I happened to be vending at also. And since I am such a "product junkie" I had to stop by their table and take a look at their products. Needless to say I liked what I saw because here I am writing about them. All of the products are natural and full of oils, butters, and herbs that are great for skin and hair. So of course I had to buy something. And though they had many products I was interested in trying I finally settled on the Herbal Hair Revitalizer and the Herbal Body Lotion. I have been using both these products since I got them and I really like them. I would definitely buy them again and next time I'll check out some of their other products. I am particularly interested in the Revitalizer Spray. Maybe I'll try that next! Hmmm! We'll see and I'll keep you posted.












Note: All photos are from the Products Of The Earth website-I will remove all photos if requested by representatives of the company

BGLH Naturals Meetup is June 26!

I will be selling my jewelry  in another BGLH natural hair meet up. It will take take place on June 26, 2010 and will last from 11 a.m. to 3pm and there's a $3. There will be a discussion about natural hair at 11 a.m. and you'll be able to check out the vendors at noon. The location is:
Little Black Pearl
1060 East 47th Street
Chicago, IL

If you are in the Chicago area please check out this event and you do not have to have natural hair to attend but If you have been interested in becoming natural and need encouragement or inspiration this is the event for you. Hope to see you there and here is the Facebook event page.

 http://www.facebook.com/find-friends/?expand=pymk&ref=hpb#!/event.php?eid=106168672762685&ref=mf

Welp, I Have A Tumblr!

I opened a Tumblr account about a week ago. It's called Soap Fiending and it's
dedicated to soap and only soap. Soaps that I have, love, and also ones that I want to try. Check it out if you like. I only have two posts so far but that will change soon.
Oh, and spell check says that  fiending is not a word but it is where I come from. Lol.

I'm In Another Etsy Treasury! Yay!

I have been included in another treasury so now that makes two. Lol. My Recycled Leather Labradorite Cuff was the item added. Take a look!

Teeccino Herbal Coffee!

I like coffee, I really do but I've recently been trying to cut back on the caffeine a little bit-mostly because I hate having that feeling of dependency.  And although I claim that I am not addicted and  just really love the taste,  I do seem to develop a headache and tiredness when I don't have coffee.

So I have decided to give coffee alternatives a try and one of the brands that I really enjoy is Teeccino which is an herbal coffee.  It is ground like regular coffee and you brew it the same way. And I must say that it tastes great and yields a deep, rich coffee-like beverage. Plus there are many flavors to choose from and my favorites so far are Vanilla Nut and Maya Chocolate.  An 11oz bag will run you about $8.99 on the website and there are also trial sizes for $2.00 a packet. I've also seen Teeccino in Whole Foods but I don't quite recall the price.

Oh, and I must mention their newest product called Tee-Bags which Teeccino in tea bag form. And they come individually wrapped so you can take them wherever you go. I have bought a couple of boxes and I was not disappointed. I got the same tastes with the convenience of a tea bag.  So, if you are interested in trying coffee alternatives I think Teeccino is a great choice and you can get a free sample by subscribing to their newsletter. Give it a try and let me know if you like it.

By the way, I know some of you might be wondering why I don't just drink decaf and the reason is simple-I like to try new things. And please note that I  have not totally given up coffee, I just don't drink it as much as I did. As a matter of fact I have not had a cup of coffee all week and I feel fine. No withdrawal headaches or drowsiness. Yay!

I'm In a Etsy Treasury! Yay!

I, for the very first time, was added to an Etsy treasury by Kaylee Hull. It is called Blue Skies and Lemonade and features my Aqua Terra Jasper and Copper Earrings. I'm pretty excited because I've never been in a treasury before. Maybe I'll get a front page soon.That would be really great. A few sales would be nice too. I'm still trying to make it to 10 sale. Lol.  Anyway, please check out the treasury and don't forget to  click and comment!

I'm Volunteering For Chicago Cares Serve-A-Thon!

Every year, for the past 17 years, Chicago Cares has hosted a day of service called the Serve-a-thon.  And this year I have decided to take part in it. On June 12, I and many other volunteers will meet at Soldier Field and then disperse to various Chicago Public Schools to revitalize and beautify (painting, building playgrounds, organizing libraries, etc...). And I must mention that I have been a member of Chicago Cares for a few months but I have not really done any volunteering yet. So when one of my twitter friends mentioned  they were starting a team for the Serve-a-thon and needed volunteers I jumped on it.

Now that I am team member I am supposed to recruit more volunteers and solicit donations. Our teams' goal for donations is $1000 and each member is personally challenged to raise $150. So far I have raised $20 with ten dollars being my own money. And the other $10 came from @Paintboxsoaps of Paintbox Soapworks  (you should check out this shop - great soaps and other products).

I am really hoping we reach our team goal and I want to reach my goal too. So in the next few days I am going to tweet, email, and update facebook asking people to volunteer and/or donate to our team so that we can help make Chicago Public Schools a little better. And I plan to make a larger donation too. Every little bit counts

If you would like to volunteer or  make a donation here is the link to our team page:
http://chicagocares.kintera.org/faf/search/searchTeamPart.asp?ievent=347877&team=3768483

And Here is my personal member page:
http://chicagocares.kintera.org/serve-a-thon2010/jazjewelz

Latest Additions To My Etsy Shop!!!

I have added a few items to my etsy shop over the past couple of days and I plan to add more items more frequently. The goal is an item a day or every other day! Here's my latest! Let me know what you think!

Blue Agate And Sterling Necklace

Wood Ring And Sterling Earrings 












Brown Recycled Glass and Copper Earrings

Green Recycled Glass and Copper Earrings

Recycled Black Leather and Agate Cuff

Aqua Terra Jasper and Copper Earrings

Yellow Chalcedony and Copper Necklace

What Do You Think About Blog Sales!

I have been thinking about doing a few blog sales for  items (some slightly used) such as perfumes, books, jewelry making materials, etc.... And I kind of wanted to avoid listing on etsy and/or ebay and  racking up  fees. Prices would be extremely reasonable or one would need to pay for shipping only.   Has anyone out there done a blog sale? If so, how did it work out for you? Is is first come first serve? Please let me know if you have an opinion on this. Thanks!

I Have A New Twitter!

I  have another  twitter account (twitter.com/js_mitchell)  which will be a little more professional than my other account (twitter.com/jazjewelz)! I decided to create a new account because I am in the job market and I'd like to focus on getting work and making connections. I will still tweet about my jewelry and what I am making but will keep the foolery out of it. Lol! That means less le sighing, ranting, OMGing, LMBO, Oh LAWDing, cackling, posting of ridiculous photos, etc...... but I will still add a dash of my personality as to not bore people. And just to be clear, I am not closing my old account and I will tweet from it too. I merely want to have a more focused, streamlined account as well. And I have seen several people who have personal and professional accounts which seems to work for them. So if you'd like to follow please do so and I will return follow.

Indie Find: The All Natural Face Cosmetics

I have been wearing mineral foundation for at least five years (various brands) and I usually wear the loose powder versions because my skin has always been bit on the oily side. However, my skin has been a little dry lately and powders seem to only make my face look drier and they also accentuate pores and other blemishes. So, I decided to look for a mineral foundation stick (sticks tend to be more moisturizing and have more coverage) and my search brought me to The All Natural Face Cosmetics which offers a wide variety of very affordable natural mineral based cosmetics including foundation/concealer sticks.

As I read the description of the foundation stick I thought it sounded it great.  It's vegan and contains argan oil and jojoba oil which are great for the skin.  I definitely wanted to try it and at that particular time there was  a huge sale so the sticks were only $3.50 each (regularly $5). I ordered 3 in three different potentially matching shades of which there is a wide selection (check photo below).  Along with the foundation I also bought a brow powder.

I got my order a few days later,  tried everything out and I was very pleased. The foundation felt creamy, not oily and dried to a nice barely there finish. The coverage was really great, a little bit goes a long way,  and one of the shades was an absolute perfect match for my skin tone. The brow powder is nice too-it makes my brows look very natural as oppose to a brow pencil.  I must also mention that I received samples of  eyeshadow and gel eyeliner which I really liked so I went back and placed another order for the liner, some shadows, and I got mascara. I should be getting this order soon and I can't wait.

Upcoming Events!!!!!

Hi everyone! I will be selling my jewelry at two events this month. One of the events is the Indie In The Windy City handcrafted Market. This fair takes place on Saturday May 8, 2010 and the hours are from 10am-4pm. The location is at The Chelsea House-920 W. Wilson Ave, Chicago. Please stop by if you get a chance.


The second event is Black Girl Long Hair's Natural Hair Meet up Which will take place on May 15, 2010 at

Little Black Pearl Gallery on 1060 East 47th Street (Chicago) from 11am - 2pm. I am really looking forward to this event and I had planned on just attending but I saw that they were accepting some vendors so I jumped on it. Note: check out the  Black Girl Long Hair blog and their Facebook Group.

New Jewelry Added to Etsy!

Hi everyone! I added a few more items to my Etsy shop (http://jazjewelz.etsy.com) today and here they are:

Copper and Russian Amazonite Necklace

Peruvian Opal and Copper Necklace














Black Leather and Agate Sterling Silver Necklace












Chrysophrase Nugget and Copper Necklace











Green Amethyst and Sterling Necklace












Aqua Blue Glass Bracelet










Chrysocolla and Brass Earrings













Peruvian Opal and Copper Earrings