And the Winner Is....

Congratulations to Manuela Collado for winning

the $100 Heart's Desire Jewelry Gift Certificate!

Many thanks to everyone who entered and sent in so many flattering words to describe how you all feel about my jewelry. I'm amazed at how few of the words were duplicated - you're all a really creative bunch!

I'm reviewing the list and will select the four words to splash on

the HDJ.com home page very soon.

Win a $100 HDJ.com gift certificate!!!

Heartsdesirejewelry.com
is celebrating its one year anniversary!

We are going to update our look and would like your help.
Last year, we selected the words that splash across our home page

dramatic - treasures - romantic - desirable

because we think they describe the look and feel of our designs.

This year, we want to know what adjectives you think

best describe our jewelry

and we will award one lucky contestant

a gift certificate to HDJ.com for $100.

The pictures above may be some of the images used on our home page,

so you get an idea of what our new images will look like.

You can also view our jewelry by clicking on this link and visiting our website

Heart's Desire Jewelry

To enter, simply sign up for our e-mail list and reply to the confirmation e-mail

with the four words that you think best describe our jewelry

or the feeling you get when wearing it and you will be entered in the contest.

I will choose the winner via a random draw and select the four words

for our home page splash from among all the entries.

In order to qualify, everyone who would like to enter needs to

sign up for our mailing list by clicking below ...

Join Our Email List

Deadline to submit your entry is September 28.

Winner will be contacted September 29 via e-mail and must respond to the announcement within 48 hours or another winner will be selected.

Good luck!

Happy Birthday September Babies!

The gem variety of the mineral corundum, the Sapphire, is the modern and traditional September birthstone.

Sapphires occur in all colors of the rainbow although the correct name for a red Sapphire is the Ruby. These gems originally started out as pure aluminum oxide before being crystallized by intense pressure and heat many centuries ago. Variations in the amounts of iron oxide and titanium in the stone is what causes the variety of colors with the most well-known being a rich and clear, deep blue. The most exotic color is a rare variety of orangish-pink sapphire called Padparadsha, found in Sri Lanka. The name is derived from the Singhalese word for "lotus flower." This is the only Sapphire (besides the Ruby) to be given its own name.

Sapphires are one of the precious gemstones along with ruby, diamond and emerald. They have excellent hardness, second only to the diamond. These blue gems are commonly heated to permanently improve their color and reduce cloudiness caused by rutile inclusions, which is usually considered a negative quality.



In the case of rare Star Sapphires, it is these rutile inclusions that make the gems valuable. Rutile is a mineral composed of mostly titanium dioxide that creates the six pointed star effect called asterism. You can see this effect in a cabochon, or half dome cut gem, as the light crosses the surface when the gem is being moved.

The name corundum comes from the ancient Sanskrit "kuruvindam", while the name Sapphire is derived from the Persian word "safir", meaning "beloved of Saturn" or possibly from the Greek word "sapphirus", meaning blue. There were a few myths from ancient cultures that are associated with the Sapphire. The ancient Persians thought that the sky was a vast sapphire and the Earth was imbedded in it. As a result, its reflection colored the sky a beautiful blue. Another is a belief that Sapphires were derived from the gods and swallowed by the sea. Biblical legends point to the blue gem as the most sacred of gemstones by claiming that Moses was given the Ten Commandments on tablets of Sapphire.

Sapphire is associated with physical and emotional balance. It is said to calm feelings of hate and anger and allow clarity of thought, bringing peace to anyone who wears it. Sapphires were prized among priests and kings, who considered them symbolic of wisdom and purity. Because it is thought to enhance the influence of Venus, the Roman goddess of love, Sapphire is a symbol of long term relationships. It is thought to enhance the qualities required in a healthy relationship...like loyalty, faithfulness, truth and reliability. A gift of Sapphire represents sincerity and faithfulness.

The jewelry items pictured here can be purchased on www.heartsdesirejewelry.com . Click on the picture for more information.

Count Me In!

During the month of September 2009, SheFinds.com is running a promotion with Count Me In , a support group for women entrepreneurs to raise money for the organization and help boutique designers get the word out about their designs. As a designer, my task was to create an original piece that incorporates either the motto "Believe In You", the Count Me In logo, and/or the official Count Me In colors into the design and donate a portion of the proceeds to Count Me In.

I chose to use the colors and came up with these two necklace designs...

Independence Necklace Count Me In Necklace

I am donating 25% of the proceeds from the sale of these necklaces.

To see more of the designs click here -

New Spaces

I apologize for being a bit quiet recently, but I have good reasons. I've been putting all my energy into designing new jewelry pieces and exploring new ways to get my pieces seen. One of those places is the City Art Gallery in San Francisco. The gallery is an artist co-op located at 828 Valencia St in the Mission District of SF.

I've really enjoyed getting to know a lot of the amazing and talented artists who belong. There are 200 or so members, so I have only met a handful so far. I have also enjoyed meeting the customers who visit us from all across the globe.

My first sale was to a beautiful family from the Boston area and my second sale today was to a woman from Amsterdam.

I have my first exhibit up this month, featuring lampwork or artisan glass. If you get a chance to drop in, please have a look. All of my designs are in the left hand side of the display case as soon as you walk in the front door.

If you see my name on the sandwich sign out on the sidewalk in front of the gallery, pop in and say hello.