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I think it’s pretty safe to say that my plants at least partially inspired the color palette for the fist batch of my new colorful, powdercoated necklaces! The colors of these modern chain necklaces are a pretty solid match for my peperomia and philodendron brasil!
Last month I made a version of my Joie necklace in bronze, and I couldn’t resist photographing it with this lovely philodendron brasil. I just love how the leaves and trailing vines reflect the shapes in the necklace. It really brings the botanical influence into focus, don’t you think?
I blew off work this afternoon to go plant shopping (because that’s the whole point of being self-employed, right?!?) and snapped this pic while I was there. Sadly, none of these beautiful calatheas came home with me. (I’ve learned I just don’t have enough humidity to keep calatheas looking good.)
But a friend commented on Instagram that at first she thought that was really cool wallpaper (not real plants) and now I want nothing more than to turn this into a repeat pattern (a skill I actually have, thanks to my MFA thesis) and have it made into wallpaper. Kind of makes me wish I had bothered to snap a pic without my Contra ring in the picture. (Except not really, because that just gives me an excuse to go back to the greenhouse!)
Speaking of Contra rings, that one is from my personal stash, but you can get your own one of a kind ring in my online store!
I definitely wasn’t feeling the most productive today (even when you love your job, starting work on the Friday after a holiday is TOUGH) so I decided to do a little impromptu photoshoot with a new plant I picked up yesterday and one of the new(er) necklaces in my Essaint Collection! I’m not setting new years resolutions this year, but if I was, I’m pretty sure it would involve more plants, more handmade ceramics, and more time designing new jewelry!
The plant is a neon pothos, the planter is by Elizabeth Benotti Ceramics, and the necklace is the Joie Necklace and it’s available now in my online shop!
I was looking over my Instagram posts from the last year (I blame the end of year/end of decade reflection madness) and couldn’t help but noticing 1. that it’s been almost a year since I had to relocate my studio and 2. how funny it was that I seemed to think I would have the garden studio fixed by now.
Since it has been almost a year since I moved studio spaces, I thought it was only fair to do another update! (You can read the last one here.)
Now that it’s starting to turn cold here, I’m feeling the need to turn my studio into even more of an urban jungle, inspired by my recent trip to Nevis and the gorgeous gardens there. (Though can you call your plant collection an “urban” jungle if you technically live in the country?)
Most of these plants started as a backdrop for this video, but have since ended up in my studio, as close to my workbench as possible! (While still allowing me to get out!)
Sometimes it surprises me when I realize I’m drawn to a certain color. Like when I finished setting up my last studio and realized I liked yellow.
Red is another color that I apparently like more than I let on. Despite the fact that it was one of the dominant colors in my thesis, I wouldn’t currently call myself a red lover. In fact, if you were to ask me, I’d say I’m much more into cool colors. (When I’m not crushing on black, white, and grey that is.)
But looking at my pics from Golden Rock Inn Nevis, it’s clear I’m drawn to red as an accent color. After all, my current hair color is red and I’m a huge fan of the bold red lip. So it seems kind of perfect that I spent my time at a hotel where pops of red were everywhere throughout the grounds and gardens.
I chose to stay at Golden Rock Inn for my spontaneous trip to Nevis in the West Indies last week because they boast incredible gardens. And let me tell you, they did not disappoint. I envisioned myself wandering the gardens photographing my jewelry, especially pieces like the Danse necklace, and my vision came true.
Yesterday, I blew off everything on my to-do list to design these new statement earrings, and based on the response they are getting on Instagram, I’d say it was definitely worth my time. (Not to mention that I’ve been wearing them ever since!)
These are definitely the start of a new collection (even if I don’t know exactly where it’s going) so they haven’t made it into my online shop yet. If you want to know when they are available (which I promise will be soon) be sure to join my mailing list so you’ll be the first to know!
Update: these earrings are now part of my Essaint collection and are available in my online store!
I have a confession to make. I actually took this photo a while ago, and well, let’s just say that this plant is no longer with us.
I’ve managed to keep a shocking number of plants alive in the last seven months in my journey from black thumb to certified plant lady, but I’ll be honest, they haven’t all made it. And while the old Megan would have chalked those losses up to my inability to keep ANY plant alive, it turns out I’ve also gotten wiser in the last seven months.