News
Lots of New Creations Just in Time for Mother's Day!
05/05/09
It may seem like we only contact you when a special occasion is around the corner. Well yes, it’s true, but for good reason. We want you to know we’ve got lots of new jewelry for purchase on our website. Mother’s Day is just around the corner, and because this little jewelry business honours our Mom, Isabel Marie, we think it’s a fitting way for you to honour your Mother too. Remember that with every purchase at Isabel Designs, we give a portion of the sale to Ovarian Cancer Research – and this may save you, your Mother, or your daughters someday.
We’ve been busy girls over the past several months, taking classes and buzzing around our studios learning new things. Stained glass is such a beautiful medium to work with, and we are confident you’ll love the new earrings we’ve made. They are wrapped with a ‘lead-free’ solder, and have a wonderful organic look. Check them out now!
In February Sue and I took a class together on the fine art of ‘precious silver clay’. It was a wonderful eye-opener into how some of those luscious silver pendants with cool words and embedded designs are made. We absolutely fell in love with the process, and hope to introduce a few pieces into our catalogue in the coming months.
I enrolled at a metal smith college and got a crash course on metal jewelry making. The studio setup I'll need to do this at home is somewhat substantial, so it may be a while before we see pieces online, but hey, you never know! Certainly the techniques of firing and soldering have already been implemented, as you’ll see in our new copper metal pendants. It is simply a joy to be creating these beautiful pendants for you. Here's a link to a couple of things I made in my class: a guitar string ring, and musical wave broach.
Check out the ‘Jewelry’ pages for all the lasted additions to Isabel Design. And let us know what you think! We welcome your comments.
Isabel's Blog Full Steam Ahead
30/04/09
Isabel's blog is relatively new - as are we at blogging. We had some ideas about creating a forum where we could celebrate the traditions passed on to us by our Mothers. Now after a few months, we've come up with a direction for the blog that hones in on our goals: Reflect, Inform, Inspire. We'll continue to share stories and personal experiences we've had with our Mom, and also offer information and insights of our own. We hope you'll continue to participate in this journey with us as it unfolds.
The blog also has a new look! There is so much to learn when it comes to technology, but after taking a few online course at Lynda.com, Isabel’s Blog is looking good. We’d love to have you subscribe to our RSS feed. RSS is a process that lets you know when we’ve updated the blog, and can be sent directly to your email or preferred RSS reader. You can also access our blog on Facebook via Networked Blogs, which is a 'widget' within facebook. Click here to learn more about RSS.
Read Isabel Design’s Blog Now.
Carrying On a Tradition - by Kathleen Hay - as featured in the Cornwall Standard Freeholder
11/02/09
One of the traditions the late Marie Isabel Beaudette was best known for was her Christmas crafting day.
For years, the whole family, young and old, would gather 'round to make decorations, cards and gifts with love, all the while making memories to last a lifetime. Even when ovarian cancer claimed Isabel's life in 2001, her family to this day still carry-on the holiday tradition.
The lessons learned at the craft table - intangibles like humbleness, frugality, the importance of laughing and singing, strength and confidence - still inspire them, so much so two daughters have taken it to the next level.
Today Sue Billard and Nancy Beaudette are creating unique jewelry pieces with each loop, each stone, each charm entwined with those same lessons learned from their mom in Isabel Designs.
"I went to spend time with Nancy, I wanted her to teach me how to make jewelry," explained Sue. "We'd been to Prince Edward Island where I'd picked beach stones and glass.
"When we started to do it, we immediately thought, 'How fun is this!'"
Marie Isabel's daughters, Nancy Beaudette & Susan Billard
It was much more than a way of staying personally connected. Marie Isabel had courageously battled the disease three years before succumbing to it. As children growing up, she used to make all their clothes, bake cookies for school lunches and every meal meal was an opportunity to celebrate family.
Sue and Nancy came to the same conclusion at almost the same time. Getting together two or three times for those jewelry-making sessions, they realized it would be a wonderful way to honour the memory of their mom.
"Mom had a very traditional role in the family," said Nancy, "She embraced those activities, and that's where we learned those lessons.
"We grew up learning there was lots of value to what you do with your hands."
Thus Isabel Designs was born late last summer.
Then it was time to design enough of a stockpile to satisfy customer demand for when the website www.isabeldesigns.com was established in mid-November. By December, sales orders were arriving.
"It's pretty much an online business," explained Sue. "We describe the pieces as artisan jewelry from new and renewed materials.
"A characteristic of our business is that it's integrated with found objects."
Isabel Designs also can find new life in beloved pieces that need a little fresh air, or even pieces you've found yourself but would like to wear.
Been on a trip to PEI and found some stunning pebbles? Maybe a little chunk of lava from Hawaii?
They are all open to possibilities for custom design.
"We're trying to develop a variety of different styles and choices," said Nancy. "It's all very personal."
Boosting ethereal names for pieces like Milky Way, Copper Weaver, Ocean Jewel, Energy Surge and Iridescent Sparkle, they are reflective of the mood in which they are designed.
"You do get lost making them," said Nancy. "It's very relaxing, a nice way to let stress disappear.
"What's nice, too, is that our mom's energy and spirit is so wrapped up in each piece."
Recently, the site also expanded to include Designer Bags (also made from eco-friendly sources) and Heart Catchers. As well, a portion from each sale - jewelry, bags or Heart Catchers - is donated to Ovarian Cancer Canada.
"We are officially recognized by them as being a business which donates back to the cause," added Sue. "Of course, they're delighted, but we feel like we're getting to the heart of the matter.
"Mom was always very proud and encouraging of us. We like to think her energy is all around us."
Also incorporated into the site is Isabel's Blog, a spot where others are encouraged to share thoughts of their own mothers. It's a place to share those all-important traditions and memories handed down from one generation to the next.
"If it's a story of loss, that's fine," noted Nancy. "It's about what you do to keep those memories alive, what you do to keep connected."
They have also ventured into Facebook territory, too, with both business and fan pages. These can be accessed directly from the website.
"We'd love to know what your story is, and we'd love to have you share with us. Isabel Designs is really about loving everyone around you," Sue stated.
Rock The Cure
05/02/09 Isabel Designs proudly supports Rock The Cure - a concert event happening in Cornwall Ontario on Friday, February 13th, 2009. Sara Murphy, event organizer, has put together an all star lineup that promises to be both entertaining and memorable, including recording artist Graham Greer, He and I, and Sam Hill. Proceeds from ticket sales and a silent auction will be given to the Canadian Cancer Society for research. Isabel is donating three artisan necklaces for the auction, because we believe in the 'cause', and we love great music. For more information about the show check out the facebook page - and hey - buy a ticket!
Jewelry For The One You Love!
18/01/09 It’s hard to believe we’re already in the middle of January. Not that I’m complaining - I’ll be glad to see spring come. I don’t know if we inherited our intolerance for cold from our Mom or Dad, but all my siblings seem to be ‘fair weather’ residents. I’m already dreaming of the smell of melted snow and mud, the familiar song of the robin, and warm sunshine hatching freckles on my nose. Though we’re still a couple of solid months away from these things, we’re less than a month away from Valentine’s Day, and here at Isabel Design, we’re busy making preparations. Sue and I have been collecting precious stones, beads, crystals and charms which will inevitably find their way into our February catalogue. It’s a great way to pass the hours of a cold and snowy winter day, savouring warm thoughts of love for people in our lives.
Here are some details about the semi precious stones and crystals that you'll find at Isabel Designs.
Amethyst is a stone of spirituality and contentment. It has the ability to absorb negative energy while emitting positive energy. It is considered a stone of wisdom as it increases ones psychic awareness. Amethyst is worn to enhance intuition, inspire creativity and encourage peace and stability.
Quartz Crystal (clear) is a stone of manifestation that energizes and activates the energy centers within the body. It helps the wearer to think clearly, allowing them to focus and become clear about their dreams and desires. Assisting with spiritual development, quartz crystal assists in removing blockages in the body so energy can flow smoothly.
Rose Quartz is a stone of love that helps to open the heart and connect to the energy of love. It is rejuvenating to both the physical and emotional body and assists the wearer to remain present, calm and peaceful.
Someone Special Said Something Nice About Us!
06/01/09 Isabel Designs was mentioned in a blog entry by the esteemed Kate Chadbourne, poet, songwriter, and Harvard professor. Click here to see what she has to say.
Yup, We're On Facebook Too!
12/11/08 Isabel Designs can be found on facebook! Please join our group and invite your friends to do the same. Follow this link, or the link on our home page to take part.
