custom order

vicki ambery-smith makes custom silverware and jewelery based on buildings and architecture, my favorites being these rings. the one on the right could also function as a pretty great set of brass knuckles (and i think i've found the commission to request if i ever attend a thug renn faire ...) -- also, check her list of outlets.

pinned to your breast ...

i love this lush brooch from bijoux bijoux, made of nickel, hematite, and some other things i can't translate from french. $33.

sampler

so the april sampler is in the shop, and a peruse of the featured merchants found me in turn browsing the wares of allie's adornments ($18), who makes lovely earrings, bookmarks, and other things from vintage ephemera. i was particularly drawn to her because the lovely packaging that comes with her pieces as well, like the above earrings made from 1800s antique buttons. the pieces sent to the sampler are bookmarks ($8) made from antique buttons as well:

from outer space

craftboston is coming up, and i'll be looking at some of those invited. i adore the look of this ring by artist lisa crowder. called a 'cocoon temple ring,' and selling to the tune of $185, it marries a certain amount of innovation and form that really appeals to me. for those who prefer their jewelery to not catch on things so much, check out the more subtle for $135-$160 double riveted and textured rings:

girl put yo records on

if anyone wasn't sure of it already, let me make clear my predilection of music-related paraphernalia rendered kitsch. these plastic record earrings are $12 at shana logic.

cross-pollination

so despite the somewhat predatory name, this jewelery from parasite is both beautiful and versatile, albeit requiring a bit more care than some other pieces. both the necklace and the earrings are $54.55, and are delicately blown glass that you fill with a bit of water and cuttings of lovely flowers or plants. for the photos they opted for a flower in the necklace and long leaves for the earrings so you'd get an idea of how to "dress" them if you will ... its a pretty bold concept. available at the scandinavian design center.

nothing better than ...

to make this a hat trick, check out this $28 actual ginkgo leaf preserved in resin and strung as a pendant at bijoux bijoux. they also sell resinned rose petals and clover.

2 girls ...

i like this set of cards (girl 1 and girl 2) a lot. they remind me of fashion drawings without the clothes. from springcart for $7. when i ended up on the main website, i was really interested in their bi-monthly subscriptions because they sound like pretty great gift ideas. they consist of "a unique piece of jewelry (valued at $30 or more), a beautifully scented candle and a package of specialty tea," which sounds right up the alley of a few people i know. you can try out the subscription for $50.

boston handmade

i had to stop with the playing card themed pieces, i was turning up too many art pieces with uncertain retail prices. instead for your eyes i bring you this necklace from stonehouse studio. an example of the studios mid-range work ($60), they also stock earrings (most for around $20-40) and big bold pendants (like the large art polymer pieces below at $105). the studio is also part of boston handmade.

getting my covet on

so i almost bought this for my guy when i realised that this was clearly one of those situations where i'd be buying someone something that i loved but they would be underwhelmed by or uninterested in. but i keep going back to it. maybe someone can let him know? red envelope has these keychain pocketwatches in gunmetal or brushed zinc, and get this, the back of each is engraved with some hamlet: "love is begun by time and time qualifies the spark and fire of it." i've never been a huge fan of the bard but that is a sentiment that i wouldn't mind written on my stuff. i think they're $50. oh and yeah, forgot to say, they engrave the front with initials as well. but red envelope is one of those places that will engrave anything, like a sexier things remembered.

danglies

so today's post at all that & a ... had me looking over the collection at elle a belle designs ... and they're pretty amazing. the product photos are all very lush as well, lending a real decadent feel to all of the pieces. the lapis lazuli earrings above are in her special buy section, which i think explains the low price of $30.

an introduction

as a reader of other shopping/retail blogs, i've stumbled across some genius objects throughout the interwebs, not to mention some sweet deals. object d'crave is my occasional effort to do the same for others, occasionally inspired by some of my our favorite sites. for instance today, inspired by rare bird find's deal of the day, i ended up at the weekend store, and i've been staring at these cufflinks off and on all day. the only occasion i can think of buying them for is valentine's day, but they're more to my taste than my fella's, so i thought i'd bring them to your attention instead.