La Fée Verte

The poet in his attic room paces by the dim glow of the oil lamp, fevered ~ again he is walking the thin line between genius and madness, waiting for his muse, a faceted goblet of potent green liquid in his pale hand.

But La Fée Verte is a capricious and cruel mistress ~ she murmurs promises of glorious lucid visions in your ear... but then overwhelms her acolytes with feverish passion for ever more until one sip too many ~ and she is gone in a vaporous flurry, leaving them muddled and weak. Still, the poet drinks… and dreams…

I am beamingly proud to introduce my newest design ~ Absinthe, with model shots by the brilliant Revel of Aesthetic Alchemy. Every time I look at this photo-set I fall in love again ~ the lighting, the mood, the grace and glorious beauty of the model, Ariel Collins...

I've had this one dreamed up for quite some time. In fact, the whole concept of Adornments for Tarts was born from an absinthe-themed gown ~ I made it for myself, and then needed really spectacular, unusual accessories to go with it... so I invented them. And thus it's extra special to me that I was able to use that very gown in these phenomenal images.

Some other bits and bobs of news: my Web site now has a Facebook "share" feature on nearly every page, courtesy of my impossibly talented Web designer husband, of Sassy Monkey Media, so you may easily share links to your favorite adornments. There's also a new interview with me on the lovely Gale's Tattered Rouge blog, where more details of the Absinthe gown story are revealed.

So... drive them mad in the Absinthe adornments, now available in my Etsy shop.

The Raffle of Revealing Riches!

This, my dearests, is my one-hundredth blog post. And to celebrate, I'd like to host a giveaway, to say thank you for being such brilliant supporters of my whimsy and my work.

I'm borrowing the rules shamelessly from the lovely TotusMel's tiered giveaway that many of you are familiar with. Indeed, TotusMel herself has kindly contributed the very first prize... an elegant Quadra Bracelet!

And here's the revealing part ~ if we reach 33 new individual entries, a $33 gift certificate to my shop will be added to the prizes ~ suitable for purchasing any style of earrings or a pair of Zephyr sleeve garters in your choice of color.

If we reach 66 entrants, a $66 gift certificate... and if, by some chance, we hit the magical zenith of 99 individuals entering, I shall offer up $99. These gift certificates can be used for smaller treasures, or put towards anything in the shop ~ a pair of cuffs or a a beaded silk collar.

So here are your various pursuits to enter my Raffle of Revealing Riches:

1. Visit my Etsy shop or the Adornments for Tarts Web site, and leave a comment here telling me which design is your favorite.

2. If you're not already a follower of this blog, click here to become one, and let me know about it in the comments.

3. Post a link to this contest to your choice of social network or your own blog ~ as many as you like ~ and leave a link to said post in the comments here. While you're there, follow me on Twitter, or fan me on Facebook, if you haven't already.

Each of the above pursuits completed grants you one golden (virtual) raffle ticket... you can put several entries into one comment if you wish. Your comment profile must include contact information ~ if it doesn't, be sure to leave a valid email address in your comment, or your entry is void. The winners will be drawn by random number generator on January 24th.

Multiple entries by a single person do not count towards unlocking the treasures, but most certainly increase your chances of winning something lovely by giving you more virtual raffle tickets...

So if you've been reading along quietly, now is the time to speak out! Fare thee well, sweetlings, let's get this raffle rolling!

Dark Sirene

Every sailor knows there are certain places you just don’t take a ship… mysterious and gloomy corners of the earth where one cannot predict the wickedness one might encounter. And every sailor knows that if you have the misfortune of finding such a corner – and if you hear the dulcet tones of a certain kind of voice - you are forever doomed to a watery fate, for you will fall in love with a siren from the deep.


Sitting on her rock, she waits, always singing her ancient song, always searching - her glistening salty skin and beckoning turquoise eyes both an offer and a warning to those who will listen. I'm ever so pleased to share my first new design listing in ages ~ Sirene.

Absolutely luminous model photography is by Lex Machina. If you'll recall, I've been giddy with anticipation about this collaboration, and I'm delighted and thrilled with the results. Lexie did all the styling and makeup artistry as well. Go give Lexie and this image some love on Flickr, and visit the model, Elise XY, on Model Mayhem.

You can find the listing for the cuffs here on Etsy, and I'll be posting the necklace and earrings as soon as a few more pictures come in - Lexie captured dozens of breathtaking images, and is currently working her magic on them.


Lure them in with the Sirene adornments.

Tiny Delicate Things

Stache and I learned first-hand this weekend how challenging it can be to take beautiful pictures of tiny delicate things like drop earrings.

Despite the wind that made the earrings shiver and having to navigate the rough waters of macro focus, we eventually triumphed. Pictured are the Miele Earrings ~ antiqued copper, honey jade, deep bronze-colored freshwater pearls, and golden jasper.


And did I mention how phenomenally lucky I am to have a husband who is a patient and talented photographer? So, so lucky.

Beauty Trickling Down

Another weekend in the finery sweatshop... I promised myself I'd finish six designs before I open the shop. I'm so close I can taste it, but I'm still missing a few last bits. This process sometimes feels like pouring honey, the beauty trickling down so slowly.

Just to tease you, my dears, here's another sneak preview... Aubergine. Plum-colored silk so rich you can almost taste it, topped with olive velvet and this lovely braid that reminds me of unripe grapevines. Dripping with bronze pearls, purple seeds, sterling, and green garnets.

Aubergine Choker and Drop Earrings

Aubergine Cuff