New Friends and Places

It was somewhat surreal to travel and get to know the Pacific Northwest; to think I'd flown across the country and suddenly I was in a new place and an entirely new landscape. 

Driving through the rolling mountains and hills of Cascadia, I felt an incredible sense of connection to the world.  And yet at the same time, so minuscule to the vastness.  It was an amazing trip!  And as you know my favorite part of traveling and doing shows is meeting new people.  

I got to meet several other makers that I'd been admiring for sometime, especially the ladies of Altar.  I could not have asked for more enthusiastic and amazing women to work with! Amy Fox and Cassie Ridgway were so gracious and their boutique - DIVINE! I wanted everything in their shop. 

And of course Alyssa Woods of Vava Lingerie was the perfect person to work with at our dual trunk show.  I'm in love with every piece in her collection - and I got to take some home with me too.  I felt very Stevie Nicks with her lace robe on as I left the trunk show. 

Leaving Portland felt like leaving a home I want to return to soon, perhaps one day retire there.  If you ever get the chance you should go, it's beautiful and so are the people!

As always, thank you for reading!
xo - Lisette

Trunk Show in Portland

I'm super thrilled that I'll be in Portland at the end of this month.  Ever since the show, Portlandia, and one of my oldest friends moving to Portland, I've been dying to visit!

Well, the opportunity came up for me to visit my friend and do a trunk show at one of my favorite stocktists: Altar Boutique. 

Altar carries merchandise some of my favorite makers: Skullgarden, Wolf Child and Vava Lingerie.  Speaking of, Vava Lingerie will be co-hosting the trunk show with me.  So it's a match made in handmade heaven!

As always, thank you for reading!
xo - Lisette

Gemstones and Birthstones and Their Meanings

Since the dawn of time, humans have been fascinated with stones, colorful gems and creating objects/adornment with them.

Even more fascinating are the meanings and how gems can have an affect on the wearer and their feeling.  In this blog series I'll be giving you insight into how gems can help you and give you clarity.  I'll also point you towards our new Pinterest board that shows the beautiful colors and quality of gemstones. 

In the first part of this blog post I'll give you a more personal insight into how gems and their color have affected my own life. 

The colors red and garnet have always held a deep fascination for me; there is this mysterious quality to the stone.  I began working with garnet when I was first beading.  I loved mixing it with darker stones such as peridot and other agates.   And one of the first necklaces I strung held these gorgeous stones.  I was so proud of this necklace and ironically enough it was one of the first necklaces I sold.   

Here is a bit of history and meaning behind the name:

The name "garnet" comes from the Medieval Latin word, "granatum", which is an adjective meaning "dark-red". It is thought that this adjective could have been extracted from the word "pomegranate", due to the colour of the seed coats or shape of the seeds. However, the word could also have come from another Medieval Latin word; "granum", referring to red dye. The use of red garnet dates back thousands of years, when it was used by Egyptian pharaohs for both decorative and ceremonial purposes.

As always, thank you for reading!
xo - Lisette

Our New Look

So what do you think of our new look? The unveiling of the new website was last week and I've already heard that some of you really love it - it's been several long days of programming but we're so happy it's done!

To explain a bit about the new design, the top portion is an E and L combined.  I did some research and brainstorming with my graphic designer and we both agreed we wanted a look that symbolized the gothic but also dreamy quality of Eilisain. 

The website is still a work in progress: rearranging, making it run efficiently and easy to navigate is my top priority.  I want you to feel like you’re in a jewelry boutique and the website is the person assisting you in making the best purchase - sounds cheesy I know - but in this day and age online shopping is huge!

As always, thank you for reading!
xo - Lisette