A little sneak peak

These earrings are a little sneak peak of some of my upcoming designs I was talking about in my last post!

Brrrr...its cold outside

We've been having some crazy snow storms for the past two days here in Tromsø. I will have to take some pictures and post them here.

How has everybody's holiday been? Mine was great, very quiet and cozy, just the way I like it. John and I actually don't really get that much wrapped up in the crazyness of christmas. We just like spending some quiet time together with great food and some good drinks. I am usually so busy up until the holidays that I really appreciate it when everything calms down and I can chill by baking some goodies watching some movies or cooking a great meal while sipping on a glass of red wine or milk and Bailey's ( which is my favorite drink ).

I'm waiting on some new supplies so that I can continue with my new collection of brass and oxidized silver. I'm pretty excited  and all my sketches are finished.

I am also working on some more bezel set cabochons. Cabochon work is one of my favorite things to craft. It is so detail oriented and requires a lot of patience and accuracy. I love that. 

I'll be out taking some pictures later and hopefully, if the weather allows I get to take some great shots of the the northern lights and some of the fire works around town. 

Happy New Year everybody!

xoxoxox

Sabine

Baking pictures

Happy Jolly Holidays!

It's been ( again ) a while since my last post, but by the end of the day I was just not feeling creative enough to write. Been having tons of custom orders that needed to be filled before christmas. There were days when I spent 12-14 hours in my studio this past month. I loved every minute of it though. I must say that I feel quite humble and incredibly fortunate to be doing what I love to do most, jewelry design. It just warms my heart every time I make a sale and I never ever take that for granted. The great thing about being a jewelry designer for me is that I can constantly evolve, to better my craft and to stay in the present moment.

So, for all those of you who have supported my craft I thank you from the bottom of my heart! I am truly grateful, more than you'll ever know! Just know that every piece I make, I do so with utter joy and excitement!

Oh it's christmas eve today and traditionally we celebrate on this day  here in Norway. I am excited to be cooking Pinnekjøtt, a traditional holiday meal. Pinnekjøtt are basically smoked Lamb ribs who have been salt cured for a couple of months. One has to soak the ribs in water the night before to get most of the salt out. Then they get steamed for about three hours, or until the meat falls off the bones. It is truly my absolute favorite meal. It is cooking as I'm typing this and the smell is bringing a smile to my face:-)

The pictures on top show the Pinnekjøtt ( translated= Stickmeat)  ready to be steamed on top of Pine sticks.

I have finished the last bit of baking as well last night and am quite pleased with the assortment. My gift to friends is usually a gift basket filled with all sorts of  home-baked goods which I am going to have to deliver before dinner is ready today.

We here at the Isvik household wish you all a very happy and peaceful  holiday season!

xx00

Sabine&John

Hazelnut-Vanilla Melts and moist Chocolate cake

I managed to sqeeze in another batch of cookies plus a chocolate cake today:

Chocolate Truffle cookies with Nougat

Chocolate Truffe cookies with Hazelnuts

Finally

Here I am again, back from the dark abyss of jewelry making. Naw, just kidding! I have been having so much fun with some custom orders that needed to go out so that Santa gets them in time to deliver them. That took quite a bit of time and work to get them out in time. 

I realize that I haven't been posting many new items in my Etsy shop lately, however, that is going to change soon, I promise!

I have also been spending a lot of time on new design ideas that I usually sketch out first to get a better idea of the overall look. When I first started silversmithing I just went about it without having any prior sketches ready. That didn't always pan out for me and in the long run cost me a lot of money to mess about with precious metals. Now I am way more organized.

I'm excited about my new designs. I am still waiting for some supplies to arrive before I can continue. There will be a lot of Cabochon work involved. I absolutely love setting my own bezels. There is something very satisfying about it. The end result when taking the piece out of the tumbler....the shine and purity of it...makes my heart skip a few beats. It might sound a bit nerdy or weird to some of you, but I can't put it into words how much pleasure I get from my job. I feel so blessed to be able to do this and hope that I can continue on this journey, to grow and never stop learning. That's the fun part for me.

Nuff said, I am also in a cookie-baking frenzy. Baking= another one of my passions. I used to be a pastry chef a few years ago and still love it, just not as a professional anymore. Too much stress and odd working hours.

I will be posting some pictures in the coming days of my cookies and such.

Today I made chocolate truffle cookies, one batch with hazelnuts and the other with nougat ( which is one of my favorite sweets)

If you want the recipe, let me know and I will post it!

Now I must put my tired eyes to rest and get some sleep. I am having to go for an early morning post office run to get some bling send off!

Hope everyone is doing great and is enjoying this fabulous season!

See ya tomorrow!

xxx

Sabine:-)

Tromsø

Here is a little video of downtown Tromsø: Click here

New pieces

Labradorite cabochon, bezel set, available in da shop

The Tromsø Cathedral, illuminated

I'm back!

Yes, I know, it's been quite a while since my last post. I just never got around to it and most of the time when I could've written something I just didn't know what to write.

Well, I have been super busy with some wholesale orders that needed to go out before the end of last week and now things have calmed down a bit and I am able to focus on my Etsy shop a bit more. Sales have been very very slow over there in my little sweet Etsy shop. I am not quite sure why. I get a lot of view and hearts, but they don't equal sales. So, I am on a mission to get to the root of that problem and bring things up to speed with perhaps taking more pictures of me wearing the item. I think a lot of people might not get the right idea about the size of some of my items. Lowering my prices is not an option at all. That just means that I undervalue my work which is never ever a good thing when you are trying to make it in this business. People always expect bargains left and right, but I just can't lower my prices just to make a sale. For me its not just about selling, it's about having a customer who appreciates my work, who looks great wearing it and is happy with the overall shopping experience at my shop.

I am in the design stages of creating more copper and silver earrings. Hoping that some of my additional supplies will arrive this week so that I can get these done and posted.

Winter has arrived here! We've had some snow for about a week and I love it. The only thing that bothers me that I have to dig out my Audi every day. Since the car is parked on the edge of the street my car gets buried every time a snowplow comes along.

It's dark now already almost at 2PM. The days with daylight are getting gradually shorter and pretty soon we'll have 22 hrs of darkness for about a month.

I find it extremely inspiring having all these arctic conditions here. I think I am way more focused and creative at this time of the year.

Okay, I will leave a bit more to write for next time....:-)

Hope you are doing all well wherever you are!

Hugs,

Sabine:-)

Treasury Feature

Wow! I'm so touched! I am being featured in three Etsy treasuries right now! How nice of all these great etsians  to take the time to do these treasuries! I have tried and have only been able to snap up two so far. The timing isn't always on my side with those.

Here are the three treasuries:

New pieces

It's been quite a productive day here at the Isvik household. Got up early, finished some of my jewelry, baked some bread and took a ton of pictures. I wanted to try a new background for my pictures and came up with this crazy idea of having pictures of baked delicate items serving as my background to showcase my jewelry. I'm still not sure what to think. I have gotten so used to the blueish backgrounds that it almost seems like shock to see the new ones. Although I think they turned out pretty good and funky, just not sure if it will work for the shop.

I would really love it if I would get some honest feedback from everyone about it!

So, as promised yesterday here are some of my latest items, some of which are already in my shop!

I'm going to get myself some hot chocolate, turn on the news and chill for the rest of the night!

Have a great day/evening ( depending on where you are )!

x0

Sabine

Happy Wednesday!!

 Hi Everybody! Seems like an eternity since the last time I posted here. I have been super busy with custom orders and getting ready for two craft shows that are coming up on the 8th and 9th, 15th and 16th of this month here in Tromsø. I am still struggling with the decoration part of it.  I have way too many different ideas every time I enter these shows. I can never seem to make up my mind what kind theme to have. I like to keep things clean and not so cluttered.

I have also decided to take almost all the jewelry from my Etsy shop and use those pieces in those two shows. So, if there is any special piece that you like you should get it now or let me know if you want me to reserve an item for you. I can't guarantee that those items will be back in my shop after the weekend.

I have many new exciting items planned in the near future. If time allows I will get some of them made before the holidays. I am also going to offer some items that are going to be priced quite a bit lower such as earrings and bracelets. 

Many plans in the making, stay tuned!

It is yucky and rainy outside right now, but will try and see if I can go for a quick run. I have neglected my body so much these last few months by eating way too much chocolate and delicious Norwegian food. I feel a bit out of shape these days and need to do something about it so I can feel more energized and healthier. 

It's almost dinner time here and I better get my butt out of the house before I change my mind ( which happens a lot...:) 

The menu tonight will be slow cooked lamb with boiled potatoes, steamed carrots and a crisp green salad.

Drop me a line if you like and let me know how YOU are doing! Would love to hear from all of you!

Hope you are all doing well!

xo

Sabine:-)

And the winner is.....

We have a winner!!! Since I  had soooo many entries to my Giveaway I decided to choose two winners!

**Drumroll** tadada....Congratulations to  Crystal and Nigthingale!! Nightingale, I will need your mailing address. You can convo me on Etsy if you like!

Thank you all soooo much for participating! I will have another sweepstake coming up, starting next week. I will let you know more details this weekend!

We've had our first bit of snowfall here in Tromsø last night. The arctic darkness has started to make its presence with days beginning to be shorter already. It's dark now by 3pm. 

I love it and find it extremely inspiring. I thrive in the dark....as silly as that sounds, but I'm a night owl by nature and love working at night, that's where I'm at my most creative. As mentioned in one of my blog posts before, I absolutely love going running or taking brisk walks at night, when everything has quiet down and the smell of burning wood drifts around me....awww life is great....I'm truly lucky to live in a place that brings me so much happiness! :)

I'm going to sign off now...but will be back with another Giveaway announcement in the next couple of days!

Thanks again everybody for all your lovely comments! I truly appreciate it!!!

xoxox

Sabine

Re. my mystery gift give-away

Wow!!! I can't believe how many entries I have had so far! I've decided to have two ( maybe even three ) winners due to the large number of participants!

Thanks everybody for participating! It's great to find out what each of you like best in my shop! A little market research for me:)

The draw will be on the morning of October 31st ( western european time zone )

I think I'll let my torch cool off for a while and go for a nice brisk walk before it starts raining again.

Hope you are all have a great and cozy weekend! I sure am! :)

XO

Sabine

More new pieces

New Bling

I finally got around to take some pictures of some recent finished items! I still have quite a few more pieces in the making that hopefully will be finished sometime this weekend. John, my boyfriend is out of town for the weekend playing a gig with his band, so I'll try my best to take he pictures myself ( he usually does all the jewelry photography ). 

These pieces are all going to be available in my shop by tonight.

I am also having a great deal going right now! You will receive a free pair of really cool earrings with ANY purchase. This deal will last until monday morning October 27th only. You can check them out here

If I have some spare energy left tonight I'm going to bake a couple of pies. I'm having some of my girlfriends coming over tomorrow night for a jewelry party. 

See ya tomorrow!

Love,

Sabine

Etsy Front Page

I made the Etsy front page again early this morning! Nice to be surrounded by such great artists!

One day soon

Gosh I know, it's been a while since my last blog post. I've been quite busy getting organized for two craft shows that are coming up next month, plus making some custom pieces.

After reading some of my blog postings I came to realized that they sound sooooo boring. I am hoping to spark them up a bit. I mean, after all, what kind of impression am I giving by these lame posts?? Ha! Perhaps I need to dig up some local gossip....na....not quite my style....perhaps tell you all my little secrets?? Hmmmm, where to start??

Okay, okay, just one little quirk about me: I'm addicted to Pepsi Max, which here in Norway is the equivalent to the Diet Pepsi you get overseas ( you can't get Diet Pepsi here in Norway). I drink way too much of it, but I love it! My favorite colors are blue and green.....lets see.....oh yeah....I like to indulge myself into Apple products....I'm all about user-friendly products!!

I love baking bread and go for walks in the dark when it's quiet and cold outside!

All righty then:) I will be posting some new items this week. Forgot to re-charge the batteries for the lighting system that John my sweet BF uses to take all the pictures. I'm hoping to have some to show in the next couple of days!

Much love and cozy times you to all!

Sabine

Another Ring

Here is one of the rings I have finished today! Let me know what you think! I will be listing it on Etsy sometime tonight or tomorrow!

Cozy days

Oh it's great day for being in the studio today! It's grey and rainy outside and I'm just sitting here, listening to the latest "The Rasmus" album and sketching out some new ideas. I hope I will be able to post at least one item later today in my Etsy shop!

Also, if you are into some cozy and fun winterish items, check out one of my favorite shops on Etsy: Fringe. Her stuff is amazing and original!

Still time left

You can still enter your name on my Mystery Sampler Give-Away. The draw will be on October 31st. Just scroll down my page and on the left hand side you can click on the "Surprise Sampler Give-Away". Good luck!

I'm having some really funky goodies planned to give away. 

Off to my studio to make some earrings I had sketched out over the weekend. Will list some on Etsy this week. 

Bye for now.)

Sabine

New Rings

I was out for a walk today, came home and felt tremendous inspiration to "whip" up a couple of rings. Here is the outcome of this inspirational energy burst: Two rings, I'm so in love with them and once again would want to keep them for myself, however, I would love to give them a nice home :)

One is made entirely from sterling silver and the other showcases a 14 karat gold and one sterling silver pebble. Just lovely, if I may says so myself:) One of them is already for sale in my Etsy shop: Click here.

Organizing

I finally got around to organize my beads.

A messy work bench

Inspiration

I am reminded once again that being an artist on Etsy or any other online selling venue brings with it copy cats. I don't see it as a form of flattery because I put my whole heart and soul into a piece of jewelry that I create, undistracted from other jewelry artists out there. These, my creations come from a place deep within myself, a sacred place where I collect my daily inspirations. My art reflects on what I was feeling at the time I created a piece, whether it be blissful, joyous or painful. It all shines through. It took me quite a while to where I am now, feeling comfortable enough to let my inspirations guide me, unforced. Each piece is a reflection of what I experienced from start to finish. Perhaps I shouldn't take it too seriously, perhaps I'm like a mother hen who's trying to protect her little chicks. I guess there is no real way to get away from copy cats, especially when ones work is out on the internet. 

I have lots of work to do today and getting some orders out for shipment. Going to squeeze in a bit of time for Pilates and perhaps a walk if the weather allows. Right now its pouring rain. I love that though, being inside when its raining and firing up the torch and creating something unique. I have some really cool pendants and earrings on the way. 

Etsy has been really slow for me this past month. I think a lot of Etsy sellers are feeling a tad frustrated over some search issues we are all experiencing on there. Etsy is has become so huge with tons and tons of sellers that once an item is listed it gets quickly buried underneath everyone else's without being seen. It's not a good thing. Although for sellers who already have a huge customer base it doesn' t seem to slow down their sales. 

I hope they'll fix this issue.

I am also going to have my items up for sale on Dawanda ( www.dawanda.com ) and Handmade fusion ( www.handmadefusion.com ).

Have a cozy and fabulous saturday everybody!

Love,

Sabine:)

My first ever Etsy Treasury!

I was finally able to "catch" a treasury! It features some really talented artists.