Ippie Design was featured on the Thrifty Boutique Jewelry Blog

Ippie Design was featured on the Thrifty Boutique Jewelry blog (http://thriftyboutiquejewelry.blogspot.com) today! Thrify Boutique Jewelry blog is a popular e-zine and is a member of the well known TB media group. Click on the image below to see the reivew!

Thursday Night with Jon Stewart

The weather has been really warm in New York City! (Did you know that it was snowing in Seattle and Dallas? Strange weather huh?) Anyway, other than the usual Thursday nights, this week I went to see the Daily Show with Jon Stewart.

The show is usually taped around 6pm and aired at 11pm EST on Comedy Central. I was excited to see Jon Stewart and his guest, Jack Black! Jon Stewart is amazing, during the entire taping, he did not make one mistake. I pretty much laughed and clapped through the whole show. Well the truth is, I was trying to laugh as loud as I can, so later I can say “hey that’s my voice on TV!”

After the show, I went to my favorite Thai restaurant called Won Dee, which I believe offers the best Thai food in the city. I had so much food that I needed to walk it off. On the way home, I passed by the Rockefeller center. The big Christmas tree is already up and lit! I just can’t believe another year has passed! Time flies!

When I got home, the Daily Show was on and I was very focused on the sounds that the audience made. It was too bad that I could not identify my voice on the show, but I still managed to fall asleep with a big smile. ;)

My Jewelry Making Process

Some people always ask me how I design jewelry. Since I never had any formal training, I just learn as I go.
I thought it would be interesting to show the process of how a pair of earrings are born at Ippie Design. (If you have any suggestions please feel free to leave comments or contact me!) Here is a snapshot:

First I have to get inspired! With the idea in mind, I start working on a design pattern. In this example, I wanted to create a contemporary pair of earrings that represents nature, wilderness and Africa without looking like the typical African tribal styles. So the first step I took was developing a zebra pattern.


After I decided on the pattern, I design the details of the earrings by sketching it out. (Below is the final sketch of the earrings) Other decisions that need to be made in creating the earrings are the materials (sterling silver & dark oak wood in this case), the size and the finish.


Next step is making the design mold! The pictures below show the casting molds. Casting molds are made from wax and then translated into molds below. You can see the back of the mold before insterting dark oak wood.



And at last...the zebra pattern earrings with inlayed dark oak wood are born!!

The Picasso & American Art Exhibition

It was a beautiful, sunny day here in New York City (though the unusual warm weather has been somewhat worrisome). I met up with my friend Cynthia (she is also a model for ippie Design, some of her photos will be on ippie.com shortly) to checkout the Picasso Exhibition at the Whitney Museum in Manhattan’s Upper East Side.

I am not going to lie. I can rarely understand Picasso’s paintings. I always try to find the meanings behind a piece of art, but I always realize that art is something we can all enjoy and love visually without understanding the story behind it, if there are any stories

I am fascinated by Picasso’s Cubism work. The integration of multiple views and perspectives, geometric reconstruction of objects, merging of figures, backgrounds and time made his work so interesting to look at. It inspires my mind to wonder and to imagine all the different interpretations I get from his artwork, and that is what I enjoy the most. It feels like a puzzle and I’m trying to piece it together.

This Exhibition showcases not only Picasso’s work, but also many work from a diverse group of American artists who are directly influenced by Picasso. You can find paintings from artists such as Roy Lichtenstein, Jasper Johns, Jackson Pollock and explanations of how Picasso inspired them and their artwork. Overall, it is a very interesting exhibition; it ends on January 28, 2007. So check it out!

Jewelry & Style

Some people say you can tell a person’s personality by looking at their shoes. I say you can tell a person’s style by looking at the jewelry they wear. In the movie Devil Wears Prada, when the "zero fashion sense" Andy Sachs (Anne Hathaway) first showed up for her interview, she was wearing a Tiffany look alike necklace. Her whole look was very tasteless. Tiffany makes beautiful jewelry, but some people wear them because of its brand only. Luxury brands don’t equal to style; you ultimately create your style.

When designing jewelry, I focus not only on the style, but also on the quality. I think the quality of the jewelry is very important because it represents substance. A woman cannot just be beautiful to look at; she has to have substance in order to be happy and attract others. In my opinion, wearing good quality and stylish jewelry shows not only a person’s taste, but also her style in life!

Obviously, I am in love with jewelry. I love jewelry that are delicate yet bold yet with a sense of simplicity…that is the kind of passion I put behind my jewelry.

"Accessorizing is the new, modern way to dress."

I read an interesting article today by Allison Kaplan from the pioneer press about Accessories. Here is a snippet of the article:

Former Nordstrom fashion director Kevin Quinn spent the past year and a half organizing the wardrobes of Twin Cities residents. What he discovered: We don't need any more clothes.
What we do need is the know-how to put the pieces together in new and adventurous arrangements, he says. And accessories are one of the easiest and often most cost-effective ways to do that.
"This is America — we're going to keep buying," Quinn says. "Accessorizing is the new, modern way to dress."

I agree with what Kevin Quinn said. As I grow older, my own style is moving towards wearing simple clothing with dramatic accessories. Many women do not have the luxury of spending hours in front of the mirror everyday, with the right accessories, you can look fashionable without trying too hard, and most importantly it’s quick too!