Upcoming Events & News

I'd thought I'd let you know some of the things we are doing here at Sparkle! to help spread the word about our cool new shop!

The Gwinnett Ballet Theater has their annual gala fundraiser this weekend and we have donated a $50 gift certificate to the shop which will be part of a large "Downtown Lawrenceville" raffle prize package. This will be held at the Historic Courthouse and should prove to be a really fun and interesting evening!

On Feb 9 & 10 I'll be at the Gwinnett Civic Center with the great folks from the Gwinnett Daily Post. The event is called Family Fest and usually has a pretty large (10K) attendance. For a few hours each day we'll be helping kids make free beaded necklaces and handing out flyers and discount coupons for the shop.

The Aurora Theatre has a special Valentines Canteen on Feb 14. They have put together some great Valentines packages with add ons from various downtown merchants. You an add on dinner at a variety of restaurants, candy, flowers, a massage and of course a gift certificate for Sparkle! We are also currently advertising in the Aurora Theatre programs for their current show, Dial M for Murder.

In Feb 14 a group called 4:4 No More, a ministry of the North River Community Church is sponsoring a Wedding Vow Renewal event. They have put great packages together from donations from the Downtown Lawrenceville merchants including Crafty Confections, Huff's Flowers, The Aurora Theater, Hair Riddle's, Body Boutique and The Window Shoppe. The great packages include a vow renewal ceremony at Crystal Crane Bridal shop and a great gift basket which will vary based on the price paid for the package. For the large baskets Sparkle! has donated two beautiful sterling silver heirloom charm bracelets with a sterling heart shaped photo charm and two sparkling Swarovski crystal hearts. We have also donated 10 of the Sterling heart photo charms for the smaller baskets.

Of course we continue to put flyers out in various locations and we also send them home with our happy customers who have volunteered to spread the word! We appreciate each of you who have done a little something to let someone know everything that Sparkle! has to offer!

Remember to Sparkle! Whenever Possible!

Meg

Focus on: Doodlebug Dezines

I just spent the better part of the morning cropping and putting photos together for this fabulous line of handcrafted purses that I carry in the shop.

For the uninitiated, Doodlebug Dezines is the pseudonym/label of Laurie Wright, an amazing artist and all around talented lady who resides in Auburn, GA (just down the road!). I met Laurie through a lady who attended one of my jewelry shows in the early days and I am so grateful!

Laurie is funny and warm and genuine and so modest about her insane talent. Her humor is evident in the fun touches she puts on all of her purses (check out the cute button on the back of this purse!) She has a great eye for color, loves trying new things and just bubbles with enthusiasm. I am always excited to see what she will come up with next!

Here's Laurie's "bio" that I have posted in the shop:

"I began tinkering around with sewing as a child by hand sewing dolly dresses from the rag drawer. When I married, my motivation to sew was to save money on curtains and have matching bedspreads. My CREATIVE outlet was pencil drawing. After my first sewing conference, American Embroidery Conference in Atlanta 2004, I began to seriously sew for the fun of it. My creative outlet became making purses. I attended a Babylock conference in October 2005 and purchased an embellisher after a class with Paula Scaffidi (see Fiberella.com). I’ve enjoyed merging all the creative aspects of machine sewing with my enjoyment of pencil drawing. I work full time and have 4 boys (This number includes my hubby because he is a big kid, too). I’m never bored! LOL! Some places you can see my work posted....

http://www.fiberella.com/html/visitors_gallery.html

www.absolutearts.com/portfolios/d/doodlebugdezines/

sadiasews.com/blog1/2007/04/11/fiberarts-and-machine-embroidery/

So anyway, I spent some time going through the purses I currently have in stock and listing them on the website so that more folks can see the specialness that is Laurie's work. I had a lot of fun looking at each piece with new eyes as I described them for our online customers! More than once I thought, "I should just buy this one myself!"

Each piece has been made with such attention to detail! The fabrics chosen for just the right contrast, the little embellishments - buttons, crystals, ribbons, chain, beads - that make each bag literally "Sparkle!" and scream for attention, and the artwork, my heavens! I never knew that it was possible to "draw" with a sewing machine but sure enough, she can do it.

If you are in the market for a really special gift - or just want to carry a new bag that will have everyone green with envy since yours will be a ONE OF A KIND, check out the cool bags I have available from Doodlebug Dezines.

Meg
http://www.sparkle-ga.com/

Website updates!

I've been busy, busy, busy these last few days adding lots of new things to my online store! This may seem like a simple task, but those of you who have managed an online store in the past know it is most decidedly NOT!

The thing I struggle with the most is the photography. I have a great little Kodak camera with a zillion megapixels and all sorts of features that I don't know how to use. I also have a "light cube" (basically a fabric box that helps diffuse light), a tripod, and a newly discovered great place in my shop to take pics. I also need natural sunlight to get the best shots, something we have been lacking lately.

Once all the planets align and I have the time AND it's sunny, I take as many pics of the jewelry as I can and then upload them onto my handy dandy computer. Then I have to reboot. I don't know why. I wish I did. But every time I upload pictures onto my store computer, I have to reboot before they will show up!

Then, once they are there, I have to open them in my photo processing program (I use Photo Impact, which I do like very much.) and crop and resize both for the full size photo and the small thumbnail. It's usually at this stage that I realize that there was too much glare, not enough light, some wierd shadow or some other problem with the photos and I have to start over!

And that isn't even the half of actually loading each piece in the store, describing it, etc. Suffice to say it is a days long ordeal to get these items presentable for all you cyberspacers! However, the good news is that after much perseverence (and some slow days due to inclement weather!) I have been able to upload 4 product lines to the store.

You'll now find great jewelry from Austin Alexander, Bora, Vida Dulce Imports and Xovo in the Sparkle online store. More will be coming soon, I promise. I'm just waiting for another sunny day!!

Remember to Sparkle Whenever Possible!

Meg
http://www.sparkle-ga.com/

Sparkle! loves our customers!

I want to share some fun things we are doing and have planned for our customers in 2008!

Sparkle! has just launched our new Customer Rewards program. Each customer will receive a Reward card with every purchase and the card will receive a punch for every $10 spent. There is no expiration or time limit on receiving punches. Once the card is filled (10 punches) you receive $10 off your next purchase!! That's a 10% rebate of sorts as a thank you for shopping with us!!!

We also just launched our "Honey Helper" program. This is basically a wish list. Just come into the shop and pick up a Honey Helper card. Then write down all the wonderful items you really really want! You can either take the card with you and give it to your special someone or leave it in the shop and take a few of the Honey Helper reminder cards to give to anyone who might be inclined to purchase a gift for you. This way, you know you'll get something you like and your gift givers will be saved the stress of trying to figure this out for you! Plus, they get free gift wrapping! Cool, right?

We are also planning some great Sunday Sidewalk sales in the spring where every week great items will be discounted out on our balcony area for that week only. Every week, new items will be included in the sidewalk sales and the discounts will vary. We will also be featuring many of our artists as well as new artists in trunk shows on our balcony on many weekends beginning in the spring! These special events will feature items you will not find in our store and also give you a chance to learn from folks that are making and designing great jewelry!

Come check us out!!!

Meg
http://www.sparkle-ga.com/

Welcome!

Hello and welcome to my Blog! I'm Meg and I own Sparkle!, Lawrenceville Ga's newest jewelry boutique.

Above: Our front window just a couple of days before opening!

This blog will be used to highlight new and fun items in the shop and online, provide news about things going on in downtown Lawrenceville and showcase some of my favorite creations.

My shop is located at 178 E Crogan street in downtown Lawrenceville. We are in a building known as the "Honest Alley Exchange" though we still do not have any signage that would let you know that. I am hopeful that our landlords will get this up soon!

The renovations on the shop took a little (well, a lot!) longer than expected and we were not able to get open until Thanksgiving day 2007. See my "brick and mortar" page on the website for details and photos of the renovation process!

Since then, we've been greeted very warmly by the good folks of Lawrenceville! Lots of folks received Sparkle! gifts in our signature organza bags and purple boxes for Christmas and many more discovered us on New Year's Eve during the fabulous Lawrenceville Rings celebration. If you haven't checked us out yet, come on by and plan to spend a little time. We have much to see!!

Above - an overview of the shop a couple of days before opening!

Sparkle! carries well over 20 lines of artisan jewelry in many many styles and price points. Some of the lines we carry are from local artisans such as Gwendy's Gems, Silver Box Designs, Agape Gems and Doodlebug dezines. Of course, I also make a line of jewelry under the Sparkle! label. We also carry jewelry from Accessories by M, Xovo, For the Journey, Owen Glass, Neckfluffs, Bora, Austin Alexander, Vida Dulce Imports, Pink House Imports, Kharmic Creations, Fox Lane, Cathedral Collection, Rustic Attitude and many others! We also carry storage solutions such as jewelry boxes by Longolines, hand painted earring holders by the Earring Holder Gallery and wonderful pouches and travel cases by Jazz'd. You'll also find great gift items, purses and so much more! Coming soon we'll have jewelry from Pick up sticks, Zulugrass by the Leakey Collection and Robin Goodfellow designs!

Each month I will plan to highlight one of the lines we carry and give you lots more info about the artists and the jewelry.

Thanks for checking us out and stay tuned!!!

Meg

www.sparkle-ga.com