New Designs!!

My senioritis has kicked into full gear since the first day of classes started. I feel frustrated sitting in class when I’d much rather be designing and working on my website! My daydreams during lectures are filled with the sporadic combination of never-ending to do lists and new design ideas for jewelry. Although I’m terrible at drawing, I thought it would be a good idea to invest in a sketchbook and set of markers for me to doodle down inspiration, color stories, and attempt at drawing what I’m creating in my mind.

What I love most about starting a jewelry line is the transformability aspect. I don’t have to always do one style. I could come out with a Navajo collection, a collection with vintage elements, and then do something entirely offbeat with a different look and materials. While the essence of eff.Y.bee is continuous, in terms of its uniqueness factor, my next set of designs is rather different and more intricate than what I’ve done thus far. My next line is going to be bolder and more colorful, a mix of shorter length statement necklaces and longer length pendants, each with tons of beading. Here are some sketches I did for inspiration:

Part of what I love most about my business is shopping for new materials! It’s the best part. I spent 3 hours in one of my favorite shops picking out fun, new beads. Here’s a peek at what to expect in the new line!

Talk about eye candy!

I also shopped for new fabric for Bay Lavi! <3 The new bracelets should be available sometime next week (permitting my mom has the time to sew them up haha) 

The last highlight of my weekend was finally purchasing leopard flats! I've been on a mission to find the perfect leopard shoes FOREVER and came across these in steve madden and fell in love! :) 

<3 Alyssa 

Fall 2011 Look Book!

This past week was a whirlwind. So many amazing things have happened, I need to step back and take a breath! My jewelry has been officially picked up by Bloom in both the Philadelphia and Newark stores, my table at the TOMs shoes event for UDRESS was phenomenally successful, my jewelry is being featured in UDRESS magazine, Pamoja magazine, and the next Bloom photoshoot for their late fall advertisement. & I've been contacted by Think PR to host a table at a store opening in Freehold Mall October 22nd! Unrealllll. It's hard to stay focused on classes and school work with all of these amazing things happening!

I also finally got around to having the eff.y.bee fall photoshoot!! I used two of my friends Ali Kolakowski and Melissa Kitchen as models. They ROCKED! The photos came out AMAZING! I could not be happier with the shoot. I did all the makeup, hair, and styling and all the outfits were pulled from my closet.

My friend Stephanie Wirth did all the photography, she is incrediblyyy talented--> check out her flickr! www.flickr.com/stephaniewirth. I think that between her creativity and artistic eye and my styling abilities, we make a pretty kick ass team and I can't wait to work with her on future shoots :) I was so obsessed with Free people's October lookbook (check it out here: http://www.fashionodor.com/free-people-october-2011-lookbook/) , that I drew my inspiration for our shoot from it. I absolutely loved the model's free spiritedness, messy tousled hair, the colors, textures, outfits (guhh everything!!!), AND most of all the messy handwriting imposed over the pics. 

For our shoot, we decided to use song lyrics on some pictures "you're my favorite daydream" is from Castles in the Snow by Twin Shadow, "you are the ocean and I'm good at drowning" is a Phantogram lyric, and "easy/lucky/free" is Bright eyes. The pictures turned out pretty amazing. Below them I posted a playlist to go with the photos (most of these songs I'm currently listening to on repeat). Let me know what you think :)

Enjoy!

<3 Alyssa 

Follow your bliss

eff.Y.bee jewelry is the product of my inspiration, life experiences, passion, and what I believe fate. My infatuation with jewelry began when I was a little girl playing in my grandma's jewelry box, and this love affair has only grown more fiery as I've gotten older and become enthralled with fashion. My interest in creating my own line grew from my experience working at a boutique, where I've been inspired by and surrounded with handmade jewelry of all sorts, from artists ranging from famous designers like Alexis Bittar, to local designers, who are no less talented.

My designs incorporate elements from nature, trinkets from around the world, vintage pieces, and anything else I deem unique and beautiful. Nothing to me is more fulfilling than being able to channel my creative visions into jewelry and have others wear and enjoy my pieces as much as I do. 

In pursuing eff.Y.bee, I've found myself. I love how this is something that I can build up, design, completely create from scratch. I love not only making the jewelry, but planning photo shoots, working with other independent businesses, networking with and meeting new people, having events, and everything else this pursuit has granted me. What I love more than anything though, is the power it's given me to have an impact on others, while helping to make an impact on the world too. 

My philanthropy line of bracelets, named "Bay Lavi" is Haitian Creole for give life. Each fabric wrap bracelet, cut and sewn by hand, will help raise money to build a maternity ward in Haiti. This is a project I've been a part of through joining Students for Haiti, an organization at my University. In wanting to make my mark on the club and find a way to give back, I had the spontaneous and overwhelming idea and desire to create a trendy philanthropy bracelet that would function to both spread awareness and raise money. I spent hours over the summer with my mom, searching for fabrics, sketching out designs, placing orders, and even more hours sewing each one. There's a lot of love and passion that went into every stitch of Bay Lavi. The phrase on each bracelet spells out "kwe" which is Haitian for hope. Having the phrases in Haitian is intended to inspire conversation, and therefore awareness. I can't explain the feeling I have when I see others wearing Bay Lavi bracelets. It feels surreal to me. Going through with making my idea into reality was the best decision I could have made, and I truly believe that these simple wrap bracelets can and WILL make a difference. 

This blog is going to be a culmination of everything. I plan on uploading sketches of new designs I have for eff.Y.bee, photos of new jewelry, Bay Lavi designs and photos, updates on Haiti, background information on jewelry that has a unique story behind it, travel photos from trips to Europe, China, and hopefully Haiti in the Spring, inspirational quotations and pictures, photo shoot and look book pictures, music playlists, some beauty product reviews (since I'm a makeup hoarder), random ramblings from my life, and any thing else I think is worth sharing. 

If you take one thing from eff.Y.bee, beyond the jewelry, it's the underlying message behind what this acronym stands for; you should always pursue what you enjoy. Never get trapped into thinking "this is the way it has to be" because it doesn't. Don't settle for doing what you don't completely love, life's too short for that! We all have more power than we know, and our thoughts become reality. Until you've really pursued your dreams, there's no reason to think their unattainable. Follow your bliss, you'll be surprised where the path may lead.

Thank you to everyone who has been supportive of eff.Y.bee, it means the world and more.