The Story of Orange Avocado Jewelry...

• I wanted to thank you for something...

  Published Nov 28 2013 in Events

  

  I am 

  so grateful

  so lucky

  so humbled

  I wanted to thank my family, friends and customers who came out yesterday for my Christmas Jewelry show and shared my joy and passion of jewelry making.  My friends Najat, Tracy & Sandra; my moms Kim and Rom; sisters Debbie and Rayna, and my son Aidan drop everything for a day to help me during each of my shows.  They leave their own families, and school obligations for one very full day and help me make my jewelry shows run smoothly.   

  That’s friendship; that’s love.  

  I wanted to thank my loyal customers who come each year: old and new.  You make me wake up each morning like a little kid so excited to create new pieces of jewelry fulfilling a childhood dream of making something from nothing. 

  An amazing turnout of over 175 people attended my show, so as I said: 

  so grateful, so lucky, so humbled.

  
  

• The Compassion Heart: Imperfect Beauty

  Published Oct 18 2013 in Philanthropy Jewelry

  

   

  Honored & grateful is an understatement to how I feel about being part of “Fashion with Compassion” for the Compassion House Foundation this year.  This is the “annual signature fundraiser for Compassion House Foundation in support of Sorrentino’s Compassion house.  The sold out event attracts over 1300 guests annually.”  This house is a “safe haven” for those out of town breast cancer patients to stay at when receiving treatment at the Cross Cancer Institute in Edmonton. 
   
  I was asked by Mellissa Kraft, Executive Director of Compassion House Foundation, and Joanne Berger, Chair of Fashion with Compassion to make a necklace that would be sold exclusively at this event. Part of the proceeds would be donated to the organization.  So I designed a heart of bronze:  assymetrical in shape with handmade markings.  Each one is handmade: unique and imperfect which truly represents each woman.  I was ecstatic that all 200 necklaces made were sold at this event (yes, I spent 1/2 of my summer making these gems!!).  However, the most memorable and heartfelt part of this experience was talking to each person about the necklace and what it meant to him or her.  
   
  Thank you to the staff at the Met Agency for making such a beautiful logo combining Orange Avocado Jewelry and the Make a Statement theme, thank you to Mellissa and Joanne for having faith in my jewelry and design, and most of all thank you to the board members and volunteers for making each and every woman (and man) feel like a princess and prince at this event.   Here's just a few pictures of the necklace and the lovely ladies that purchased the necklace.  Love!!
   
  Please consider donating to this organization at www.compassionhouse.org so more women can enjoy a place of refuge during breast cancer treatment.

  
  

• Rose Velvet Collection: FW 2013

  Published Aug 31 2013 in My Story, New Collections

  

   

  I’m a romantic at heart.  My most romantic gift from my husband was a poem that he wrote while I was attending school out of the country.  He had to send down my winter boots and tucked away in the box was a little piece of paper with a, well, unforgettable poem written on it.  It read our lives at that time.  Quite a few years later I framed that poem and re-gifted it to my husband as a wedding anniversary gift.  He was...speechless.  

   The feeling I get from my rose bronze and rose gold swarovski crystal pieces is romance and tradition (just like that poem). I’ve taken my rose bronze and rose gold to another level...a level of casual modern with a hint of elegance. Subtle touches of rose gold are found in my Rose Velvet Collection just to show how special it is.  I’m letting the rose bronze and rose gold swarovski crystals speak for themselves, because it does it so well. 
  

  Nothing but the best for my rose hued pieces; nothing but the best for you.  I want to make you speechless.

  Enjoy

  
  

• That Which Inspires Me...

  Published Jul 08 2013 in My Story

   

  

   

   

   

  People often ask me where I get my inspiration for my jewelry from.  I like to take my bike in the trails of Edmonton’s river valley system and go for it.  It is my little treat to myself.  It is also where I find my mind will travel and become the inspiration for many of my jewelry designs.

   

  This year I was so lucky to spend a week long road bike trip discovering the endless roads of southern France with my family.  I engrossed myself in everything that I saw, felt and smelled.  It was love at first sight.

   

  I feasted my eyes on the vibrant orange poppies in Mirepoix, the unexpected mixes of colors of hand painted shutters & doors in the little villages like Limoux, and the curved archways in every building. The grandness of riding the Pyrenes, fighting the winds in the gorges and gazing upon castles was humbling.  But even the littlest things like the everyday walk up and down a circle of 22 cement stairs to our room, and the french road signs inspired me each day.  We covered 450 km in 5 days; a lot to see in so little time!  A work of observation will become little works of art. 

   

  Thank you to Chris Georgas, Fabien, Isabel, Heather, & Nicolette from Le Monastere for making my family & I want to pack our bags and live in a little French town called Limoux. For now I will make little pieces of precious metal jewelry with a hint of France in them.

  
  

• My Starfish Story

  Published Jun 02 2013 in My Story

  

   

  I am sure that every child has a teacher that touches their lives so much for the better. We were so blessed as a family to have benefitted from such a teacher. For me, Mrs. Shuster is the one teacher that made a difference in my childrens’ lives.  As a family, we were so lucky for both of our kids to have had the gift of her teaching and insight when my kids were in grade 2.  The details are personal how she touched our lives, but let’s just say that she was the one that looked down upon each of my little starfishes and threw them back into the ocean.  My kids are now in grades 8 and 10; oh how time flies.    But the memories will always remain and the effects will last a lifetime. 

  Thank you Mrs. Shuster, we love you.

   

  The Starfish Story

  An old man was walking down the beach just before dawn. In the distance he saw a young man picking up stranded starfish and throwing them back into the sea. As the old man approached the young man, he asked; "Why do you spend so much energy doing what seems to be a waste of time?" The young man explained that the stranded starfish would die if left in the morning sun. "But there must be thousands of beaches and millions of starfish, exclaimed the old man. "How can your efforts make any difference?" The young man looked down at the small starfish in his hand and as he threw it to safety in the sea, he said;

  "It makes a difference to this one."