It’s been a while since I’ve blogged about my wedding work, but I have been so busy with bridal designs this season! I’m finally getting a chance to catch up on sharing these events, and I’m so excited to start off the post-a-thon with these photos from Abby and Josh’s wedding!

Abby is a friend of mine from college days; we met in the fall of 2005 when we both moved onto campus as freshman and found ourselves living on the same dormitory floor. After college she decided to volunteer with AmeriCorps, which is where she met Josh – first her best friend, and later her love. The two were married in Carmel, California, and though I was sad not to be able to attend the ceremony, I was so proud to contribute to their special day by designing custom jewelry for Abby and her bridesmaids.

The necklace I designed for Abby is made in a lariat style, featuring a handmade chain of white glass pearls and faceted clear glass crystal beads in various shapes and sizes. From the chain hangs a faceted glass teardrop with a halo of small white glass pearls (slightly jumbled in the photograph). I designed her earrings to match, using the same elements of clear faceted glass beads and white glass pearls.

Abby’s custom jewelry draws from the colors and embellishments of her wedding dress. I especially like how the lariat style necklace complements the sweetheart necklace of Abby’s gown. Stunning!

For the Abby’s bridesmaids, who wore short dresses with royal blue lace overlay, I created complementary earrings and necklaces featuring luminous glass beads in sapphire, dark grey, and clear. The bright yellow accents in the bridesmaids’ bouquets completed the look!

Here’s a closer look at both pieces. As you can see, the earrings consist of a pear-shaped set glass stone with three drops of sapphire blue rondeles and dark grey teardrops. The bracelets feature the same elements in different shapes, all strung together on a durable stretch cord.

Congratulations to the beautiful Abby and her new husband Josh. May your new marriage be every bit as beautiful as your wedding day!

Xo, Ali

This post is going back a few months to a wedding in July, but I am no less excited to share it with you than I would have been in August. Welcome to Mary and Robby’s wedding!

It’s not every day that I get to work with a bride who is equal parts friend, client, and creator, but I got all of these delightful things in working with Mary.  She has a degree in studio art and is an especially talented painter, so I knew she would have a lot of great input for the jewelry I designed for her wedding.  This was also the largest wedding party I’ve ever designed jewelry for; I made full sets of jewelry for Mary’s seven bridesmaids, both mothers, the flower girl, and a special necklace for her rehearsal dinner.

I first met Mary in 2008 when I was dating the man who is now my husband. Dustin and Robby have been friends for many years, and I was pleased to find that Mary and I shared a similar connection. Our friendship has strengthened since my 2011 wedding and subsequent move nearby to Maryland. Dustin and I had the joy of being accomplices in Robby’s surprise proposal to Mary last spring, and loved playing a role in their 3 months engagement and wedding day – Dustin as a groomsman, and I as the jewelry designer!

With a waterfront wedding in the middle of the summer, Mary decided to go with the whimsical warm-weather color palette of coral and aqua in varying levels of saturation. For her bridesmaids, I created a coordinated set of earrings and necklaces featuring asymmetrical charms that vary in shape but match in style. The earrings were hoop-shaped drop earrings with coral and pearl elements.

The matron of honor’s necklace featured a charm of a small flower with leaves to stand out against the large charm on the necklaces worn by the rest of the bridal party.

Mary has worked as a nanny for a local family for a few years, so she is very close to their two children Max and Lola. She decided to have them be her flower girl and ringbearer, and it might have been the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.

For Lola the flower girl, I created a delicate necklace of tiny fabric roses with beaded centers on a silver chain. It got a little crooked (kids will be kids!) but still served as the perfect complement to the pink sash on Lola’s dress.

Because her dress featured an intricately beaded accent under the bust, Mary asked me for a simple necklace that wouldn’t compete with that embellishment. I strung a pendant of small, clustered pearls on a delicate sterling silver necklace to fit the bill, and I think it worked quite well with her dress!

Mary’s earrings were the piece de resistance: a chandelier earring within a chandelier earring. (Inception earrings!?) The outer ring of the drop earrings matched those of the bridesmaids, but inside the hoop there was a faceted clear crystal teardrop with small pearls dangling from it. The set was complete with a little teal bead just below the earwire to tie in the full color scheme of Mary’s wedding. Here’s a closer look:

Robby and Mary’s wedding day was a beautiful and laid-back affair that was a perfect reflection of their love and style. As a veteran of the short engagement, I know how hectic things can be in those few weeks you have to plan everything. Mary kept a level head before, during, and after the big day (we often cracks jokes saying “Wait, I’m really married?”) in a way that I doubt anyone else could have. She looked absolutely gorgeous on that day, and it was a joy and honor to celebrate the love that Robby and Mary share with all of their friends and family.

{Belated} Congratulations and so many blessings, Robby and Mary!

Xo, Ali

I met Andrea through mutual friends when we attended college together, and I always admired her style. She’s one of those girls who’s completely fearless when it comes to how she looks – hairstyles, shoes, outfits, makeup… She mixes it up constantly and she always looks fierce! On top of that, she is hilarious and so, so sweet. We hit it off right away.

I was so excited when Andrea got in touch with me about designing an eclectic set of bridesmaids’ jewelry for her August wedding. The whole event had a homespun, rustic feel and her bridesmaids would be wearing varied dresses in shades of pink, peach and blush. So trendy, right?

Here’s a closer look at the individual pieces:

For Emily, I used large, faceted, ivory glass pearls and amber-colored crystals to create a stretchy bracelet to match her cream colored dress.

Cherice wore a pair of Fabric Button Earrings in Coral Floral. Doesn’t it look great with her blonde hair?

For Shawna, I created a pair of bold statement earrings using large, teardrop-shaped crystals draped in gold chain. I then topped off the design with a pink freshwater pearl and small coral bead.

Another favorite from the J’Adorn Designs shop – The Soft Blossoms Bracelet in Peony

This bracelet was made with 3 different strands – ivory pearls, amethyst-colored crystals and chunky gold chain. I especially love the varied textures & colors in this one.

These statement earrings feature a cluster of antiqued brass chain topped off with a large rose-colored crystal and the same pink freshwater pearls that I used in Shawna’s earrings. They were originally a custom design for this wedding, but I loved them so much that I made them available in the shop! 

For her maid of honor and beloved sister, Andrea wanted something extra special. She told me that she loved the Colette Necklace that she had seen in my shop and asked me to crate a custom piece in that same style. I used ivory glass pearls of various sizes to make the strands for this necklace and decided to give it a little bit of glitz with a gold filigree element that was set with crystals.

Collaborating with brides to design custom pieces is one of my favorite things about this job. Making a girl’s special day especially unique is a particular joy that comes with what I do. Some brides have a strong vision of what they’d like; others prefer to hand over full artistic license and not worry about it.

To the brides out there: Regardless of what point you are in planning your wedding, I’d love to have a chat with you about custom jewelry. Feel free to drop me a line on the Contact form!

Xo, Ali

*All photos in this post except part two of #7 are by Thomas Beaman Photography