MBSF Blog — Made in the USA

I feel like I've been hearing a lot lately about companies selling products that contain nickel and lead. Urban Outfitters and Fitbit have had issues with this recently. My reaction has simply been "What! Why?" At this point, it seems lazy and irresponsible to sell products that contain these metals. Lead is sort of a no-brainer. Don't put it in things that touch your skin or that young kids could play with or put in their mouths. And nickel, while its not toxic and not nearly as dangerous as lead, is a very common skin irritant. Even if you are...

Burlap is perfect for a DIY jewelry display. The woven texture is made for hanging wire earrings. I thought I would paint it to not only change the color but also keep it from fraying. I just used some interior house paint I had lying around. It works great!   Here's a close up:   Ended up trying black and white. Both are pretty cool

Had so much fun shooting pieces for the transition collection with Ariana!

The new collection has come together! When I began to photograph these pieces, I couldn't quite wrap my head around how all the distinct themes would work as a group. It wasn't until I started to lay out the images in the catalog that I realized how well everything went together. Metal color, shape, and a strong yet feminine feel tie all these pieces together beautifully. Its almost hard to pick!

I just finished adding all the new pieces from the Summer 2014 Collection to the New Arrivals section of the store. I'm pretty much always impressed with new collections, but this one to me is really exceptional.  The basic shape of most of the earrings and necklaces in this grouping is an organically inspired, rough, irregular ring. Its an interesting and unique shape on its own but here its layered, linked, and formed into a variety of new shapes, some delicate, some bold.  The collection has a lot of variety. From classic clip on or post buttons to dramatic, sculptural...