Daphne and Apollo - Greek Mythology Inspiration

Stories from the Greek Mythology have always fascinated me. For thousands of years some of the greatest artists were inspired by them. Sculptures, paintings, poems, novels...

In this article I will refer to the story about Daphne and Apollo:

 Naughty Cupid hit Apollo, the Greek God, with an arrow. Apollo fell in love with Daphne the nymph, daughter of the river god Peneus. He was desperately in love but, as often happens where it comes to love, Daphne rejected his advances and tried to flee from him. This  ardent lover, Apollo, could not take NO for an answer. He continued to pursue her. Well ,now, as you probably know, lovers can get rather tiresome sometimes, no matter how  handsome or brave they may be. Daphne appealed to the goddes Terra (Gaia) for protection. To save her, Terra turned her into a laurel tree. The diappointed Apollo took the laurel branch  had a garland made of it then placed it on his beautiful head, thus the Laurel garland has become his symbol. Following this - in ancient Greece, the Olympic victors were crowned with laurel wreaths as a sign of their victory.

As for me (sigh) -  if Apollo, the brave and handsome, would have fallen in love with me - WOW - being a tree would be the last thing on earth I'd want to be !...On the other hand - if he was too much of a macho man - I'd ask Terra to turn me into a brook or a beautiful gem....anything else but a tree!!!

Painting of Apollo and Daphne by Antonio del Pallaiolo, c. 1470-80

(National Gallery, London)

Following this sad romantic story I created a necklace with Sterling silver Laurel leaves ( By the way "Daphne" in Hebrew means "Laurel"):

http://www.etsy.com/listing/21019901/sterling-silver-necklace-daphnes-garland

You will find this necklace in my Etsy shop of unique handmade jewelry designs:

http://www.etsy.com/shop/riorita?ref=seller_info

Of course while searching other items with the tag Daphne, I found a few more beautiful  Daphne items which I could not resist adding here.
I simply adore this painting of Daphne, a Holstein cow. Most of the paintings in this shop remind me of how much I love these animals. Great paintings! 

http://www.etsy.com/listing/61761611/daphne-the-holstein-canvas-giclee

http://www.etsy.com/shop/ArtPaperGarden?ref=pr_shop_more

This item is one of a gorgeous Victorian style collection of unique Empress Wedding clothes. The designs and color combinations are amazing works of art!


http://www.etsy.com/listing/70722339/daphne-silk-ruffle-victorian-shrug

http://www.etsy.com/shop/Countessa?ref=seller_info
And just to remind you - we often use these in our cooking! I just LOVE the aroma of meat and rice cooked with an added leaf of Laurel:

Bon Appetite to all of you !
Thank you for watching!

More handcrafted artisan jewelry in silver and gold in my Etsy shop:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/riorita?ref=seller_info

Crescent Moons

The moon, in all its forms, has been a great source of inspiration for artists, painters, songwriters, romanticans, legends . There are even a few countries in this world which bear a crescent moon on their emlems and flags.

Well, I will be humbly presenting here only three examples from Etsy's handmade shops inspired by a crescent moon . I hope you like them as much as I do:

I will begin with a new pair of Two sided crescent gold and silver hoops which I handcrafted lately in my handmade jewelry designs workshop:

I made them with love.

For more handcrafted artisan jewelry:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/riorita

Another lovely item I found in Etsy's  snugglebugcraft's shop:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/snugglebugcrafts?ref=pr_shop_more

Gloss Black Crescent Balancing Bottle Holder
http://www.etsy.com/listing/68514094/gloss-black-crescent-balancing-bottle

Beautiful  elegant and useful item.

The last but not least beautifully crafted item is a Crescent Design clock
by Etsy shop owner Twigsoup:

Shop:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/twigsoup?ref=pr_shop_more

Item:
http://www.etsy.com/listing/38333340/crescent-design-clock-made-purpleheart

I guess you will find many more beautifully crafted crescent moobn shapes n Etsy. These are my personal favorites.

Delicate Watermelon Tourmaline sterling gold and stone

Here I am again. Still in the ring making mood. I had a stacking ring pile on my mind. I guess this one will be the main ring in that pile. When you buy stacking rings from my handmade jewelry designs workshop, you can decorate your hand according to your mood. You can just wear one ring, and then change your mind and wear even five of them on one finger. So stay "tuned" to my blog. More handcrafted rings which can be added to the one will be shown here.
http://www.etsy.com/listing/71585268/delicate-watermelon-tourmaline-ring

For more handcrafted artisan jewelry designs made with love:

http://riorita.etsy.com

Eye of the moon - Rainbow Moonstone sterling and gold ring

I have added a new ring this morning. I geuss I've been in a "ringish" mood lately. Wherever I go, wherever I see women, whether they enter my handmade jewelry designs workshop or just stand opposite a boutique window, or sit at a coffee house sipping tea or coffee,  First thing my eyes go to their hands. I love to check the rings they wear on their hands! Of course I also see what they have on their ears and necks, but lately it has been rings! Rings!

Here is my Good Eye Rainbow moonstone ring (I called it so because of the shape of the stone):

I made this ring with love!

Here are more handmade silver and gold items handcrafted by me:

http://riorita.etsy.com/

New Rutilated quartz sterling and gold ring

I handcrafted this beautiful sterling silver and gold ring with an exceptional Rutilate quartz stone to my handmade jewelry designs Etsy shop today. You can find it right here: http://riorita.etsy.com/

New Ancient Coin sterling jewelry

About 6 months ago, I visited a coin dealer's shop, I saw a few ancient coins there. I took one coin in my hand and - you know how it is when you suddnely fall in love ?! I felt a Flash! Bam! Alacazam!... Immediately I began to create handmade jewelry designs combining sterling silver and gold with ancient coins. Necklaces, bangles, rings.

Ancient coin Foxtail necklace:

New Ancient coin Ring in my Etsy shop For more of my handcrafted artisan jewelry pieces? Here's the link to my shop: http://riorita.etsy.com/ Thank you for viewing.