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Announcing the New Hydrangea Collection

The country agrees - change is in the air.

With that, I a

m thrilled to

 share with you a new collection that is different, romantic and familiar. We all grew up with Hydrangeas; those glorious, bold flowers that grew in our grandparents gardens. Fragrant, big blossoms that shocked us with purples and pinks.  My aunt Mary had a hydrangea bush that sported the most incredible green and white flowers. I would pick them by the handful and bring them to my mother who would place them in vases around the house.

My new collection of hydrangea-inspired pieces focus are created with layers of kiln

-fired enamel. The depth and spectacular shading of the petals are amazing (if I do say so myself.) The brooch-necklace with faceted amethyst center looks like it could be placed in a vase. The new delicate earrings will make you feel like a girl decorating herself with blossoms on an Autumn morning. The 9-blossom necklace is just "so fresh". 

Each hydrangea blossom is centered with diamonds and gold granules, mimicking the concentric center of a hydrangea.

Hottest of Hot House Orchids

This white Odontoglossum Orchid is really spectacular because of the opalescent shades of pink and pale yellow on the first day it opens.  I have created this in 12 layers of kiln fired enamel on fine silver and 18k gold.  This new treasure is centered with white and pink diamonds and a fresh water pearl embedded with pink and white diamonds.  When you look at this stunning brooch, which can also be worn as a pendant, you will notice a shimmering effect which is achieved by layering opalescent enamel on several layers of transparent enamel.

New Orchids & New Necklaces

Orchid #3 is a very rare coloration of a blue Cattleya Orchid and Orchid #4 is a red/orange Milatonia from Brazil. The enameling technique on the Cattleya orchid utilizes transparent enamel over engraved fine silver and 18k gold.



The two new necklaces are created using "swallow tail" freshwater pearls and pink and lavender sapphires. Truly a touch of Spring - right around your neck.

Orchid No. 2, "Miltonia Goodale Noir"

I am thrilled to show you Orchid No. 2, this Miltonia hybrid is captivating with the yellow and brown spotted petals and the great deep pink pigmentation of the labial petal. I have created this piece using eleven layers of enamel on fine silver and 18k gold. The center is a fresh water pearl embedded with pink diamonds and the pearl is mounted with white diamonds. It's great as a brooch and looks gorgeous as a pendant.

The First of the New Enameled Orchids

About a year ago I told you that I was developing a new group of enameled orchid brooches-pendants. Well, after a long period of developing my technique I am finally ready to show you the first in this incredible series of enameled orchids.

This one is a species of the family of Miltonia orchids the exact species being "vuylstekeara", known for its beautiful petals of striking pink and fushia and delicate mottling of lavender. The center of this piece is created from a natural lavender sapphire, aubergine fresh water pearl and pink and white diamonds all mounted in 18k yellow gold. It looks striking as a brooch, a pendant on a silk cord or just placed on a table for all to enjoy.

End of November Notes

Bonjour, mes amis! I have just landed from a fabulous 5-day trip to the City of Lights! I took a quick pre-holiday breather to celebrate the opening of my sister-in-law, Ellen Carey's photography show at Ibu Gallery at the Palais Royale! An incredibly successful show! If you go to the website, you'll see some of her phenomenal work rotating on the home page.

By the by, if you're going to the city of love, be sure to contact my new dear friend, Richard Nahem who runs PreferPARIS! (http://www.eyepreferparis.com/) . Richard will put together a tour for you that you help customize. Want to see precious jewels? Call Richard. The museums? No problem. How about some the foie gras and the flea market all at once? Absolutement! Richard does it all!

Exciting news coming up? I have my Holiday Show at Gumps beginning December 6-8th in San Francisco. The east coast has the National Tree and Rockefeller Ice Skating, but west of the Mississippi, you MUST go to Gumps to truly get into the holiday spirit! The beautiful store decorations will turn the sourest of Grinches into the merriest of Elves! Bid your Bah Humbug goodbye, and join me at the spectacular show at Gumps. Be sure to introduce yourself -- and IF you take my picture at the show, I hope you'll send me a copy for this site!

Thanks to the magic of Santa's Sleigh, I will be making a holiday appearance at Hall's in Kansas City December 12-13. I've seen pictures of the Spanish inspired plaza decorated with millions of lights. I am anticipating witnessing the beauty of those lights in person as I meet the gracious people of Kansas City once again. (To the dear woman told me she was bringing me homemade gingerbread cookies -- I can't wait! I absolutely love gifts from the kitchen!)

Remembering Spring Magnolias

One of the first signs of Spring here in Cleveland are the Magnolia Trees opening to reveal their delicate pink and white blossoms. The magic of the fuzzy pods into full figured flowers is not only magical, it gives us a gentility that reminds us of times when people spoke with softer voices.

This spectacular magnolia blossom brings back those Spring memories. I'm using a new technique where I embed quarter-point and half-point diamonds. Click the picture for the full-blown view.

This one-of-a-kind piece is divine; I collected three freshwater pearls to construct the petals with hues and shading that mimics nature's best magnolia blossoms. These three pearls took over 2 years to find during several trips to Hong Kong. The center pearl is a long teardrop South Sea pearl that I've embedded with tiny white & natural pale pink diamonds and pale pink sapphires. The bud pod is hand chased 18 karat gold. It can be worn as either a brooch or a pendant.

If interested, please contact me directly at russ@russelltrusso.com

Keshi Pearl Summertime 2007 Exclusive Earring

Hello! I hope that the first few days of summer have been treating you well! Here's a little video I just shot -- just click on the box below to see the video. (I think I look silly, but my friend who shot it says I'm the next Harrison Ford.)

The earring is below and is available EXCLUSIVELY on this site - no other store will receive this special 2007 Summertime Earring. It's a wonderful long drop approximately 2" in length of Keshi pearls and white topaz briolettes. The top pearl is accented with an embedded diamond in the center.

Young, chic, "so-now" and yet, timeless.

$250 pair - pierced only

Shhhh! Exclusive News for my readers!

Next week I will be putting two brand new FABULOUS pieces on my site that will only be shown exclusively on this website! That's right -- if you love the piece you'll be able to place your order directly online!

Oh.....I know you want just a little hint. OK, I have two pairs of incredible earrings. One pair is worn close to the ear, the other I call the "The Young And the Restless"; it's young, hip, and very "Waiter! I need another cocktail STAT" earring! (oops! The doctor in me was coming out!)

I can't wait to show you these two newest additions!

See you next week!

Russell

Spring opening at Halls

The Spring opening at Halls in Kansas City, Missouri was really thrilling with an evening event for four hundred at the Plaza store in honor of the Kansas City symphony. Wow, what a night it was.........so many wonderful patrons of the symphony dressed to the nines and so kind and gracious. I had so many people lined up at my cases that at one point I wondered if there would be any pieces left at the end of the night...and guess what? There were only a few left and I took many special orders. Halls looked like the center of Spring; its garden shop was brimming full of patio and garden treasures. Were we in England, the Hampton’s or Kansas City? It was hard to tell.

The response to all of my new designs (as well as some favorites I’ve been doing for a few seasons) was nothing short of overwhelming. What an enthusiastic crowd! Great taste, lots of fun people, and a real up spirit for what’s new and very fashionable. Kansas City know style they have great taste and love beautiful things...they are simply a joy to work with and get to know. Walking into that store will leave you unable to stop spending. Everywhere you look it’s fabulous - thanks to CEO and president, Bob Leitstein and his fabulous merchandising team

Mother's Day Show at Gumps - San Francisco

The spring Mother’s Day show at Gumps in San Francisco was, very exciting. It will always be thrilling for me to see former customers walk through the door wearing one or more of my pieces and looking for new selections to add to their Russell Trusso collection of jewelry.

Some of the most sought-out favorites were my new cabochon aquamarine earrings and the new water fall necklaces of petal keshi pearls. These new bib style necklaces can be worn with a simple top and jeans or out for a night in black tie. There will be some variations on these for Fall holiday. Also of great success were my cuff bracelets from the simplest to the most complex confections of petals and diamonds. I always feel so fantastic being with old friends and meeting new ones at each show.

New From My Studio

This beautiful morning glory necklace is so simple and yet contemporary and young in its look. Created from hand chased morning glory leaves in 18k gold combined with opalescent cabochon moonstones, there are 37.43 ct of moonstones and .42ct of diamonds.

Mom Says: "Don't Even THINK About Forgetting Mother's Day!"

What do you mean that you haven't even selected your jewelry pieces for Mother's Day yet? Goodness! Not to worry -- I have a couple of pieces here that are so stunning, your mother or wife will completely absolve you for not getting her these pieces for the holidays.

If the special lady in your life is a little more elegant and refined, these 18k white gold pearl drop earrings and aubergine freshwater pearls will thrill her. The caps are created from tiny granules of 18k white gold which are suspended from a French ear wire. Perfectly simple and so pretty.

If the woman you love is crazy about rings and color and has an unparalleled passion for life, I can only recommend this fabulously colorful Strawberry Pink cabochon tourmaline ring. The tourmaline is surrounded with 18k gold that is embedded with lavender and pink sapphires. To tell the truth, it's really a beauty.

Of course, I have several other pieces that are available on my site (scroll to the bottom of my blog to see more) or cruise through the gallery. But remember -- there are fewer than 3 weeks before Mother's Day and in that amount of time, I will be doing several out-of-state shows. Please place your orders early as not to be disappointed.

Til we talk again,

Russell

Veranda Magazine

I had to bite my tongue and be sworn to secrecy, but now that it's hit the newstands, I'm thrilled to announce that in the current May-June issue of Veranda magazine, you'll find my pearl and sapphire and diamond dragonfly brooch.

Veranda is featuring a special "insects as jewelry" editorial that features some of the hottest jewelry designers working today. I am so honored to be selected and included in this article. The dragonfly that I designed has long been one of my favorites and is available exclusively at Gumps.

Look for my piece on page 112.

Good News - Bad News!

The good news is that the fabulous green tourmaline and diamond pendant that I posted last week received overwhelming accolades from so many of you! I appreciate your comments so much. Thank you!

The bad news (for all but one of you): The piece sold the next day. I received a call from someone who wanted to purchase it and because the tourmaline was such a find, this necklace will not be duplicated. Thank you to the lucky lady!

A Refreshing New Direction

I'm sitting here having a glass of wine with my friend and I showed him a few of these pieces and he INSISTED that I put these on my blog to show you right now! He said that he was surprised at the new direction my jewelry seems to be going -- and I have to admit that I'm doing some terrific new pieces that are really making me happy. You'll see more of those in the coming weeks, but for now, I want to share these two pieces with you.

This fabulous pair of carved tourmaline earrings were inspired by the early carving of the mogul jewelry of Indian Maharajahs. They are set in 18k gold, twisted wire, light as air and so transparent the colors seem to dance and change as you move.

I think I really went over the edge creating this pendant, but the deep green tourmaline cabochon just spoke to me. I just happen to love intense colored stones that have natural, beautiful inclusions in them. Sort of like rock candy from my childhood!

This stone is set in a deep donut style setting with gypsy set green and white diamonds. All suspended on a woven 18k neck cable. This is truly like wearing a treasure around your neck.


Actually, I can't get my friend to take it off of his neck, so I'm going to bribe him with another glass of wine to give it back.

Please feel free to leave your comments about these pieces. My friend desperately wants me to put on the 'Strawberry Ring' and the youthful Tahitian Pearl necklace strung on sheered French chiffon ribbon accented with onyx beads......oops! I wasn't supposed to tell you that much yet! Oh well, maybe we'll give you some pictures of those next time!

Love,
Russ

Hong Kong Wrap Up

Well, one always looks forward to going home. I have to admit that on my last day in Hong Kong, I just didn't want to leave. Here I am, in this city just teaming with energetic, kind people, and for a jewelry designer this show was filled with an equally large number of treasures and believe me, I did my best to buy as many of those treasures to bring them back to you.

I mean we're talking about incredible pearls! Incredible because the colors and the iridescence were like nothing I had ever seen before. And the stones had such amazing depth of color and beautiful classics cuts. Soon you're going to see pictures of beautiful pendants surrounded by paved colored diamonds and rings made from a single magnificent baroque pearl -- the pearl being suspended by a hand fabricated, contoured gold setting.

Next week I will be posting some phenomenal pictures of these pieces.

PS - I just came back from an "early Spring tune up" at Canyon Ranch in Tuscon. Talk about a MUST place to go! I spent a lot of time working on core body development including weight lifting on a 36" diameter rubber ball! No broken bones but plenty of smiles at the end of the week!

My Hong Kong Adventure - Day 1

Hello, Everyone! I'm just back from a fabulous buying trip from Hong Kong. I had hoped to write while I was there, but the pace of the day was just too quick for me to find time to blog.

There’s nothing quite like arriving into Hong Kong. The spectacle of the buildings virtually piled on top of each other is only to be topped by the spectacular view from the top floor of Felix Bar in the Peninsula Hotel. Standing on the winding stainless steel stairway at Felix, looking over Hong Kong harbor is simply astounding.

How can you top that view? By going to the men’s room at the Felix where one stands on an all glass floor while overlooking Hong Kong Harbor! On the first day, we viewed some of the most spectacular jade we’ve seen in a number of years; Burmese jade in translucent water blue, true lavender jade with flashes of the most blue and lavender jade. The carvings ranged from as simple as a cabochon for a ring to a more traditional carving for a pendant.

The next day was the first full day of the international show at the Hong Kong convention center. The convention center itself looks like a giant Portobello mushroom with halls that have the most unbelievable soaring ceilings. The lighting makes everything look as if it is in perfect color at all times. Of course, the security was unreal – your badge was scanned every time you got into a hall, and elevator or the men’s room.

We found incredible treasure: Keshi pearls in colors that mimicked natural metals like gold & platinum and even rose gold and deep grape colors. I scooped all of these up immediately! There were times when you looked at a huge convention hall with tables piled 10 to 12” high with strands of pearls – more than your mind could handle.

This may be near the last time that we will see these rare pieces again. The water pollution has effected the small Asian lakes that these pearls come from.

More trip details coming soon….

Russ

Diamond-Kissed Black Pearl Earrings

These spectacular earrings were inspired by a reader who asked if I could do my Diamond-Kissed Earrings with a black pearl. I was so pleased with the results, I am now offering them as part of my regular line.

Click here to read more about these stunning earrings.

Tucson Gem Show

I just got back from the Tucson Gem show. Let me tell you - this year's show was simply unreal!

First off the master carvers from Germany had some real surprises for me. One is an incredible cattelya orchid carved from brilliant Mexican opal that just took my breath away. And new carvings from blue Peruvian opal are so subtly stunning -- I just couldn't even figure out what the material was when I first looked at it!

Wonderful necklaces carved from lapis and jade and onyx that are simply stunning in their utter simplicity -- there just aren't words! I also bought a fairly large number of faceted rubies, tourmalines, peridot and mandarin garnets. I just couldn't pass up these stones.

Sooooo, soon you will be seeing a number of beautiful rings; something I used to make a lot of a long time ago. Now is the time to bring back my beautiful rings.

These have all been great surprises for me and I know that they'll be great surprises for you, too!

My good friend and I had a fabulous dinner at The Arizona Inn which I'm sure many of you know has been the place where movie stars go for those quiet, secret weekends to be unobserved and simply relaxed without the fuss of the paparazzi.

So, all in all, jewels, pearls, great carvings, dinner with a wonderful friend made for a great week of treasure hunting and buying in Tucson.

New Additions to The Catalog

I just added two wonderful pairs of earrings to the catalog below. A pair of pink keshi pearl blossom earrings and a pair of white keshi pearl blossom earrings.

The photos just came back from the photographer this morning and I couldn't wait to post them.

They are available for purchase now. Simply order them from our site.

New Camellias

Today I just finished two new pieces from the cool-growing part of my conservatory. They are two fabulous camellias; one a ring, the other a brooch. There is something incredible about camellias, with their very strong centers that, by the way are so heavy the actually fall out of the flower. The first piece a ring of fresh water keshi pearls that are so thin they truly are like the petals of a camellia and centered with a carat of diamonds and all those clusters of pollen made from 18kt gold granules. Its about one and three eights in diameter a real show stopper.

The brooch of hand carved rock crystal just seems to be diaphanous just as the actual petals and is centered with a very large rose quartz cabochon surrounded with lavender and pink sapphires and clumps of golden pollen.

Fabulous New Enamels

Actually I've been thinking of this idea for a long time..........returning to creating wonderful enamelled orchids, the actual ones coming from my own conservatory where some really wild ones are starting to bloom as I write to you.

This may sound a little crazy but I think an enamelled orchid that you could wear as well as place on a bedside stand or on a coffee table when not using could be pretty fabulous. The colors will be very vibrant as well soft in those muted background colors that make orchids so beautiful, sexual and alluring to all of us.

I'm so excited about this that I have to show you a sneak preview by letting you see one of my first enamelled orchids. Well, here it is..............

The Bryant Gumbal Interview

In 2000, I was interviewed by Bryant Gumbal on the Today Show about my career change. Some of you have requested to see that video.