Gogo my lil companion.

My lil Jack Russell pup Gogo is having surgery at the world renowned UC Davis Vet Hospital as we speak to hopefully rid the cancer in her leg.  Her name actually means puppy dog in Mandarin Chinese and yet it’s very fitting because she is always on the go. We adopted her from the local animal shelter just a little over six years ago. And she was the one who stayed by my bedside as I was recovering from a major surgery just a few weeks after she became a member of the Zing family.  Now it breaks my heart to say that it is her turn to undergo major surgery. It was so hard to leave her this morning even though I know she is getting the best care at UC Davis. She is such a wonderful lil sassy pup who has brought so much joy to my life. I never knew how much love I could have for a lil furry dog with a big attitude. She often keeps me company while I am working on my jewelry design – begging for my attention and pets. News of her cancer has been heart breaking, but I just want her to get the best care and treatment so she is not suffering or in any pain.  Just like her namesake, I hope she will beat this disease and keep on going…she’s my lil inspiration today and always…may we all find someone or something in our life that gives us a smile, a laugh, and the will to keep on going.  You are going to beat this Gogo!!! We {heart} you! Can’t wait to pick you up and give you lots of pets and snuggles.

Okay, so admittedly I have neglected this space I call my own…but for a good reason…Geoff and I got married this September!  I’m a new Mrs! Hooray! And of course all my time was spent between keeping up with my clients’ orders and planning my own wedding. Well, here we are on the ultimate wedding blog Style Me Pretty!  Thanks to our talented and lovely photographer Meg Perotti for submitting our story.  Never thought my own wedding would grace this gorgeous blog! Read the entire post here. So excited!!!

Of course, I have to give a shout out to a few special peeps! I was lucky to have a such great team of people helping me pull this wedding together.  I {heart} you!!!

Photographer: Meg Perotti / Venue: Vine Hill Winery / Caterer: Thomas John Events / Florist: Patrick’s Floral Studios / Coordinator: Lisa Gamitian / Dress: Unique Bride / Bridesmaid & Flower Girl Dresses: J.Crew / Bride and Bridesmaid Jewelry: A.Zing Designs / Bride’s Hair: Melanie Hegna for Legar Hair Salon / Bride’s Make-up: Indiana Fisher for The Make Up Dolls / Wedding Cake: Gayle’s Bakery

Well, spring is finally here and it’s been a while since my first and last blog entry.  Funny but, somehow all it took was watching a movie {Julie & Julia} the other night with my fiance Geoff to inspire me to get back into blogging about my own passion…jewelry designing.  It’s been well over 6 months since I last logged in. Eeecks…time sure flies!!! But enough with the guilt, I will now quickly  fill you in on what’s been going on with me and my design projects since my last blog entry…

Emily's Vintage, New and Blue Wedding Necklace

My last blog entry was a little teaser to my latest design project at the time…something for my sister for her upcoming wedding.  Well my sister got married last November in the most beautiful and delightful winery in Paso, Robles, CA {Cass Vineyards}.  And I have to say, I as well as the bride were quite pleased with the results.  I went with the “something old, something new and something blue” theme to compliment her and her gorgeous wedding gown. The resulting fine handmade necklace was comprised of a vintage rhinestone belt buckle from the 1940′s {which I found at our local antique fair} and took apart and added some strands of pearls and moonstones to each end and then tied it all together with a lovely light blue silk satin ribbon. And VOILA there you have it! Absolutely bellissimo if I don’t say so myself!!!

I  also hosted my very first A|Zing Designs jewelry trunk show at my home studio in December which was a lot of work, but well worth it.  Thank goodness for my fiance Geoff, my friends Lisa, Landra and my sister for helping me prep for my big debut.  In the end, it was a huge success!  It was a great way to showcase my work and meet with my customers while generating lots of sales and custom orders – just in time for Christmas! I learned a lot from the process and look forward to hosting my next spring trunk show in the next few weeks! Here is a {link} to the pictures from my December trunk show courtesy of my friend and photographer Lisa (who also happens to be the photographer at my sister’s wedding – yes just call her “Martha”).

Astrid's Bling Birthday Necklace

In January, my dear and lovely friend Astrid celebrated a milestone birthday in San Francisco with her favorite gal pals and of course she had to have some sparkle for the special occasion.  Below is the “bling” birthday necklace I made especially for her. Very classy, striking and bold…just like the lady I made this for!

In February, I joined the pink slip community with millions of Americans.  My company was bought out by another giant tech company and as a result, I lost my corporate job.  Luckily I knew this was coming and had some time to embrace the change emotionally, mentally, and financially.  It was a little scary and stressful in the beginning but now, I am fully loving the break from corporate.  I am finally enjoying some much needed “Angela” time which includes doing all the things I love: hiking, yoga, antiquing, jewelry designing in between planning my upcoming September wedding and job hunting.

All in all, I can’t complain.  Life is good and I am embracing the changes.  Thanks to all my friends and family for their support…you spark my creativity and passion for designing beautiful things.

Next up…repurposing vintage family heirlooms into unique and modern one of a kind jewelry pieces for my friend Sveltlana.

Hello and welcome to first edition of A|Zing Designs Blog. This is my first blog entry and you will learn more about me and my passion for making custom made jewelry. I work in the high tech industry here in Silicon Valley and since my college years, I often turned to jewelry making as my creative outlet. For me, I love mixing vintage with new pieces and I often find my inspirations from going antiquing on the weekends to traveling around the world. I’ve been making jewelry for my friends and family for years and now I am working on making some of my pieces available for purchase online. Stay tuned! Here, I will attempt to share a bit of my own perspectives on my design process. Above is a teaser picture of my latest wedding jewelry project – something vintage, something new, something blue for my lovely friend and sister – the bride-to-be! :)

Well, thanks for stopping by! I’ll have more to share soon.