Greetings and welcome! I'm a scientist by trade but I'm always enjoyed visual arts and creative works. I started creating beaded pieces in high school for sheer fun and I liked the way a unique piece of jewelry could change how I felt about what I wore. Fast forward a few years, and I found myself in Tucson, Arizona, where several times a year vendors from all over the world converge to share beautiful specimens and the latest products. When I went online, I was amazed and delighted by the variety of materials and techniques available for the jewelry maker. Gone were the days of a handful of dusty porcelain beads in the craft store! Since 2005, I've been making jewelry and selling pieces locally and online, and I've been a finalist in national beaded jewelry contests.

Beaded jewelry is a great melting pot; lovely stones, pearls, wood beads of all different shapes, colors and textures contribute towards an end design that feels terrific to wear and still can change the feel of an outfit. I have lots of fun with the designs, and this should be apparent in the names and descriptions of the pieces. Some names are straightforward, but I freely acknowledge that others are not! When it comes to creating designs, I give my creativity free rein and the design may be a vision sprung from a memory or mind's eye image, or an attempt to capture a mood or vignette from a story, a poem, a song; the design may reflect my background in physics and math or it may be a simple exercise in combining components I find pleasing. What's the expression? "Anything goes!" - as long as I'm happy with the final product and I think perhaps there's another renaissance soul out there who would enjoy the piece as much as I.

Links of interest for the Joie de Vivre jewelry site are listed on the left; I've grouped jewelry items in common sense categories of color, material (stone, pearl, crystal, wood), type (necklace, bracelet, earrings) and added a few "fun" categories as well. "Cool Finds" are a collection of jewelry items featuring a focal element designed and made by other jewelry artisans whose work I love. "Geek Chic" is a collection of jewelry items inspired by intellectual endeavors: philosophy ("Yes I Koan!" pendants), mathematical functions and shapes ("Math Madness" designs and pendants), characters out of literature and lines from poetry ("Literary Allusions" designs), and curricula-inspired designs ("Lab Love" pendants). "Tasting Menu" presents jewelry pairings; these are combinations of necklaces that work well together. Some necklaces pair like champagne or other sparkling wines: sparkly and festive; other necklaces pair like cabernet sauvignon - classic and versatile. The pairing of some necklaces is subtle and particular, like pinot noir, and some pairings are unexpected but refreshing - like a good pinot grigio.

I hope you enjoy browsing through my creations as much I as enjoyed making them. Please do contact me if you have a question; you can email me at valorie@ofgoodcheer.com or simply fill in the form below.