Friendship Bracelets

There's no better time to pile on the friendship bracelets than in the summer. These soft, bright bracelets have a casual feel and stir up memories of long days at camp, sun kissed locks, sandy toes, and best friends.

I've rounded up my top summery bracelets below. Will you be wearing friendship bracelets this summer?

top to bottom, left to right:

Frieda and Nellie, Turquoise

Sugar Blossom, Heart of Gold

Lauren Elan, Misel 

Frieda and Nellie, Dainty Bracelet

Sugar Blossom, Petunia

Marc by Marc Jacobs, Pink and Blue

Nikki B. Bracelet Giveaway!

I am so excited to share this fabulous giveaway with Jolie Jouel readers! When Favery contacted me about working together to give my readers an exclusive chance at winning some jewelry, I jumped at the chance.  Favery is an online jewelry community offering their jewelry-loving members limited collections of designer pieces at discounted prices. Unique jewelry at great prices?  This is exactly the kind of thing I am always on the lookout for to share with you guys!

You have a chance to win two dainty, beaded, Nikki B. bracelets like the ones I am wearing below. These bracelets are the perfect layering pieces for summer. The best part? They're so easy to put on. I often find that beaded bracelets are often tricky to put on by yourself, never tightening easily or evenly. These bracelets glide on with ease and the satiny cord slides easily and stays in place.  

Follow this one easy step to enter for your chance to win two Nikki B. beaded bracelets:

1.  Check out favery.com and sign up to be a member of Favery's stylish jewelry community. 

Favery will randomly select a winner, to be announced here next Monday, from the new members who sign up by clicking through the link provided above. 

Contest closes Friday August 9th at 6pm EST. Good luck! 

*Contest open to American and Canadian readers*

About Nikki B.

Nikki created her line of jewelry in 1998 in New York City and was named “Queen Bead” by American Vogue as one of the first designers to make beads fashionable. Her designs have been coveted by stores such as Paul Smith, Harvey Nichols, Colette and Barneys to name a few. 

Today, the nikki-b collection is handmade in Chile, where designer Nikki Butler has lived for the past 7 years.  Rural women hand craft each piece and are given fair pay and inspiring work. Over the years, Nikki has lived in Paris, Spain, New York and Chile, each place giving her unique inspiration for her collection. Travel remains an integral part of her life, bringing new experiences that are reflected in her designs. 

Trend Spotting: Braided Jewelry

There is something about summer that brings out the braids. Think french-braided buns, tiny accent braids sweeping across your crown, and braided jewelry. Friendship bracelets abound in the summer and one of the easiest and quickest ways to work your embroidery thread or chord is to braid it. Other designers have used heavier metal material for braiding for a look that is decidedly grown-up yet laid back. Here are my favorite braided jewelry below!

1. Lia braided friendship bracelet, Lauren Elan 

2. Orange and Metallic braided bracelet, MANGO

3. Braided Stone Chain bracelet, BCBG 

4. Gabriela Artigas, Braided Choker 

5. Aurelie Bidermann, Braided Bracelet

6. AURELIE  BIDERMANN, Miki 18-karat gold plated braided necklace

7. Pink braided bracelet, Piperlime

8. Long Braided Necklace, LOFT

Mother's Day Gift Guide

What to give the woman who has given the world to you? Something special! I've tried to come up with some indulgent, girly, and luxe gift ideas for Mom. You know, something she might not buy herself but would love and enjoy.  Consider her hobbies, decorating style, and personal style when shopping for her special gift.  Is she into golf or gardening or cooking?  Or maybe the gift she would like the most is some time with you. Mani/pedi anyone?

1. Spring scarf, Chapters Indigo 

2. Botanical Rose iPhone 5 Case, Rifle Paper Co.

3. Moby Measuring Cups, Anthropologie

4. Phone Wallet, Twelfth St. by Cynthia Vincent

5. Apron, Anthropologie

6. Coasters, Anthropologie

7. Fancy Bottle Opener, Anthropologie

8. Friendship Heart Bracelets, Gorjana

9. Gold Coin Purse, Kate Spade

10. Manicure/Pedicure mother-daughter date

11. Gardenalia: Creating The Stylish Garden, Chapters Indigo

12. I Heart U Ring Set, Jennifer Zeuner Jewelry

13. Hope Pink Golf Balls, Wilson

14. Double Heart Necklace, Jennifer Zeuner Jewelry

15. Bread Bin, Anthropologie

Friendship Bracelets: My Latest DIY

Happy Friday! This week flew by for me. Maybe it's the hint of warmer weather we've been having and the increased sunshine that's making the days seem brighter, fresher, faster.

I wanted to share these fun friendship bracelets I've been making in anticipation for summer. I've ordered a bunch of colourful cord and fun rhinestones in hopes of making piles of these bright bracelets to spice up my arm party (and my friends'!).  I am going to do a giveaway with one of these beauties when I reach 200 twitter followers or 200 followers on Jolie Jouel - whichever comes first! Friendship bracelets are a fun way to add colour to your outfit and they're easy to stack up with your other favourite bracelets.

Have a great weekend!

Designer Spotlight: Monikia Hibbs // BFREND

I first found Monika Hibb's cute bracelet line through her blog, The Doctor's Closet. Her line of dainty,  feminine, friendship bracelets is aptly named BFREND. (Side note: could she come up with better names for her ventures?!) 

Monika seamlessly applies the same pretty aesthetic to both of her brands and this has earned her a huge following.  From perfectly styled photos of her new house on Instagram, to tweets about fun fashion events that she's attending, her aesthetic is well defined and leaves the rest of wanting more.

In an effort to get to the bottom of how she makes it all seem effortless while producing quality work on both her blog and with her jewelry line, I set out to interview Monika. She was kind enough to answer all of my burning questions about BFREND and left me hanging with a few others. Once you read her last answer, you too will be chomping at the bit for more.

Let's get into it! 

Take us back to the start: How did your jewelry line, BFREND, begin? Was it something you purposefully started out to do or was it one of those happy occurrences that just sort of evolved and took off? 

It's so funny how things start in life, most of the time very unexpected. I was not planning on starting a business at all. I was actually making some friendship bracelets at home and decided to give away two on my blog that month. Once I posted them I had a lot of requests to buy them... and that's pretty much how it all began!

What inspires BFREND and your designs? 

I love working with different colors and gold. My range is everything from chunky to simple and delicate depending what my mood is! 

What is your typical work day like? 

My day is so different EVERYDAY. Anything from working on BFREND orders to blogging for myself (and my followers of course) on thedoctorscloset.com. Some people might also not know that I am the main contributor for the Blush Bridal blog and ( yes, there is another 'and'....) work at as the events coordinator part time at The Hudson's Bay Company in downtown Vancouver! So you can just imagine how every day can be so diverse! I love being busy and kept on my toes!

What do you like best about being a jewelry designer? What are some of the challenges? 

I love creating a piece of jewelry that I can't find! It's definitely not easy to source everything I want or have imagined, which makes it a bit challenging! 

 
What advice would you give to other aspiring jewelry designers and bloggers on growing their business?  

Be yourself and create your own ideas! I think that is so important! Creating a brand that represents you and your passion will get you the furthest in life! 

Where do you see BFREND headed (or any fun future plans you can share with us)? 

I do have a little new business venture coming up! But it's still top secret. It's not exactly with BFREND... and that's all I can say! :) 

  

Thanks Monika! Can't wait to see what you have up your sleeve next. And don't forget to shop BFREND here!

This or That? Friendship Jewelry Edition

Remember back in grade school when you'd trade broken half-heart necklaces from Claire's with your best friend? It was like getting engaged, for the younger set. There was something more special about your half a heart pendant than all of your other trinkets. It had meaning.

It's still a sweet sentiment to employ if you have a cherished friend who is also a jewelry lover. Friendship jewelry might even make for a sweet Christmas gift!

Tell me, do you prefer the traditional friendship necklace or are you more into the idea friendship bracelets or rings? Vote in the comments below!

// Friendship Necklace: Fallon Jewelry, Shopbop //

// Friendship Bracelet: Alex and Ani //

// Friendship Ring: Jordan Askill, Liberty London //

Which Would You Rather: for $545

I can never decide if it's better to invest in pricier but more quality pieces or to get the most bang for my buck and choose quantity over quality. There are so many pieces that I would love to own that are just out of my price range. But if I saved up and stop buying cheaper pieces I would be able to buy fewer, but more expensive pieces. I am not totally sure which is better, and like most things, it probably depends on the situation. If there is an expensive piece of jewelry you're in love with and know you'll get a lot of use out of, you'll probably save up. For trendier pieces I am guessing most of you would choose cheaper options.

But let's get specific. Would you rather this Gemma Redux necklace for $545.00 or eight pieces for the same price?

Gemma Redux, Cordelia Necklace, $545
------- Or -------
J. Crew, OGJM azalea bracelet, $74
ASOS, Aztec Triangle Drop Earrings, $13.26
J. Crew, Crystal Cupcake Necklace, $138
J. Crew, Classic Link Bracelet, $102
ASOS, Multi Chain Rounded Collar Necklace, $19.88
Shashi, Neon Nugget Bracelet, $22
Frieda and Nellie, Ravishing Rodeo bracelet, $160
ASOS, Spike Stretch Bracelet, $13.26
+ a cup of coffee = $545


Let me know in the comments below which you would choose!

DIY Friday: Embellished Friendship Bracelets

Yesterday I stumbled upon the Stylish Wanderer's Bedroom Tour on Teen Vogue. First of all, I had no idea she was so young (she's 16) - I feel like she's blogging forever! And secondly, I fell in love with all of her quirky jewelry. Here are my favorite shots below:

pc: Teen Vogue

When I saw the studded friendship bracelets I instantly need to know more. Turns out they're My Little Fisheye spike friendship bracelets from Lo & Chlo. They're so cute and the spikes add a little edge and interest to the usually campy friendship bracelet.

It got me thinking about friendship bracelets and how fun they are to DIY.  I can remember spending countless hours as a kid with embroidery thread safety-pinned to my jeans creating fun bracelets.

Honestly...WTF has some awesome DIY friendship bracelets up their site. Check out the photos here and then head on over to their site for more detailed step-by-step instructions. They've done a seriously fantastic job with three different DIY friendship bracelets: one with rhinestones, one with spikes, and one with chain. I can't wait to try it for myself! I think I'll start with the rhinestone beauty.

pc: Honestly...WTF

Designer Spotlight: Frieda and Nellie

Friendship bracelets collide with old school glamour in the Frieda and Nellie jewelry collection. Combining campy friendship bracelets with vintage jewelry give these fun, brightly colored bracelets a modern look with a vintage feel.

Meet the designers, New York City based best friends, Stacy Herzog and Sarah Reid. After traveling to Ecuador in late 2009, the duo were inspired by the diverse array of intricate knotted friendship bracelets they saw. Inspired by their travels, they began to hand make bright detailed knotted friendship style bracelets and combined them with pieces from their grandmothers’ vintage jewelry collections. Frieda and Nellie is named in honor of the designer’s glamorous and creative grannies (<--love this!)

Here are a few of my favorite designs!

Head on over to their site, www.friedaandnellie.com, for more!