Happy Christmas from Rangoli!

It's time for me to sign off for a relaxing holiday! Rangoli will be closed for Christmas and will re-open on Thursday 6th January.

Thanks for your support throughout the year - I hope you will continue to keep me company in 2011 via my blog, Facebook and Twitter posts. Make sure to visit my website too!

2010 has been a rewarding year with lots of wonderful highlights. I especially want to thank my loyal clients from 1998 to the present - I appreciate all of your recommendations to friends and colleagues.

So, enjoy your break ~ and best of luck to all my Christmas brides - I'll be thinking of you all :-)

Image via Flickr.com

Rangoli Christmas Competition Winner

Wow - thanks for all your brilliant 'one word' descriptions of Rangoli jewellery for my Facebook competiton! Some were intriguing, others made me laugh and all of them made my head swell...in a good way :-) Check out the final collection of words -

Breathtaking, Lustrous, Shiny, Dazzling, Unparalleled, (as I haven't seen anything like your designs anywhere else), Fairy-princessy, More - ish (Meaning I would love to have lots of Rangoli Jewellery), Exquisite, Iridescent, Rangolious, Classy, Schitterend, (one word for Sparkling / glittering / radiant / dazzling / brilliant / fantastic!), Intricate, Distinctive, 'OhhlaaaLaa', Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, Perfect, Spangolious, Ponyo, (Japanese word meaning breathtaking), Einstakt (Icelandic for "unique"!), Stunning, Bling, Zmysłowe, meaning sensuous, Drithle, (an old Irish word for "sparkle"), and Yorokobii, (a Japanese word meaning joy).

There were a few strong contenders in there but the winner of the competition is Celia Clancy who submitted the word "Unparalleled" because she hasn't seen anything like Rangoli designs anywhere else. Well, here's to originality!

Congratulations Celia - I'm looking forward to meeting you in the new year and designing something really special for you!

Rangoli Bridesmaid commission

Here's a recent commission that I loved working on. The wedding is not until the spring so it's nice to have images of floaty chiffon dresses to keep my mind off the chillyness!

The brief for this commission was for something soft and romantic. The client loved my hairwire styles and also wanted something with a side feature. I came up with the idea of incorporating a fine velvet ribbon to create a 'Jane Austin' inspired headpiece. I then sourced a selection of Swarovski crystals in lilac and opal pinks.

This piece ties at the back of the head. It also doubles up as a necklace or bracelet - probably one of my most versatile pieces! The beautiful dress is by J Crew - check out their website for the full collection.

I hope you enjoyed reading about this commission - check my archives for more Rangoli commissions and Rangoli wedding features or visit my website to view my collections.

Christian Lacroix designs for Rosa Clara

Well here is a dress that I love for 2011 and I'm not normally drawn to full princess skirts! It combines some of the key style trends for the coming season...lots of tulle layering, flower forms and a cute bow. Quite a glass slipper dress for 2011!

I love the idea of two designers working together and Christian Lacroix brings some of his haute couture magic to this gown. The neckline is another beautiful detail and one that rarely features in bridal gowns. Below is a gown from the 2011 Rosa Clara collection. I love the pleated layered tulle combined with soft lace.

Next up, I'll be sharing a gorgeous bridesmaid commission with you - a delicate beaded hairband in a soft mauve and grey palette!

'Three things' 2

The 'Three things' series is about things that inspire me to design. This is a visual diary of images I love... might be a colour, a form or simply something that triggers a happy emotion. Welcome to my world - I hope you enjoy leafing through my visual diary!

My inspiration selection today has a theme of transparency. I have a fascination for delicate things which is carried into my designs. I love layering of colours as well as things that have dream-like qualities.

This first image is an installation made with coloured twine. It is titled Feathered Edge by Ball Nogues.

I've picked the second image because it is so magical. I love the delicate colours and can imagine this bubble sailing upwards in the sky!

And finally an image of Nalalie Portman in a delicate, transparent, lace dress. So feminine.

I'd love to hear about your style-files or other ways for gathering and storing visual ideas!

Have a look at some more pages from my visual diary...
Image source and credits -
Feathered Edge installation
Bubble photographNatalie Portman image via tumblr.com

The Worldwide Rangoli Competition!

Hi to all my readers around the globe! I looked at the profiles of my Rangoli Facebook followers and discovered an amazing cross-section of locations including Ireland, The United Kingdom, Turkey, India, Australia, countries in North and South America, Poland, Italy, Spain, United Arab Emirates, Germany, Ukraine, Lithuania, The Netherlands and Malaysia. Wow thanks for your company - let me know if you have a location to add to my list!

It's a really nice feeling to think that I'm connecting with such a diverse audience :-)

So to celebrate the global love, I'm launching a competition which is open to anyone worldwide.

The prize is for bespoke Rangoli Jewellery or Hair Accessories to the value of €300. The prize also includes postage to your destination.

This competition is SO SIMPLE to enter -

1. Firstly, sign up for my Rangoli Jewellery Facebook page
2. Then leave a comment below or on the event page on Facebook describing Rangoli Jewellery in ONE WORD. Use whatever language you like!

The competition closes on Thursday 23rd December and I will announce the winner before Christmas.

Good luck to you all - can't wait to read your entry words!
Aisling

'Three things' 1

The 'Three things' series is about things that inspire me to design. This is a visual diary of images I love... might be a colour, a form or simply something that triggers a happy emotion. Welcome to my world - I hope you enjoy leafing through my visual diary!

First up is the colour grey. Amazing by itself and happily harmonises with any colour palette.

Pattern is probably top of my list for inspiration ideas. I love this installation made from 60,000 quilting pins! Gorgeous colour, pattern and concept. It was made by Lisa Kellner.

And definitely not 'least', a stunning clutch bag by Alexander McQueen complete with four bejewelled rings :-)

This is the first in the series so I hope you enjoy seeing what inspires me to design over the coming months. Why don't you start a visual diary too?

Image sources and credits -
Top - Image via FeyHandmade
Middle - Lisa Kellner
Bottom: Alexander McQueen

Graduated colour palette

It's a very beautiful white world out there so it's a perfect canvas for some bold colours. I love the magical transparent colours in this Johnny Miller photograph. It's the graduation of colours that makes it so interesting though - from sea-green to blue.



You could have lots of flower fun by creating colour graduated displays or perhaps bridesmaids with different palettes of colour.


A magical idea for a magical white world!

Photo credits
Orange flowers via Design Sponge
Pink flowers via A Vintage Rose Garden
Colour wheel by Andy Gilmore via ffffound.com