Back in December we had a preview of our new Make the Connection program and we had a ton of great feedback. The wait is finally over and Make the Connection is in stores now!

Make the Connection was created with the idea that everyone, whether a jewelry designer or not, should be able to create their own style of jewelry quickly and easily without any tools. We have utilized an intricate style of snap that not only looks great but also allows all of the pieces to connect and reconnect in seconds making that morning rush of "What do I wear today?" that much easier. The program ...

With our new line Snap in Style arriving in stores just around the corner in late Spring, we wanted to hear from all of you about what your favorite pieces are. Below are 20 Snaps and 4 Bases from our Snap in Style program, use the corresponding "Like" buttons to tell us which ones are your favs. Don't be scared to leave us your comments below either, we will be using all of this information to help shape the final program!

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Here at Cousin we have so many wonderfully imaginative employees. They have created everything from beaded Christmas stockings to gorgeous embellished outfits, even a hand painted and bejeweled "art vehicle"! With all of this talent surrounding us, we have decided to showcase a few of our employee creations over the upcoming weeks here on our Blog. This week's blog article is from Dawn, a Support Member to our Graphics Arts Dept. 

I love beads. I love chains. Heck, I LOVE jewelry and so this project was just TOO much fun.

I had a friend's birthday coming up soon and wanted to ...

This week we are welcoming our good friend Carol Heppner to the Cousin Design Blog. She has always been a great supporter and we are so happy so has created such a wonderful tutorial to share with all of us. 

On my desk sits aged-copper chains and findings from Cousins®.  They have a wonderful patina and I am drawn to their rustic charm.  There can be no doubt, they must be the base on which I will build my bracelet. 

Contrast and asymmetry are the main elements of my signature style, so I quickly focus on the smooth Perles de ...

Simply Charming Travel Jewelry Envelope

I love to travel and I love to accessorize.  I’m always challenged to find a way to get my jewelry in my suitcase, without taking up a lot of space.  I created this soft, lightweight (an important feature when dealing with the cost of checking bags!),  and very cute cozy to store my jewels when I travel.  It is a snap to make and will keep your jewels warm and cozy.  These would make great holiday gifts.  Especially with a handmade bracelet tucked inside!

Supplies:

(1) 9 ” x 12” piece of felt

Scalloped Blade ...

Like many crafters, I dabble in a lot of mediums. My favorite place to be is behind the wheel of my sewing machine, but you can also frequently find me knitting, scrapping, beading….pretty much, you name it, I do it. So when this project popped into my head, and I realized I could use my jewelry making skills to create a beautiful stitch marker I would use on a regular basis in my knitting…well, I couldn’t wait to get started!

Materials:

Beads for chandelier style marker:

• 10 Crystazzi 6mm Bicone beads: Pink

• 7 Crystazzi 6mm Bicone beads: Crystal

Beads for ...

Here at Cousin we create a lot of projects, but we also know how helpful just having a different point of view can be. With that in mind we would like everyone to welcome our very first Cousin Guest Blogger, Fernanda Medina. 

To help everyone get to know her a little better here is a brief introduction from her personal blog.

My passion for designing jewelry and making jewelry started when I was a student at Parsons School of Design. I was there for illustration but after a quick look at the Product Design Department I fell madly in ...

Check out Cousin's newest concept, arriving in stores this spring!

Make the Connection consists of three different jewelry elements: short connectors, long connectors and pendants. Simple snaps on each end connect the pieces and let you mix and match to create different jewelry pieces, using no tools at all!

We have created a gallery on our Facebook page where we will be uploading samples created by our designers.  You can visit the gallery simply by clicking Here.

We LOVE your feedback everyone! Have a Happy New Year & we'll see you in 2012 :-)

Welcome to Cousin Corporation’s new Jewelry Design Blog. This is our place to share stories, insights, questions & answers, ideas and general beading mayhem with all our friends.

What might you expect to see in the days ahead?

Inspiration.
Some of our contributors will be professional jewelry designers. Some will be crafters with a flair for beads, but all of us have the common thread of being jewelry lovers. We can't wait to share with you the kinds of things that get us excited: designs, techniques, profiles on professional artists, and perhaps even the occasional peek into our imaginations and ...