Who knew that our feet could be a sexy part of our anatomy?  When you think about all the abuse they get every single day how can they stay soft and pretty enough to have sex appeal?  Referring to a previous post entitled 12 EASY STEPS TO GET YOUR FEET I SHAPE FOR WEARING BAREFOOT SANDALS, the ONLY way to have beautiful, soft and silky feet is to give them loving care.  Like having a pedicure.  If you’ve never treated yourself to one, make an appointment….today!  Not only will you walk out of the salon with pretty toe’s, you will have had a VERY relaxing experience.

The first time I put on a pair of barefoot sandals, I looked at my feet in a whole different way.   There was just something that the sandals did that changed the look of my feet.   I’ve always been someone who took care of my feet for as long as I can remember.   I’ve always worn polish on my toes because it made me feel – and look – like a girl.  So when I slipped into that first pair of bottomless foot jewelry, I instantly felt sexy.  Having my feet adorned with crystals made me want to grab a teddy out of the closet!

There are millions of people who feel that a woman with a sexy foot is an incredible turn-on.  Add a pair of sparkly barefoot sandals to that woman and you’ll wonder why you’ve never bought a pair for your wife or girlfriend.  With a wide variety of colors and designs, Jewels by Jan will give you many choices.   Just visit our website and choose the pair that appeals to your taste or her’s –   it could add a little excitement to your day (or night).

Wondering if you should have a beach wedding or not? It’s a decision many brides and grooms are pondering. According to the latest bridal industry news – beach weddings are still wildly popular, even though the trend started years ago.  Not only is this type of wedding very romantic, it’s also very affordable.  With the average cost of a wedding in 2010 between $20,000 – $30,000, this seems like an enormous financial burden.   Starting your marriage enslaved by your wedding day debts is not how you want to remember this wonderful occasion.

Think about the glorious, natural setting that provides a gorgeous backdrop, minimizing the need for expensive decorations.  Consider the miles and miles of beautiful beaches right here in the U. S., saving the cost of travel to distant lands.  Now close your eyes and picture yourselves surrounded by the embrace of your loving family and closest friends in a warm and intimate ceremony.

A beach wedding can also be more casual.  Everyone can relax, dress comfortably and affordably.  You can even involve family or friends in your ceremony and make them part of the celebration.  It’s your day and you can plan it any way that you want, be it romantic, whimsical or even silly.   It can be a modern and refreshing change from the typical indoor wedding and it allows your creativity and personalities to shine through.

Give it some thought – think about how unique you can make it and remember that your beach wedding footwear  is already taken care of….. by shopping at Jewels-by-Jan!

Wherever you’re heading for Spring Break – Cancun, Acapulco, Hawaii or another sunny destination, don’t forget to bring your barefoot sandals.  You’ll be spending your days at the beach and nights dancing on the beach – both perfect occasions for jazzing up those tan tootsies!

Grab a pair to match your teenie weenie bikini, a pair for your wet t-shirt contest and another for your balmy evening wear - let us match your “get down and partay” vacation-wear with our beach barefoot sandals. 

Jewels by Jan is your official Spring Break Footwear site!  Place your orders today! http://www.jewels-by-jan.com

The Washington, D.C. -based Dhoonya Dancers held one of their largest performances of the year on Saturday, November 7th at the Montgomery Performing Arts Center in Silver Spring, MD. The show was titled Bollyb!end 2: A night at the Bollywood Film Awards which, through dance, celebrates the glitz and glamour of India’s most popular film genre.

Shown here on the red carpet are two of the colors of custom-designed barefoot sandals that we handcrafted for one of their dances.  They matched the magenta and green costumes worn for that performance.  The sandals were a big hit with the crowd and with the dancers! 

And just so you know, the dance troupe is available for private parties, wedding receptions or any type of event that is looking for some fabulous, up-beat and colorful entertainment.   Contact Priya via e-mail on their web site http://www.dhoonyadance.com .

Remember that we will custom-craft barefoot sandals for any occasion in any color so if you know of another group of dancers who might like to add bottomless sandals to their costumes – just send us an e-mail at jan@jewels-by-jan.com

Brides-to-be…this post is just for you! Depending where you are in your wedding planning, at some point you will be choosing your wedding day jewelry accessories.  With SO many stores, so many sites, so many choices…what’s a bride to do?

If you’re a savvy consumer (which of course you are), you will put more stock in your friends’ opinions and independent product reviews.  Since my goal is to provide my followers with useful information I would not be doing my job if I didn’t tell you about Looney Maiden Jewelry.

Recognized by The Knot as well as top bridal magazines, Judith Cartier Oliver has created over 700 individual styles of affordable bridal jewelry, bridesmaid jewelry, flower girl jewelry and wedding hair accessories.   With 90 Swarovski crystal colors and 30 pearl colors to choose from, you’re sure to find just what you’re looking for.  If you don’t,  Judith will make it for you.  She’s worked with countless brides for over 15 years to create exactly what they are looking for.  And now, Judith and I have “teamed up” to accessorize you literally from head to toe. 

Call us the “Dynamic Duo”!  Together, we will make you look gorgeous….and more.  I will handcraft custom beautiful foot jewelry to match the jewelry pieces that she creates.  Keep in mind that we haven’t forgotten about your bridal party.  Whatever colors you’ve chosen for your wedding – Judith and I can coordinate the perfect wedding day jewelry accessories that will turn you and your attendants into the most beautiful wedding party . After all, feeling beautiful is the best way to start a new chapter in your new life!

Isn’t this just the cutest photo? This came from one of our customer’s who was recently married in Tulum, Mexico.  Their photographer, Tamms Photos, took this shot after their wedding on the beach.  I think it should be called Happy Feet! (In this photo, our bride is wearing Hearts Desire, our best-selling bridal barefoot sandal.) This design has been a favorite with our customers for over 2 years.  It has everything -  white hearts, Swarovski crystals and a medallion sparkles like the sun!

We receive many photos (and testimonials)  from our destination wedding brides who were married in gorgeous, tropical locations.  Beach weddings are still very popular and of course we love that and hope it continues.   Still, there are many that have never heard of barefoot sandals.  There are those that feel flip flops with a wedding gown look fine and those that just prefer to go barefoot altogether.  Bottomless sandals are a matter of personal preference. 

We’d love to hear your comments on this subject – if you were planning a beach wedding and had the option of adorning your feet with sparkling jewels (while still being barefoot), would you choose barefoot sandals or nothing at all?  Post a comment below.

JAN

Have you ever wondered what it takes to create a complex bead design? I can tell you from six years of experience when you work with small components, it’s a very time-consuming process.   The tiny little seed beads and 4mm crystals are just plain hard to pick up off the bead mat.  If you use long tweezers to pick up the components like I do, they can fly across the room if you squeeze the tweezers too tight.  But we have found that the smaller the bead, the more feminine and dainty the sandals will be.

When Pat and I started our business we knew that quality materials would be the key to producing a lovely piece of jewelry.  It was important to us to find bead suppliers that offered A-quality products at a reasonable cost.  That’s why we selected Swarovski pearls and crystals to use in our barefoot sandal designs.  Everyone can identify with the name Swarovski.

Each Swarovski Crystal Pearl is created around a crystal core, hence the name Crystal Pearl. This crystal core gives the pearl its ideal weight and combined with the Swarovski Pearl coating it causes each Crystal Pearl to glow from within. The pearl coating developed by Swarovski is applied around the crystal core in pearly layers.

Swarovski (Austrian) Crystal is considered by many people to be the finest quality, full-lead crystal made today.  To cut hard materials such as crystal and gems in such a way that they have a hundred identical facets in several directions is a very complicated task: each direction of the reflected light must first be calculated by computer, then this has to be simulated in 3D, optimized and finally converted into control programs for complex machinery.  It is this machine that makes it possible to cut crystal to perfection.

When we receive an order of Swarovski crystals there’s just nothing more brilliant than opening up their careful packaging and seeing several hundred sparkling prisms of light shining back at you!  Knowing the process of how they are cut makes it even more amazing.

By Susan Kreimer – Excerpted from the July 2006 edition of “Professional Jeweler” Magazine.

Barefoot on the beach? Yes, barefoot…but stepping in style!

This summer, bottomless barefoot sandals with beads galore are making shimmering statements. And fancy foot adornments – oh, those eye-catching ankle bracelets and toe rings – are treading closely in popularity.

On sandy terrains and in urban settings handcrafted foot jewelry has attracted an almost fanatical following. Designers are especially busy this summer stringing together customized combination – just in time for weddings and seasonal celebrations.

Many are new at this line of work; yet skilled enough that repeat orders keep streaming in. “”We’re deep into foot jewelry. It’s all we do,” says Jan Baker, 58, of San Diego, California.

In September 2003 she launched “Jewels by Jan – Beaded Foot Jewelry for all your “barefoot” occasions!” At beach weddings, barefoot sandals are a bride’s best friends. “It’s too hard to walk in sand with any kind of shoes, even flip-flops”, Baker says. What a difference her creations make.

“Your feet are free to wiggle in the sand but they’re decorated with sparkly beads. The sandals are comfortable to wear because the beads are strung on durable elastic cord. You just slip your feet into them; there are no hooks to fasten.”

And if you want to wear something on your soles – from casual to dressy – these so-called sandals are good to go. Although she receives orders year-round, purchases peak around this time.

Each item is handmade by Baker or her younger sister, Pat Jones, who lives in the Des Moines, Iowa area. There’s no mass production of piece after piece. Everything has a touch of originality. Take the order that Baker recently shipped to Hawaii, for example. The bride requested one pair for her wedding, another for her honeymoon, along with hot pink and red beaded sets for her bridesmaids and 4-year-old flower girl. “When I finished designing these particular sandals, I actually saw how pretty the combination of the two colors really was,” says Baker, who is from Iowa.

Another bride exercised distinctly different demands. Intent on donning a rhinestone necklace that’s a family heirloom, she wanted her feet to dazzle just as much. Her wedding wish became Baker’s command.

“We’ve even had men ask us if we plan to design a beach sandal that they could wear,” she says. “Haven’t done that yet but, hey, whatever the customer wants – we try to accomplish it.”

Jan Baker, ever the enterpriser, buys her beads only from U.S. suppliers, not from overseas.

In June, she and her sister geared up to be first-time vendors at a California belly dance event expecting more than 5,000 attendees. Both have day jobs – she’s an Administrative Assistant for a clinical research organization; her sister is a hairdresser with a loyal customer base. “We’re busy making 200 pairs of sandals – the majority of them all different designs,” Baker says, while preparing weeks in advance. “We felt that it would be a good selling point for no two pairs to be the same.”