The Princess Project is a nonprofit that provides free prom dresses and accessories for high school girls who couldn’t otherwise afford them.  Their 2009 dress and accessory drive is from February 8th-14th.  Please consider donating jewelry, purses, wraps, and new or nearly new gowns in EXCELLENT condition in all fabrics, sizes, and colors — see the donation guidelines.

The Princess Project is currently operating in the San Francisco Bay Area and San Diego — you can find donation drop off locations here.

The Asian/American/Modern Art: Shifting Currents, 1900–1970 exhibition closed today at the de Young Museum in San Francisco.  This exhibition presented the work of artists of Asian ancestry who lived and worked in the United States and many of whom had their works exhibited at the de Young in the past. One of the goals of the exhibition was to create awareness of this under-represented group in American art history. Two of my favorite artists (Chiura Obata and Ruth Asawa) were included in the exhibition.

The exhibition store was curated and had items created by and about artists of Asian descent.  Aiko Designs jewelry was selected to be sold at the special exhibition store — it was a wonderful experience to be a part of something so amazing.  You can still find my jewelry at the de Young, and if you can’t make it there in person, check out their online store.

If you’re looking for a last minute gift or you’re unsure of what to get her, Aiko Designs Gift Certificates make the perfect gift! They can be redeemed for any available item from our online shop and come in denominations big and small, perfect for any occasion. Get one for her here.

Aiko Designs’ Tourmaline Candy earrings on 7×7’s online jewelry holiday gift guide! These earrings are currently exclusively available at the de Young Museum in San Francisco.

egg & the urban mercantile is having a party/fundraiser (food drive!) tomorrow night (Sunday 12/14) from 5:00-8:00pm. This is a fundraiser for the San Francisco Food Bank with incentives for you the shopper!

For every food item you donate you will receive a 5% discount on store merchandise, with a maximum discount of 20% off. So two items saves you 10%, and four items saves you 20%! Be sure to receive a receipt for your food donation from one of our staff. That receipt is your ticket to your discount.

egg & the urban mercantile is located at 85 Carl Street in San Francisco.

Nest is getting some amazing press this holiday season. It has just been featured in a Gifts that Give Back story on Oprah.com. You can also find items from Nest listed in other holiday gift guides like Marie Claire, Rachael Ray Magazine, Midwest Living and Redbook Mag.

Aiko Designs jewelry (along with many other designers) is available for purchase via the Nest site and portions of all sales go toward Nest’s mission of providing micro-credit loans to women artists/artisans in developing countries to build and sustain their own businesses.

The other day I was drawn to an article posted on SFGate about Agelio Batle and his live/work art studio in Potrero Hill, SF. There are some great pictures of the space and details on the studio, how Agelio and his wife found it and how they now use it to raise their two kids as well as run a thriving art business.

I checked out Agelio’s web site and saw that his studio was open this weekend for a holiday sale so I decided to stop by — it’s an amazing space and Agelio is a warm and welcoming guy. I got a tour of the space and learned a bit about his background, his work and the business of art. His pieces are really cool — there’s a selection of paintings, marble sculptures and graphite pieces that you can actually write with! here’s what I picked up for myself:

Agelio’s (Batle Studio) holiday sale is running through Dec. 24th with selected items 25-50% off. It’s well worth a visit.

SF Gallery 143 is back with their annual Holiday Consignment Store. For several weeks in December, Jessa Freeman converts this photo studio in the Lower Haight into a curated boutique featuring some pretty great artists and designers. Show your support and stop by on a Saturday night for a party where you can meet and mingle with (and shop from!) the participating artists/designers.

SF Gallery 143
143 Fillmore St. (@ Waller)
Dec. 6-21
Tue.-Fri. 3-7pm
*Sat. 11am-6pm
Sun. 12-6pm

*Saturday night events are from 6-9pm

Catherine Vo, a high school student and founder of Beaverton (near Portland), Oregon’s Aloha High School Youth Empowered by Action group, contacted me a while back about donating some jewelry for a fashion show benefit at her school, to which I happily complied. Turns out Catherine has gathered up approximately $31,000 in in-kind donations from designers such as Fair Indigo, Velvet by Graham & Spencer, Denim by Victoria Beckham, Rygy Swimwear, Colette Malouf, and many, many more. They plan on auctioning off approximately 400 items. (this is just an incredible feat — considering Catherine mostly did this by emailing designers and simply asking for their participation)

The Labels for Love Fashion Show and silent auction is happening at Aloha High School on Friday, December 5th from 5:00-8:00pm. This event benefits the Oregon Food Bank. I wish Catherine and all those involved incredible success. I am so impressed with all of her efforts and they definitely aren’t going unnoticed!

Just in time for the holidays, we’ve added a few items to the site and the online store. There are several new pendant necklaces with rutilated and tourmalated quartz as well as the lovely labradorite pendant necklace shown here.

More to come over the next few days with a focus on mixed metals and black & white — which might just be a recessionista thing! I’m not quite sure where that influence is coming from, but black and white are timeless, which always works well.