As you probably know by the excessive amount of pink around town this week, October is breast cancer awareness month. Because our donations always go towards women and children, we thought this would be a great month to give 10% of all sales to Beats for Boobs Seattle, a non-profit event that gives 100% of their earnings to three local breast cancer charities: BREAST CANCER RESOURCE CENTER, YOUNG SURVIVAL COALITION, and SEATTLE CANCER CARE ALLIANCE!
The event is at the Crocodile on October 19th, and would be a great place to wear your new pink Otra Vez earrings! We could not be more impressed with the group of women who throw this event each year, good luck ladies and keep up the great work!

Love,

Otra Vez

Carissa and Carleigh in Support of Treehouse for Kids Seattle

This month the Otra Vez team is featuring two wonderful designers (and sisters!). 5% of everything bought through the Otra Vez Website during January and February will benefit Tree House, a wonderful Seattle non-profit that benefits foster youth.

Carleigh and Carissa Donsker grew up in Los Angeles together with their parents, brother and plethora of pets. The materials they use in their creations are salvaged, and have been re-purposed to create one of a kind intricate and unique wearable objects. “We spent many summer days on the beach of West Seattle sketching ideas, creating designs and watching the sun set over the Olympic mountains for our inspiration. In our daily efforts we always hope to encourage and inspire those around us to find those unique and beautiful things that are already in the world”, says Carissa.

Carleigh, the younger sister and also an amazing painter, selects beautiful naturally shed feathers for her pieces from the open fields of Chatsworth, CA. She combines these findings with sterling silver or gold plated wire and colorful Swarovski crystals. Her other accessories, like her jelly fish series, are also inspired by nature and reflect the delicate life of these creatures – these are made from remnants of vintage silk scarves and clothing.

Carissa, an interior designer, uses remnants of wood both local and exotic as the base for her jewelry, and sees her designs as a natural extension of only the best aspects of her day job. She begins by hand carving wooden blocks into delicate shapes, then sanding the wood down so it as soft as silk to the touch. She uses natural oil stains to seal in the natural wood color, which helps them resist body oils, water and other elements. The final process involves selecting the natural gemstone to set into the wood which is secured with a cement like epoxy. The finished pieces are delicate and simple.

We hope you enjoy their work as much as we do. We find these edgy, earthy looks the perfect way for an stylish Seattle woman to shine!

Please note that Carleigh’s pieces are each sold separately – they can be worn as one earring or paired together for a unique non matching look. Both sisters would love to create custom orders for you upon request!

Jessica Salazar in D-List Magazine

Check it out…, D-List Magazine coverage from Seattle. Go to www.dlistmagazine.com, click on the November issue, and “thumb” to page 53. Hard copies of D-List Magazine can be found all over Seattle, just go to their website and click on “find a copy” to locate a vendor near you!

Special thanks to Jenascia Chakos of D-List Magazine, Photographer Katrin Dartnell, Julia Westphal, and Duque Salon/Spa/Boutique for hair and make-up!

* Please note the following correction: Otra Vez products are also carried at Duque Salon/Spa/Boutique in Ballard.

We came across something really cool on their website: free eCards! Let your loved ones know you’re thinking about them and share messages of hope that will surely inspire and touch their hearts.

“Share your support of Women for Women International by sending a free eCard to your friends and family. Each eCard shares a story of hope from women survivors of war.”

Visit: Women for Women International eCards