Findings Worth Finding: Pinch Bail Components...

I'm always on the look out for new products that look good, are innovative and are made out of topnotch materials. That's why I was particularly excited to discover Alisa Masiejczyk of Shoutrinse on Etsy.

Alisa, a Poland-based jewelry designer, offers a healthy selection of "pinch bail components" and hard to find European-made goods. (She also has an Art Nouveaux-inspired shop that's to die for!) I wasn't familiar with "pinch bails" before, but was happy to discover the easy elegance of these earwires and pendant bails. They are a quick way to make a pair of dazzling earrings in seconds. All you have to do is pop on your desired item and press it shut. You can also stack flatter items for a more layered look. Check out her blog for step-by-step tutorials on how to use these unique components and get a glimpse of what inspires her.

Here are some things I threw together:

The above earrings were made out of Alisa's sterling silver "pinch bail" earwires, NEW pewter pendants from my family, and black filigree from Ezel Findings. You can stack items in the pinch bail for a more layered look. I think the filigree does a nice job of framing the little fine pewter pendant that says, "heal" on the back.

Here is an example of the "pinch bail" as a pendant bail. This simple necklace took seconds to make. I used a Swarovski Cosmic Crystal Pendant and slipped it on a gunmetal chain, both from Fusion Beads. The "pinch bails" go perfectly with crystals because the exposure to tooling is limited and therefore reduces the risk of chipping.

In case you're into mixed metals jewelry, like working with the warmth of natural brass filigree, or are just really in love with gold, Alisa also offers the pinch bail components in 24K vermeil. I appreciate that Alisa only features components in her shop crafted out of the finest materials. The commitment to quality really shines through and gives pieces made with her components that "fine jewelry" look and feel. Don't the above earrings look posh? I just added Swarovski Olivine Navette Pendants from Artbeads.com to a pair of Alisa's vermeil earwires!

I definitely recommend going to Shoutrinse on Etsy and checking out the amazing selection of pinch bail components!