Two weekends ago, I hosted a jewelry party and mimosa brunch for my incredibly talented friend Harlem Winston, who is the owner of Nubian Ego Jewelry and Accessories. If you don’t know her, you should.  Harlem hand makes all of her items; she is the master of manipulating wire to bend to her will. She lives in Chicago, so since she was in the area, we had a jewelry party and mimosa brunch.

The menu included scrambled eggs, banana nut and wild berry muffins, bacon, plain croissants, baked bananas, biscuits, as well as spinach, tomato and cheese croissants. I’m still tickled because I made the latter as an alternative for my vegetarian friends and they were the first ones to go to the meat eaters!

For the mimosa station, we had orange/pineapple/apple juice, passion fruit juice and good ole’ orange juice. Champagne flowed and Welch’s Sparkling White Grape Juice was available for people who either didn’t drink or didn’t want to go into lush mode on a bright, early Saturday morning. I grabbed the champagne. (I also made some delicious Haitian coffee for those of us who may have needed a little sobering up before we exited.) Garnishments included fresh peaches, strawberries and oranges…and I think we all appreciated an atmosphere where it was socially acceptable to just eat the fruit outright…

The event lasted from 9 to noon; I think only 15 minutes of that time was actually devoted to shopping. The guests didn’t leave until closer to 2pm, but that was fine. Through this event, I was able to assemble a team to coach me through my natural hair journey and I got my own real life version of “What To Expect When You’re Expecting.” I don’t know if I was looking to be expecting much after that conversation, but it’s great to know that I’ll have a team of friends willing to be by my side when I’m moaning, complaining and riding the mood swing rollercoaster. I love you gals!

What I love most about this collection is the fact that everything is made by hand. I’m a huge proponent of handmade things and I love to find/own/gift unique pieces of just about anything. Not that I need any more jewelry in my repertoire, but I’ve never been able to leave an event (or her house) without something in my bag! And because her creations are made by hand, every piece is individually unique. Everything can be customized to the stones and materials you fancy. It’s all about you!

So when you have a chance, visit her Etsy store or check out her fabulous pieces. I promise you won’t be disappointed!

Make It Awesome!