Spotlight on Joy Light

I am bubbling with pleasure to be in the spotlight on In Her Shoes Blog this week! In Her Shoes Blog is a dynamic website dedicated to recognizing women for their special and unique talents, jobs, careers and impacts they have on those around them.  Pati Lara features one woman each week by telling her unique story and why she is an extraordinary person for everyone to meet, catch a glimpse of and support. Nominate someone today!

“I am magnetized by color and inspired by silk, an amazingly soft, sensuous and durable fabric. I began painting silk in 1989 and have developed several lines that take their inspiration from my love of beauty and passion for creativity.” – Joy Light
Joy started out painting silk 20 years ago as a hobby. In 2002, she launched the Natura line. After attending the American Craft Retail Expo in 2009  in Las Vegas 2009 “the business really began to take off”.  During February 2012, Joy Hand Painted Silk's Spring Romance Collection is featured at circa. Urban Artisan Living,  an award winning lifestyle boutique in the Historic Fondren District in Jackson, Mississippi. She designed this vintage style featuring antique ribbon, lace and silk flowers to echo the season's fashionable wedding trends of feminine headbands in lieu of veils.
Joy Hand Painted Silk supports several charities; “We do what we can when we can.” Some of her favorite local charities are KS Wild, the Klamath Siskiyou Wildlands Center, and SOU Women's Center's annual V-Day productions. This month, Joy is mentoring three young women from the Jackson County Children's Advocacy Center. Joy actively funds micro-loans in Africa through KIVA.org.  All of the pink hand painted silks at Joyflower.etsy.com are earmarked for a percentage donation to www.cancer.org for breast cancer research. 
"Silk has a luxurious translucence that perfectly radiates the rich saturated colors I enjoy working with. Every item is made to order, hand painted and signed as an original work of art."
Earth Day heralds an exciting product launch for Joy. She's designed a brand-new accessory combining elements of jewelry with silk on Earth Day to an A-List of celebrities. This special limited edition high fashion accessory will soon be available from Joyflower on Etsy! The Santa Fe Opera gift store carries Joy Silks again this season, along with select boutiques in the US and Europe. Stay tuned, as Joy Silk accessories are soon to be featured on a new Luxury Lifestyle website. 

Joy’s classic ruana accessorizes your personal style with ease and beauty. Lightweight flowing chiffon is edged and trimmed with a satin to add just the right weight for perfect drape on all figures. A ruana is like a cape, but open on the sides. Versatile and lightweight, it is ideal for travel and any occasion.

There is nothing as soft as silk against your skin and no easier way to take your style up a notch as by tying on a stunning silk scarf! Joy Silk artisan accessories are individually hand crafted and made to order. From special occasions to everyday fashion, there are endless ways to effortlessly wear Joy Silk in style. With 26 color ways, a variety of weaves and classic cuts, Joy Silk stays in style season after season. Joy Silk keeps it simple with affordable, hand-made haute couture accessories. 
Joy is a member of the Rogue Art Gallery, the american craft council, The Artisan Group and several Etsy teams.

" May this painted light be an inspiration to you."

Earth Day Official

Inspired by the book Earthsong by Bernhard Edmaier

In honor of Earth Day 2012, we're thrilled to announce Joy Hand Painted Silk AKA Joyflower on Etsy, in association with The Artisan Group, will participate in gifting a select group of high-profile, environmentally-conscious celebrities including Jeremy Piven, Tom Hanks, Bill Maher, Adrian Grenier, Kate Bosworth, P!nk, Leonardo DiCaprio, Dave Matthews, Rosario Dawson, Woody Harrelson, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Daryl Hannah, Drew Barrymore, Ellen DeGeneres, Orlando Bloom, Jake Gyllenhaal, Josh Hartnett, Sting, Barbra Streisand, Alicia Silverstone, Courteney Cox, Cameron Diaz, KT Tunstall, Mark Ruffalo, and Edward Norton.

Each celebrity will receive Joy's new "Earthsong Scarflette" in their gift bag. The pattern is inspired by the book Earthsong by Bernhard Edmaier.  

Stay tuned as we share production and packaging for this exciting venture with The Artisan Group. 

Vintage Valentines

Here are a few of my favorite valentines from days gone by ~Enjoy

Trunk Show @ circa.

The Lightning Strikes Shibori Collection is Joy Hand Painted Silk's limited edition collection of shibori dyed silk gowns and shawls is featured through February. Stop in and experience the beauty of Urban Artisan Living at circa. 2771 Old Canton Road in the Historic Fondren District in Jackson, Mississippi 601.362.8484

circa.

Shibori Dyed Gown and Shawl by Joy Light
From the Lightning Strikes Collection

Show Card Side B

How do we like it that circa. is hosting this month's trunk show by Joy Hand Painted Silk? Try love!
We couldn't agree more with the sentiment expressed by the Rosen Group, publishers of Niche Magazine to Fondren’s circa. The national fine art gallery and retail magazine honored circa. as their top retailer in the social networking category in awards announced earlier this year. circa. is now nationally recognized and owners Craig and Michele Escude couldn’t be more thrilled. “We are deeply honored by this award,” Craig said. ”To win national recognition after being open for such a short time and for simply doing what we love is phenomenal. We could not do it without the support of our business community, circa.staff, artisans and, most of all, our circa.family of customers.” Opened in October 2010, circa. describes their store as American ingenuity with a splash of urban coolness….

Show Card Side A

Take home a bit of Joy, even if it's simply one of the limited edition show cards, especially designed to showcase Joy's exclusive collections featured at circa.'s trunk show during February! 

circa.

Silver and Lavender
Shibori Dyed Gown and Shawl
from the Lightning Strikes Collection

Michelle has a way with display, the store is replete with American made by hand fine craft and art with the focus on wearable art by Joy Hand Painted Silk and local artist Christy Henderson's modern paintings. 

circa.

Paintings by Christy Henderson.

Spring romance is the theme with Joy's exclusive fashion accessories including soft sculpture silk roses which may be worn in the hair or used to adorn your silk scarf, purse, hat or lapel. 

circa.

Silk Roses on display.

Joy's Spring Romance Collection is right on time so you can get something special for your Valentine. On trend with spring bridal fashions, the limited edition collection features antique lace and ribbon plus vintage costume jewelry items salvaged from the Railroad House from an era gone by. And there is more from Joy's Jewellery collection, the pendants coordinate perfectly to the silk scarves and wraps because they are actually high quality photographic transfers of original silk paintings on glass crystal and mother of pearl.  

circa.

Show Banner

Preparing for the show entailed creating the collections, designing and printing the custom show card and hang tags, shipping ahead banners and display items and finally sending three boxes of exclusive merchandise to Mississippi. Special orders will be taken during the event so customers at circa. can get Joy Silk ensembles made to order! 

circa.

Hand Painted Silk Peacock Ruana, Gown and Scarf.