Chocolista Deborah recently interviewed Julee of ImJewelee:

When did you start making jewelry?

I started making jewelry at age 12 with a girlfriend and we would twist those little rainbow colored phone wires into friendship bracelets. Then, I actually did not make any jewelry until this year and I am 40ish my sister told me about Scrabble Tile Pendants and here you have it!

As a jewelry maker, do you also wear a lot of jewelry?

As a matter of fact I wear a lot of the jewelry that my sister has made and I do wear a lot of my pendants! I can change them up at any time and even make some to go with a particular color or outfit, now that is fun.
What inspires you to create your jewelry?

Oh my gosh what inspires me here we go....Childrens movies I go to those because of the gorgeous colors, I saw Kung Fu Panda 3 times and it has beautiful colors and scenery as well. I dream color combinations and wake up thinking about images and my little shop of "Art that you wear". I also love to paint and have painted a few Scrabble Tiles and they look really good but I have not posted any lately .... after a child asked me if my cute little owl was a ninja, HA! Also, vintage images and postcards, retro and pop art, 70's 80's and nature and chocolates.

I see your nine-year old daughter has an Etsy shop, too, with fun scarves. A love for crafts runs in the family. What would you say to mother's who hope to interest their little ones in crafts?

Oh I would say to a mother who would like to inspire their little ones to craft is to go to Hobby Lobby or get online and visit some craft sites and get going! You can create almost anything! Homemade clay is always fun to make and play with, at any age! Email me and I will give you a great recipe for some! Here are some more ideas, paper bag puppets with a puppet show, or sock puppets are so much fun...just a little yarn, some markers and google eyes. My daughter is so crafty and knows way more than me. She loves to paint and draw and I have never told her to "stay" in the lines....do your own thing and let them do it the way they want to.
ART is the way you see it, not the way others think it should be!

Name your favorite chocolate bar.

Oh my favorite chocolate bar....hmmm.....only one chocolate bar? I am thinking this is hard because I do have many that I love.... but I will say my most favorite of all time is the Heath bar. It has the best chocolate covering that you can peel off and eat and then crunch into the toffee middle and let it melt in your mouth.

Win! Dark Chocolate Petit-Four Candy Piece and $20 gift certificate!
Enter Name That Chocolate Dessert - Seventh Edition

Chocolista Deborah had the pleasure of interviewing Marisa of Elegant Snobbery.

What is your inspiration for your beautiful artwork?

My inspiration changes daily. I have two young children, so my work is generally geared for kids, as that is what surrounds me all the time. I adore sock monkeys, and have a big sock monkey collection as a result! I also have the biggest sweet tooth, so it isn't a surprise that I have an entire collection called "Delicious Things" filled with yummy looking cupcakes.

When did you start drawing?

I got my first professional colored pencil set when I was 12. That was when I decided that art was more than just fun for me, but something I would want to do for the rest of my life. I've been drawing ever since, and even though I have tried a variety of artistic mediums, colored pencil is always my favorite.

Tell us about Tootsie and Grace. I understand your three-year old daughter helps you with this.

Tootsie and Gracie is my collaborative shop with my three year old daughter, Gracie. It started out as just something fun for us to do together. She uses a permanent marker and draws a picture, then I use my colored pencils and color them in. We got such a positive response from family and friends, that I opened up the shop for our work.

Gracie might only be three, but she just loves looking at her Etsy shop, drawing new pictures for me to color in, and passing out her very own business cards, to friends and neighbors. And half of the money from the sales in our shop goes towards fun activities that the two of us can do together.
I see you are fond of fabric, too. Is Lindy Lou also your Etsy shop?

LindyLou is my mother's Etsy shop. She is a designer fabric fanatic, and is also very creative, so she has made a business designing and sewing pillow covers, travel accessories, hand bags and make up bags.

You are a busy lady. What is your favorite chocolate to get you through the day?

If it is chocolate, I'll eat it. But, since my husband is a Twix fanatic we always have those on hand.

Win! Chocolate and Roses Cupcake Gift Tags
Enter Name That Chocolate Dessert - Seventh Edition.

Now all that is missing is edible chocolate! So, Chocolistas, we want to know...what chocolate treats did you crave when you were expecting? If you have photos or recipes, do share!