Wow! That had to be such a great feeling to be able to get into those black jeans!! Wa'il has a post somewhere, (I don't remember where) about keeping track of our measurements because sometimes the scale doesn't move, but we can lose several inches. I started measuring myself since then. It sounds like you're having the same thing happen to you.
Do you exercise a lot?
I live in New Mexico and there are so many jewlery makers here. I love it! I just bought a pair of silver earrings made by a Hopi woman last week. Do you work with gold and silver? Do you ever go to Arizona to the big jewlery and gemstone show they have every year?