My First Exhibit as a Jewelry Artist

I have always considered myself to be a creative person. From a young age I made messes that you would not believe. It was only in my late 20's that I started recognizing my messes as art, and claiming the title of artist. I'm used to getting recognition for my poetry and photography, but I was shocked and delighted when a local artist group asked me to participate in an art show for my jewelry. It was just the boost I needed after feeling a little like I had "sold out" in order to sell my work. This presents an amazing opportunity to create some unique pieces that let me play. It also is a wonderful chance to be in the company of other local artists and be inspired by their work. I can't wait for the show. I will post some of the pieces that I'm planning to exhibit soon.

Fun with Trash

I have been meaning to post some pics of the products of my recent upcycle obsession. I have truly fallen for bottle caps and soda cans in a way I never thought I would. I was lucky enough to meet a very friendly bartender who was willing to save bottle caps for me for the small price of a necklace. My friends have also pitched in on the effort, and now I have more bottle caps, soda cans, and tabs than a girl could ever have imagined. Here are some of the fruits of this new labor of love. I hope to have an upcycle blog about all the great websites I referenced to get to this point. And there is a giveaway in the works :)

When It Stopped Being About Love

I've just finished reading La Bella Joya's wonderful post on the amateur phase of jewelry making. It really got me to thinking about where I am with my jewelry and where I want to be. I don't remember when I picked up my first set of pliers and mangled some sterling silver wire into a pendant, I just remember that the feeling was heaven. I haven't looked back since. It went from gemstones, glass, and wire, to seed beads, to soda cans, and who knows where it will lead. And yes, that feeling that you get when people say "You made that?!" is still very much with me. The only trouble is that "How much?" has been added on to it. Don't get me wrong, I am thrilled to have a client base that wants to buy my work. It makes it a whole lot easier to keep myself in bead supplies now that they little gems are paying for themselves. That said, I've just spent the past 2 weeks preparing for a big sale that I have two more weeks to prep for, and I'm exhausted. Mainly, I'm tired of making what feels like the same pair of earrings over and over again. While I would love to be spending my time cutting up soda cans and experimenting with bottle caps, I have a deadline to meet. And what would be the point of making a whole lot of earrings that haven't been "tested", meaning simply that I don't know if people would actually buy them. Well, the point would be that this is very much where my free spirit artsy soul wants to play right now. So, where do I draw the line between supplying and creating. I wish I had an answer. I could not be more grateful to the amazing people who have purchased my jewelry, and I want them to keep coming back. I also want time to play! How do I manage the 2? Any suggestions?

Friday's Gem

I totally forgot to post this on Friday! Here goes :)

It feels like it has been way too long since I've done one of these. This week's gem is:

Amazonite

This beautiful stone has appeared and reappeared on my table for weeks now. Maybe it is the soothing aqua color, or perhaps it is my closer proximity to the ocean. Whatever the case may be, this little seafoamed colored wonder is in heavy rotation right now. Amazonite is a feldspar. It is found in many places around the world. It is light green or light blue green in color. It usually appears slightly mottled, and has some white striations. The stone is said to be a hope stone. It is also said to enhance the throat chakra's vibration and to encourage creativity.

Spirals

I absolutely love energy spirals. I was thrilled to get 10 spiral focal beads in my bead order last week. I have really enjoyed playing with colors and shapes as I've made spiral earrings.

I've got 4 more of these fantastic little spirals to work with. I can't wait to see what comes up.

I'm still waiting on Nauruan sandal beads. Unfortunately, my dear landlady's husband has a case of gout. I'm hoping that he will have a speedy recovery. Until then, I'll be longingly staring at my little beaded sandal.

What they do with beads in Nauru

My landlady is an absolute joy to be around. She is funny, thoughtful, and incredibly caring. Recently my friend L and I took her to get her ears pierced. I promised her that I would make a pair of fabulous earrings as soon as she graduated from her starter set. Last night I took her those earrings, and she oooed and aaahed and then handed them back to me.

She won't be able to take her starter set out until Saturday, and she was afraid that if she kept the earrings she would be tempted to try to wear them. What a compliment! As us ladies where doing jewelry talk, her husband came over and eyed a bracelet that I was wearing. He told me that his mother had beads. I thought this was an odd thing to say, but I asked him if his mom did bead work. He told me that she did, but that she was dead now, and he wanted to give all her beads to me. I was floored. I also immediately accepted his offer. It turns out that his dear mom was a fabulous beader. My landlady brought over a purse and a sandal (!) that she made. The beads that she used are round plastic beads from Nauru, which is a small island in Melanesia. I can't wait to get these little things on my beading table! And I'm going to be ambitious. Bead sandals, here I come!

A Flurry

These past few weeks have been a flurry of bead activity. In just a matter of days I have begun a color study, ordered new and fabulous beads, made loads of earrings, discovered how to bead a sandal Marshallese-Nauruan style, and taken on a bead apprentice. I will be sharing pictures and insights with you over the next coming days. I hope that in the meantime we will all get the chance to happily bead away :)