Epiphany

There's nothing like going through life, passing Middle Ages and getting into the "Senior" category and still you don't really know what you want to be when you grow up.  In my case, I just enjoyed doing so many things that I haven't been able to decide.  So, the other day I made myself one of "those" lists and wrote down all the things I like that could be considered my Artisan ID.   In case you are head-scratching now, that's when you can be exposed to a created piece and know who did it.  Whether it is music or art or a fashion style, you just know who created it.  That's what I have been trying to figure out for months now.  However, even the list didn't help much to clarify my own definition, but the following morning whilst showering, I was hit with one of those thoughts that often come while I am relaxing and letting the hot water pour over me.  Why had I never thought of this in relation to my wardrobe?  My sewing over the decades has really defined me.  I know exactly what styles I like and will wear, and when I applied that same criteria to the jewelry making, my brain lit up like the fireworks on July 4th.  I have been excited about discovering myself ever since!

Inspiration hit me then too.  After looking over my boards on Pinterest for a few hours, I started to get ideas on what I wanted to put together, and here is what happened....  

Spring is here!

With every end of the month I take inventory and ask myself what I most want to accomplish before the next month sets in.  It's about completion and feeling good about myself.  March winds seemed to blow hard on us symbolically here and brought chaos and changes that were not expected.  Even though last weeks Bad Business was a nightmare, it held within it the opportunity to spend longer moments with my passion.  Interrupted too often with endless aggravations, concentrating on taxes was out of the question.  So, I worked on jewelry.  Not only did it keep me calmer and more in control, but it was possible to finish a piece I began several weeks ago.  

I have been lusting over the idea of a lime green bracelet for ages and this little birdie sang an inspirational song to me.  I can hardly believe that I created this piece because it is so very different from anything I have ever done to date.  I used new skills that I picked up in Stephanie LeBaron Lee's Homesteaders Metalsmithing e-course.  There was such a wealth of information in it that I have barely touched the surface yet.  Just get me through taxes and will I ever have fun!!!

Cursed!

How appropriate that my good friend Emma sent that card that arrived Thursday afternoon!  It is a special warm fuzzy message that asked if I was having a bumpy week? ...and a reminder that she's always there for me.  This week has been "one of those."  It was going well Monday and Tuesday, But Tuesday morning we did the commissary shopping for the next few weeks.  I loaded the frig with meats and veggies, fruit, etc.  Well, I was off to a great start on Weds morning, finally getting back to being creative after a few months of abstinence, and forgot to have my cell near and my Sweetie was locked out because I had the screen door locked and didn't hear the phone.  So, he had gone back to work and stayed there for his munch break.  I found this out after I had put leg-quarters on the grill for our dinner.  My mistakes meant he was at the kung fu school from 7 AM to 7 PM.  I really thought I would be in the doghouse and hear no end of it later, but he was very forgiving.  Anyway, as I was on the phone with him finding all this out, the chicken caught fire and was nearly destroyed.  Later that afternoon, I broke my coffee pot as I put it into the dishwasher, and had to clean glass out of the dishwasher.  Then my Ott lamp broke (trying to get some light so I could see if I could repair the toilet that was not flushing as it should.)  By that evening (WEDS still) it seemed that the food was not as frozen as it should be.  I was not overly alarmed as it often takes a day when I really load the freezer.  On Thursday morning, I realized that the frig was stuck in defrost, and our food was in danger of spoiling, so I spent several hours trying to clean the grills and use a fan to cool the coils and to jump it out of defrost.  I was having some luck, but it wasn't holding, so I had to use a cooler with ice to help out.

Thursday afternoon, the "yard guy" came to clean up and mow, and when he was
using the weed-whacker, it threw a rock into the front glass door and shattered it.  At that point, I retrieved the mail, and on my way into the house through our side door, the screen door didn't want to close for some reason ...seemingly out of alignment..  At that moment, I opened the mail and read Emma's card.  What a moment it was!  I had to laugh and take a big inhale/exhale.  Friday, the battle with the frig continued, and I had to cancel clients to make an emergency run to a friends freezer with boxes of food.  As a last resort, I had to unplug it and let the thaw begin. ???????  So, ya think my week has been "bumpy?"






I would like to add that this morning the frig is back to normal.  Thank you God for small wonders!  I avoided an expensive repair bill, saved my food, and felt the love of a good friend who wanted me to know she had my back.


So, next week just has to be a whole lot better, and everything is better when I can be creative.  This time, the creation is a study on red.  It will go with a garment that is being created from a very old quilt top I started decades ago.  However, that is another blog, and I will take you all through that process soon.

The Necklace that toyed itself into existence

My latest creative pursuit is a necklace that started with one of those ugly beads. It was elongated, and a drab shade of orangey-rusty-brown. Really an ugly thing. Lately, however, I have been looking at this sort of thing as a challenge to create something that exonerates it and makes it beautiful in its own way. To begin, the bead was added to a rosary type link and wire wrapped, continuing the wrapping to spiral about the bead. In the spiraling I added small orange seed beads to help hide it. It looked better, but what do you do with one rather large ugly bead wrapped with wire and decorated with seed beads. OK, being me, I made it the focal point. In my last necklace, the bead was the focal, but this time, the bead didn't carry enough design interest to make on its own. I set it aside, and was just playing with wire, created a triangular spiral that waved off at the end. ...Had no idea what to do with that either! Somehow, ...maybe they bumped together, and the idea of using them together began taking shape. Hanging off the lower edge of the triangle, the forming pendant was somewhat interesting, but was lacking still. The focus really needed to go to something else.

Rocks. I love rocks. A few weeks back, I had found a small egg-shaped river stone that was in the garden path in my backyard. It was a stone that just told me that it was meant to be more than a part of the path, going unnoticed and anonymous. At the very least it would have been happy as a worry stone, residing in a pocket and caressed occasionally, connecting the bearer with a sense of Mother Earth and grounding. The desperate mind will try anything, and so the river stone found a new place to rest. Wrapping it was a little challenging because there were no dents or corners to hold the wrapping wire, but after playing around with it I finally came up with a satisfying result. The pendant was looking very primitive and somehow talisman-like.

Next, I searched through the diminishing supply of ugly beads to find the drabbest, dingy gray rounds I could find. They needed to look earthy and natural. Adding those and a few more primitive wire links, it began to feel important. However, it needed more prestige. How about some verdigris? Just like the beard of an old man, it got more credible in age. A homemade recipe, I used:

• 2 parts white vinegar
• 1 part non-sudsy ammonia
• 1/2 part non-iodized salt

Put these ingredients into a spray bottle and mist the piece. The chemical reaction starts very quickly. Spray a few more times. Remove the piece to a paper towel and allow to dry and sit overnight. The "rusting" process will continue, and the next day you can see the results. Mine were a bit too green, moving the necklace into a different color range, so I washed it and rubbed some of it off. Once dry, I was able to move into adding the fiber part to the neck. Now, the Talisman came together quickly, and this is the result....

Mother Earth's Talisman Necklace

The Ugly Bead Necklace Finished

I did it! I got thorough my self-imposed challenge to create something useful out of the ugliest beads I have. There were even some very nice compliments on photos I posted in my Flickr group. One person said it looked like "a party on a chain." ...Love that idea, and as the chain grew, the party got more carefree. It became a friend rather than an opponent. My ugly friend encouraged permissiveness, ...an anything goes approach. After all, there was absolutely nothing to be lost, I was starting at the bottom of the barrel with this. All I was contributing was a little effort, and that was of value in itself because I was getting more practice. .

Starting at the Bottom

As I was creating this piece, I found myself going through an incredible thought process. Every so often, I would question the validity of spending time on creating something worthwhile with such a sorry-looking batch of components: ugly, misshapen, unmatched, left-over cheap glass beads bought in bulk when I first got interested in beading, and crazy, imperfect forged metal practice pieces I had crafted of copper wire as learned in the BuildZone jewelry making course.


The Process

As the necklace grew, it took me through some interesting thoughts. Beginning with a lot of self-doubts (those Gremlins I blogged about a few posts back), I was not at all sure of why I took this challenge on. Why would anyone in their right mind start creating with a bunch of stuff that seemed to say "just put me in the trash!" Isn't is much nicer to think about having gorgeous materials and what the end result of silver and gemstones could be? What was driving me? ...stubbornness? ...a sense of frugality? ...a "way out" excuse for defeat? I am really not sure.

Yet the ugly bead necklace grew, and as it grew, I felt a sense of acceptance. It allowed me to free myself of any constraints that might have held me back. I gave myself over to the spirit of freedom, and creative energy flowed through my braincells and into my fingertips. I ceased to think so much and just did what felt right with each added link. It didn't have to be anything but ugly, and yet with each link I started to like it more and more. A strange sort of beauty was unfolding in my hands and although I knew each imperfection well, I felt like I was forging a life. Out of ugliness and pain came joy and freedom, and a thing of carefree beauty. It doesn't matter if it is of the basest materials because it has a spirit of the highest nature. Maybe it has a "face" that only a mother can love, but this is one child I love to look at.

The Sweet Finish

I may add a few more ribbon tails, and a random dangle here and there, but this child is birthed. As I look at this piece, I am thinking many thoughts so different than those that weighed me down at the start. It reminds me that beauty is only skin deep, but also that just because something isn't always beautiful by most standards, doesn't mean that it has no beauty or value in and of itself. It reminds me that beauty can be found wherever we look for it, and that we should do what we love never separating ourselves from the Creator within. In all things there is purpose, and that our intent and openness can lead us to a beauty that we are not always aware of. I feel a real sense of serenity in that.


May you find beauty and serenity in your day.

I Might Just Be A Jewelry Artist When I Grow Up, ...Too

I am so entranced with a new mag I got at B&N a week ago! Hey, Susan Sark, I am juiced! Belle Armoire's new wire wrapping magazine is making me itch to try more techniques. I certainly do like the fact that I can create jewelry without buying a kiln and taking classes (being a self-taught sort of person). I had the interest many years ago in college, but it never amounted to much, and ended dismally with a hammered project that was far too ambitious. I attempted a copper bowl, and the sheet metal was so thick that it took all my strength and didn't make a dent. I even enlisted the assistance of a few athletes, and it simply served to embarrass their male egos. All I ever did afterward was to string a few beads during the 70's like everyone else. What I especially like are the new outrageous designs that are coming out now. Call it "alternative art" or "upcycling" or "indie," it is all very creative and it doesn't require being a serious artisan or any cultural standard of perfection. Wire wrapping which used to really turn me off as looking "Mom's and Pop-sy," ...is an alternative to real metal working. Now, it is coming into it's own as expressions of inspired design. I have a special love for the little nets that are made to hold something precious and dangle as a pendant. To me they speak of infinite possibilities. In the meantime, as I hone some new skills, I have made a little something with a Valentine's theme. This being my first try, I hope to get a lot better at manipulating the wire and using the hammer to forge the metal. It might even be in line to buy a few tools. Some people think copper is too amateurish, but I like the earthiness and warmth of copper and it's yielding qualities. It is also far less expensive than silver and gold, and is perfect for budding jewelry artisans to play with. This project is all about fun, and I do not pretend that I am original with it. In fact, I saw a very similar design in my Googling explorations, and after analyzing the techniques and how I could go about doing this too, I made my own attempt. There were a few mistakes I made along the way, but I let them simply create a new design. It was all about learning something, and that part was a big success. In case you have the itch to create something beautiful to adorn yourself or to gift to others, here is a fabulous site, The Beading Gem's Journal. Here you will find endless info and has helped and inspired me.

Creating Aruba in a Necklace

Barnacles, Bubbles & Pearls in a Fisherman's Net

First of all, I have never been there, but I loved seeing photos of the clean white sandy beaches and the beautiful greenish tint to the coastal waters of Aruba. Now that the sweater has been finished, and I am eagerly waiting for the weather to get cooler so I can wear it, I am faced with how to companion it. Challenged with redesigning my wardrobe, I look into the closets and drawers and see nothing! It seemed a natural turn that because one of the knit-a-long requirements (that I imposed on myself as well as everyone else), is that the knit creation have embellishment. Well, sometimes a piece of art just needs to be kept simple. SO, I decided to be complete with the knitting. However, not quite satisfied, I took a notion to accessorize with a necklace. Never having been one to hesitate doing something because I never tried it before, I jumped in fully committed. Although I have experimented at beading simple strings of jewelry, as just about everyone else has, I have never done something encrusted with beads. The necklace became like a project I have seen in Belle Armoire, a beautiful magazine for bead crafters. This necklace has been daunting. Just a jewelry dabbler, I have to learn, or create ways, to put this together that has had me researching throughout the process.

The inspiration concept that was my beginning point was that of a fisherman's net. Using some old corks saved form a celebration deeming champagne, I cut the corks in two, shaped them into beads and drilling holes. Then, I knit a net of silver metallic crochet cord. and attached the cork "floats." I attached the ends of the silver net to a chain, and began the process of encrusting the piece with barnacles of seed beads, shell palettes, irregular pearls, and silver and glass beads.