Tag Archives: In The Studio

Art Happens or Painting is Scary

I guess I’m feeling brave today. Last June I had the pleasure of attending one of Jeanne Oliver’s live art workshops. Jeanne is an amazing artist, entrepreneur, teacher, writer and human being. And I guess that’s why I ventured out in an area that I had absolutely no experience in, drove to Colorado and spent two days with a bunch of women that I had never met. It was a truly wonderful experience that I will never forget (more about my first art retreat). I said in that post that I might share my paintings some day if I got brave.

It’s not that I had never had the desire to paint, I just hadn’t taken the leap to try it. So in a setting that I knew would inspire, where all the materials I needed would be there for me to experiment with, I picked up a brush and jumped in.

And these are some of the quirky faces that appeared. The exercise that produced these paintings stretched me a lot. I wanted to linger and try to perfect and finish each one but the quick instructions kept coming one after another and we had to act fast to keep up. It was good for me. It didn’t allow me to obsess over the details.

This painting was one on which I had more time to practice some of the techniques I had learned.

We were instructed to bring some photos to the class with us and this caterpillar seemed like one of the easier ones that I brought to paint.

I don’t know where my painting endeavors will take me but I know that learning what I did and meeting those I met are all part of my amazing journey called life.

Even though January is almost over, I wanted to share Jeanne Oliver’s free video series, Salt + Light. I have been following along and it has blessed me, made me think deeply, brought me hope and inspired me to be more. I highly recommend it. Prepare to be challenged!

In The Studio: Earrings for Summer and Fall

Hey there! I hope you’re enjoying the summer! When it’s not 95+ degrees I’ve been soaking in some vitamin D. I just got back from a mini getaway where I was able to relax and rejuvenate at a spa resort. It’s the first non-work getaway I’ve had in exactly one year and I was way overdue! Pedicures, full body massage, pool time and girl talk was just what I needed after the hard physical work of the weeks before. It was also a chance to clear my head and get a new perspective, away from some of the close and extended family issues that have been making my heart heavy the last few months. I haven’t shared anything about this on the blog. Maybe I will eventually but for now I’ll just say that when your family members are hurting, you hurt too.

I’ve been spending some time in my studio, not creating ~ boo! ~ but organizing. After the garage sale (which was a huge success and earned about 3/4 the cost of the new mattress I want to buy) my house was a shambles. I tore up my studio and storage area during the clear-out, where I keep a lot of my jewelry supplies and props but didn’t organize as I went, leaving it for afterwards. Once I get it completely whipped into shape I will be ready to get in there and create! In the meantime I want to share with you a couple of pairs of earrings that I will be putting in the shop soon.

The first pair is perfect for summer with its vintage lace and gold shimmer.

These could be worn for day or night. I picture them with a sleeveless maxi + other gold accessories by day, or with a romantic summer dress, hair up and heels for a date night.

The second pair can be worn year round but I always think of leather in conjunction with fall.

I hand cut the cross pieces from an old belt and gave them a turquoise patina. I added a Swarovski crystal in Pacific Opal to the center of each cross.

A couple of months ago I shared part of the makeover going on in our kitchen/dining areas. I will soon be sharing some pictures of the rest of our kitchen and dining room, pre and post painting/updating/farmhouse-izing. Thanks for stopping by!

In The Studio: Lace Ball Earrings

It’s been quite a while since I’ve shared what I’ve been making in my jewelry studio. That’s because I haven’t been in there for a while! Today I have four pairs of lace ball earrings that all started with a large wooden bead.

I hand covered each wooden bead using antique lace scraps from my stash.

Each pair was designed to be unique, pairing them with different baubles.

I like to wear shorter styles some days and longer styles other days, depending on my mood and outfit, so I created some of each.

For the above pair, I incorporated pieces of an antique wooden rosary.

All four designs are now available in my shop, hand crafted and one of a kind at $20 a pair.
Thanks for stopping by!

Stash Confessions: Vintage and Retro Buttons

A while back I confessed to having a giant stash of socks for which I had no excuse. Today I want to show you another stash, my beloved vintage buttons. When I’m designing jewelry, it’s important to me to have a variety of styles and types of findings and embellishments. My creative juices flow best when I experiment with all kinds of colors, shapes and eras.

Many of these chunky bright colored buttons have become rings and a few others became the centerpiece for a necklace or bracelet.

I love military inspired fashion and accessories and tend to go to my brass stash when designing in that style.

Ahhh my vintage whites. Need I say more?

This is probably not even one tenth of my collection (just ‘fessing up here).

The detail in vintage buttons is amazing to me. Whether Deco chic, retro funky, or vintage sweet all can find there way into a design in my studio.

In The Studio: Spigot Jewelry + A New Logo

I came across a pile of old faucets at the flea market last year, the kind that turn a garden hose on and off. I like to find things in quantity for jewelry making, and decided they would make some interesting pieces of spigot jewelry.

I took pictures of this necklace and a few other pieces back in December (hence, the Christmas décor in the background) and am just now getting it added to my website.

You can shop for it here.

On another creative note, I would like to show you my new logo. I have a little problem sometimes being dis-satisfied with what I create, no matter how happy I am with it while working on it. I think this is due to a combination of being tired of looking at it, and being pretty self-critical. I have worked on my logo off and on for several months. You may remember me sharing some of my process in this post. I really wasn’t happy with it, so I put it on the shelf for a while. I wanted something cleaner, and came up with this simplified version.

I really am happy with it now, and it will work well for a watermark on my photos, as well as business cards, labels, etc.

Here it is in watermark form. The bowl of Spanish moss is a glimpse of what my next post will be about.

In The Studio: Coral and Turquoise

I just added a few pieces of jewelry to my shop and I wanted to give you a preview here. I have been embracing the colors of coral and turquoise a lot lately.

Here’s a cuff bracelet with a vintage metal hardware piece as the centerpiece. I added turquoise patina to bring out the amazing detail.

I was getting a sort of western vibe so I chose cowhide leather with brindle hair for the band.

As you probably know, I am very committed to reusing and reinventing pieces and parts, mostly vintage, to create new pieces that work in today’s design. Virtually all of my jewelry incorporates upcycled items, most of which had nothing to do with jewelry in their original state.

For this necklace I took belt loops from an old pair of blue jeans, overlaid them with vintage lace and formed them into a cross.

A vintage button and swirly coral glass beads add a pop of color.

I do love crosses!

Another material I love to use when designing is items found in nature. We have a lot of trees in our yard and have done a few projects using the wood from them. It’s not often you come across a branch that yields heart-shaped slices, so of course I was elated to find and use this one in my jewelry designs.

Mixing rustic with a bit of bling, I paired it with a glass crystal drop (also vintage)for a simple, natural necklace.

I’ll show you a more colorful version of the heart slice in my next studio share.

Stay warm!

Tarnished Royalty

Design Your Life