Thursday, April 16, 2009

False Starts

Things might be a bit quiet around here for a little bit. I had to take my computer to the shop to have some repairs  done and depending on the nature of the repairs, I may not have it back for a good month!

I was, at first, aghast when I heard this. And while it is frustrating (I'm relying on the good graces of two generous souls and their computers in order to get my work done) I'm trying to look at it as an oppurtunity to focus on other work. 

So while my life may slow down a bit in the internet netherworlds, I hope to be busy at my brick and mortar workbench, creating new pendants and earrings for my Etsy shop. . . until technology is working in my favor again.

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

My Birthday! And a Free Gift!

You ever have one of those days where you just feel out of sorts, like something is just slightly off kilter about either you, the universe or both? Well, today is one of those days for me.

And while it seems like it might be working a bit in reverse, I'm going to offer a special little gift with any purchases made in my Etsy shop, from now until the 12th, just because my birthday is this Saturday!

You'll get a free pair of these:
if you enter the code "Tangleweeds" in the message section of your Etsy order at checkout.

There's lots of new work going in my shop this month too, so you have lots to choose from. Like these:


and this:
and this:

And so many more! So stop by the Shop if these pieces fancy you!


Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Sorting

Everyday when I wake up, almost immediately a long "to do" list starts swirling around in my head. Some days the list grows so long before I've even stepped foot out of bed that I simply don't want to get up and face the enormity of it all. . .

Sometimes, simple tasks, tasks that lend towards being meditative and calming, are just what I need to start my day off right. Tasks like sorting through a large stash of brass, copper, and silver scrap wires.

I sorted throught these:


Some of the scraps then went towards making these:

for an Etsy order.

It was a good jumping off point for my day, the literal sorting of the three different kinds of metals was conducive to a figurative sorting of my priorities. You see, I'm trying to "get ahead" a bit in the next few days since I'll be gone all weekend for my birthday (I'm a lucky gal!) Which means, check back in later this week for a special birthday Etsy offer in my shop!

Friday, April 3, 2009

Happy Accidents

This is one of those designs of mine that is sort of a “happy accident.” You see, my dad is always finding these random bits and pieces of things that he thinks would be useful in my jewelry making. It’s super sweet, and what exactly he’s going to drop in my hands in usually pretty unexpected.


A couple months back he dropped this in my hands:

Okay, not literally dropped it in my hands, cuz it’s pretty heavy!

My dad is a car mechanic for race cars (his hobby) and he has a machinist friend who does a lot of work for him. This heavy metal block was one of those things that served no practical use to my dad, but turned out to be perfect for texturing copper, brass, and sterling. Now I can’t stop using it!

Thursday, April 2, 2009

A little Bit about me

I’ve always been driven to create, compelled by an urge to make things with my hands. Along these lines, I’ve always thought of myself more as a “maker of things” than as an “artist.” From making “mud pies” in my parents’ back yard when I was five to my first attempts at sewing my own clothing as a teenager to the jewelry I design and create now, the same jewelry you see in my Etsy shop, I have always been most at peace with myself and my place in this crazy world when I am engaged in the art of making.

Inspiration for new pieces and designs frequently comes when I least expect it. . . Or at the most inopportune times! In this way, creating jewelry very much reminds me of the process of creative writing. With writing, finding the beginning threads of ideas for that next short story or poem, I would always carry around a small notebook for jotting ideas down. Now, I frequently come home from work (that other job, you know, the one that continues to pay the bills until your heart’s desire does) with numerous little slips of paper, receipts, pastry bags (yup, they’re the perfect little size and not in short supply when you work at a coffee shop!) covered in quick sketches with notes like “texturing here” or “small teardrops of labradorite here” or “mixed metals in this one. . . copper and sterling silver?”

Coming to jewelry, at first glance, always seemed to be a completely “out of the blue” sort of a thing for me. . . But when I look back over the years I see how it all makes sense that I am at this place. I’ve always loved jewelry. I was the girl in her middle school class with the largest collection of earrings. During those same middle school years I was stringing beads on whatever material I could find that was suitable for the job. Come high school I had amassed a small collection of seed beads and other what-nots and doo-dads for making jewelry. During my teenage years I would rarely find the time to actually make a complete piece of jewelry, but when I did I would wear it all of the time. Then, one day, a year or two after high school, I decided to pull out the shoebox that I had used to stash all of my jewelry makin‘ findings. The necklace I made that day is one of my most prized possessions, and probably always will be. Because it marks a distinctive beginning for me. Something clicked in me that day, something woke up and said “THIS is what I want to be doing with myself.”

From that day forth, which is still very distinct in my mind, creating jewelry became a part of who I am. Slowly I accumulated the necessary tools and supplies to furnish my new passion. Slowly I carved out a work space in my room, eventually giving over more and more of my space to the work. And slowly I accumulated the necessary skills that would allow me to make manifest the dreams of new jewelry designs that were filling my head. In that way I am mostly self-taught. I have been lucky enough to have one very wonderful friend help me through the basics of metal-work. Otherwise my teachings have been intuitive and from books. I’ve also had the good fortune of having a father who set an wonderful example with his own work. I’ve seen, through him, how dedication and the simple act of carving out time for your passion on a daily basis eventually adds up to something you can be so very very proud of.

I hope you can take the time to follow me on my creative journey here and at my Etsy shop!