Flowers and time

The beginning of this year has been a bit of a doozey. I keep reminding myself that Mercury and Mars are retrograde. Explains a lot. I feel like this year is getting off to a very slow start. . . and I don't know that I'd want it any other way. My beloved cat, Snickers, died on Monday and I'm still reeling from this loss. Getting myself to work everyday is rough. I can feel every cell in my body putting up a big protest as I enter my studio to get to work. Snickers was always there and now she's not. There are times when I think I've glimpsed her out of the corner of my eye, or seen her curled up on my futon, only to quickly be snapped back to reality.

I need a bit of time to simply slow down. To do some things just because they feel good. I've been trying to allow myself to relax (which I am just no good at!)

I've always had a strong afinity for flowers. I stumbled upon these photos of some gorgeous flower arrangements when I was looking at Design Sponge yesterday. It made me itch to put together my own winter inspired flower arrangement. Usually I buy flowers from the local florist that is right around the corner from the coffee shop I work at. Right now, though, my funds are a bit low (whose aren't after Christmas, right?), so I thought I'd challenge myself by making a lovely bouquet out of only what I could scavenge from my yard.

It was simply fun. I kind of felt like a little kid, just playing. I remembered and felt how enjoyable it is to be creative in a completely free way. I was creating this thing, this flower and plant arrangement, for my enjoyment and my enjoyment only. There was no pressure, no expectations.

I still love, love, love the jewelry work that I do. But it is, in so many ways, a job. I try to give myself time to simply experiment with my jewelry designs and see what comes of it, but almost always there is a little voice in my head pushing me to come up with a viable design for my business. I think having a form of creative expression that is free of strings, free of expectations is necessary if I want to continue to come up with new jewelry designs that I can be proud of.

And, anyway, finding something in my life that is so free, and playful, and enjoyable in a very straightforward way is good for me. I've always aired on the slightly too serious side. I should definitely find more time to play.

The results:

A little bit of rosemary, some dried lavendar pods, plenty of purple sage, three chard leaves, some cattails, rosehips, a fragrant winter assortment. While it's not perfect I love it for just being exactly what it is.

I can't wait for spring so I can start planting more flowers!

Until next time,

Jeannine