earth day work

leaf earrings in brass - 2012

leaves with heavy verdigris application - 2012

the day was spent making leaves in different shapes, colors and sizes... 

we had some very much needed rain

and saw 'chimpanzee' at the movies... 

elemental

earth and sky

 fire and water

on being a guest from home...

it's nice!

i was invited to be a guest of fundametals.net - as such, jeanette sent me some items to 'play' with... let's see if you can guess what one of them was - stop by their blog to read more... 

this design is based upon the egyptian shen ring... it is compromised of a circle for the cycles in life and a line across the bottom to represent the infinite... egyptians used lapis and turquoise in their adornment... lapis blue represented the heavens, water and the primeval flood... turquoise represented joy... 

'when we discover the truth is already in us

we are all at once our original selves.'

~ the dogen

we are complete as represented by the circle... but need to branch out and stretch to grow... winding fibers lead to faceted spectrolite which imparts strength and supports transformation... 

'(wo)man is harder than iron,

stronger than stone

and more fragile than a rose.'

~ turkish proverb

'fragile strength' earrings reiterate this point in numerous ways... etched metal appears delicate yet is sturdy... fibers made of silk... kyanite enhances tranquility and calm while quartz ensures grounding... 

work in progress... 

'a guest never forgets the host 

who has treated him kindly.'

~ homer

thank you jeanette for this opportunity... and i have other goodies to play with... so there will be another post about that!

happy earth day!

'i only went out for a walk 

and finally concluded to stay out till sundown,

for going out, i found,

was really going in.'

~ john muir

earth day earrings are created of sterling hoops, resin paddles and soft blue/green fibers... the sterling has been fused to represent the bond that exists between all living things... the paddles have paper from an old shakespeare text - the words 'flowers', 'tree' and 'earth' can be seen on them... 

check out google's picture for today on their web search page... for the second year in a row, disney is releasing a special film in honor of earth day... 'oceans' looks breathtaking... and 'avatar' is being released on dvd... not that commercialism has anything to do with earth day, i'm just saying ... 

'if we don't change, we don't grow.

if we don't grow we are not really living.'

~ gail sheehy

'living life to the fullest' were created in mixed metals - annealed steel wire shaped into paddles for resin paper depicting sections of butterfly wings from a vintage dictionary... encouraging you to take flight... etched nickel with the words 'to live is to grow', subtly highlighted with color and sealed... sterling silver ear wires and wire wrapped blue quartz stones... to release fear and increase courage... soft grey green fibers... 

'we have to do the best we can.

it is our sacred human responsibility.'

~ albert einstein

'on being human' - the words 'being' and 'human' are again chosen from an antique dictionary and intended to be read as such - not as 'human being'... for in being human we try at the risk of making mistakes, but with the guarantee of becoming more... ametrine chosen for its dual properties - it is a combination of citrine and amethyst  and as such is believed to dispel negativity and open one up to fill the void with light... 


thank you for all of the very kind comments you left on my last post... it was so nice to be able to share and celebrate with you!

the zen of earrings ~

'when you seek it

you cannot find it.'

~ zen proverb

truth...

i wanted to make a necklace because i needed to make a necklace... but it just wasn't there - the flow, the inspiration... but the little pile of earwires and resin paddles called to me... and i was actually able to get into a stop-start, mom kind of flow... 

here is what i found:

'to thine own self be true.

~ william shakespeare (hamlet)

with pearls for wisdom and amethyst to connect you to your higher spiritual self...

'the meeting of two eternities - the past and the future...

is precisely the present moment.'

~ henry david thoreau

be mindful of it, grown in it... with small gaspeite stones which are believed to bring spirituality to into every day life... 

love deeply, love daily

green pearls for the beauty and wisdom of adapting a loving attitude... soft fibers and pink petals to connect to nature, flowers, growth... 

'tenderness and kindness are not signs 

of weakness and despair

but manifestations of strength and resolution.'

~ kahlil gibran

fragile strength - opposites coming together in beauty... antiqued grey wire, soft fibers, translucent blue-grey iolite... delicate and not... practice loving kindess, show that caring exists... 

'yes mother. i can see you are flawed.

you have not hidden it.

that is your greatest gift to me.'

~ alice walker 

we keep wrapped up tightly, guarding ourselves... and not usually even sure against what... to open up, to present oneself honestly... to share with our children, our friends, our family our humanity... is a gift... unwrap yourself and share... 

thoughts, words, ... destiny

as a follow up to yesterday's post, i am beginning this one with a smile! this beautiful, mona lisa -type, filled with contentment but suppressing a giggle smile came in the post yesterday from the studio of lisa peters... i just love it so very much ~ and i couldn't think of anything better to show it with than a buddha stamping from cindy at alchemy of life... 

'watch your thoughts for they become words.

watch your words, for they become actions.

watch your actions, for they become habits.

watch your habits, for they become character.

watch your character, for it becomes your destiny.'

i love working with words, resin and metal etching have really freed me to explore this... so yesterday was an earring day, because a few days before were a resin paddle day, and so on and so on!! so i did the work i am not so fond of - making ear wires... i really admire people who do this with such proficiency... i think my free flow style runs right up against the precision and sameness required for these... i can make things match, i can... i just often choose not to! 

for the haiti by hand shop i created these earrings ~

lespwa/hope earrings #1

#2

for my shop ~

'everything you can imagine is real.'

~ pablo picasso

now i don't know if that is true or not, but i am not going to let it stop me! it all just comes down to keeping in touch with the authentic self... i picked 'nascent' as my word for the year and things just keep coming up to reinforce that ... like being here as my authentic self... and allowing things to flow and happen... purple seemed natural for these earrings, floss from myfanwy at sassalynne was used as well as labradorite... this stone is known for purging negativity and giving insight... 

'i do not seek. i find.'

~ pablo picasso

what do you find when you listen to the song in your heart? do you hear it any longer? is there something you want to share with someone else? these earrings are meant to remind you to do just that... 

'difficulties mastered are

opportunities won.'

~ winston churchill

turn corners with confidence (one of my personal goals)... you have everything to gain... these earrings are made with gaspeite, a stone known for aiding in assurance and opening the mind to new possibilities... 

'i have found the paradox,

that if you love until it hurts,

there can be no more hurt, 

only more love.'

~ mother teresa

hammered copper discs, rhubarb colored pearls and fiber by sassalynne... 'the paradox' unites  different textures, materials and colors... these ones are nagging at me a bit, i don't know whether they need some words glued on to them... 

your thoughts lead you to your destiny, be mindful of patterns... and keep looking forward (while being present)... 


- and thanks for your not asking me if i am on something as i continue to change my template, i am feeling skootchy with it, unsettled... and so i returned to the calming brown i like! until i can find something else  :0)  -

i can save you money!

i cannot, it's a jest - but it is the best i can do with this ~


you know those beautiful texturizing hammers? the expensive ones? that we want? well, i was shown a way to get one without all of that cost... here's what you need - 


1 - a chasing hammer
2 - metal punches
3- a piece of practice sheet copper
4- a curious & bright child


i know you have this figured out already, but here's how it goes -
'look mom, i got the bird to stamp on the sheet!' 
me:  'that's great, let me come and looooooooooooooooooook. oh... great job hon, but how about next time you use the hammer that looks like the one that lives in the garage.'
breathe in & out...
ok, i have read that you should felt cover your hammer end anyway - it prevents any marking... so now i have this cool distressed looking effect - which i don't mind... who needs that raw silk texturing hammer? not me! :0)


onward and upward!


got 2 pairs of earrings made -

'what we think, we become.'

-the buddha 

dispelling the negative earrings made of turquoise and copper - naturals for healing and purifying... spiral represents the negative being drawn out, copper and sterling wires guide it away...

'life in abundance comes only through great love.'

- elbert hubbard

abundance earrings are made with a wheat sheaf motif... wheat being symbolic of abundance... beautiful green lampwork beads by mary ann at linden avenue designs are added because i thought of van gogh's wheat field paintings with cypress trees included in the composition... 

oh & p.s., i broke down and bought one the other day - when i was shocked at the shipping, i realized - i had ordered a HAMMER! i am very excited... 

new things...

'all life is an experiment.

the more experiments you make the better.

~ ralph waldo emerson

i can work with that! 

while i do not usually work with crystals, when i do shows i have noticed that they can draw people to a table... the sun sparkles off of them and people come... 

but i wanted to go at it a bit differently... the book 'a charming exchange' by kelly snelling and ruth rae was recommended to me and i cannot put it down... i want to try everything at once, but am trying to be practical... i adapted this link into an earring... and started with copper so as not to waste sterling... the swarovski colors are copper, brandy and chili pepper... i thought they stood out nicely against the antiqued metals - vintaj and copper...

hopefully will be trying silver this afternoon ... with some lapis or turquoise maybe!

rebirth

firebird by beth hemmila

on june 8th, cindy pack shared this quote...

'we are here, it seems, to be transformed, and transformed again, and again and again.'

-michael cunningham

for harry potter fans, fawkes the phoenix is a literal example of rebirth... he is dumbledore's loyal friend who also happens to help harry out of some very serious situations... the brilliant j.k.rowling looked back to greek mythology for this amazing creature... known to have scarlet and golden tailfeathers and able to live 500-1000 years... when it 'dies' it bursts into flames, only to be reborn into a young phoenix or an egg which arises from the ashes...

this is my interpretation of the phoenix... deep red and yellow vintage german glass is hung on antiqued hoops from rocki... the red & yellow beads are symbolic of both the phoenix's tailfeathers and the fire... the oxidized finish of the metal is like the deep grey of ash... a bali bead hangs from the center like a small egg... i love how deep, rich colors look against oxidized silver...

'it is our choices, harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.'

- albus dumbledore, cos p.333

we are faced with situations where choices must be made - either with care or quick thinking... but if we choose well, the ones that scare us or push us further than we thought we could go reward us the most...

and we are transformed...