zen in the details

i am a big picture person who lives for details... 

maybe people won't notice the patterning beneath the patina... 


but i do... 

or that extra time was spent finding the perfect spot on a railroad tie to get a certain pattern... or that i fused the sterling... 

these are my buttons... 

when i was preparing to teach woven bracelets at the teen arts festival i realized i could make my own buttons (but didn't for the workshops when i learned how many kids would be in them)... 

i love being able to go from big to small... 

and to just make something for its own sake,

not worry about a finished jewelry piece... 

to put all of my attention into small work... 

i must be growing up, 

it's so often becoming meditation anymore...

the big picture is the details

and details are the big picture... 

like einstein finding constants between atoms and the cosmos,

it's all one - 

'strange is our situation here upon earth.  each of us comes for a short visit, not knowing why,  yet sometimes seeming to a divine purpose.  from the standpoint of daily life, however, there is one thing we do know: that we are here for the sake of others... for the countless unknown souls with whose fate we are connected by a bond of sympathy.  many times a day, i realize how much my outer and inner life is built upon the labors of people, both living and dead, and how earnestly i must exert myself to give in return as much as i have received.'

- albert einstein

feels like home

we have been in our new (old) home for about 2 1/2 months now... mostly filled with summer busy-ness and transition... 


now that school has started, there is space to exhale and 'be' in a way that makes me feel whole...


thursday morning i decided to clean off the workbench... it was covered in beautiful fibers and all kinds of things... it was the first time i had thoroughly and thoughtfully cleaned it off... and suddenly, i realized it was really mine... my very own space to work... it went from being a workbench to my workbench... (and my grandfather's)... 


and i can work at it as long as i like - doing whatever i like... 


freedom... 


if i didn't have children, i could live in a studio with my cats, a bench, a small refrigerator and a comfy couch to sleep on... i have simple needs... and a deep passion... 

i had purchased this miniature printers tray from lisa jurist at her mudhound studio etsy shop (in addition to all of the great silks and fibers that covered my bench) ... i love it so much... when my brain cannot wrap around making finished jewelry or i just feel the pull, i will often make components by the number... they were scattered all over, but now they are together in order... it also holds 'in progress' pieces... 

'everything that is really great and inspiring

is created by the individual 

who can labor in freedom.'

~ albert einstein

in search of ...

'i lived in solitude in the country

and noticed how the monotony of a quiet life

stimulates the creative mind.'

~ albert einstein

... solitude

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!