every day awakening

mjd - 2014

every day contains the opportunity 

to awaken.

we think of spring as earth's awakening,

but it occurs each day

whether or not we take notice.

there is a season for all things in nature -

and all deserve our attention

and wonder.

the same applies to you -

days of questions

days of answers

we don't always know what we are going to get.

but we can make the effort

to be sure we are present

so as to know the difference

and to learn whatever lesson

each holds.

so long as you breathe,

it's never too late. 

in stillness

woven leaf - mjd 2013

slow down,

stop what you are doing

and take a breath.

'sit down and be quiet.

you are drunk 

and this is the edge of the roof.'

 - rumi

the situation is dire

for those unwilling 

to do the work 

of practicing awareness.

distraction lurks 

in every corner

and sits in the middle 

of every room.

but is there really any other option?

you're braver than you believe...

'promise me you will always remember:

you're braver than you believe,

and stronger than you seem,

and smarter than you think.'

christopher robin to pooh

mellisa at chinook jewelry is participating in the susan komen walk for the cure... she has decided to have a jewelry auction to raise funds -  & what a great way to help... if you win, not only have you helped an incredible organization, you get to have a unique keepsake as well... as we have discussed a number of times on this blog, it is a disease that has affected so many of us or those we love... i worked with mellisa to create a number of pieces to add to her offerings...

'hearts aflutter' was made with mellisa's beautiful heart pendant... her work is very feminine and it was nice to switch gears a bit... vintaj always looks so great with pink, so we were off! mixed beads - pearl, ceramic, stone, embroidery thread, vintaj accents... 

'hope is faith holding out its hand in the dark.'

- georges iles

'hope whispers' started with mellisa's matte pink button... i etched a vintaj blank and added an etched ivory lampwork bead by mika at pinocean with some raspberry delicas for color... pink czech beads and african trade beads... a wrapped circle link of vintaj wire ... everything about this necklace seemed soft... 

'hope never abandons you; you abandon it.'

- george weinberg

'hope will set you free'... when you are feeling like the world has you trapped, know that hope can liberate your heart... created a copper cage to hold a beautiful little heart charm by mellisa... etched 'hope' tag on vintaj and copper bird charm just outside of the cage to represent freedom... cherry quartz & smoky topaz... double vintaj chain... 

mellisa has also created some pieces of her own... please stop by her blog... the bidding has started at $10... the holidays are coming... if not for yourself, maybe one of these could be a gift for a loved one...

thanks to all of the incredibly talented beads-of-clay artists yesterday for their open house!

and promise me you will always remember... 

and this i hope for you ~

a very dear friend of mine was diagnosed with breast cancer last year... i made a promise to myself that she would receive earrings from me to help her feel beautiful even when she had lost all of her hair, was feeling sick, was feeling sad... last month she had her reconstruction, a year after her mastectomy... and i hope that this will be the last pair of earrings i give her with breast cancer in mind... 


a lover of quotes as well, she shared with me one of her favorites~

'in the depths of winter i finally learned there was in me an invincible summer.'

~albert camus

these 'double entendre' earrings are meant to be a play on breasts (or tatas)... and a farewell address, hoping so much for her that this closes out a chapter in her life's book... 

there are a number of women in the blogosphere trying to raise money for this disease... mellisa of chinook jewelry design and kelly snelling at 'a charming exchange' are two that i know of with auctions... erin of 'treasures found'  has shared information on blogging for a cause... 

hopefully, someday, we will be able to bid cancer itself 'adieu' ... 

duality

'every one is a moon,

and has a dark side he never shows to anybody.'

- mark twain

this 'duality' necklace started with the raven bead from mak of maku studios... it had a mythical feel to me, as the raven has been surrounded by legends for centuries and from all over the globe... even carl jung wrote about this bird... unfortunately, the raven often gets a bad rap due to its superior job performance in the natural world as a scavenger... 

the norse god odin had two ravens that accompanied  him at all times... in welsh lore the raven is associated with wisdom... but i love the stories about how the raven brought light when it left the darkness of the cosmos... the light of understanding... and from this, jung came up with his teachings of the raven representing the shadow self, or dark side of the psyche... our dark sides must be acknowledged and examined in the light of our conscious selves... there we find balance...  

the center two rings of the pendant represent coming full circle in understanding... the spiral of the infinite, a beautiful bead by mary ann at linden avenue designs (all glass in this piece by mary ann) & a shimmering piece of labradorite which is thought to enhance clarity of thought... from there we find another glass bead by mary ann that you can see into the depths of ... a white crackle raku bead to counter the dark raku disc and glass on the other side... and a hammered, antiqued sterling blank with 'self' imprinted upon it... reminding us that all facets of the self must be acknowledged to be complete...

a breast cancer awareness bracelet made in sterling with rhodonite and ceramic... the words hope, love and believe are stamped on sterling discs... believe has a fluttering butterfly on it, representing the growth & change that only a struggle can provide us with... 

here, there & everywhere ~

'don't walk in front of me; i may not follow.

don't walk behind me; i may not lead.

just walk beside me &  be my friend.'

- albert camus

and to friends i am always most grateful!

'magic lives in curves, not angles.'

- mason cooley

was able to make some earrings with the etched charms i posted about... 'where magic resides' features copper wirework & antique looking czech glass...

when my daughter was little, we called dandelions gone to seed 'blowies'... and they have always brought us such delight... what other flower can offer you a wish each time you pick it? i decided to wrap a link with ivory embroidery floss because seed parachutes always look so silky to me...  & i am going to work on fraying them a bit more... the copper links are handmade by cindy at cindy's art & soul... she does beautiful copper work...

 some beautiful beads arrived from mika at pinocean today and the teal was perfect for another pair of awareness earrings... our local kaleidoscope of hope walk is on the 26th and it is always such a meaningful day... survivors, family members, friends & remembrances of those who died are all present - the energy is palpable... i guess that is inevitable with the level of emotion and commitment that is present there...

 and finally a more controlled study into etching... vintaj will etch, but loses its finish... it also did not seem to oxidize in los... the difference in copper (18 ga) discs between about 1.5 hours and 2 hours has to do with deeper relief and sharper edges... a pretty significant amount of metal comes off in that 1/2 hour... i tried writing on one with a sharpie marker... that was fun... and it opens up the door to so many opportunities - another way to get words into my work!

and so it is friday ~ enjoy!

twist, turns, bumps and potholes...

life is filled with these... but for some, a life threatening illness exponentially increases the level of difficulty... 

september is ovarian cancer awareness month

october is breast cancer awareness month

we all know of women who have faced these diseases... their bodies may or may not have survived, but their powerful spirits never give up...

'in all things it is better to hope than to despair.'

- johann wolfgang von goethe

'twists and turns' were lovingly created to reflect the path of the disease and of life itself... love & hope are critical for anyone's survival, but definitely for these women - my wish is that they never find themselves short of either... sterling wire has been manipulated and antiqued... beautiful little lampwork beads created by jenn at blue seraphim... earring design loosely based upon the symbol for the feminine...

'things worth holding on to' were created in honor of breast cancer awareness... subtle faceted pink beads are a warm pink/brown... delicate ear wires created by rocki at rockissupplies ... the distressed and rustic look are meant to reflect the tenacity it takes to survive - emotionally, mentally & physically...

here's hoping the road can be smoothed for them in any way great or small... 

hint of sound

namaste

'when you are describing A shape, a sound, or tint; Don't state the matter plainly. But put it in a hint; And learn to look at all things With a sort of mental squint''

-lewis carroll

a comment in one of my blog posts got me to thinking... mellisa from chinook jewelry designs mentioned about my 'who will you find in the sea' bracelet that 'it looks like it might make a subtle little jingle when worn'... and she was right... i am a very visual person... in fact, if you asked me to name my favorite sounds they would be wind, rain, wind chimes, birdsong and waves... i think i tune out a lot(a skill i refined because of all of the background noise that comes along with kids)... but that comment set me to wondering - i try to be a mindful person, but i was missing things... i love when a suggestion can make you more contemplative, taking you deeper into awareness... a friend once told me that i jingle, and i had forgotten that...

so i am enjoying making non-traditional type charm bracelets... finding ways to try to keep it simple while integrating more... keeping to a feeling or idea... like a collage of beads, unified... and speaking of collages, there is a website to help you create word collages... beth at hint, my daughter has created a number of word clouds on wordle.net and is hooked! it is now making the rounds of familiy and friends... thanks for sharing that creative link!

this bracelet is a harmonious combination of a number of ideas, colors, and symbols... it takes the spiritual gesture of namaste - 'i honor the place in you in which the entire Universe dwells, i honor the place in you which is of Love, of Integrity, of Wisdom and of Peace. when you are in that place in you, and i am in that place in me, we are One.' - and attempts to make it a wearable representation...

symbols of the aum(or om), spiral, goddess, leaf & buddha are combined with colors representing the four elements... hung from an earthy vintaj brass double chain - 2 being the number of balance and harmony...

it will have just a hint of sound to keep you aware - better than snapping a rubber band on your wrist, yes?