Tag: jewelry

Best Laid Plans

Son is forced to wear flower hat at art show

Well, as life would have it, things between my last post and this one didn’t go as I had thought it would. UGH.

Last fall I got through show season and that was great. Lots of fabulous customers, some laughs, a lot of serious conversation, and many more ideas for the future. Then we had an election (we could talk about that for a month)and we headed into the holidays. We’re a small family so we had lots of time together. As is tradition we cook together for each holiday and choose a different category each time. Thanksgiving was Indian cuisine and Christmas was Asian. Such fun to create things we’ve not done before…and delicious!

Then right after the first of the year everyone got sick. My son came down with the flu. My husband came down with the flu…and my daughter came down with the flu. And just when everyone was starting to feel like they kicked it…it all happened again! My son and husband both got hit by the flu twice! They tried very hard to give it to me but other than a couple days of feeling lazy and tired I didn’t get sick.

The worst part of all of this was our lovely 16 year old dog was getting more and more feeble. She had lost the use of her hips so couldn’t get up and down by herself. That meant that for many months we were up at all hours of the night helping her get outside to go potty or eat or just get some exercise. We tried getting her into a little wagon for some trips around our block but she hated it. As February approached she was more and more miserable. She began howling in the middle of the night, every night.

We had a wonderful vet that came to the house only to tell us she had lymphoma and wouldn’t be getting any better. With lots of discussions and heartache we made the decision to help her over the rainbow bridge. So during the second week of February our lovely vet came to the house and we said goodbye to Sunny. To say it was hard would be an understatement. Losing a furry family member is the worst.

So all of this to say that I messed up my application to Irvine this June. First time in something like 18 years. In the midst of my emotional distress I got it in my head that the deadline was April 1st (after as long as its been you’d think I’d have the deadline memorized) but what it really was was March 1. And I totally missed it.

Now it’s July and here I am in my studio surrounded in my art. There are literally 100’s of pairs of earrings, necklaces, and bracelets in this studio. I was contemplating applying to a couple other shows but I’m on the fence about it and feeling like I need some mental break time to refocus and reinvigorate my creativity. Everyone needs some down time right?

Stay tuned while I figure out what’s next…

Thoughtfully Yours,
Susan

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Website Work

the real me as a clown

Working, working, working…why is computer work so time consuming? Blah…

I’m attempting to make this website prettier and easier to get around. New pages for all my jewelry and creations. New pages for my portfolio and all my cute clients. Updated event page so you know where to find me. Please take a tour around and see what you think.

More to come…

Life is short. Believe in fun.

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New Things Coming!

Jack O'lanterns that look like cherries!

I’ve been working behind the scenes to create new things and, thank goodness, Halloween is on the way! My favorite time to design scary stuff.

The picture above are some new pieces of Jack O’Lantern cherries…aren’t they fun! Lots of new things are being put together behind the scenes so stay tuned for a release date!

Always believe in fun!

Susan

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oops

Me peek a boo!

Now you see it…now you don’t.

Yesterday I took down all my jewelry listings. A friend had tried to buy something and the site wouldn’t let her pay. A funny way to do business, isn’t it?
So I think I fixed it but I’m still working on it. In the process I made a few decisions on how to move forward in a better way…as well as let folks pay for things they want to buy. 🙂

Over the next few weeks I’ll be putting back all the items that I make over and over again. Many things I design use traditional charms or unusual things I find in my travels. I buy those in more quantity and can make multiples. Those things will be listed until they are gone.

With my graphic designs I need another way to keep those straight. Most all of those are one of a kind pieces. Either the drawings that make up the jewelry piece are only done once or the beading for the graphic piece is available once. Then the beads are gone. Attempting to leave those on the site all the time is a logistical nightmare.

So…I’ve decided to do some special releases Moving forward I will pick some dates and list all of the new one of a kind things I have available. Listings will be up for maybe a week or until those items go off to good homes. Then I’ll start over.

Please make sure you are on my newsletter list so you get notification of the releases before they happen. Or join my Facebook group (I haven’t posted there in a few months but am about to change that) or follow me on Instagram. I also have a snail mail, for those that like something other than bills in their mailbox, for show notices that I send 2 to 3 times a year.
(we also have a family podcast and that has been sorely overlooked for awhile but will be back revamped with better format and topics…stay tuned)

And that’s my news this week…if you need me I’ll be locked in my studio working. Glitterfest is in two weeks…yikes!! March 31 in Fullerton, CA at the Springfield Banquet Center. I’ll be on the second floor!!

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Creative Schizophrenia: Let’s Talk

Sooo…anybody familiar with creative schizophrenia? Anyone have an artsy habit they can’t quite corral into one genre? Do you feel like your creative endeavors are wanting you to do everything…and nothing? Well…let’s talk.

This can get bad…like really bad. (and that makes me want to do this…)

Martinis are vegan!
Martinis are vegan!

 

I find myself wanting to create for my jewelry line so off to the studio I go. I arrange my things, start with an idea, begin putting it together…and boom! All of a sudden my paint starts calling my name…what if when this thing is done I paint it? So I go get the paint out and start playing with that. Halfway through I notice there’s a piece of fabric on the floor…oooh! That might work too. Maybe I can sew it together for a packaging idea. So I play with that for awhile. Out comes the sketch book so I can see if my ideas will work together. What about ribbons? What if this thing had some tied onto it? And out comes some ribbon. Oooh…but maybe it needs resin? Maybe the pieces would look good glossy…and layered….and …and….and…

By this time I am working in four square inches of my table and not much is getting completed.

 

messy worktable 1

 

What is it with this? And what are your tried and true ways to keep your creative schizo self in check? Bah….

Here are a couple of things I find helpful when I cannot for the life of me get this under control…

  1. Set a timer and a simple goal…for instance I want to ready some of my shrink plastic. I set my phone timer for 20 minutes and that’s all I do until the timer rings. Guess what? I finished something!
  2. Clean or organize. Again I might set my timer for this or just make note of the clock then find a spot to re-organize. Moving things into order allows me to clear my brain and do a sort of re-set. I do this for about half an hour and find that my brain is much more ready to focus on the task at hand.
  3. Go do something else! Maybe it’s time for lunch or a snack. Perhaps laundry needs some attention. Have you talked to your Mom lately? Choose anything that has nothing to do with whatever task you were having issues with.

Those are my three go to’s when I get stuck inside my creative schizophrenia brain. Inevitably one will work and I can get back to accomplishing things.

Try it and let me know how it works for you…or maybe you have a better idea? Would love to have you share it!

Until next time,

Susan

 

 

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