Decisions, decisions decisions ...

I'm so very please to once again be the featured artist at Five Monkeys, Inc  art gallery again!  I  feel very honored. 

I'm trying to pull inventory,  figure out the displays, and get everything indexed before I need to set up Weds Night.   So I'll keep this short.... but look for a blog Weds night or Thurs with lots of pics of the display! 

Jerry's favorite earrings.....

 Jerry loves this earrings, because they incorporate parts you would have seen everyday of your life, if not actually used the item, at least for folks born before the the mid-nineties.   Kids my daughter's age ( 21) and younger, not so much.  Can you guess what the clear columns in these earrings are from?

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They are the receiver buttons on a old phone... you know the clear plastic bits that you rested the phone on that cut off the phone dial. 

Kewl huh??

I'm BACCCCCK! with a Sax......

 I'm BACK!! OK had my last show for the year last weekend, and it was a tad cold, and rainy, but hey !  Overall this year we really lucked out on the weather.  Only 2 weekends that the weather was well, crappy... Don't get my started on 2008, the year of many canceled shows!!!!! argh!


OK! so, now I'm in my winter zone.... I get to experiment more, I can slow down and come up with some really fantastic, artsy pieces, I actually get to read once in a while without feeling guilty, and maybe my house will be slightly cleaner than it is in the summer.  ( and maybe not)

I'm also gearing up to be the feature artist in November at Five Monkey's, Inc gallery here in town!   woot!   So this weekend I'll be spending time going through my stash and deciding what will be in the gallery.. I have several pieces there now of course, but my display will double, possibly triple in size, at least through the end of this year.  Not only will I have my Mechanical Romance line, but I'll have chainmaile as well, and a few select holiday pieces.

I've been kicking around making a few holiday pins featuring gears actually... anyone have any interest??

OK I have to tell you this funny funny story .... Jerry tells me he's bought me a present.  Well I love love love prezzies!!!  So I begged and whine to find out what it was... well he bought a saxophone to take apart and make jewelry out of it. 

WOW!!! we have taken apart broken flutes but a sax?  how much?  He's like only $5.

and he shows me...

I adore the MOP buttons!

It's got problems, that's visible that it's in rough shape, but still we try to recycle in a responsible manner... and not rip apart stuff that's you know, valuable or usable condition.   So I ask him do you think it's OK to rip this up???


so he shows me this:

WOW!  this seriously is the best possible prezzie.. I love a sax! it's my favorite instrument.  The wonderful soulful sound they make... they can be the most incredibly happy noise -- or sad with just that lilt of hope threaded in, something to keep a small flame burning in your heart on a dark day. 

And I can make jewelry with one without any guilt!!! Woot!!!

Thanks Honey!

He tells me he was just killing time waiting for his appointment and saw a thrift store we haven't been in before.  So He pokes in and sees this older looking case and asked the counter guy if anything is in it. 

The guy proceeded to tell him the thing is a bad luck piece.. he sold it but it got returned because it would cost too much to fix.  At this point, he said it would take $5.00 for it cause he was taking it in for scrap and probably wouldn't get more than that for it.


Jerry takes one look, and says, sure!!


So that's how I got the sax... if Jerry hadn't caught it that afternoon it would have gone for scrap. 

Now I just need to get Jerry to take it apart!!


I already have a couple of ideas lurking in the brain box...   This is gonna be the best winter ever!!!

   

Taking a break

Hey guys, I'm taking the week off from blogging.. I'll be back next Monday . 

I can't finish American Dreams............

Sometimes I feel like making simpler pieces like this one.    The brass stamping is so pretty all by itself, I just added a couple of holes for crystals and and curved the flat piece and woot!  Pretty pretty bracelet.


Sometimes my jewelry is more about how I feel, and sometimes it's about how it makes me feel to make it.  Something like this just feels good to make... and I know the gal that bought it loved it.  I love when someone buys a piece and has to wear it out of the booth they are so excited!

And the times when it's about how I feel, that I need to express what's inside me.. they of course take longer.  I've been struggling with just such a piece.  I'm calling it "American Dreams" .

 This First picture shows the first layout I had.  The round bit is a vintage MOP buckle, the drop crystal and the earring are both vintage.  The flag pin is vintage as well.  Do you remember when veteran groups would hand out those little tin flag badges at parades? that's what the flag is.  (do they still do that? I don't remember getting these anytime recently.. only as a kid )  The coke tag is actually from a 90's coke tin, made to look like a turn of a century coke tin.

 This picture you can see it's getting more complicated.  the round bit in the square is the top of a pocket watch ( proper term is crown)   The damaged type writer key says " back space" which sort of expresses my American dreams right now... I kind of wish we had a back space button to go back to Nov. 7th.  But I'll save that discussion for my therapist.

This is the current rough layout, but I'm still not happy with it.   I've added in the back a vintage Gage plate,  to express all the pressure we are under, watch parts because it feels like time is running out, a key for hope, the liberty bell ( broken bit from a key chain)  as another symbol of America, the compass because we are trying to find our way, a cross for spiritualism, a part of a ruler ( from a typewriter) because we are not measuring up right now... a spoon and the arrow for personal reasons.  The "r" on the top is a beer bottle lid.  I've since removed that.


 I want to try to express both the current crap we are all in, but yet express hope from the future.  In some stories of Pandora, hope is a butterfly... maybe it needs that.  I just don't have the right mix yet to say what I'm trying to say.... that America will survive this and someday will actually be better.  I guess I'm having a hard time believing it myself, so that makes it hard for me to hold on to the optimism I want to have.

It's gonna be a long long long 4 years...........  I think I'll go play with chainmail now.

Let the sun Shine in......

OK today is pretty dank and dark and hard rain, so I though this picture would brighten things up.  This sun started out life as maybe a keyring? It was broken in a mix of a jewelry lot I bought.  The face was just such a happy one though, I wanted to rehabilitate it.  I filed and sanded the broken off bits and decided to add some color.  I added wings cause well happy sunshine always makes my heart fly!

This one is already sold, I'm trying to clean out my picture files.

So on the cranky, rainy day enjoy some sun!

I'm on Court This Weekend.......

 Yeah, I know, I'm normally on 4th across from Hy-Vee, but this weekend is also Oktoberfest and that's being held exactly where I normally pitch my tent... so all the vendors on 4th South are getting moved to other areas of the market.  The fest doesn't start until 3pm or so, but they need time to set up!

My new spot is 207.  Now vendor spot # means nothing to you folks, so I'm about 4th booth in on the north side  from the corner of 2nd and court.   That means I'm in front of the parking ramp that's on 2nd and court.

 I've never actually been in this part of the market before.   Always an adventure, is Farmer's Market!! 

I've been making earrings mostly this week, with watch parts and other things.  I'm up to 13 for the week -- I've got about 6 more laid out and ready to assemble ( all the cutting, filing, holes and glue steps done) and then I'll probably get everything priced and see where I'm at.  I feel the itch to make a bigger project... so maybe I'll work on something like that.. or maybe I'll catch up on a novel.  It's almost the end of the show season for me and I'm getting tired.  I don't want to be down to the last dregs like I was last year.  Last year it took nearly a month before I really felt creative again.  I've been pacing it better this year, but still I'll probably take a few weeks off to reconnect with real life.

Not that real life is all that fun lately but still, it is what it is.

On that note, off to finish some earrings... see ya Saturday in a new place !!

Farmer's Market this Weekend!

I'm feeling pretty positive about this weekend.. I'm working on a piece right now I'm excited about and I'm pretty sure I'll get it done before Saturday... I've got some new earrings and bracelets at least.

If you haven't been out to the market lately this weekend might make a good one for you... I just had to show off my spiffy new sign, I think it looks great!  It took a couple of weeks to figure out exactly how to hang it best, but it really does seem to draw folks into the tent.

We are getting to the end of show season, we have 3 more markets left... this weekend, September 23rd and October 14th.

So stop by and say hi, as always we are on 4th st across the street from Hy-Vee.

Very True.....

Happenings at the Gallery

 As you know, I'm very happy being a artist in Five Monkeys, Inc , one of the nicest galleries here in Des Moines.  What you might not know is all the great things happening there starting this weekend!

 Starting tomorrow, the gallery will also be the source for vinyl in Des Moines!  Rogue Planet Music

 you can read about this new store in the Des Moines Register here

 The gallery will also start hosting live music from time to time -- it's gonna be fantastic!!! All these lovely changes means Dina ( the fab owner of the gallery) is rearranging  - so here are sneak peaks of how my jewelry is set up now...

Be sure to stop by Five Monkeys  this Friday and Saturday for the grand opening -- and even special 1 time discounts on art.

I still love Chainmaile

I still love making chainmaile, it's just such a nice yen to my yang of steampunk inspired designs.  So here are recent bracelets - the top pic is the shaggy, and the bottom are just a few of the endless helm chain color combos I get to play with.

Chainmaile is very meditative to make, and good therapy -- after all you make a bracelet or a earring just 1 link at a time.. just like you have to do one step at a time in life.......  

Happy Labor Day!

 I've always loved that "labor" is celebrated with a day off.  There is a lesson in there somewhere...   So while you enjoy your day off, my plans include a whole day of puttering around the studio in jammies making jewelry and organizing stuff.... labor of sorts but pure joy to my heart! I hope your enjoy your day as well..

Under the Sea

I've gotten some questions on making Under the Sea.  A couple of months ago a gal commissioned me to make a mermaid necklace  (you can see that here).  Strangely enough, I really had to talk myself into doing it.. I'm not really a mermaid person.  By the time I finished I ended up making 2 mermaid necklaces and I really felt like playing in the sea -- which eventually lead to this piece.

(Notice there are no mermaids in it... but I really like mermaids now! )

I did this great octopus necklace last year, so I really wanted to do something with a octopus again, but I hate to repeat myself.  So I laid out a bunch of vintage bits and a bunch of sea themed brass and played for awhile on the layout.  I finally came up with this rough idea:

Original layout

I wasn't completely happy yet.. I liked the general layout but it felt it was missing something.  Also I wanted it sturdy, so it needed a back piece to give it stability.

I wanted the back piece for structure, but I didn't want it to take away from the front design, I also wanted more color to tie together the patina pieces.

I used both patina paints and alcohol inks on the back piece, and then sealed it.  I also added another brass stamping to bridge the empty spot in the middle, to look like I open shell.  It also increased the stability of the piece.  I riveted everything together and a few places are reinforced with glue in spots.  it's riveted up to 4 layers in places, which makes this piece very stable and solid.  For all that, it's not heavy compared to it's size, as brass stampings are hollow and very light.

I really loved how this piece turned out.. it has vintage and modern stampings, vintage sewing machine pieces, vintage clock and watch parts and a vintage key.

Love not Hate, free speech and twisted truth

It hurts my soul, all this stuff kicking up.  My worst fears about that man winning the presidency are coming true -- he's opened a flood gate of hate and vitriol, all in the name of "telling it like it is".  I always worried how we could teach our kids right from wrong when the so call leader of the free world acts like a 3 year old on a sugar rush.

Being "PC" is becoming a swear word.

Look, I know how convoluted trying to be PC can be, I've felt the pain myself.  But what is going on isn't letting your hair down.  When you say things with the intent to hurt, to tear down, to kick others... that's just wrong.  Didn't your mamma's teach you that?

Saying you hate Jews and plan to kill them, hate blacks and plan to kill them, hate anyone who isn't your idea of white American, and they need to leave or die--- it's insane.  Saying it's your right to say these things.. I guess that is your right.

Free Speech.

But guess what, I have the right not to listen.   I have the right to say, you are an idiot.  A dangerous idiot.   Your ideas of whites being better simply because of the pigment in your skin is silly, dangerous and ultimately will be your downfall.  I guess at least  now we know who you are.  At least if you aren't trying to be PC we know now how really stupid you are and wrong thinking.

I believe in America as the ideal, not that it's ever quite achieved it.  The ideal is the melting pot, where all types of people- fat, black, red hair, polka lovin', gay, straight, Jewish, any religion, atheist, left handed - it doesn't matter- come together and make this world a better place.

I don't understand people who hate like this, it's not in me.

How can you live with that much hatred?  How is it not eating holes in your body?  

I don't have any answers..... I can only hope for a better tomorrow where we all pull together and finally get past this bullshit about our outsides being more important than our insides.







  

and now for something completely different ........

yep.  I really don't have words for this.  hehehehehehehehehehehehehe

3 Necklaces

Victorian Penny Necklace - from 1900.

Pocket watch etched piece is 1930s or earlier, I added back on a cog and a painted butterfly

I love this one!! I just love playing with the eyeballs I guess.  Vintage pocket watch face, brass bits and the eye.  I was thinking a "nice" Sauron, like his angelic twin or something.  Why do people always talk about Skippy (Sauron) the evil twin but never the good one?

Don't cross me

I've been fascinated of late by religious icons and symbols,  and the transformative power of them.   This is my take on the cross, I love the medieval Celtic cross, so I created my own using vintage cogs and gears.  The earrings are brass icons teamed up with vintage unused stock cross charms.

Had Fantastic time on my Trip!

We decided to take a quickie long weekend to St. Louis, but about a week before we left, I got granted 2 extra days of vacation.. so we were gone from Monday night to Sunday night.  Had an absolute blast! We spent a day in KCMO, did some antiquing and visited the steamboat museum .  Then we drove down to Springfield MO, did more antiquing and hit Fantastic Caverns and visited castle like ruins at Ha Ha Tonka State Park.   Spent the night in Jeff City Mo, and had breakfast at a marvelous local diner, Mels Country Cafe.  I think I had the best damn country fried steak EVER! .  if you are ever in Jeff City, and adore Country Fried Steak, this is the place you must go.  It's the local hang out as well.. you know the food is good when it's the local best kept secret.

Then we hit St. Louis for the next 3 days.  Had a ton of fun, special mention to City Museum  .  It's sort of a adult size play area and functional art exhibit.. like 4 + floors worth of a old shoe factory.

The other must do in St Louis is the gooey butter cake.  Specifically the Gooey Louie brand.     You all know I'm a total nut job about bakery treats, but even Jerry was like do they ship these?

I'm gonna have to do some Internet research and see if I can find a recipe for it, as it's mostly a St Louis area thing.

This weekend I have big plans.. namely I'm gonna try to get lots of new stuff made for my next Farmer's Market which is August 12th.

I better get crackin'

Mermaid Commissions

Back in Late May (?) I had a gal ask me about doing a mermaid piece.  I said sure!! I ended up making these 2 pieces, and darn if she didn't end up buying both of them.

Clock, watch parts, American made brass some pewter parts, and chain.

Mermaids Ahoy!

I'm working on the railroad....

Early idea for the train

OK last post I I showed you my train necklace, I just wanted to tell you more about this.  Back in November I got these great vintage french brass stampings of a train engine.  I loved it! It's the perfect steampunk kind of image!

You can see above one of my earlier ideas ... but I kept playing around with it  - or putting it aside but not completely away, because I really wanted to make something with a train theme.

So Last week I ran across the brass train again, and I had fairies out, and it just clicked.  I mean someone has to drive the engine right?   Who better than a fairy, at least when it's my jewelry.

Before I got my hands on the back.... 

And after I added color and brass!

I wanted a watch or clock involved somehow, because trains made America great -- and it took accurate time pieces to do it.   There are a whole range of specialty pocket watches made specifically for train workers.   I have had a few pocket watch faces that were train types but I've already used them in other projects.  The great railroad pocket watches tend to be more valuable and don't get pieced out... and I only recycle responsibly.  (you can read that as if it's pretty or functional- and not a adding machine, cause even the pretty adding machines are butt ugly- then it's not on my chopping block)

All finished

So I fished around and found this cute square face from a old alarm clock.  The back was pretty ugly, so I decided to add patina and then brass to make it look nice from both sides.    I added another clock part in the front, and it might be hard to tell from the picture but I have small watch gears in front of the train wheels.