My Adventure at Pickers is drawing to a close

With Farmer Market's starting in 2 weeks I've made the decision to remove my stock at The Picker Knows for the summer.

It's gone pretty well, actually, so well we will probably set up a case somewhere again in the fall.

It's just going to be too hard to maintain a decent selection there and do shows during the summer.

My stuff goes away effective May 14th or 15th.  While I have 3 weeks left there, I've put EVERYTHING on sale for 25% off! 

So definitely worth checking it out! My case is #810.

Meanwhile, we are working on repairing and refreshing over half of my displays -- here is a sneak peak of display redo's in progress.

 

I'm getting excited! Farmer's Market is only 3 weeks away!

This year we have 12 slots for Farmer's Market : 

                 May 7th
                 May 14th
                 May 28th
                 June 4th
                 June 18th
                 July 2nd
                 July 16th
                 August 13th
                 August 27th
                 September 3rd
                 September 17th
                October 1st (8-12pm)

I'm sooo excited! right now we are only doing Farmer's Market for shows, but check my schedule on my website, you never know, I might pick up something - course I'll usually tell you here as well.

These picks show some jewelry I've made in the last month or so, getting ready for FM! 

Our spot, baring changes, is close to where we have been the last few years.  4th street, by the Hy-vee parking lot.  

this bracelet is reusing jewelry bits - the clasp is probably from the 60's and had a crappy plastic thingie in it.. I put a lovely vintage watch movement in it, and added pearls from another broken necklace.   I love this! 

 

The meaning of Keys

So my daughter got hit by a truck - a drunk driver - last summer.  That's why 2021 will live in my mind as the absolutely worse year of my life -- and the absolutely best year, cause she's survived.

It was so close.  

I was working at the time on a series of necklaces recycling cute parts of a bracelet with words on them.  I stop working on them of course -- except for one, that simply said "breathe" .  That one I finished and I started wearing, and I wore it almost every day for the 2 months I was off work, helping my daughter as she learned to walk again.

It got me through.  It reminded me that as long as she is here, we could get through this.  One breath at a time.  It's one of my most treasured necklaces now, and everytime I wear it I feel more balanced, stronger.

I finally got back to making jewelry, and I finished the necklaces.  I've already sold some of them at pickers, but I'll have have the rest ready to go for Farmer's Market.

I use to think wearing "power words" was stupid.  They are not.  Sometimes you really need to see it everyday, to remind you.  Sometimes you are so numb you can only handle one or 2 words at a time.

So, if you are down, then maybe you need something to remind you to "be Happy" .  Maybe you are going through something hellish, maybe you need to remember to be "strong" and "stay positive" .

Just remember, one breath at a time.

More work from last year -

catching up on photos from last year, still!   The top piece I love, I took a used piece of costume jewelry - popped out the icky, scratched up plastic cab that was in the middle, drilled a hole and filled it with steampunky goodness.  I doubt the jewelry piece was very old, but the cog I used is 75-100 years old, from a old clock.  

Another recycled jewelry bit - this time a earring, which again I drilled a hole and added fun stuff.

These were so kewl in person! lot's of movment.  Vintage clock and watch parts.  I would sooo make more of these, but I don't have anymore of the architectural black parts!! 

 Old light bulbs, got at a flea market, again drill a hole and I'll make anything into jewelry!   I think I actually made these in Jan of 2022 but I've made them before.

I added words, crystals and chain.  I would love to make necklaces with old light bulbs, but they can be so fragile I mostly haven't.  Making the older, thicker glass ones into earrings is pretty safe, they aren't as likely to be abused.