Chat…Just Because

I finally picked out some items from IKEA for my jewelry studio a few months ago. Remember, I was trying to figure out what to do in my newly finished area? Unfortunately, the closest IKEA to St. Louis is in the Chicago area, and cost of shipping was more than what items cost! So I backburnered the plan for a while, making due with the kitchen table again as the makeshift workbench.

Then we found out a few weeks ago that Don’s ex was traveling to Chicago and would be heading to IKEA. What luck! I told her what I was looking for, and she offered to pick up the items and bring them back to St. Louis. Sweet!

So on Sunday, she dropped off my brand new work table and drawer cabinet. I’ll get to work on the table in the next day or so, but I was able to put together the little cabinet that will house some of my jewelry supplies.

This piece went from this (oh my)

to this, in just under two hours.

AND, I did it by myself!!! Yep. Don is out of town for a few days, so I decided I would just dive right in. Of course I could have used his brawn to help take the box it was packed in to the lower level (this sucker weighs 74 pounds!), but since it was just me and Elyse home with no brawn in sight, I had to take it downstairs myself, basically one piece at a time. That alone took about 10 minutes with all of the up and down! I was already sweating by the time I started.

But it was worth it. Turned out so cute. Of course, IKEA makes it pretty difficult to mess up. Even the directions have only pictures, no words. So unless you can’t interpret a picture, the piece should go together pretty smoothly. Now I just need to clear a space so I can set up the table. I’ll be so organized! … I think.

Keep you posted!

I am a fan of the well written quote, be it inspirational, funny or in-your-face true. I also like to change things up every now and then and thought you might enjoy the daily postings of this new blog: Haiku By Two.

Friends Alison and Kelly met 10 years ago while teaching English in Buenos Aires. Once back in the states, Kelly settled in Minneapolis and Alison returned to NYC, but they each promised to keep in touch. Haiku By Two is their recent collaborative way of maintaining their long distance friendship.

If you’re really jazzed about the art of haiku, they have a great links page that you can delve into and explore. Be sure to check out their reviews too, including one on a book called, A Year of Mornings, that inspired their blog endeavor. They’ve even made it easy to submit your own haiku for possible publication on their site should you be so inclined. Remember, a haiku is a poem made up of 17 syllables in 3 lines (5 - 7 - 5).

Here’s one I came up with. Can you tell my firstborn will graduate high school this year?

She prepares to go -
Packing, energy flowing,
she smiles; childhood leaves

Sweet reading! And good luck to Alison and Kelly! You can find them on Facebook and Twitter too.

Tags: blog, creative, haiku family

One of the things on my to do list this year is to set up and furnish my in-home jewelry studio. We did a bit of remodeling over the summer and now I have a room of my own dedicated to all things jewelry. First up was figuring out a way for me to have easier access to my bead inventory. So my solution was to purchase this nifty display grid.

This only represents a portion of my bead strand collections. I’ll need to purchase a few more hooks and baskets, and possibly another grid if I decide to display all of my inventory. I chose this particular display item because it helps me to see the colors and types of beads I have available at a glance. For a long time, I had beads contained in plastic Ziploc bags or trays, and although easy to spot color, it was a bit of a drag to go through each bag every time I had an idea about what color/type of beads might look good together. Being able to just look at the hooks and go right to the colors I need will definitely save time.

Next up was figuring out the actual work surface area. Here’s where I hit a wall. I stalled out on making a decision because I was hovering about whether I wanted a workbench specifically designed for metalsmithing, or something on which I could lay out all of my beading/wirework materials. I hemmed and hawed for a few months about it, while my beautiful beads sat in their trays on the floor. (Sometimes I get hung up considering a decision about one thing for so long that I become paralyzed to do anything else! Doesn’t happen too often, but when it does … grrr.) Ultimately, I decided to hold off on the metalsmithing aspect for a while, and instead focus on finding the perfect table/desk is conducive to my work style. I’ve still not found what I wanted, but I’m on the hunt right now.

Anywho, once I finally find that work surface and organize the space a bit , I’ll give you a nice tour of where I create Just Because Jewelry.

In the meantime, can you believe it’s already the middle of January?! I think another item on my list to do this year will be to slow down a bit and savor the little moments.

My very talented fellow blogger, Sahar, authors a fantastic site called Fat Fighter TV. There, she makes it her mission to educate us with information on all things healthy: foods and recipes, diet and exercise, articles and tips. Such a busy lady, and yet she recently revealed that she’s also the creative force behind these darling wine charms!

A self-taught artist, she started making these beauties about five years ago as a creative outlet, separate from her job as a reporter, producer and writer. She uses peweter charms, and came up with her original themes based on her personal favorites: Celestial, Ladies’ Night, Travel, Beach and Nautical (the Christmas lights are too cute!). She also makes similarly themed bottle stoppers that would add some wonderful whimsy to your wine bar or display.

Wouldn’t these make awesome hostess gifts?! Better yet, you could get some for yourself to enjoy. You can see all of her sweet creations at her new Etsy shop, Simply Sahar*s. She’ll also work with you on any custom themes to suit your occassion.

Good luck, Sahar!

A few weeks ago as a team-building effort, our group leader asked that each of our areas come up with the most creative way to decorate … a wreath. Yep, we were given a naked wreath and told to used the power of our creative thought to design it any way we wanted. And it didn’t need to be Christmas related either. The winning team was promised a basket of Christmas goodies. Six teams would compete.

My team set out with a few brainstorming sessions in which we tried to visualize the wreath outside of its traditional use. This is more difficult than you might expect. We did come up with a flying saucer, a bird’s nest, a necklace, a tropical island, a wheel and a few others, but themes kept creeping into the discussion.

We finally narrowed it down to a few ideas: a Redneck wreath (which featured among other things, smashed Schlitz beer cans and a flannel shirt) and a Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer wreath (adorned with the beloved Claymation characters, including Rudolph, Clarice, Hermey, Yukon, and the Abominable Snowman) were the frontrunners. Sadly, a Charlie Brown wreath that was decorated to the nines with one broken ornament and a spastic strand of lights didn’t make the cut, nor did the Stress Rewreath wreath becauth of the difficulty in pronounthing ith’s name (thorry).

Ultimately we decided on … ready ….?

A Wreath-a Franklin!

too cool, huh?

We used the following items to bring to life some of the Queen of Soul’s greatest hits, which by the way, we had a medley of playing on two small speakers through a Nano wired on the back of the wreath. So not only did this look fierce (in a totally creative way) and pretty, it sounded fierce. Here are the songs we included on the mix:

- R-e-s-p-e-c-t: we spelled it out, just like Aretha … ahem, I mean, A Wreath-a
- Think (Freedom): lightbulb featuring the word ‘Think’
- Chain of Fools: hard to see, but I attached those silver block letter beads in the word FOOL (three times) to the chains hanging below the disco ball
- Freeway of Love: pink caddie (so it’s a red ‘56 Chevy Hot Wheels, but I used little OPI polish in Strawberry Margarita to make it a pink cadillac, ok?)

Other items we used to drive home our witty play on words: a tiara, for no Queen of Soul (or diva) can be without one; a CD, musical notes and a disco ball, um, obvious ones; stars, because she’s, well, a star; a pink boa, because the lady loves her accessories!

We came in second, but don’t even get me started on why I think we were robbed! We had a fun time though.

Without so much as a sideways glance, it appears summer is moving on and fall is knocking at our door already. You can tell by the explosion of art fairs, festivals, cooler evenings and brisk mornings. Won’t be too much longer and the leaves will begin their vibrant display of changing colors! Don’t you love the smell of firewood burning on a cool autumn evening? Loving this time of year!

But back to the fairs and festivals. We’ve hit two of them already. So much fun to see all of the amazing creativity that comes out of those. Check out this pair of silver earrings I bought from my metalsmithing teacher, Nikki Nation. She had a booth at one of the art fairs and I was able to see all of her terrific pieces. Aren’t these great?!

She’s in the process of moving to Colorado, and I wish her much success. I hope to showcase her Web site when it’s up and ready (plus I’m sure her photos will do these earrings justice!).

In the meantime, I’ve been putting together some great autumn-inspired pieces that I hope will be ready very soon. Lots of bronze pearls and beads, the gorgeous reds and oranges of carnelian, agate and gold coral. I can’t wait to show these to you!

What is it about fall that you love or inspires you?

… make jewelry, that is. Why do I make jewelry? Because as with any endeavor or activity that I enjoy, it just feels good on so many levels for so many reasons. Here’s a slice of what I mean:

1. The beads physically feel good in my hands. I like the texture and weight of them … energy I can feel.
2. It feels good to release my creativity and use my hands.
3. Feels good to learn a new technique or work with new materials and experiment with them.
4. It feels good to discover new beads and learn about their colors and composition and lore.
5. I get a kick out of playing with colors and textures.
6. I feel just a tad giddy when I go to open a shipment of beads I’ve ordered. (k, actually a lot giddy).
7. I love to see the finished items I make.
8. I’m excited to talk with others about the jewelry.
9. It feels great to see my customers get excited about buying a piece.
10. It feels good doing shows.
11. Feels good giving back.
12. Feels terrific to hear the Just Because Jewelry stories my customers tell me after they’ve worn their items.
13. Feels amazing creating a space for me to just be.
14. It feels good to concentrate so intensely when creating, I lose track of everything else.
15. Feels so good when I hear that I’ve made others happy.
16. Feels good letting people in on my world and sharing ideas with them.
17. Feels tremendous to imagine the possibilities.
18. Feels FAN-tastic knowing I’m setting a good example for my children to learn about how to follow their passions.
19. Feels good to be in charge of my creations.
20. Feels wonderful to be inspired by my surroundings.  

Why do you do what you do? (I know, I sound like Harvey Korman’s Hedley Lamarr in ‘Blazing Saddles!’)