Guitar Pick Jewelry

Last year, when we were in the Boston area, The Husband got himself a guitar pick punch at a local comic book shop.  He goes through guitar picks pretty fast and planned to make them out of old gift cards and expired credit cards.  Now he has quite a collection.

Fast forward a year.  I’ve been borrowing his punch to make cute guitar picks for jewelry.  Sometimes I buy gift cards specifically for their graphics, like these:  

 They were Walmart gift cards available around Easter.

Unlike The Husband, I have to make at least one hole, sometimes 2 depending on the design, so I also have a hole puncher.  It’s supposed to be for metal but so far, it’s been fine for the plastic. 

And I've also used the specialty scissors to cut unusual shapes as a background for charms.

  I love adding the beads, charms and chain to the picks to create little one of a kind treasures.  You can find them in my earrings section on Etsy  HERE

C’est La Vie! Do What You Love!

http://www.bearchick.etsy.com
http://www.bearchicksundries.etsy.com

What’s Up? Steampunk and France!

It’s been a while, boys and girls.  My creative mojo has been on hiatus.  I took a French class.  I stressed out at work.  I visited friends and family in the Boston area.  I ate way too much. I read a lot.

Sometimes I feel like I stepped back from my inner life and my physical life.  I retreated.  Don’t know why.  These things sneak up and hide themselves in your head,  so you don’t realize you’re not doing anything--creating, exercising, thinking.  

But lately I’ve been getting creative again, making some jewelry and working on a Steampunk character.  For those of you who don’t know what Steampunk is, it’s basically a Victorian vision of science fiction--think  H.G. Wells and Jules Verne.  More recently, read the Leviathan series by Scott Westfield or Gail Carrigers’ Alexia Tarabotti books (which mix Steampunk with vampires and werewolves).  Steampunk is anything goes--from corsets to tricked out weaponry, top hats to gears as embellishments.  Characters range from scientists and royalty to adventurers and ladies of the evening.  We already have our reservations for the HRH Steampunk Symposium on the Queen Mary in January, so I’m gathering materials and making my costumes and accessories.

Cats are a big part of my character, Felina Reid’s, life, so they will figure in parts of my costume.  Like my hats--yes, those are cat ears!  

 
And the embellishment also features a cat pin.

Here some great shoes I scored at Goodwill yesterday:

I’ll be making a drawstring bag (and probably my skirt/bustle) out of velveteen fabric I used to use on my tables at craft shows.  The fabulous trim I found on Etsy.

We’re also planning a trip to France next year.  The Mom recently gave me a monetary gift to start a Paris fund.  I wanted to go next year for our 35th anniversary and this money gave that dream a big boost!  The Husband is a military history buff, so naturally wants to see the D-Day beaches in Normandy.  I’m a museum rat and flea market shopper, so that’s what I’m looking forward to in Paris.  You’d think the Louvre would be #1 on my list but it’s actually the Musee D’Orsay, since I love the Impressionists.  We also love to walk, so seeing Paris on foot is going to be exciting.  I remember walking in San Francisco--a walking pace at ground level allows you to see so many tiny, amazing details!  
 

I love the planning of a trip as much as the actual travel, so lately I’m either elbows deep in beads or French tour books.

I’ll keep you up to date on what I’m making and planning!

C’est La Vie! Do What You Love!

http://www.bearchick.etsy.com

http://www.bearchicksundries.etsy.com

I’m Back~With Artful Things

So, my creativity has been at low ebb for a while. I guess we all go through this, at different times in our lives. The Day Job zaps energy and the will to create. I feel like I’ve been in a library-shaped cocoon, reading and avoiding the world. But lately, I’ve been jotting notes for things I want to write, create and, gasp (!) sew. While texting with a friend a few weeks ago, I looked up a cameo company online and bought a bunch, which will be showing up in my Etsy shop soon as necklaces and earrings and even pins (!). There’s a stash of fabric in my workroom and patterns I got on a super sale at JoAnn. And I’m even thinking of starting classes toward a general ed degree.

 

Right now, I just want to get blogging again. Expect to see art around town, book reviews (I’ve discovered a lot of new mystery series lately), new jewelry and just things I find interesting and think you might, too.

 

Last week, The Husband and I celebrated our 33rd wedding anniversary in Palm Springs. Today, I’m going to post some art from around PS and their great art museum. The next blog will have nose art and some other paintings and sculpture from the Palm Springs Air Museum. Enjoy!

 

Here we are, posed beneath Marilyn Monroe in her iconic pose from The Seven Year Itch. This great gal, a huge sculpture by Seward Johnson, is quite a draw!

I knew you were wondering!

We saw this sculpture a few years ago and we’re still amazed by it. I keep expecting her to blink!

Full length

Her feet are so dang lifelike!

This is a performance art piece on a 12 minute loop. It mesmerized me. So simple--a woman holding a container of milk--but so fascinating. I think because it was presented as a piece of art on the wall, the fact that you could see her breathing and working to keep the container steady but dribbling on the floor and her black dress, it was like watching through a window. And she never looks up, never tries to make contact. Hmmmm, that does make me a voyeur?!

Here I am with Your Dog, in the front lobby of the musuem.

No explanation--just fun! I posted this on Facebook with the caption, “I’ll never get these dishes done!”, contributed by The Husband.

Loved this Glass House

Loved this Glass Man. His pants are concrete, I believe, but the jacket and the head are glass. The jacket and hood seems to have been painted, but the back of the shoulders and the face were left raw, creating the glow of light. Beautiful!

Face detail.

I was taken with these ornaments hanging above the second tier of the museum, even before we discovered that each of the 100 pieces holds a note or piece of artwork from artists all over the world.

And here’s The Husband, with a driftwood horse he admired.

And just to show that art and beauty are everywhere, here's a beautiful flower we saw on our way to the museum.  So bright and happy!!

Coming soon, The Palm Springs Air Museum!

Do What You Love!

www.bearchick.etsy.com

www.bearchicksundries.etsy.com

My Photographer Hat

As a small (make that tiny!) business owner, I wear a lot of hats. Jewelry artist, bookkeeper, marketing specialist… And on and on… But one of the more important hats as an online business person is Photographer. On Etsy, you only have 5 pictures to show your products to their best advantage.

My journey as photographer has had it's ups and downs. I started with a video camera that also had micro stills capability. It was a little cumbersome but it took great close ups. Now I have a Canon that I couldn't live without! It takes great shots of everything, from earrings to polar bears at Sea World.

My next challenge was the setup. I think I started on the walkway to the front door of my house, using natural light. Challenge: I had to keep the camera angled so I didn't get the street, foliage or other houses in the background. I moved onto a PVC pipe frame with a white bed sheet thrown over it in my workroom. Challenge: yellow walls, which made the colors weird and hard to fix on the computer. Now I have a lightbox that I love. I set it up on sunny afternoons near my front door:
 

My light box is from Cowboy Studio, through Amazon.com. It comes with several backdrops but so far I’ve only used the white. And even though I don’t let the kitties near it, I have to keep a roll of tape nearby, to remove cat hair!

I just got the small black table so I could have a mobile workspace if I want to watch a movie on my computer, where there isn't really a lot of flat space. Before that, I had the lightbox on the floor--ouch, my back!

One other thing that I've changed is one of my key props: I used to use a wine glass to hang earrings. If you look at the glass, it looks clear but I suspect there's really a lot of very subtle green in it. I used to think it was picking up color from the yellow walls but even when I switched out to the living room, I was getting strange color, so I bought a white mug with pretty details around the rim and that's worked much better.

So, now, there are items that I want to reshoot because as I look through my Etsy pages, it's painful to see some of my earlier photography. Here's a prime example:

 

BEFORE

AFTER

 

I better get to work, rephotographing some of my earlier pieces so I don’t have to cringe when I go through my Etsy pages!

 

Do What You Love!

 

http://www.bearchick.etsy.com/

http://www.bearchicksundries.etsy.com/

Why You Won’t See Me on Project Accessory

I love Project Runway. I think I’ll enjoy Project Runway Allstars, too. But you won’t see me on them because I’m not a seamstress.

I like Project Accessory. The best thing about it is their workroom. I think most of us creatives watching lust after that work space, filled with all the tools and materials our little hearts desire, including a wall of Swarovski crystal components (ooo, sorry, I just drooled!).

Nina, with tools and The Wall behind her

Now, I know Project Runway throws crazy challenges at their designers, like using only things found in a pet shop to create a garment. But in the end, it all comes down to sewing. They may have to step out of their comfort zone to make a gown if their specialty is sportswear but the basic skill is still sewing.

On any given Project Accessory episode, the designers could be asked to make jewelry, purses, hats, belts, etc. Or shoes. Shoes?!? The first week they were asked to make a pair of shoes, it was painful to watch the models hobble down the runway. It takes a much different skill set to make a shoe than it does a necklace. And probably years to perfect your understanding of the physics and techniques required to create a beautiful, sturdy high heel. Watch the movie Kinky Boots if you don’t believe me. I don’t know that I would have trusted a 4” heel made by someone who had never made a shoe before, either.

The scariest shoes

Aside from issues of safety, watching designers trying to make things they’ve never attempted before is weird and uncomfortable. I mean, it’s enough of a challenge to see a jewelry artist try to design a necklace from bed springs but to see a jewelry artist trying to make a leather purse… I’d like to know what the application process was for this show.

 

Some of the designers are fairly well rounded in their skills and present interesting pieces for most challenges. But it seems to me that the majority of the designers specialize and consequently struggle with the pieces they have to create outside their forte which make for uninteresting runway looks. I’m hoping that next season, they’ll pick more all around handy folks who can work with varied techniques at higher skill levels.

Diego at work, designing a bag for his client

And that’s why you won’t see me on Project Accessory. Build a pair of shoes?! Sew a leather gusseted purse? Create a hat? Wouldn’t have the first clue where to start. But I really admire Brian Burkhardt and Diego Rocha, who seem to be able to not only meet each challenge with well designed and executed pieces but, Brian especially is able to weave his own modern Tribal style into all of his work. I’m officially predicting that Brian will be the last designer standing.

Brian's most recent challenge results.

So, are you Project Accessory contestant material? Could you create a head to toe look with so many varied skills and put your personality into each piece?

Do What You Love!

 

http://www.bearchick.etsy.com/

http://www.bearchicksundries.etsy.com/

Bear Chick~The Wonder Years

*sigh*

This is almost as bad as showing my high school pictures!!

Here I am at the first show I ever did, at the clubhouse where I live:

Ah, simple stringing, necklaces and bracelets. I sold quite a bit and it encouraged me to actually get my business license and get serious about jewelry making. I think that's a piece of foam board beneath the fabric… Oh, the innocence!

And here I am at a monthly art fair that the Muckenthaler Cultural Center in Fullerton used to hold on their beautiful property:

We got a canopy and real tables and everything! I was experimenting with different props and creating levels on the table for visual interest. I'm the first to admit that I'm not the best merchandiser around…

And we sold a few times at The Rose Bowl Antique Swap Meet in Pasadena, where they had a handmade section:

Ye gods! You had to be there at 5 in the morning (earlier if you were doing antiques) but you got to keep your car with you and the foot traffic was wild. It was a great experience. And it must have been pre-canopy because we only had the big umbrella. A canopy definitely defines your space better…

Of course, these shows were all pre-Etsy! I don't do a lot of shows these days. For someone working full time (knock wood!), it's more time consuming than I'm willing to deal with and right now, in this economy, it's a bit hit and miss. But my canopy and tables and velveteen fabric, jewelry busts, props and trays are just waiting for their next outing!

Do What You Love!

http://www.bearchick.etsy.com/

http://www.bearchicksundries.etsy.com/

TV Jewelry Star

Just like Bones’ Emily Deschanel before her, CSI:NY’s Sela Ward is portraying a character on TV who is one with her jewelry. In fact, I created a necklace based on a piece she wore during one of her first episodes as Jo Danville this season.

Here’s the inspiration:

And here’s the necklace I made:

A few more examples of Jo’s Jewelry Style:

Most often, she wears layered necklaces in interesting combinations.  The more, the merrier, I say!

Do What You Love!

www.bearchick.etsy.com

www.bearchicksundries.etsy.com

www.bearchick.artfire.com

Bones Has the Best Jewelry on TV

That's what I always say to The Husband when we watch one of our fave shows, Bones. The lead character, Temperance Brennan, frequently wears beautiful jewelry. Usually, it's ethnic flavored, since she's an anthropologist who has traveled the world and sampled a gazillion different cultures. Yes, Bones herself would tell you that gazillion is a highly technical term...

These were the best photo's I could Google of the fair Temperance:

Do you have any favorite TV or Movie characters that are Jewelry Fashionista's?

Do What You Love!

www.bearchick.etsy.com
www.bearchickart.etsy.com
www.bearchicksundries.etsy.com
www.bearchick.artfire.com

Halloween Jewelry

Today I wore a Halloween pin that I haven’t worn in years. I’m not a big Halloween person but I enjoy some of the iconic images--vampires, ghosts, black cats… And it got me to thinking about what Halloween jewelry I have.

Here’s what I could find in a few minutes sifting through my collection:

This is the pin I wore today. The Husband bought it for me at a craft show in the 80’s, I think. I love the vampire, I love the rainbow cape and especially, the red sneakers! This always make me laugh when I see it.

This is a necklace I made myself when I was first making jewelry, probably in 2001 or ‘02. I got the lampwork ghost on Ebay, I think from an artisan in Hawaii. I wanted to make the beadwork look like candy corn but I think I got the colors skewed a little. Oh well, I still love this piece!

Here’s a Boyd’s Bear pin, with a less than traditional black cat. So much detail and texture!

You can tell it’s a Boyd’s from the bear paw print on the cats head. The paw print is their signature.

And here’s a fun necklace that I bought for 25 cents last year at a yard sale in Buena Park. It made me laugh and reminded me of our very own black cat, Watson. I was going to cut it up and use the faces and candy corn to upcycle some new jewelry but I really like it just the way it is!

Do you have any favorite Halloween jewelry?

Do What You Love!

www.bearchick.etsy.com
www.bearchickart.etsy.com
www.bearchicksundries.etsy.com
www.bearchick.artfire.com