Out of this world glamour balls!

I studied old school photography in college. I'm ready to throw all I learned into the garbage. Just took an extremely informative etsyrain photography workshop taught by Marlo Miyashiro for four hours today. I'm looking at everything through new eyes! Finally got some better photos of my work. Thanks for all your generous sharing of wisdom and technique, Marlo!

So here are some of my new things.

I'm applying for shows which will happen over the holiday season. Will keep the list updated as I go. So far, there's the Seattle Metals Guild show and the Pratt Fine Arts Center show. More details to follow.

Currently working with recycled/repurposed plastic and vintage thingies -- beads, mostly. Here are some examples of recent work. I really like to mix up traditional precious things with vintage costume jewelry elements, equally precious! As always, beauty is in the eye of the beholder...

Where have I been? That's a good question. There are many answers, of course, the most important that I am now here again. The garden is growing, the jewelry is increasing, the most recent crises have been dealt and dealt with. There are a couple of pieces I created with the Seattle Metals Guild biennial in mind, and here they are. A lot of things are starting to open up.

New necklace photos! It's so nice to have real sunlight. So inspiring.

My earrings are currently featured in BeadAerie's Treasury West. Check out this link: http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list_west.php?room_id=52194.

If you're in Seattle, like I am, get out there and enjoy the sun!

New Work in time for Mother's Day!

Everybody Shares on Earth Day

I saw these tulips in a community garden near my house. The critters munching on them have made them even more exotic! It's nice when we can all enjoy the fruits of nature on Earth Day. These are definitely organically grown.

Fiddleheads Unite!

The sun is slowly showing itself and the fiddleheads are unfurling. I worship fiddleheads and ferns in general. This is such a preciously short time and so easy to miss! I realized when I saw these little critters in my yard that I have tried subconsciously to duplicate the fiddlehead spiral elsewhere, as in the arrangement I have already put together to inspire me year-round.

Our Spring is running late this year. One of the measurements of the season in my hood is this stunning old ornamental plum tree. It's always at it's best when displayed against a mid-afternoon blue sky, which because of scheduling and weather isn't always a possibility in a given year. This photo is from a few years back when weather and her pluminess converged and I was able to be there and capture her.

Dali's heart

About a year and a half ago I was lucky to find myself in Figueres, Spain, home of the Salvador Dali Museum. To my delight, I discovered an entire wing devoted to Dali's jewelry designs. The piece that literally and figuratively took my breath away was a ruby encrusted golden crowned brooch with some type of mechanism that causes it to actually beat! Thanks to the power of youtube I can finally show this amazing thing. I have always thought Dali was kinda cool but this jettisoned him up my Ladder of Inspiration and I think about his jewelry all the time.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mAEUnaaEetc&feature=related

Pink and green are a great combo for St. Patrick's Day! Pinky wishes all a lovely holiday evening and the Luck of the Irish!

It really feels like Spring here in Seattle town today and Pinky loves Spring. It seems that all the flowers are about a month late this year. Every time they stick their little heads out of the ground, winter comes and slaps 'em. Spring is very inspirational to Pinky and she can finally have really good ventilation in her studio without bundling up like an arctic explorer.

This photo is dated April 16, 2007, and it's Pinky's garden. Right now we still have frost some mornings and everything is pretty much bare. There's just about one month to go before it's supposed to look like this. Just think...all those little fellers are underground, waiting to jump out!

Birth announcement

Whew! I have finally given birth to my website. Here's a link: http://www.patinaparty.com/. There is also some additional work on my etsy shop, and here's the link to that: http://www.patinaparty.etsy.com/. Please visit! Tell me anything about what you see!

There's been a whole lotta learnin' here, from setting up a photo studio within my jewelry studio, expanding my photoshop skills, and dealing with html. Is there such a thing as a jewelry geek? Now hopefully I'm back to creating jewelry.

Accessories can add a little fun and frivolity to life, and right now we need all the bits of joy we can find! A new piece of jewelry helps us stretch our wardrobe boundaries when we can't justify the purchase of a new pair of fabulous shoes or a serious piece of clothing.

I'm influenced by things that come into my vision when I slow down to savor the moment. As the world moves and changes around all of us, I find myself thinking about what I can do to stay in a happy place. Making jewelry for me is a way to capture little thoughts and pass them on to others.