Studio Friday: Fave Item

This week's topic for Studio Friday: Fave item in your studio/craft space- why do you love it and how does it inspire you (art or journal+ photo)?

Why, beads of course! :) Their beauty, their shining ... their infinite variety. My current favorites are these heavy Tibetan silver beads accented with oversize pearls and gemstone chunks seen atop this gemstone potpourri. They are solid silver, crafted by hand in Tibet and just fabulous! Very inspiring to an artisan jewelry designer :)

Another constant source of inspiration is my collection of art books. Filled with global design, museum pieces and the work of talented artists throughout history, browsing through them never fails to jump start my creative process. I do admit to a bit of a bent for Art Nouveau, Medieval, turn of the century, and Asian books. But just look at this beautiful plique-a-jour butterfly girl brooch (c. 1900)! Can you believe this piece is only about 1 1/2 inches tall? I just love this style of art! I can even visualize the dress it would go with ... rustling green silk with gold beaded fringe ... yum!

And no post about what studio item inspires me to create would be complete without this. This was presented to me by my little preschooler who announced in his high squeaky voice, "It's a wittle duckling, mommy. Isn't he cuuuuuuute! He's such a cuuuute wittle duckling!" Now if this was a real baby duck, it probably wouldn't win any beauty contests, but I love it! This little guy sits on my work table and inspires me to work by reminding me of my wonderful family who supports me in all my creative efforts. Thank you guys!

Studio Friday: Storage/Containers

This weeks challenge from Studio Friday: How do you store your arts and crafts supplies in your studio? Where do you store them? Do you have enough space for it? Maybe some of them are even unusual??! And how about that space under the bed...?!



These pastel beauties are "This" (the pink bird) and "That" (the green bird). Their nest is a crytal goblet known as bead purgatory. It's where broken, damaged, or just plain too ugly to use beads go to live forever. Or at least until the goblet gets full and I bequeath them to children for kids' craft projects :)

The goblet is low since I just emptied it recently, but this is so pretty to look at in my studio, especially when the morning sunlight refracts through the crystal. I love how things that were once discolored and broken are transformed into such a pretty studio accent just by being stored prettily.

Studio Friday: Let's Face It!

...whatever 'it' is. What have you been procrastinating about and dragging your heels to do?

1) New jewelry and website development tools can be a large investment of money and an even greater investment of time for classes and training. If I hesitate on anything, it's writing that large check! I know that 6-12 months down the road, I will be able to produce art that reflects my inner vision more closely than ever before and that it will be more beautifully presented, but it can be scary to outlay that amount of money when the future return is uncertain.

2) Here's a shot from the "Lonely Component Drawer". I love to experiment with new materials and concepts. I have a drawer full of crafted components that will never see the light of day, but I can't bear to recycle them. There's my French beaded flower phase, my brief love of venetian glass, the time I absolutely needed to make paper beads....They live in their drawer waiting for the project that will give them meaning.

What I would LOVE to do, would be to have a commitment free weekend and clean out the "Lonely Component Drawer" by turning them all into one of a kind gifts for dear friends, loyal customers and family. But, the truth is that if I had that most rare and elusive of things, a free weekend, I probably would want to get out of the house and go enjoy the culture and shopping in downtown Portland :)

Bejeweled - Jeweled Elegance

Studio Friday: Quoted!

"It's only too late if you don't start now." ~Barbara Sher

This week's Studio Friday is on favorite quotes and how they relate to you as an artist. I've always liked this one by Barbara Sher reminding me that in every moment of every day, a brand new opportunity dawns to live your dreams. Every morning is a chance to start anew. A chance to learn something new, to take a risk, to approach that gallery, to try that new technique. The only "mistake" you can make is to not start ... right now! It can always be Spring, the season of new beginnings, in your mind and heart.

Bejeweled - Jeweled Elegance

Studio Friday: "Color Combos"

"I make jewelry and I find that I have certain color combinations that tend to be my favorite and I use more often. So I would love to see what color combinations everyone likes to use". ~ Sharla

When I walk through a museum or flip through a glossy design magazine, I can admire one color combination and then 2 minutes later, be smitten by something completely different. There is such a richness and diversity in color combinations, I don't know if I can say I have a favorite or a preference for one combination over another. However, I have noticed some patterns:
My home is all modern taupe neutral, since it's a showcase for my Asian art, and I use these strong rich color combinations as accents, one for public spaces and one for private spaces. Can you guess which is which?:



But my jewelry designs are all light and airy and seem to have a lot of either pastels or delicate color choices. Weird, huh! Wonder what would happen if I thought about home decor while I was designing wearables?

Studio Friday: "Comfort"

"I recently splurged on a new office chair, and it is making a huge difference in how my back and neck feel at the end of the day, since I spend a lot of time at my computer. Now that the weather has turned a little chilly in the mornings, I'm using my heated lap blanket on my chair to make my work spot even cozier. I wonder what other artists do to make their studios more comfy. Comfort foods? Family photos on the wall? A cozy spot for an afternoon nap?" ~ Lisa


Tea! A toasty cup of flavorful tea is the perfect comfort for me in the studio. I love the endless variety and flavors of tea and as you can see, I range all over: imported Japanese green tea, chai, whole leaf chamomile, African nectar, Twinings British tea ...... they are all good! I also have a great collection of tea cups for all that tea. This blue and white one is from Japan. Some of them are such beautiful and fragile ceramics I use them for decoration only since I'm not sure they could withstand boiling hot water.

No matter how hectic the studio gets and how many projects are on the table, I can always find a tiny spot large enough for a cup of comfort :)

Studio Friday: "Autumn Inspiration"

This week's Studio Friday topic:
"Autumn inspiration - According to my calendar, today (Sept 22) is the "Autumnal Equinox," and it's my favorite season, so show me what you love about the fall - the colors?... the leaves?...etc." ~ Kerri

Who doesn't love the vibrant colors of autumn, especially the pairing of flame-colored leaves with a brilliant blue sky? These lovely autumn flowers reflect the colors of the trees and will soon be visible out my studio window. And something about autumn just encourages knitting, especially with wool, in the evening with a cup of hot tea and fresh pumpkin muffins. Here is my newest knitting project - the yarn choices are definitely showing some autumn influence!


Autumn is also the time to start crafting Christmas goodies in the studio. I love to open the window in the studio wide (Autumn here has a long Indian summer before the rains start) and with a hot cup of cider, sketch out all the new designs I'd like to do for Christmas, both for my family and friends and for the boutique. There's something about the quiet in the air, the smell of the garden, the turning of the leaves and the flocks of geese in the sky that just inspires. This fall I've been smitten by the color copper. These are a few of my first copper inspired pieces - little inexpensive stocking stuffers crafted with bright copper wire.

Studio Friday: "Stick it to the ... Board!

"It would be interesting to see the variety of bulletin/memory boards in our studios. What is pinned to them? Photos? Notes? Reminders? Ideas for future projects?" ~Jill


Instead of a pin board, I use notebook binders to collect my inspiration materials. Here is a shot of my lovely ultramarine notebooks in the studio. What goes in the notebooks? Everything! Fabric bits, photos, poems, drawings etc. I also have a huge table where I pull out material from the notebooks and work with it. For jewelry, I'll add a few focal beads or gemstones and every time I walk by the table I'll reflect on the design and add something (or take it away). When it's time to work, the completed "table pin board" helps keep me focused and on track with my original vision, while still keeping it fresh. Above is my newest addition to the inspiration table - I'm working on a wedding set in pink, gold and white. Everything is fair game as I'm setting up a board. You can see my living room candle has been conscripted in the upper right :)

Studio Friday: "Toot Your Own Horn"

This is my first time participating in Studio Friday, the place where artists can meet online for a weekly creative challenge to reveal little glimpses of our magical creative spaces, our studios. This week's challenge is to toot your own horn and show off some of your own special work.

I'm not terrible comfortable at tooting my own horn, but here it goes.... I've picked my newest Jeweled Elegance necklace, "Mermaid's Pride", that I am just in love with. I had been looking at Arthur Rackham's illustrations for "Undine" when I designed this and I'm happy with how it captured the feeling of those illustrations. I know it will sell quickly, so I am immortializing it here as my favorite lovely.