Category Archives: Philosophy

Fiber, Pendants, Philosophy

Simmering with Bead Soup

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One of my favorite Christmas presents was given me by brother and sister piano students Amy and (now doctor) Mathew Bridges) one year. It was a dry bean soup that their father (Dr. Bob Bridges) put together and it included a recipe for use of the contents. I so enjoyed the resultant soup, that I’ve made and given the mix many times as gifts to others.

Recently, I decided to engage in another type of soup making and joined a group organized by Lori Anderson  http://www.prettythingsblog.com/ . This is the 6th time she has organized Bead Soup for those of us who wanted to stir things up. Briefly, she partnered each jewelry designer with another beader and the two of us exchanged beads that included a minimum of a focal piece, a clasp and some other beads. each of us sent our soup mix to our partner and are currently working to make something with the mix.

I’m fortunate to have Dr. Laura Demoya of Dallas as my partner. She writes a blog called The Bead Therapist ( http://www.thebeadtherapist.blogspot.com/ ) and when she’s not wrangling patients or family, she makes beautiful jewelry. Below is a set of photos of what Laura sent me.

        soup2soup4soup5

   

soup6

I’m a bit embarrassed that I just sent her the soup I mixed in a bubble envelope when she created such a pretty package. I guess I’m just more of a bubble envelope kind of gal.

In the next couple of weeks, I will work with the contents shown in the last photo and create one or two pieces of jewelry. We’re set to reveal our makings on July 28th; so keep your eyes out for what’s on the back burner simmering right now. It’s smelling pretty good . . .

This is definitely a different type soup from that given me so long ago by my students. For one thing, there was no recipe included in Laura’s package. Yet, the mix still holds promise for satisfaction and it’s likely that some idea generated while using this soup can be passed on to others as I create new things.

Articles, Bracelets, Philosophy

Goldilocks and the Three Bracelets

Once upon a time, a little girl named Goldilocks was getting ready to go to her very first dance. She wanted to look just right and knew that even though her dress was pretty, she really had to have the right jewelry. She had already looked in all the stores at the mall, but just couldn’t find anything that was unique. Then, she read on Facebook about an independent jewelry designer who lived in the forest near her home. Maybe that designer would have something she could wear to the dance.

One day, Goldilocks followed her GPS directions and arrived at the home of the independent jewelry designer. She knocked on the door, but no one came. She rapped hard one more time and the door pushed open. Thinking this was a good sign, she went right in. At first she thought it was a bit strange that no one came to greet her, but she quickly erased this thought as she began to look around. “Wow,” she said to herself. “This is really cool stuff!” There were necklaces and earrings and bracelets the likes of which she had never seen. Why, this was just what she had been wanting.  At the mall things looked just the same from one store to the next, but here everything was unique, just like Goldilocks.


Goldilocks quickly spotted the most beautiful bracelet sitting on a table right in front of her. It was the perfect color to go with her dress for the dance and even Pantone had recommended this tangerine orange as the color of the year. She had to have it! So, she tried it on. “Rats,” she muttered. “This bracelet has very small beads on it, but it is too big.” Goldilocks was so disappointed that she failed to put it back on the table where she had found it. As she turned to walk away, she spotted another bracelet in the same color that was made from big beads; so she tried it on, but it was too small. Maybe coming to the independent jewelry maker was not such a good idea after all. As she turned to leave, she caught a glimpse of something sparkling on the corner of the work bench. Even though she was really tired and discouraged, she decided to give it one more try. She slipped the third bracelet on her wrist and it was just right! Goldilocks whirled round and round admiring the bracelet and imagining how beautiful it would look on her wrist at the dance. When she finally stopped, she was so dizzy that she dropped into a nearby chair and closed her eyes to dream.


About that time, the independent jewelry maker came in the back door of her home. First she noticed the big orange bracelet was not where she left it and then she found a second smaller bracelet out of place. Grabbing her big hammer off the work bench for protection, she began to look around to see if there was an intruder roaming about. That’s when she noticed a teenager plopped in her favorite chair. That girl was wearing one her original orange bracelets. Hmm . . . the independent jewelry maker’s first impulse was to call 911, but her cell phone was still in the car and the girl looked harmless. She gave Goldilocks a little nudge and the surprised girl hopped up exclaiming about the beautiful bracelet she found.
Now everyone knows that a good compliment about an artist’s work goes a long way and so Goldilocks and the independent jewelry maker made nice and searched the studio for a pretty necklace to match the bracelet. Goldilocks used her Dad’s credit card to purchase the jewelry and went happily away to tell all her friends about the independent jewelry maker and her wonderful wares.

 
As for the independent jewelry maker . . . she decided to lock her front door the next time she went out, but to leave a note saying when she would be home just in case any more girls were tired of the mall.

The moral of this little tale for consumers is that the independent jewelry maker CAN provide something unique that you won’t see at the mall. The moral for the jewelry maker is to always have product available (and lock the door).

Balance, Necklaces, Philosophy, Wire Work

Quality Control vs. Perfectionism

 

squiggles

Some of you may have just glanced at the picture above and decided that I’ve gone too far. About all my spouse could say when I put it on was that it was still strange.

The wire armature of this piece sat on the work table for several weeks. I tried in various ways and even wired beads on  it once. I was trying to make it perfect. The first time, my wire bindings weren’t even. The second time I felt the bead placement was wrong. Finally, I looked at the piece and realized that I was trying to find the “perfect” way to embellishment it. Yet, I didn’t really know what perfect for this piece should look like.

Finally, instead of thinking about perfection, I started to think about good technique that might lead to good quality. Could I get the beads on the armature without the ugly wire ends showing? How might I balance the piece without letting the beads take over the design. Could I make good jump rings without rough edges?

You may not like the look of it, but the piece won’t fall apart or snag your clothes. Of course, this finished necklace is not perfect and I could still pick it apart, but at least I was able to accomplish those elements needed for quality.  Sometimes that’s the best I can do.

Earrings, Pendants, Philosophy

The Independent Jewelry Maker

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There are some weeks when I wonder why I keep making jewelry and learning new skills. This was NOT one of them!

The independent jewelry maker can make his/her own policies when needed rather than visiting the “company” voice. I no longer string or restring beads for people unless I made the piece in the first place. I used to do this, but now it seems I’m unable to get new design work in and and trying to find that valuable commodity – time. This week, however, a man I didn’t know phoned to see if I could help him with a broken piece of jewelry. My first instinct was to say “NO”, but for some reason I listened. His girlfriend had lost one of her favorite earrings and he wanted someone to make the remaining one into a small pendant for her birthday. We talked for a bit and he finally told me that no one else would discuss it with him. All the stores he called told him “we don’t do that.” Since I was going to a town near him the next day, I agreed to meet him and see what I might do.

On the appointed day, I took all the needed tools, wire and findings and met the man. The earring was a pretty sterling silver back with two small pieces of turquoise set in bezels. The ear wire was soldered to the back. I managed to turn the ear wire into a closed ring and put it on a sterling silver chain for which I had made a clasp. Then we picked out turquoise to match and made a new pair of earrings using a bit of the matching chain. I had the man put the headpins in the stones and then polish the piece in order to be able to say he helped make them. We wrote on the card “Custom Made by “(the man) and Karen.” Did I mentioned how pleased he was?

The neatest part about this episode is that during the course of our conversation we realized that his lady is my Mother’s nurse where she lives. Neither of us had any prior idea of this.

The moral of this story is . . . you never know when in an attempt to make someone else happy you make yourself even more pleased. I like being an independent.

Bracelets, Creativity, Philosophy, Techniques, Wire Work

Variations on a Theme

 

Dimensional Cuff Bracelet Tutorial       oval bracelet

If you are a frequent reader of this blog, you know that I make many analogies between jewelry design and music. This is yet another. Variations on a theme bring to mind classical music in which many of the great composers embellished their own basic motives to create numerous variations. Some contemporary musicians have also taken short snippets from classical music, varied these and employed them in new music.

Variations are also a big part of training in creative thinking wherein we ask participants to think flexibly and change an original idea. Sometimes the ideas that follow are better than the first and sometimes this exercise simply serves to reassure the thinker that they had the best idea in the first place.

The same is often true in jewelry design. I try many different versions of a “theme” or design to see whether it might be improved. Sometimes I initiate this process out of sheer boredom when I’m tired of the same design, yet it is still popular with customers. The following is an example of this.

You will likely recognize the bracelet on the left above that is a design I’ve been making for at least five years. I also sell the tutorial for it in my etsy shop and it has also been popular there. (Thank you customers!) https://www.etsy.com/listing/91729421/dimensional-cuff-bracelet-tutorial

When a boutique customer called to she needed more of the same, I realized it was probably time for another variation on this design. I’ve made it with square and rectangular faces in the past, but wanted something new. After experimentation with shapes, I created the bracelet shown on the above right – a variation on the theme. I plan to make this one again using more colorful gemstones that will show up better against the weaving.

Another popular bracelet, the wave, that initiated so long ago that I can’t locate a photo, also needed revamping. I changed the initial bracelet shape to triangles as shown below.

wave tri

Finally, still considering the wave bracelet theme, I made a new “cursive” bracelet that proved to be a bit tricky. This one required plenty of wraps to help the 14 gauge wire hold its shape. I think this one holds further possibilities.

cursive bracelet

This was an interesting and somewhat challenging exercise and I continue to think “what if” regarding variation possibilities. But for now, I think I’ll just go play some classical music on the piano with a score that someone else wrote.

classes, family, Philosophy, Teaching

Ants

There are several things you can always count on here at Dreamcatcher Ranch when the month is May. These include Summer weather, Spring pollen and ANTS! It seems no matter how hard we fight them, those ants are more determined than we are and we lose the fight.

Last week, however, I got a new perspective on ants from my three-year-old grandson. He actually seems to like them! At the least, he finds them very interesting. During our visit, we checked out online information and videos and talked about the little critters. I couldn’t help but tell him the story of Two Bad Ants, written by Chris Van Allsburg. It’s one of my favorite books that tells about ants coming into a home. Unfortunately, I didn’t have the book with me, so I just told the story of how a couple of ants lingered behind in the sugar bowl while the other, more disciplined ants, carried their treasure out of the house. The entire story is told from the perspective of the ants and it was difficult to get the real effect without the pictures. Yet, my grandson was intrigued.

Tonight, I decided to dig out that book and take with me on my next grandmotherly expedition. At first I couldn’t find it. That meant I had to dig through the many picture books housed in my closet and that’s when I realized. Those books were my old friends. I touched worn copies of Winnie, the Witch, Roxaboxen, Rabbit and the Moon, The Last Dance and other familiar works. My reaquaintance with them didn’t even require page turning as the memories flooded back from the mere sight of them.

I could tell you that I read these to my own children, but that wouldn’t be right. I read these to teachers and university students in my classes. No workshop with me was complete without story time after lunch. While some thought this was silly, others looked forward to this part of our day. I usually told, rather that read, the story as I showed the pictures. At times I used a prop or two such as the shawl I wore in various ways for The Last Dance. I not only remember the stories, but I remember the people and the situations wherein I used them. Those books are like little capsules of my past that hold more than I ever realized until this evening.

Lest you think I neglected my own children, I should tell you that the pages of other books like Drummer Hoff and Where the Wild Things Are have well worn pages as well from our family sharing. I’ll bet my adult son can still recite most of the verses in Drummer Hoff.

I believe in this new period of publishing where many books are ready electronically, but wonder what will remain from these to help hold the memories of sharing books with others. My hope is that we will always share real copies of picture books and that these will be passed from one generation to the next as treasured gifts, not just relics. For now, I’m just anxious to share with another little person . . . hand-on.

Necklaces, Philosophy

Charity

I’ve been working on something for a silent auction for a charity this week and have attempted to discern what the word “charity” really means. My mind goes in different directions when considering the term.  Initially, I remember my days in Rainbow, an organization with roots in Masonry. I can still remember the teachings about “faith, hope and charity.”

Now, the word makes me think about charitable events. Often these are occasions where people get dressed up and socialize while being enticed to donate sums of money to charity.

My other thought revolves around those individuals who benefit from charity. The dictionary indicates that charity involves “generous actions or donations to aid the poor, ill, or helpless.”  Those who make donations to charity often feel good about their efforts to help humanity.

I must admit that as I worked on my auction item, I was more interested in making a good showing than in the charitable part of my efforts. Would my piece look OK amongst the other offerings? Would it contribute well to the auction?

The first piece didn’t fly with the two men who looked at it. Neither indicated that they would bid on it. If the men wouldn’t bid on it, I decided it wasn’t right.

cleo

Late the evening before the piece was due, I started anew. Working late and picking it up again the next day, I did finish at the appointed time. As I designed this piece, I thought about the title of the charity event, The Cattle Baron’s Ball and the idea of a rope or lariat seemed appropriate. I don’t know if this piece is better or not, but it IS finished and has been delivered. The gemstone is a beautiful piece of amethyst from Magpie Gemstones.

Amethyst1

Another of my pieces was donated by a boutique I serve for a charity event in a west Texas town. I was especially pleased that the boutique owner chose some of my work. I’d been calling this “ethnic”, but she termed it “tribal”.

ethnic

I have to say that I’m a bit unhappy with myself over my concern for how my work would show up at these auctions. I think that’s pretty selfish. My focus should have been on how I might solicit the most money for the charities. The products would probably have remained the same, but I would have felt better about them. I think it all stems as to whether my charitable donation was for the needy or for myself.

Either way, I’ve learned something. I would appreciate my own efforts more if I focused on charity as love which is the term used in some of the newer versions of the Bible (faith, hope and love). Next time, I want to make that auction piece for the right reason.

Creativity, gifts, Metal Work, Necklaces, Pendants, Philosophy, soldering, Teaching, Torch Work, Wire Work

Pass It On . . . and On . . . and On

It’s not a surprise to anyone who knows me that I like to teach. I tend to grab most any “teachable moment” whether you want me to or not. With adults, I try to curb my appetite for devouring those moments, but little children need to beware!

I’ve truly enjoyed the two jewelry classes that I taught last week, one in Wimberley, TX and the other in San Marcos. I worked with seven women as they learned to make a wrap bracelet in Wimberley and then four more who worked on wrapping cabachons. I enjoyed hearing from the first group about who some of them planned to pass their bracelet to as a gift. I regret not getting a photo of that group, but note the happy intensity on the faces of the second.

cabs girls

It’s common for someone to ask a designer ideas come from. I have no doubt that many of mine come during preparation for teaching. I think that is why it takes me so long to get ready to teach a class. There’s something about this pre-planning that gets my creative juices flowing. I used to fight this urge, trying to stay on task, but now I just go with it. I do, however, have to resist my propensity to want to teach the new idea instead of that which was designated for the class. I just keep wanting to pass it on.

As an example, a couple of gals came over for a little assistance in starting their journey into soldering with a torch. They hardly got off the ranch before I was cutting and planning the piece below. Yes, I know it’s a bit bird-like, but it wasn’t planned that way – oh well, it’s definitely different!

bird

I’ve also done a new soldered design that someone on Facebook suggested is Bohemian. The legs on this piece are soldered to the bottom half of the arc and then wire wrapped. I was tickled that the very first sale of this went to my good friend who often calls and says “is the Dreamcatcher Designs shop open?”  (Of course you know I don’t have a shop!) Sometimes she just runs out to the ranch and gets what she needs. This piece was gifted from her to a co-friend of ours and I’m pleased for her to have it. Do you think you can wear “Bohemian” at the Lutheran Church?

           sue

As you read, many things, both concrete and ideational, were passed on last week. From teacher to student, student to teach and friend to friend. I think life was very productive.

Philosophy

Going Home

Today I was in Lakeway, TX and started back home midafternoon. There are two ways home, but on this day I selected the route that took me on the interstate. I thought I had selected the wrong way when the traffic was so heavy that we crawled.

Then, I noticed just a few people sitting in lawn chairs by the side of the road. Several were sitting under umbrellas and holding American flags. It seemed they were mostly retirement age citizens. As I went farther, I noticed there were more and more young people including a man who was standing with six children in the back of a pickup. Each child held an American flag.

As I got closer to Austin, the number of people beside the road changed from a few to more and finally to many. There were not only people beside the road, but also a myriad of trucks. There were big tow trucks, EMS trucks, sheriff's vehicles and many others. Those trucks were all lined up as if to salute the front of the road and that’s when I understood. Today was the day that the body of the slain Austin Police officer, killed on the job, was processing through Austin toward San Angelo – going home. I was impressed by the number of officials that lined the route.

Approaching the road where the funeral procession would merge with the highway, it became apparent that it wasn’t just officials who had come to pay respect. Citizens of all ages lined the route. There were young mothers with their toddlers, heavily tattooed bikers, merchants and individuals in pickups, broken down vehicles and expensive cars. There appeared to be no cultural, racial, economic or age boundaries separating those who wanted to pay respect.

At the onset of my journey back to ranch, I was certain I had taken the wrong way home. Yet, by the end of my journey, having seen what pulls us together, I knew I had indeed taken the right way home.

Articles, family, Philosophy

Sharing

I greatly enjoyed a phone conversation last week wherein a friend from another life asked me about giftedness in five year olds. This brought back a basketful of pleasant memories from my work with young gifted children.

Today, I’m thinking about how freely the littles help one another with finding toys, building block structures and putting answers on tests. When I tested kindergarten children, we worked in small groups of no more than four or five children at a time. I was so careful to spread their tiny desks about the room where they could not see each other’s answers. Yet, they felt free to hop up and scurry to someone else’s spot for help with questions. They did this even though they clearly knew the answers. Some just moved to go and help a friend. Eventually, when I got that stopped and they realized their feet were glued to the spot they were in, the sharing still continued. I would read a question and the children would look around at one another. Then, many times one child would say “it’s the dog!” and all the others would mark the picture of the dog whether it was a good answer or not. It was really difficult to convince them that this type of sharing was not appropriate. “But,” they would counter, “Mrs. So and So tells us that we are supposed to share in class.” Hmm . . . One little guy was so vehement about announcing his answers that I had to place him in the hall where the others couldn’t hear him. I administered the test from the doorway of the classroom. Yes, little children are very slippery when it comes to testing, but they are often much better at sharing.

Lately, there has been considerable talk in the jewelry design business about just that – sharing. When can we share an idea, copy an idea, sell an idea, etc.? You can find a link to my article on the topic of copyrights and ethics at the side of the blog on the website (www.dreamcatcherranch.net/designs) or go directly to it at http://www.magpiegemstones.com/ethics.html . This short treatise basically encourages us to share techniques, but to develop our own ideas rather than copying those of others. “But everyone does it!” Part of the problem is that we’ve spent a life time, beginning in preschool, of being told that we should share. Yet, when we share an idea with someone, it is NOT OK for the person to profit from it. We have to consider intellectual property and honor the initiator.

Unfortunately, this isn’t a clear purple vs. ecru issue. I want to share and that’s why I write this blog. I hope you gain ideas from it that you will develop your own, but if you make any money from my intellectual property, how about sending me some?

As I ramble on, I would be amiss if I didn’t state that the Easter season is a good time to share. Christians share in the joy of a risen Christ and littles share the joy of hunting for Easter eggs. I hope that someone shares a good thought with you and you have a happy Easter. Below is a photo of the bunny salad my grandson and I shared with his family. You can see that I inadvertently shared some marshmallows with my little friend.

bunny salad