Hmmmm....I'm up again. Not to many years ago it wouldn't have been a big deal to be awake at 1:17 am but I'm not 25 anymore and "it", the night, just doesn't have the mystique it used to.
That's okay really. I don't have the same mystique either. But then again I'm looking the big Five O in the face and I don't really care much about the feminine mystique.
Oh, I had my day! I have the pictures to prove it. What's funny is that I can still recall what I was thinking in those photos and it wasn't very nice. I was probably grumbling about having to look the look and walk the walk because I was never a "girly girl" to begin with.
As I near my 50th birthday (2008) I'm glad that I didn't put much stock in outward appearances. I also find it ironic that I design jewelry for my livelyhood. Until I actually started selling my designs I seldom ever wore jewelry at all....even then it was at the urging of my friends who wanted to see me succeed. I love my jewelry! I'm proud of it and I am thrilled to see others wearing it. But it's not always comfortable for me to wear jewelry - mine or anyone else's. I can't tolerate anything around my throat and yet I design great necklaces and chokers. Go figure.
I love bracelets, they are the mainstay of my style...and rings. I almost always wear a bracelet or two daily and usually one or two rings. Maybe it's because I work with my hands and I can enjoy looking at them while I work. By the end of the day I'm ready to take them off too but at least I enjoyed them the entire day!
Earrings.....love them, love them, love them! Easy to design the sweet simple plain ones for "working girls" who really do work in offices and such. Most of them even go to church on Sunday and they wear them there too. The earrings I prefer are not "office" or "Sunday School" earrings. I like mine long, swinging, baudy and bodacious. The louder the better! Problem is, my preferred earrings take longer to make and they definitely require more imagination. I don't make as many because they are time consuming but that's okay, I don't sell many of them either. I tend to give the wild ones away for gifts :)
Today I was told that I have several southwest/native american designs in my store. I don't agree with that. There are only two that are strictly native american. The others may have a tribal feel but tribal and native american do not mean the same thing to me. Tahiti - that's tribal! Western - horses and cowboys and rodeo's - that's not southwest or native american either. The only thing southwest about wire wrapped stones and designs is the hundreds (maybe thousands) of retired old men and women who have packed up their tools and wire and moved on down to Arizona for six months of the year. Well, ok, there is one exception to that, it depends on what they wirewrap...if it's Crazy Horse Jasper or Turquoise then, yes, it's probably Southwest design.
Did you know that Red Coral is becoming endangered and therefore quite pricey to obtain. Most of the red coral you see on the market today is dyed and if that helps save the true reds than that's what I'll use too. High quality dyed red coral looks as good, works as well in projects, and lasts beautifully. It can be pricey too but only if you don't know what you're buying :) I really hate wearing a piece of "color enhanced or dyed" jewelry and getting caught in a rainstorm. Looking down at a hand that is bloodred because the dye is running down my fingertips is a real bummer. I wash all of my coral strands when I come home from buying trips. If they start running...let's just say they run all the way back to the shop where I purchased them.
Got a little lost in that explanation, after all I'm almost 50 and it's almost 2:00am! My brain is soooo past it's bedtime!
My point in this discussion is that much of the red stone you see in Southwestern Designs these days is not Coral at all but is actually "Red Jade" - another dyed stone that holds the color well, and is actually very pretty. I think it's an agate in real life :D
Chalk turquoise is another stone I'm not happy with. This, to my understanding, is the ground dust left after drilling and digging for Turquoise. This dust is then mixed with water and press into molds. I have major issues with that and unless my clients request chalk turquoise, I will not be using it.
I guess it's a good thing I'm getting sleepy because I dream about jewelry designs and stones and wire wrapping! I should sleep tight tonight!
Have a good night and don't buy any chalk turquoise!
1 comment:
Good reading yoour post
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