banded

I love birds. And like almost everything about my personality, I believe I inherited this from my father.

As a boy my father raised show pigeons.  He took up this hobbie again in later years and he became known throughout the world as a champion bird breeder.

He has since decided that he would rather photograph wild birds than raise domesticed ones. He is an amazing photographer of wildlife.  He will sit in the cold for hours to get a good shot of an eagle or a hawk.

My father is also fiercey loyal. The day he married my mother, he became a man dedicated to a life of family goals and aspirations.

When a breeder or a researcher bands a bird, they put a small metal band around their ankle which gives information about who they are, when and where the bird was banded and a number to identify that specific bird.

The Sugar Daddy and I have been married almost twenty years. It will be nineteen years this June. Holy cow. Where did the time go?

Last week I went out to my workbench and made a band.

It states the name of the person who placed the band on my finger. The location and the date.

It felt good to be back at my workbench working with silver.

I had a helper. A grubby little imp who wants to see and do everything I do.

She's my girl. My Bird.  She wanted to be banded too.  Hers says "My Girl". This is what we call each other.

It feels good to be banded. I have a place. Every person should have a place where they belong. Where they are loved and excepted for who they are, faults and all.

Happy Monday. 

Janie Jackaroo

I've started the work.

I'm going home to my roots.

I'm studying my turquoise stones wondering how to use them.  I pulled out my leather and laid it in my lap.  I ran my hands across the grain.  I smelled it's sharp rugged smell.

It's going to take some time.  Some careful thought and meticulous craftsmanship.

I'm trying to tap into my Great-great-grandmother's moxie. Surely she passed some down the line?

I'm giving myself all Summer.

I sat at my bench and held my ball hammer in my palm.  I arranged my blades and mallets.

I thought about what I want this collection to mean to me.  What I want it to express.

I decided it was beauty in strength.

I want to honor my grandmother and other woman who settled the west.  I want to honor their strength and to see if I can emulate that strength in my own life.

I'm calling this jewelry collection Janie Jackaroo.

It will be ready to debut this Fall. Stay tuned.

most images from here.

restoration

First off, yesterday I had the most enlightening doctor appointment I've ever had.  The guy listened to me. He really listened. And he asked a lot of questions. And he gave me unconventional ideas about how to get my energy back to where I need it to be.  Then he said my neck muscles where really tight and I needed a massage. Five minutes later a nurse came in and massaged my neck for twenty minutes.

I said Amen to that.

If you live in the area and you need a good doctor, I've got one for ya. Just ask me.

After the doctor, I went to spin at the gym and got my trash kicked around.  My butt hurts like hell this morning.

I had an appointment at noon to meet up with a fellow silversmith to see her studio and talk shop.  I could have walked around her house all day taking photos and manhandling stuff.  She's an artist through and through.  So glad we finally connected. You can see her work here.

Then it was back to the home front to take up my post as mommy and short order cook.

After the evening's craziness, when my babies were tucked away into their beds, I went through my jewelry box. This is a little ritual I have that makes me ever so happy.

I swear sometimes I'm like a big ol' moth to the flame when it comes to sparkly things.  Can't get enough.

I laid my weary body down next to my sleeping bear.  My head was buzzing. Full of ideas.  

I decided it is time to get back to my roots.  Silversmithing.  I decided to never quit spinning, because it makes me feel strong.  I decided that my children are, indeed, the most gorgeous human beings on the planet and my husband an amalgam of all things that I love in this world.

I fell asleep feeling restored.  

I didn't know I was off track.

I was.

psst

It started last Wednesday. The little whisper in the back of my brain.

"Psst! Hey you. Yeah you. Don't you want to go out to your work bench? Don't you want to make some jewelry? Those great topaz stones are just sitting there collecting dust. Come on. The baby is sleeping. Come on out and work for a bit."

I told myself I was going to stay away. I wanted to give the baby my full attention. No working until August. The Fall collection could wait.

But I just can't seem to do it. I miss Joan. Joan of the Anahatna art. Joan my muse. She gives me such inspiration as I sit there contemplating beads and life.

I had to make Jenny some earrings for her birthday. That's what she asked for and well, she is my right hand girl and I like to take good care of my people.

So I fiddled a little and then I thought- what the hell?

And that is how I ended up, back at my work bench, pounding away, listening to Josh Ritter and talking to Joan on a very warm day in July, exactly eleven days before I said I would return.

And you know what? I'm happy about it.

last chocolate standing

I don't make resolutions. I make changes. This is not to say that I stick to all the changes I implement. No, no.

I try though. If I succeed at even a little change towards the better I mark it down as a successful year. Why beat yourself up? Baby steps people. Baby steps.

One change I will be making is to spend more time at my work bench creating new things and less time pounding out repeats. I might have to sacrifice some sales in the process, but I think it is high time for Secondsister to branch out a little. It's time to ante in a little more than I am comfortable with, if you know what I mean.

Today we are working on the last chocolate standing. We took the box of See's out of the freezer and what we don't eat today will, (heaven help me for saying this) go in the trash. And then, my dear friends, I will dawn my spandex and march, with Chariots of Fire playing in my head, into spin class with determination like you've never seen before. Starting tomorrow.

lost

Hokusai Wave Earrings

Nothing can drive me to insanity faster than losing something. It's one of those things that enrages me mostly because I have no one else to blame. When I was little, I simply accused other family members of stealing to save myself some discomfort. I still occasionally try this tactic, with little success.

A while back, my brother bought me a couple Japanese prints. One was by Katsushika Hokusai, one of my all time favorite artists. I am especially taken with his piece called "The Great Wave".

I have hunted and hunted and hunted. I can't remember where I "safely stored" those prints. It has kept me awake at night. At 2:32 am last Tuesday night, my eyes popped open. I laid there with a sweaty back and listened to the chorus of deep breathing from Sugar Daddy and Fin. I mentally searched the house for the prints. I strained to think of new places I might not have checked. I got nothing.

The next morning I sat at my work bench still thinking of my missing prints. The Hokusai Wave earrings were born.

Tales from the Workbench

I have been working away at my bench, trying to get caught up with all the orders. I have this really great friend who is launching his own design firm. We are working together to create a new secondsister logo and brand. Hopefully, there will be some changes to my shop and blog over the next week. I have been a little surprised at how much thought and time goes into creating a brand. I have been looking through design book after design book. My mind feels a little fuzzy over the whole thing. I decided to offer to make his wife some jewelry. I will post the results of that venture in a day or so.





I love quiet mornings at my work bench when the sun streams through the window and lights up my space.

To see or not to see. . .

If I ever get pulled over in my car I'm really going to be screwed. My drivers licence says I'm supposed to be wearing glasses to drive. The thing is, I lost my glasses like- I don't know- two years ago.


The problem is my vision isn't so bad that it bothers me. I am near-sighted, ( or maybe far-sighted, I never did remember what is what) so I can see pretty good up close and things far away are just slightly fuzzy. But I really don't want to get in trouble with the law, and it would be nice to see every mole and sweat bead on the silver screen, so I broke down and ordered some new glasses. I went for very non-conservative frames, because after all, I couldn't pass as conservative taking the sacrament on Sunday, and I like spice.

So here they are, color 08, eggplant purple. They are called "Gal Friday", and the company slogan is "Eye wear for the irreverent and slightly jaded". Sounds about right for me. Anyway, the frames on eyebobs aren't very expensive and they have great styles. I am planning on ordering some magnifying glasses to help me see all the teeny tiny silver pieces I look at for hours at a time.