I sometimes forget..

That this is supposed to be a jewelry blog.

I have reached the conclusion that this year has decided to fly past me, and while it might not be my most productive year, it might just be the most furtive.

Over the last few months, this just happen to go in the right direction and I am quite pleased with everything right now, I know! every time I actually write in this blog, I often comment on what I am trying to do to have some order in life and work

It has been an everyday process since last year.. remember the breakfasts ? Those still happen and have worked wonders, it is quite difficult to decide to do something, to change something and actually do it, how hard can it sometimes be to realize that knowing yourself and working in your well being is pretty much the answer to many problems, only now I am seeing the result.

Now although I have like 12 hours a week of true work, I am not stressing as much about anything really and I feel calm, so so calm,  this is because I finally dived into creative escapes, there is more drawing,more reading, more paint and experiments and all is so personal without that constant pressure of it all ending in a solid jewelry piece in my hand.

I will talk about this later with more detail.

For now, I am preparing for a couple of summer craft fairs so more groups like these will be more common around this place.

Some of these pieces will make it to the shop, before the end of the week.

I have to go work now, but one more thing!

Listen to her..

One rainy day.

I was faced with a weekend  full of rain, all custom orders have been filled, I spent almost two weeks making pieces to sell locally and to send to Costa Rica for Christmas.

I then had some time off, and found myself without knowing what to do, since one of my goals is not to pressure myself so much, I decided to apply the one advice I always gave some of my friends, I think that when you don’t know what to make, is good to think of something simple, once you find yourself working, you get the ball rolling and more ideas will come, the next thing you know the whole afternoon has passed.

So I started with cleaning my workshop, because sitting down in a workspace that looks like a tornado passed by it, is not very encouraging.

(usually there is no room for a needle on top of that bench, but that’s between you and I)

Anyways..

Thinking of something I like.

Its no secret I am in love with this book, and back in the day on my second jewelry class I remember telling my teacher I wanted to make something with the original illustrations, years passed me by and I guess I always wanted something so unique, so complex…that I never made it.

But sometimes we should just start, even with something simple like I said before, so it had to be the boa.

So it was time to work:

“I showed my masterpiece to the grown-ups, and asked them whether the drawing frightened them.

But they answered: “Frighten? Why should any one be frightened by a hat?”

My drawing was not a picture of a hat. It was a picture of a boa constrictor digesting an elephant. But since the grown-ups were not able to understand it, I made another drawing: I drew the inside of a boa constrictor, so that the grown-ups could see it clearly. They always need to have things explained. My Drawing Number Two looked like this:

The grown-ups’ response, this time, was to advise me to lay aside my drawings of boa constrictors, whether from the inside or the outside, and devote myself instead to geography, history, arithmetic, and grammar. That is why, at the age of six, I gave up what might have been a magnificent career as a painter. I had been disheartened by the failure of my Drawing Number One and my Drawing Number Two. Grown-ups never understand anything by themselves, and it is tiresome for children to be always and forever explaining things to them”

 

Then, I couldn’t let go of the last page, because I remember so clearly when I was little and I read this for the first time:

“This is, to me, the loveliest and saddest landscape in the world. It is the same as that on the preceding page, but I have drawn it again to impress it on your memory. It is here that the little prince appeared on Earth, and disappeared

 

Look at it carefully so that you will be sure to recognize it in case you travel some day to the African desert. And, if you should come upon this spot, please do not hurry on. Wait for a time, exactly under the star. Then, if a little man appears who laughs, who has golden hair and who refuses to answer questions, you will know who he is. If this should happen, please comfort me. Send me word that he has come back.”

I probably was 9 and I remember telling my mom how he had gone back home, but that it was ok he was alive and he could return , later on in life after  reading it  over and over again it is probably my favorite ending of a book, it just brings me back to when I was a little girl and my first innocent impression of the Little Prince.

Sunday.

       I started Sunday with a big breakfast, then the jewelry started lining up to have their photo taken and get into the shop..

They usually behave very well..

I had to take a lot of photos and was trying new things, over in the beach..

Using pebbles and a grey background..

I ended up taking 555 photos and then sitting down to go one by one, edit some erase like 400 (( I know))  and finally announce it on Facebook which was a bit unexpected thank you for all the likes and sweet comments.

 

 

I worked on it all day yesterday and well still have a lot to do, today is about sketching I have 3 custom orders waiting for drawings,photos of stones and ideas and later going to the post office  to deliver two pieces, hopefully I will also list some of the items I still have pending.

 

Feels good to  have the shop open , to have a Monday filled with work.

To be honest with you this is what I missed to be excited about the next time I sit in the bench.  

Self-portrait.

     

Little Corners.

    

 

And so it went..

Woke up at 7am last Monday after about 4 hours of sleep and 5 days of being in a fair for 10 hours a day.. more on that later, there is so much I need to tell you about..

 

Everywhere I go I have the luck of having a mountain near me.. so after months of seeing these mountains every morning, it was time to say goodbye.

I love how everything is always green in Costa Rica.

After a few goodbyes and the strongest hugs my arms can give, I went off to my grandmothers to have a tamal, in CR we have tamales for Christmas, and although it was a bit early, she made sure I had some home made ones before I left..

Then off I went, this time it was a bit particular, I was not alone, specially travelling and going somewhere specifically.. my house!, every time things are more planned and everything is done before I get to the country, so wow! lol! adult behavior? …I mean this is a big deal coming from a girl who used to just think “Once I get there I will figure it out” …

So first a plane, good 10h on it.. the great thing was that after such running around packing I can assure you  I slept at least 6h on the plane,this is right before landing..

Running around in the airport, changing money, 2 suitcases, ruuuuuuuun, I wanted to be out already, Madrid was so sunny, chilly but sunny, got there at noon on Tuesday.

 

Finally outside! Find the bus to the train station, literally running once again hence this photo..

 

3 and a half hours later,time for a train, AVE makes a 400km drive in just one hour and a half..

 

From the train… if you look close enough you can see my messy head haha! Of course no self portraits at this point, between excitement and jet lag, I was quite the crazy lady..

Finally in Valencia, a 1h drive..

And after all this I have to say, I was dead but you have never seen anyone happier.

H and I are in Spain! ready to start, planning around, buying incense for the house, moving things here and there..

And  my workshop, oh my workshop!… needs a complete blog post, I am overwhelmed, the first 3 days I was here when I saw the tools, I would cry, literally, I would go from the kitchen to the living room, see the workshop and smiled, is like when you were little and you liked a little boy and you looked at him and then quickly look away, dear friends, I am this crazy about it! and I am familiarizing myself with everything..unpacking has taken me a week, because every single thing is cleaned, observed and cherished for a good amount of time.

Love is all around, loving H, love for life, for work, for realizing all our hard work finally paid off, love for all the people in this world who we meet and sometimes have to say goodbye to, loving this relationships getting stronger, for adventure..

I could write how much I am grateful for, but I pretty much can sum it up to the point, I am grateful for everything, even the smallest things have a meaning and I have taken a week just to enjoy them..

These days, we wake up to this..

And excited to see what each day brings..

Secrets of the Sea.

About time I made some jewelry huh?

    I’ve had this stone for 2 and a half years…

 

A Fossil coral cabochon, I just love these stones, they are mineralized remains of ancient coral. Some fossil coral has been agatized or become agate over the millennia and is a hard stone which can take a high polish and each is unique, made by mother nature

 

The stone is the main focus and the whole bracelet is designed around the patterns in the stone, front and back.

 

Oh! and 2 little 5mm freshwater pearls, well because you know me…

This sea inspired  piece will make her way to the shop sometime tonight..

A week of flowers..

 

 

 

The set is done! Today I had some time to finish some other custom orders and realized, that  there are flowers all around me..

That wasn’t so bad..

Well I did it!!!, I blogged every day for part of the month of August, just missing one day since I began, still is a big deal for me who used to blog so little.. now I’m hooked, there are so many pieces that I never show you.. specially custom orders, I make jewelry every single day, take photos, talk to people, and then come home and think to myself, I have nothing to blog about, well that’s changed..

Not every day but just when I have something interesting to show.. like today, I made this ring and it got me thinking how sometimes we indeed need just a silver ring, with no stone or color to go with everything, that was the main request for this custom order..

I am also posting a step by step of the making of the bridal set, just click over here to check it out, still have to finish the necklace, bracelet and earrings!

Thank you for standing me, and if you follow my blog and if I am spamming you, tell me so!

Adiosssssssss!

So incredibly tired..

 

I am dying today, and really have not much to say other than, uff!!!!! been working really hard these last 2 days..

I started on Monday to work on a beautiful custom order that will take me a good while to make..

Here are some photos of the process..

 

    

I will be posting most of the process on my flickr, as soon as I have time…

I love big projects