UrbanNative

Ethical Clothing

2011-09-14T09:43:00.000-07:00

I've been absent from blog-land for quite a while. My dance card's been pretty full. I'm in the procoess of updating this blog so please bear with me folks. (Are there any of you out there?)

I just posted the "Ethical Clothing" badge to my sidebar. I found this at Isis Handmade: http://isismade.blogspot.com/2009/09/ethical-clothing-pledge.html

Here's the skinny:

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T H E _ E T H I C A L _ C L O T H I N G _ P L E D G E

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I pledge to only wear clothing that is one or more of the following:
1. Pre-loved
2. Handmade (preferably by me)
3. Reconstructed
4. Made with ethical / environmentally friendly materials
5. Made by a company with strong ethical policy & workers' rights

* Companies with environmentally friendly practices (such as cutting down on waste/energy/water) get brownie points
* If I get one little inkling of sweatshop labour, I'm outta there!
* Above all though, I think the most important thing is reducing the amount of things we use in the first place. Not purchasing ANOTHER piece of clothing just for the sake of it is the biggest statement we can make.

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I am all over this. It seems whenever I go to TRY to buy something new, it's made in China. I started putting those things back on the shelf. I spend a lot less money these days. My favorite place to shop these days is my local thrift store. That way, the money at least stays local the second time around. I've been following Refashionista (http://refashionista.net/) and the Refashion Co-op (http://refashionco-op.blogspot.com/). These folks are so creative and resourceful - what inspiration!

I think I need to find a dress form.......

Mindful meditation

2010-08-11T17:20:00.000-07:00

Things have been a bit hectic in our lives right now. The garden's coming in and I've been canning tomatoes, making pesto, drying basil, and making pepper jelly. The kitchen has been smelling reeeeeeeeeeeeeally good. We've tried to get some quiet by going camping, listening to the birds & bullfrogs.

When I need to quiet my thoughts I try some mindful activity. I find it difficult to quiet my mind and sit still to meditate. I find that knitting or stringing some beads is a meditative, calming activity. Last night I pulled out some cube beads I'd gotten on sale (having no idea what I'd do with them when I bought them) and determined I was going to learn a new stitch. I pulled out my trusty "Mastering Beadwork" and picked out the square stitch bracelet on page 33. Since my beads were metallic, I'm calling this "heavy metal." The beads sort of snapped into place, and the closure was easier than I'd originally thought. It doesn't really close in a V; that's the way it's laying on the table. It's a bit different - I like it.

At least I've done something a bit different than all the right angle weaving I've been doing. Now, on to learn something else.

It's a color thing

2010-06-22T17:58:00.000-07:00

Don't get me wrong. I LOVE my wire and my semiprecious stones - and all the healing power therein. But lately I've been looking at little tubes of seed beads and I'm like a kid in a candy store. I got a few tubes of beads and some amethyst AB Swars, practiced my right angle weave and here's what I ended up with.

It might not be silver and turquoise, but I'm liking the colors. And it feels kind of vintagey. Any thoughts?

Wise words from a Native elder

2010-06-14T17:56:00.000-07:00

From the "Proud to be Native American" Yahoo group:

Elder's Meditation of the Day June 14

"The basis of knowledge is the fire, rock, water, and green. But when that power was given to man, he used it to twist his own mind. Tunkashila gave man just one drop of that wisdom."

--Wallace Black Elk, LAKOTA

All of Nature has the wisdom to follow the Natural Laws. All of Nature knows how to live in harmony and use this wisdom in a good way, with exception of the human being. Often we misuse this wisdom. Wisdom always remains with those who use it in the proper way. Nature has used this wisdom well, so now we need to go to Her so we humans can relearn and change our lives. May we start doing this today, before it is too late.
===
And if people had paid attention? Would we have such a mess in the Gulf???

Another kind of circle

2010-06-13T19:44:00.000-07:00

I hope anyone reading this is having a great start to their summer. I took a day off work on Friday and we all had a nice long weekend. I feel relaxed for the first time in a long time.

I've been fiddling my way through a couple of beading books and this past weekend I gave another stab at the "Supple, Shiny and Shapely Bracelet" from Carol Huber Cypher's "Mastering Beadwork." It's a great book. I did this one before but really goofed up the clasp. It may end up in a pile on my bead mat. I don't like to do the same thing twice. Someone can say "you did a really nice job" and I'll point out my mistakes. Stupid, I know, but that's me.

At any rate, this one turned out as good as I'm capable at this point in my life. :)

I think I'm liking the fake tanzanite color....

At any rate, I'm keeping my old brain active. It appears you CAN teach an old dog some new tricks. if there's something you think you'd like to try, give it a shot. You never know what gifts you may have that you're unaware of. And you might just have a boatload of fun too. Enjoy life.

Going in circles

2010-06-02T19:31:00.000-07:00

I've been fiddling with right angle weave "RAW" lately. Took a while and then it "clicked."

The top bracelet I made in Shelly Gross' class. MANY 4mm silver beads and about 90 crystals. Clasp is sewn on. Then I thought I'd try it with only one row of crystals and the 3D weave. Pulled out my pliers, made some jumprings to connect the clasp. I REALLY like this one. Then I thought easy peasy, one row RAW and crystals and go for it. Quick. Easy. Delicate.

Thoughts? Suggestions? Thanks for any input. Top two are 3D/layered. The bottom one is just one row RAW & crystals sewn in after. My old sewing skills are coming in handy!

Closeup comparison:

Then today I was feeling a little green - kinda like Kermit? I pulled together these colors and thought "Bring me a margarita!" These colors just say summer party time to me.

I am enjoying fiddling with the seed beads. These colors really jumped out at me. I truly enjoy making something that I think is pretty cool with materials that aren't too precious. I think this is kinda fun. To me it says "Get me a margarita!" Preferably prickly pear. :)

Hey folks.... Life is short. Enjoy the beauty that surrounds you. Count your blessings. Life is good.

And if you have a chance to have a prickly pear margarita - go for it. They're WONDERFUL. ;-)

I try to learn something new every day

2010-05-20T19:53:00.000-07:00

It may not be copper. It may not be wirework. It may not even be jewelry or metal. Heck it can be a new recipe.... I just want to keep learning. Here's what I've been up to lately.

A little bead soup and RAW.

A little3D RAW and some Swars.

I'm learning.....

So what do you all do when you're frustrated?

2010-04-25T17:25:00.000-07:00

Lately I've found a couple of things that work. If I'm REALLY ticked off, I'll beat the heck out of some metal. Great stress reliever and the results will turn into something hand forged and wearable. If I'm trying to be a bit quieter and more meditative, I'll string some beads. This is a new thing for me, and I NEVER thought I'd have anything to do with those silly itsy bitsy things, but it truly is kinda relaxing.

I took a classl from Shelley @ my friend Eva's shop. Patient lady. She said working with her seed beads is like Nirvana.... Don't know about that, but it does make you focus on something... Here's the result of that class

(How do you rotate a picture in Blogger???)

Then I started fiddling with St. Petersburg stitch. Here's the result of that:

Lastly, I got my hands on a copy of "Mastering Beadwork" and was fiddling with some tubular peyote. I was doing okay until I got to the end... Zipping up a tube isn't as easy as zipping up something flat... However, lesson learned.

So I guess what I'm saying is that when things are making you crazy, just take a deep breath, chant an OM, and fiddle with some beads. I recommend it heartily.

Namaste. :)

Happy St. Patrick's Day

2010-03-17T17:46:00.000-07:00

To all my Irish friends and famly - Happy St. Patrick's Day. If I'm recalling correctly, St. Patrick brought Christianity to Ireland... How this turned into a day of corned beef and green beer, I don't know - but I do like my corned beef and Smithwick's. :-) Hope everyone has a happy, safe day.

Spring's around the corner. The sun's shining. The crocuses are up. :)

Life is good.

Spring WILL come

2010-02-18T17:42:00.000-08:00

I have faith. I HAVE to. Okay, fresh snow is kind of pretty. But then it gets gray & dirty looking and it is so dreary. I am SO not a winter weather person and I know a lot of folks are in this with me. The bones ache more and anything that can hurt does. When the sun comes out I stick my face out of the car window and soak it in. Spring fever is going to come on strong this year.

It's been a strange winter. C'mon - snow in FLORIDA? We'd gone to Florida a couple of months ago. When I heard about the snow, I thought "take THAT you sneaky little no-see-um bugs!" I itched for weeks after we got home. I could not see what was biting me. All I knew was they were making me crazy. I hope the snow took out some of those little suckers. They cured me. Been there. Done that. Don't need to go back. Key West was nice though. They get some beautiful breezes down there. By the way, if those little suckers get you, I've been told Ban roll-on helps.

C'mon spring!!!

Another learning experience - just a little bleeding

2010-02-03T18:06:00.000-08:00

February's a rather blah month, though I consider myself very lucky. I read today that 1 in 9 people in my community reached out to a food bank this past year. That's the pits folks. I've got a cupboard I can reach into when I'm hungry. I'm fortunate there's stuff in there for me to take out. God bless those hungry people. Can we get a little charity at home???

I digress. When I get a case of the blahs, I go to my little corner and grab some things that can do bodily harm to myself. As I said, February's a gray, gloomy month and the only bright spot is a Hallmark holiday - oh, and that Presidents' Day off work thing. :) Well, I decided to go into my little corner, pulled out some wire and some beads, some pliers, a hammer.. and ended up with this. I got carried away with the wrapping. It's a little wonky, but it was theraputic. Well, until I poked myself with the wire and started bleeding... At any rate, it's MY design and even if it IS wonky, I learned something and I'm having fun. Not a bad deal...

Ruby in Zoisite learning experience

2010-01-29T03:14:00.000-08:00

When I first saw a piece of ruby in zoisite live, I just thought WOW. Then at one point Szarka had some ruby in zoisite hearts - had to get one. Had no idea what I was going to do with it, but I had to get one. Then I saw Irina Miech's book "Beautiful Wire Jewelry for Beaders." I work a lot in copper, but I wanted to execute this in silver. Another learning experience - my scrap pile's a bit larger now. This is my interpretation of her tutorial. Ruby in zoisite, rubies, sterling.

Thanks Irina.

Carleen's Bracelet

2010-01-21T15:54:00.000-08:00

Carleen is a very sweet woman who may be the reason I'm now selling some jewelry. She saw some copper earrings I was wearing one day and asked if I'd make her a pair. She was my first customer.

I work mainly in copper for a few of reasons. I love the color. It's inexpensive for me to work with and makes my work affordable for people to purchase. Finally and possibly most important is that it's good for your health. I started wearing it because I heard it was good for arthritis. Just Google it and you'll find all sorts of information. I've heard testimonials from some folks who swore by it and that was good enough for me. Down the copper road I went.

At any rate, Carleen's got arthritis and she loves hearts, so here's what she's getting. It's a more delicate variation on one of the bracelets in Sharilyn Miller's Bead on a Wire.

Thank you Carleen!

Destashing

2010-01-21T03:20:00.000-08:00

I was going to spend some time with a friend of mine the other day but got stood up as her daughter went into labor and delivered a granddaughter! CONGRATULATIONS!!!

At any rate, I had some time on my hands with no plan so I fiddled in my stash a bit. I'd picked up the swirly beads at a mall craft fair with no plan in mind. I just liked the swirls. Had some Czech seed beeds to go with them. Threw it all in a pile in front of me and this is what came out of it.

Do we all realize how very lucky we are?

2010-01-16T15:46:00.000-08:00

Watching the news about Haiti has got me counting my many blessings. I try to do that on a regular basis anyway, but as I'm watching the tragedy unfold; the devastation, starvation, casualties; I'm left thinking how very fortunate I am. Tonight I decided to bake an apple cake as it's been a gray gloomy day and I wanted to cozy up the house. My pantry had all the ingredients and I even had the apples in the fridge. How very lucky am I to be able to do this? I have a warm, dry shelter. I have food to eat and nobody's going to try to killl me for it. These people are strictly in survival mode.

For those of you in the same boat I am, please stop a minute and say thank you. We are truly blessed.

Some of the Nicest People are Online

2010-01-15T06:34:00.000-08:00

I checked in on some of my friends in blog-land today, and it started me thinking about all the wonderful folks I've met through my jewelry adventures. At first I started lurking on some Yahoo groups, then I started participating a bit, rather timidly as let's face it, I was a stranger. These people all seemed to know each other and care about each other. Then I met some of these people in person and yes, they are some of the nicest people I've ever met. Not only are they warm and friendly, they're creative as all get out. Take a look at this: Copper Wire Jewelers Magazine - I am fortunate to know the ladies on pages 21 and 22. Mary and Eva are two very talented people.

Presidential Address

2009-12-01T17:21:00.000-08:00

As I watched the address this evening, I noticed how young the faces in the audience were. I looked at the West Point cadets and thought of their future in our military. They look so young. Too young. I have a nephew who left the military for good reasons, and fought to get back in. He's on his second deployment in Iraq. His is a military family as is my husband's cousin's. Two families constantly in my prayers. This war is touching all of us. May God bless our military and their families, and may our brave people in the service come home safely.

Eva & Perri - Thank you!

2009-11-02T17:20:00.000-08:00

Thank you Eva Sherman for bringing Perri Jackson to town. I took a great class from Perri and learned something about the art of patience. Here's my end result.

Once I got the rhythm of the weave, the bezel was kind of relaxing to make. I didn't think THAT would happen.

Now I've got to figure out what to do with some beach glass. Eva's the artist with that stuff. I am in awe of her creations.

People Who Inspire Me - part 2

2009-10-28T19:14:00.000-07:00

Any of you who live in Cleveland, OH, may have heard of Grand River Beads & owner Eva Sherman. Let me tell you she is one of the most talented, gracious people I've ever met. She's a big fan of organic things, and is starting a sea glass / beach glass website. Look for that soon. Until then, check out http://www.grandriverbeads.com/ . I didn't know what a great stroke of luck I had in finding Eva. I've since taken a few classes at her place and saw her meticulous attention to detail and patience in action. A very talented lady.

People who inspire me

2009-10-20T18:56:00.000-07:00

I've taken a few classes lately and folks, I'm here to tell you I am so inspired. I am having so much fun learning about my new passion - jewelry making - and am meeting some people that truly humble me by their talent and creativity.

I've been into this jewelry thing for less than a year. First I read some magazines; thought it might be fun. Less than a year ago I picked up some pliers and have been on a mission to learn as much as I can. Thank goodness there are some great folks out there who share their knowledge through tutorials and blogs.

Three folks who inspire me.. (The list is growing.. :) I am humbled.

Perri Jackson, aka Shaktipaj. "No detail is too small." I took a couple classes from this woman and believe me, she means it when she says no detail is too SMALL. But it makes a difference folks. She creates some beautiful wearable art. I finished two of her projects and they were not easy for me. Small pieces, small wires, my clumsy hands. I certainly felt a sense of accomplishment. She's a very patient teacher and I thank her for sharing her wonderful art with us. Perri is a wonderful person and a creative master. I have no idea where she gets the ideas for what she does, but I am so glad she does. She inspired me to pay attention to the details.

Sharilyn Miller: Her books and DVDs inspire boatloads of people. Sharilyn's jewelry is bold and beautiful. Sharilyn is a great teacher. Check out her "Bead on a Wire" book and you'll know why it's sold oodles of copies. I've made projects from several of her tutorials and have learned that I can hammer and bend the heavy stuff. I've used her techniques for several items and thank her for teaching me that even copper tubing has potential.

Lastly (for now), Sherry Dancing Feather from the Wire Wrapped Jewelry group on Yahoo. Her "Toodles Ring" was one of my first projects. I learned how to weave wire and that this whole wire wrapping, jewelry making thing can be a lot of fun and that copper is beautiful.

Thank you ladies. You are true artisans.

Cha Ching - continued

2009-09-14T16:44:00.000-07:00

Well, the turquoise bouquet earrings are back up on Etsy. But the laboradorite tears are GONE. My "client" found that something a bit larger suited better.

To those of you who have encouraged my adventure, thank you. I am truly blessed.

Cha Ching!

2009-09-10T16:51:00.000-07:00

I've been so blessed. Some of my coworkers saw my stuff on Etsy and made purchases. I have a request for a custom pair of earrings and a necklace of "some sort" to go with a pair of earrings that were purchased. Thank you all for your support.

These are the earrings that I need to create a necklace for.

I'm thinking a lariat with dangles on the ends..... And I think they were purchased for a gift - I hope she likes them. :-)

My Famous Cousin!

2009-09-08T16:51:00.000-07:00

I was at the library, browsing through the geography/travel section (yes, I love to travel) and saw a book in the Cleveland section entitled "To Dwell With Fellow Clay." The author is none other than my wonderful cousin, Nancy Fogel West. I did not check the book out because I have my own copy. :)

Nancy got involved with the East Cleveland Cemetery through genealogy research. One minute she was researching the family, the next she was saving the cemetery. In the process, she learned boatloads about the cemetery and was encouraged to write a book. Here's the product summary from Amazon:

Product Description

To Dwell with Fellow Clay is the history of the 147 year old East Cleveland Township Cemetery that has been the subject of many urban legends for decades. Many local historians have reported that it was once a family burial plot, others have debated the actual date it came into existence and still others never even knew it existed. Nestled in the heart of Cleveland's University Circle and surrounded by residential homes and the railroad fact has now been seperated from fiction. The story begins in 1822, thirty-seven years before the cemetery came into existence with another cemetery that was called the "Publick Burying Ground". There are multiple law suits that begin in the late 1800's and end in 2003; and at least 75 years of neglect of the area that is the final resting place of many of the first settlers of the Western Reserve in Cuyahoga County, Ohio. You will learn the history of the cemetery itself and in the process get to know many of the Western Reserve's first founders.

If you can't give a plug to a family member, who can you give a plug to?

My cousin. I'm proud of her.

New Demographic

2009-09-07T13:58:00.000-07:00

My husband and I recently traveled to Vegas. When we went to Denny's for breakfast, we realized we were eligible for the 55 & over breakfast special... So, I guess it's official. I'm a grown-up.

Why is it that no matter how old I get physically, I don't feel much older than 30ish mentally? I still want to explore, travel, try new things. I love creating things, be it a great meal, warm quilt, or a piece of jewelry (my latest passion). How can people sit in front of that silly television all day? There is SO much to do! How can anyone ever be bored? There are so many things we won't get a chance to do. I just don't get it.