Etsy Adds: Stitched

The latest in the shop. Copper charms with pearls and embroidery floss.

Updates!

Just wanted to post about a few I've got going on right now, or am gearing up for:

- I'm so excited to be a part of Craft in America's Good Enough to Eat: Food as Medium for Craft, exhibition currently up in the Freehand Gallery in Los Angles. Salt Vessel as well as two salt brooches are on display.

- In a couple weeks I'll be the Artist in Residence at Pocosin Arts in Columbia, NC. I'm really looking forward to walks along the Scuppernog River, trips to the Outer Banks and,  of course, LOTS of studio time.

Which I need because. . .

- In November I'll be traveling to Amsterdam with 9 other super talented metalsmiths to participate in Sierrad, an international jewelry festival. I'm super excited and super nervous to be taking my work to Europe. We'll be setting up a Kickstarter campaign soon,  to raise money for our booth fee. Stay tuned for details on that!

Happy weekend! Thanks for reading!

Quote of the Week

"I'll yearn not for a rolling plain or mountains to the sky as long as I can know the joy of rivers flowing by." ~ J. Gaskill McDonel

Etsy Adds

A few new charms in the Shop. Check them out here.

Happy Earth Day!

A very happy Earth Day to you! Sorry for the complete lack of posting, but last week was crazy busy. Our annual Student Show went up at the Community College where I work. It took several days and lots of hands to get set up, but looked great in end. We've had some really nice work come out of our department this past year.

I also taught my last class for spring at Beads and Bowls in downtown New Bern.I taught 3 basic ring classes in March and 2 bezel setting classes this month. I'm taking some time off from that while I finish up the semester and while they move to their new location, but hope to continue teaching with them in the fall.

Friday, I went up to Greenville to dog sit and attend the MFA opening at ECU's Gray Gallery. There were also 3 BFA metals shows up at Art Avenue. Congrats to all involved!

These are a few photos I took last weekend wandering around the Tryon Palace Gardens, which were open to the public as part of New Bern's Historic Home Tour. It was a lot warmer and sunnier then than it is today, but at least we don't have snow like some parts of the country. Hope you're enjoying your Monday and Earth Day wherever you are!

, 

Quote of the Week

"The present reeks of mediocrity and the atom bomb."

~Rene Magritte

Weekly Walk: Color

2nd Process Shot of the Week

A few things I (finally) finished up in the studio today.

Process Shot of the Week

Finished up this sweet little found terracotta charm the other day. You can find it in my Etsy shop here.

Blog Lost. . .

I know I should be blogging more, and I am making an effort at it, but I keep running up against the fact that I don't really have anything to say. My life is routine, my work is in flux, and while I am reading a fair amount, I'm having a hard time even finding something that speaks to me well enough to use as a Quote of the Week.

This spring has felt like an incubation period. Like, a resting, a gathering of strength or preparing for something. Something big. Well, maybe not big, but medium sized to smallish. I haven't the faintest idea what though, since I feel like so many of the things I'm putting out into the world are being turned down, when not out right ignored.

Maybe it's because I have zero social life. Maybe it's because there's nothing to do in New Bern except walk around and look at how pretty the town and the water are. Even the things I do go out and do, aren't really worth discussing. (I went to a talk by Carl Kasell tonight, and really have nothing to say about it.) Maybe it's because I find myself wanting to share less and less of my personal life and my professional accomplishments (few that they are). Typing this post now, I feel like it's too "personal",  too "mushy" to be put on the blog. I should probably delete it.

But I won't. Because there hasn't been a post since Friday and it is now Tuesday. 

Happy Tuesday.

Weekly Walk: Texture

 Some more shots from my walks around town, focusing on texture.

Process Shot of the Week: Feeling Bookish

I'm finally on spring break this week, and trying to strike a balance between productivity and relaxation. I spent the first few days focusing on bookmaking. There's something meditative and soothing about making books, something I don't get in the metals studio. March was crazy and full of anxious moments, so the break, and extended book making were both needed. I tried several new structures: a tea bag book, sewing over paper tabs, a flower fold book, circle envelopes, stick binding and two signatures sewn as one.

Break is going fast, but I'm hoping to get some more book time in.

Quote of the Week

"Shall I part my hair behind? Do I dare eat a
peach?
I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon
the beach.
I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each.

I do not think they will sing to me. "

~ T. S. Eliot,  The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock