Happy Thanksgiving!

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I thought I'd post a few things that I am thankful for this year...

... Being a part of Fall Festival, and having the opportunity to put together a large display of my work

... Greater overall visibility as an artist

... Finally having the confidence to call my workspace a "studio"

... Working out some ideas about the direction to go with my jewelry and my business

... All of the comments and compliments I have received about my work

... More interactions with other artists

... The prospect of (dare I say it?) moving out of Southern California

... An increased amount of bike travel, a greater confidence about circumnavigating the world on bike, and finally getting rid of my car

And, on that note, I'm headed out of town for the next few days. We're dining on turkey with Russ' family and then heading South for a bit of a bike tour.

But before I sign off... I wanted to let you all know that I'm offering up some great kick-off-the-holidays specials in my Etsy Shop! Order anything from my shop between November 27 and December 5 and receive FREE shipping. Even better? Spend at least $150 in my shop during that same time period and receive a FREE pair of Seedlets or Seed Hoops earrings (your choice). All in-stock orders placed over the weekend will ship on Monday.

Enjoy your holiday everyone!

Pop Up, here we come...

I spent a good part of today with my fellow "poperatives" sanding and painting and starting to piece together the display for the upcoming Pop Up Shop. When I was part of a small gallery a few years ago, Jen wowed us with her amazing display-creating talent. Today, she has done it again, with the help of Chris' prolific alley-scavenging trips. I can't wait to see this all put together in two weeks!



(Photos from Cari)

Ornament Update

I spent the afternoon today working on my ornaments for the Swap. I'm collaging each of the copper stars with dried red leaves...

New Earrings!

I've had this idea fluttering around in my head for a few weeks now and finally sat down this weekend to create them.


These swinging beauties are made from 100% eco-friendly sterling silver and feature a delightful pop of color from dried rose petals.

A few pair are now available for sale in my etsy shop. You'll also be able to find them at the upcoming Pop Up Shop events.

Twinkle, twinkle

Working on ornaments today. Ten of them will go off to my swap partners and the rest will go up for sale in my etsy shop and at the upcoming Pop Up Shop events.

Let's see... how many can I get out of a single 6x12 sheet of copper?

Pop Up Shop

Introducing... the one and only... absolutely fantastic... Long Beach Pop Up Shop!


I'm part of a group of artisans and creative type folks here in Long Beach that has come up with a killer idea for this holiday season and beyond. The Pop Up Shop! We take our beautiful wares and pop up at various locations around town.

This December, we'll be at the newly revamped Art Theatre for three afternoons. There will be fun and treats and beautiful gift items and who knows what else might pop up. Come out and join us!


Check out the website for more information! And visit our flickr to see what sorts of goodies to expect.

Gone to India...

... the little variety, that is. Artesia, a city just up the road from us, has a large Indian population, and I've always wanted to go check it out. So, Russ and I and a couple of friends headed off on a bicycle day trip. Did I remember to bring my camera, though? Of course not. But, I did bring back a few goodies...

Two fancy new tunics for bike touring...


And some interesting Indian and Pakistani spice mixes and snacks...


I also managed to get a shot of the headbadge that I've been working on this week. The time change has made it nearly impossible for me to get decent photos after I get home from my day job, so I had to wait until today...


Happy Saturday!

Friday Update

Whew... what a week! I've been so out of touch with all things political for the past few years that I've felt like I needed to play catch up in the wake of Tuesday night. Which has been truly delightful and insightful, but has swallowed up my week.

So, I'm looking forward to getting back to work this weekend. I have a headbadge sitting on my bench, drying, that I need to mail out. And another custom order waiting in the wings. Plus, my head is now swimming with ideas for new designs, and I want to get started!

But, in the meantime, I thought I'd share a couple of misc. updates...

First, for anyone in the Corvallis, Oregon area, Winterlight opens tomorrow! They have lots and lots of wonderful handmade items - including some of my jewelry - and I urge you to go check it out this holiday season.

Next, I jumped on this year's Ornament Swap (put on by FreshlyBlended and Cake & Pie). I've never done this sort of thing before, but I've been itching to make ornaments this holiday season, so what the heck. Sign ups end on the 10th, so hurry on over if you're interested in joining the fun. Oh, and check out the Flickr group from last year.

I've also updated my gift wrap (and wanted to share a sneak peek)! All online orders are automatically shipped with gift wrap, and I'm happy to wrap up any in-person purchases as well.


Have a great weekend everyone!

Jumping with Joy

I think that I have been anxiously holding my breath for months (or, truly, for the past eight years), in a sort of tempered hope that folks would wake up and all of the fear would melt away.

I used to be incredibly involved in politics, in the nitty-gritty of causing change at the grassroots level. After the 2004 election, I just burnt out, horribly saddened, and walked away, needing to preserve my own sanity. My hope for a positive outcome to this election was always balanced by the memory of the crushing disappointment four years ago.

Today, I feel like I can finally exhale.

In fact, from the moment ABC called the election for Obama, I have been sobbing in complete and utter elation.

There are so many reasons to be excited about this win and what it means. For me, it means a return of hope and optimism, and the fact that I don't have to pack up and figure out how to rebuild my business in another country.

And, like Obama said in his speech, "the chance to create the change we seek."

Yes we can.

(Photo from the LA Times)

Today is the day...

... that all of the TV commercials, endless leaflets, and automated vote-for-such-and-such phone calls finally come to an end. I'm on edge for the outcome (national as well as some state measures), but mostly I'm just ready for this election to finally be over. But, I thought I'd throw my hat in the ring with everyone else and say that if you're eligible to vote, please do so today!

In other news, I donated a pair of my seed hoops earrings to a drawing on the lovely Scoutie Girl website. If you're hoping for a pair of your very own, scoot on over and find out how to enter.