ann of south carolina…

I have been wanting to write about this coincidence – perhaps to help me understand it.  It has great significance for me and I am not quite sure why.   By sharing it with you I am hoping that its meaning will become clear to me.

I had a woman that I admire very much purchase three necklaces from me several weeks ago on a Thursday.  She chose three for herself and one for a friend.   Her choices for herself are remarkable because she happened to choose three necklaces that were mine, at least in my mind they were.   The trio was part of my “Lettie stash” and they were hidden in  my drawer until the day that she purchased them.   I had only removed them from my drawer early that Thursday morning.  I don’t know why I was compelled to pull them out but I did.   To my surprise I would sell not just one but all three of them to Ann of South Carolina…

Obviously I approve of everything I make or I would not take the time to tie all of those tedious knots.  It is difficult to part with all of the necklaces because I put a little of myself into each.  But these three were special to me for reasons unknown.  I had squirreled them away because of an undefined attachment to all three.  I was unprepared for the coincidence that was about to unfold later that day.  Coincidences are amazing – a friend of mine calls them God’s winks.  I love that.  I must have noticed his wink at me on that Thursday morning because I pulled these out of my drawer and added them to my basket with all of the others.

I have not known Ann very long but I liked her the first time I met her.  She has the most beautiful smile.  The atmosphere of a room changes when she walks in for her enthusiasm about everything is contagious.  She is lovely and caring and giving.  Ann is the sort of person that I envy for her presence.  It is large.  It is wonderful.  She is a role model for the way I would like to live my life.  Her generosity is impressive and her compassion for those in need is beyond measure.  It pleased me when she expressed an interest in seeing my jewelry and I just happened to have it with me on this particular Thursday because another friend had requested to see it.

I let her look by herself along with her friend and she came back in the store with the piece shown at the top of this post.  I had just completed it the day before and as I said – I had made it for moi.  I told Ann how pleased I was that she chose the moth because I had intended it be mine but was happy to know that she would have it instead.    Then she told me there were two others that she wanted so we went out to my car for her to show me the pair so that I could place them on hold.  Well – no hold was necessary for they were not listed in my shop.  They had only been symbolically listed as mine.   I could not  believe that she placed the two shown at the bottom of this post in my hand.  I was speechless and at a loss for words to tell her what a coincidence was occurring.   I later gave her a hug and stumbled over some words that did not seem to convey how pleased I was at her choices.

My basket has over one hundred necklaces in it and Ann picked the three that had spoken to me because they spoke to her.  Unbelievable.   As I write this I think it is now clearer to me that I felt I was giving her a little part of myself.  She has given so much to me just by being a wonderful example of how to life a life  and as I stood there – not knowingly –  I was giving a cherished part of myself  back to her in gratitude.

I have just discovered that I don’t have a photo of the third necklace but it was faceted labradorite, wood and another vintage religious medal circa 1900.    I am glad they all found their way to Ann…and I am thankful as always.  I love the coincidences that occur in my life.  God remembers that I need a little encouragement every now and then and he winks at me.

they all come from ziplocs and tupperware….

Organized chaos is achieved with the items mentioned in the title of this post.  All of the necklaces that I have made have evolved from these ziploc bags and tupperware storage boxes.  I use the name ziploc and tupperware sort of like I use the name kleenex.  It covers all brands.   Do they even make tupperware anymore?  Anyway,  I thought it would be fun to share the process with you…

This is the first stop.  I rummage through all of these little plastic bags and find something that speaks to me.  I never know what I am going to choose when I start flipping the little bags over and over.  The beautiful decoupage basket was a gift from a friend so I especially love that it is the launch pad for my creativity.  I need to tell her what I use this basket for.  I think she would be happy to know that it is a “working” basket…..

I next turn 180 degrees and kick around these bags on the floor to choose what will be the body of the necklace.  And yes – they are always on the floor.  I have tried to keep them in the larger box shown but they just seem to jump out and stay out.  I blame it on my pair of Golden Doodles – Frank and Steve, but I am not fooling anybody.  Everyone that knows me expects to find me strung out all over the house when they drop by.

Then it gets fun.  I swirl these beads with my hand until I find the ones that will accent the chosen pendant.  I love the noise they make as I do this.  I lay them out in my palm with the pendant and try different combinations until I think it is right.  I usually know what I am looking for when I start the swirling.  I know most of the beads in this box very well.  All have been lovingly collected over the last two years.   Now I am ready to knot  – everything is  gathered up and poured  into a lap-size tupperware box and I am off to the chair.  I am ready to slip into a parallel universe….

This recliner is where I make them all….I kick the foot rest up and put on a movie or some music and start knotting.  That is my favorite mug on the table by the chair.  It says “If you can’t lose it, decorate it” and it has a photo of two full figured women in swimsuits in a loud floral pattern.   I love working out of my house.  We live in the woods but are inside the city limits so I can slip into town for lunch with friends which I do almost every day.  I am only two minutes away from everything unless I have on my pajamas and then I am five minutes from everywhere that serves food!

Photographs are taken on my back porch.  All of them.  You can see some of my bottles on the table.  I take my photos with my husband’s camera and know nothing about photography except how to turn on the camera and keep it on automatic…

Meet Maypup.   She is my assistant.  You can see that she is highly skilled at what she is required to do and that is to keep me company.   There is also a cat named Margie but she was MIA when the photos were being taken.  Margie is a manx cat and is extremely entertaining.  My husband, who is a veterinarian, says that they always have peculiar and funny personalities.  I love that she thinks she has a tail.

That Life is Good lunch box is my camera bag.  I sit the camera on top of the lunch box and connect it to my laptop to transfer the photos…other props are here, there and everywhere.  Literally – everywhere.

A make-shift desk has been set up on top of this wine rack.  My poor husband – he did not intend this to be part of my jewelry chaos.   This is where I sit and edit photos and then list the necklaces on Etsy.  Folders containing website info and tagging stuff are on the second shelf.  The fourth shelf is kept empty and is used as a foot rest.    I spend most of my day perched on this stool while working on the computer.  I remember that my instructor in design school told me that design was only about 20% creativity and around 80% paperwork.  That was in the 80’s – paperwork is now computer work.

My favorite part of the entire process is receiving feedback from my customers and friends.  They send me great stories – some of which I have already shared with you through earlier blog entries.  I also enjoy being connected to a global network of other artists via my little laptop.   I correspond with the  most interesting people and we attempt to promote each other in whatever way we can so I feel like I am never alone.  The entire process is gratifying and I am thankful that I find myself on this journey.  I am having fun and lots of it!

This is the most recent recliner creation……