These Just In

•March 31, 2011 • Leave a Comment

Lookee here! The fruits of Studio Night’s labor are now available on the Etsy shop. Check ’em out!

Flower Mother Necklace

Mother of Pearl Earrings

Orange Cream Earrings

Studio Night

•March 31, 2011 • Leave a Comment

One of the biggest challenges I’ve faced since I began making jewelry was finding the time and space to work. In a house occupied by nine people, two of them my children, an empty surface and a free hour rarely coincide. And I’ll admit, it’s been hard for me to prioritize my own personal endeavor over tending to my kids’ whims or doing things together as a family.

Something about the arrival of spring, however, gave me the motivation to clear out a space in my room and make myself a tiny little studio. It’s just a desk surface, a drawer, and a freakishly organized cork board, but it suits all my needs. And once I had a studio, I was inspired by other artist friends to give myself a Studio Night: one night a week that I would devote to creating new work.

Last night was my first try at it. I worked for about four hours, with only a short break to eat and determine that Modern Family was a re-run. At 9:30, I made myself stop in mid-project, which was also a first. Most of the pieces I’ve done have been completed in one sitting, whether that sitting was thirty minutes or six hours, because I never really knew when I could get back to it. Promising myself that I will come back to it in a week makes it easier to leave things unfinished, and also gives me more time to visualize what I want the finished piece to be. There are a lot of designs I’ve put off doing because they were too time-consuming, but now I anticipate giving part of my weekly time over to making progress on those longer-term projects.

Of course, I’ve got other plans made for next Wednesday night, and probably Thursday, and … okay, I haven’t quite worked this whole Studio Night thing out yet. But I am committed to the idea, and even if it’s not a set day and time, just knowing I have a space waiting for me makes it easier to wait until the opportunity arrives.

Insert Virtual Framed Dollar Here

•March 21, 2011 • Leave a Comment

Big thanks to my old pal Sarah Jane for becoming the first official There Was Eden customer!  Sarah is now the proud owner of the Olive Flower necklace. (I promise I won’t announce all sales and post personal customer bidness, but I don’t think Sarah will mind this one time.) Thanks to Sarah, and to all of you for your support!

Here We Go!

•March 21, 2011 • Leave a Comment

“Wheresoever she was, there was Eden.”
Excerpts from Adam’s Diary, Mark Twain

In the fall of 2010, after months casting about for some enjoyable-yet-semi-productive use of my free time, and after much deliberation and many hours of loitering at Hobby Lobby, I decided to try making jewelry. I’d never considered myself especially crafty, and most past artistic efforts had ended in utter deflation, but the idea of being able to create my own custom-made pieces was very appealing to me. Besides,  the start-up set was only $17, so if nothing else, I figured I’d get at least $20 worth of accessories out of the deal.

The first night I opened my starter box, I made two pairs of earrings and two bracelets. Out of practically nothing! I was instantly hooked. I began with the instructions and patterns included with my supplies, but quickly branched out to my own designs. In my newbie fervor, I posted pictures of my work on Facebook, and almost immediately was asked where I sold my stuff. I looked at my fumbling first efforts and laughed, knowing I could never expect anyone to pay for what I was producing. And then I made some more, buying supplies with the insurance money I received when most of my own jewelry was stolen during a break-in. I knew I could never replace those sentimentally-valuable pieces, but creating something with my own hands was much more meaningful than going on a shopping spree.

Over the last six months, I’ve been learning, working, practicing, designing, re-working, and wearing an ever-increasing supply of hand-made jewelry.  I love the effort, and I very often love the result. (Which of course sounds terribly proud, but if you saw what I did in pottery class, you’d cut me some slack in the artistic pride department.)

I’ve also loved giving my pieces as gifts, and spreading a little of the joy I find in this work. In the process of doing so, I have been asked again when and where I sell my  jewelry. I’ve never had an answer for that question. Until now.

Ladies and gentlemen (but mostly ladies), I am very excited to introduce There Was Eden. The Twain quote above represents the mission of this enterprise better than any business plan ever could.

This site is where I plan to post new work for sale, as well as ideas, inspirations, and any other thoughts related to the process. I hope you’ll take a look around and come back when you can. This is all really just a lot of fun for me, and it’s even more fun to share it.