The Test of Time

Seems like I blinked and weeks have passed since my last blog entry. Over the last several weeks I have been thrown into circumstances that have made me marvel at all the technology we have at our fingertips these days. And, I am very grateful for it all. However, on the other end of the spectrum, I am so grateful for the repetitive handwork it takes to create my jewelry designs – work that takes a significant level of skill and definitely work that doesn’t fly at the speed of light.

I so enjoy time in my studio, handling gemstones and beautiful Czech glass, wrapping wire and bringing delightful little pieces together to make a bigger delightful thing to be enjoyed by all of you. I’ll admit, there are times that I get lost in the process of the jewelry – it just pulls me in and thoughts of things going on outside of the piece I am working on just disappear. It has always been that way for me. I happen to think that is why I have continued to make jewelry since 1967. Yikes! Sometimes…it hits me…I am definitely no spring chicken!

Today on Twitter, someone posted a stunning pix of Lauren Bacall probably taken in the mid-60s. The dress and the jewelry she wore conjured up images of my teen years. I actually tweeted this photo from my modeling portfolio taken in 1965 because the lines of the dress I am wearing are quite similar to the one worn by Lauren. Looking at current fashion trends, I can’t help but be reminded of the cyclic nature of design and how everything old is new again. I am also really thankful that when I was a kid in the 50s, my auntie Opal was a real girlie girl, and since she only had a son, she loved it when I came to stay. I used to feign illness just so I could stay home from school and be dropped off at her house while my mom worked! Sh-h-h. We drank Coke from the bottle (horrors) and played in her jewelry (boy, I wish I had all those pieces now) which was big, had lots of movement and made noise when she wore it. I loved that. I do think those experiences were the birth of my design aesthetic (as they would say in the world of fashion today!). All of my designs have movement and jangle. Personally, I love that.

I just took a break to look through my own jewelry collection which started way back when. With the exception of bangles and earrings – I do not own one piece that doesn’t have movement – well, I guess it’s safe to say that even my bangles move. So, what I am trying to say, not so concisely, is that I think we develop preferences for things early on in life – or at least we are inspired by things that we might tweak over time to make them our own. To wrap things up, it all comes down to this -- would I wear it now? Yes. Would I have worn it in the 60s? Yes. But most importantly, would Auntie Opal have worn it in the 50s? If I can answer yes to that question...then its been a good design day.