Time Flies...

Ugh, has it really been two months? So much for my promise to blog once a week! Between the certification class, getting engaged, my big 3-0, and then the holidays, it's been a busy few months. But I'm back and I truly will try to do better (that is, if anyone is still reading)

The store had a very busy holiday season, which was wonderful as I was biting my nails and losing sleep over a lacklustre September/October. The Swarovski snowmen and Christmas trees were the top seller for the season. Again I sold out of the trees, as I did last year. Also, my "Wedding Belles" were featured in the Syracuse Post's gift guide! Very exciting, and I sold all the ones I had in stock!

I was kept busy constructing 7 memorial pieces, which was really quite amazing. I was thrilled that customers thought of giving them as Christmas gifts. The third week of December though,I was a mess, thinking I'd never get them done in time. The first one I was working on I had to re-make 3 times due to issues with firing. Then once I got the piece assembled, I cracked the glass while setting it! I was so cranky and discouraged, but with the calm and patient encouragement of my fiance and mom, I was able to salvage the piece (and it ended up better than the first attempt!) In the end, I got them all completed and will soon be posting them on my new website, http://www.commemorativejewelry.com/. Here's a sneak peak of a few that I was particularly pleased with:

This is Hefty, a yellow lab. Looks a little like Gonzo. The woman who commissioned this piece wanted one after seeing the one I did for Gonzo and saying it looked just like Hefty. Very cute pup.


Alta, a super cute kitty. This sweet cat is still alive, and her mom is a little obsessed :) I think she was as excited about the stamp that comes with the piece as she was with the pendant!


Eibhleann (Yvonne). A wolfhound. Her hair was the softest thing. Her mom actually has a hat made out of her hair! Pretty cool.

I very much enjoyed the process of making each and every one of these pieces. I woke up early in the morning and hit the home studio for a few hours before getting to the store, and took a few days off so I could work from home without interruption. It was quite refreshing that 3 of the 6 pieces I made were for animals that are still alive, and have owners who just love their pets so much, they want to represent that all the time! The 7th piece I made was for my friend Cocoa who just moved to San Diego after living with me here in CNY. I made one containing scraps from two of her grandfather's shirts. It was the first piece I did to commemorate a person, and she was thrilled with it and put it on right away...before I was able to get photos of it!

I can't even express how much it has meant, and how much I have enjoyed making these pieces. I think it's part of the social worker in me: the desire to help people, and I am finding these pieces help people move through grief. It also really pleases the jeweler in me: each piece is constructed in the same manor, but they are all different, imbued with the image and spirit of the being they represent. I never know what the end result will look like until it's time to put on the finishing touches. And that's a huge part of the enjoyment. As is the response. I had the pleasure of witnessing one woman view her piece for the first time, and she burst into tears, telling me "It's her". Of course, I teared up as well. I think the tears are a mixture of pride, compassion, comisseration and hope. I actually get a little sad saying goodbye to the pieces but it's a huge honor to know people are wearing them and remembering loved ones.

Ok, I'll move along now. New class calender is up on the website (www.dragonflybead.com). I'm really focusing a lot on PMC classes, as that is what I am strongest in (and what I like to teach the very most!)