New Pieces on Etsy....

I have been trying some different more personalized pieces to post on Etsy.  I love taking a piece of flat metal and turning into something someone loves to wear daily.  Most often for personalized pieces I use copper and a little sterling, and then hang the pieces on sterling silver chain.  Simple but great for oneself or gifts. 

The one that I have linked you to hear is "love", yes I said it "love" simple and to the point.  Now do you have to have someone in your life that you are "in love" with to wear this, of course not.  All you need is love and it will wear perfectly!!

https://www.etsy.com/listing/99782537/wooden-carved-buddha-wall-art-digital?ref=sr_gallery_15&ga_search_query=buddha&ga_order=most_relevant&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_ship_to=US&ga_search_type=all&ga_facet=buddha

Pinterest Obsessed....

I have to say that there was a day a friend came to me and said, have you been on Pinterest?  I of course said "no, I am not into that" and she said, I beg to differ.  And so a few weeks later I thought, well let's see, and low and behold, obsession.

Why?  Because it is a book of creations on a constant feed.  I get inspired, I see things I want to create, and I am not referring to jewelry.  If anything I don't see jewelry at all, I see household objects, decorating tips, clothing designs, garden designs, tips for potting, planting, building, and just about everything I love to do.

It is so fun!!  Now I just need more time!!

Pressure to Post

So I have been at this "game" of posting and upkeep of all the different social media for years now.  And recently I have come to terms with the fact that I suck at it!!!  As much as I think oh I should blog today, I should list new pieces online, I should update the website, I should contact editors, etc. I don't find the time or the desire to want to follow up on that part of the business.

So for all of you out there doing businesses you know what I mean, it begins to get in the way of what you are trying to do, or started out doing, or thought you were doing.  Creating something meaningful.  So now if I don't do all those things then well I just get lost.

So a while ago I hired a PR firm, I decided I do need help, but I have found that I am the one doing the following up to get them to follow up, or I am emailing, have you heard anything, or I am the one waiting for some type of response, then when I get the responses it is, oh a sample here, pictures there, a write up here, or sometimes its just, they will put you on their list to watch.

Who knows what it all means, but I do know that someone is making money off me, but I am pretty sure it isn't me.  Now would I say today is an easier day for small businesses, yes and no.  But the reality is that it will never go back to simpler times.  We are where we are and if anything there will be more to come, more sites to update, follow up with, ways to be heard, and there will be lots of people all trying for the same thing.  To build their business because what they are doing is unique, special, and one of a kind.

So I guess in the end, I need to get on the wagon, or social media, whichever you choose!!

The Rachel Zoe Project...or maybe my project

I am a maniac for anything fashion, yes jewelry, obviously, but trends, colors, textures, design of a studio, design of a showroom, design of a living room.  I can't help myself.  I love to refurbish anything, yes furniture, clothing, and who knows anything I can get my hands on.  Sometimes I just shop to find something to refurbish.....I need a large large workroom.  My workroom right now is perfect for jewelry, but I need a lab to metalsmith, blacksmith, woodsmith, texturesmith, and fabricsmith.

Some of those may not be real words but who cares....so why the above title, when the Rachel Zoe Project show came back on the air, I was so excited!!  Her clothing, her ideas, her business strategy or lack of (which I love), her being a mother now, the way she dresses, I find it all inspirational.  But not just her show....if I find an inspiring woman of any sorts I am just impressed and taken to another level of inspiration. 

I continually talk with other women about what they are reading, who inspires them, and then of course checking out their style, their techniques in business, or there strengths in life.

Happy Easter to all those strong, inspirational women out there!!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

And just like the color of the old St. Patty's Day, Emerald is the color for Spring.  What's so great about Emerald anyways?

1. Green is for luck
2. Green is soothing
3. Green is healing
4. Green is the color of harmony
5. Green is the color of balance
6. Green symbolizes hope

So think about your green a little differently this Patty's Day, think about the Saint who the day is for and think about all the reasons you through a little green on, any day.

Time Goes By....

It's always amazing to me how time flies, and not necessarily while you are having fun.  It just goes by.  In one part of your life you are wondering how will I get through this, in the next you are thinking, I don't want this to end.  It is bittersweet more often than not, from my perspective.

That's why I love this time of year, regardless of where you are at, this "new" time brings such great things, even on your worst day.  Can't help by seeing the new blossoms, the fresh leaves, hear the birds chirping, and the know that so much newness is in the air.

I try to base my designs on that feeling that I get every spring.  Sometimes it is a great success, sometimes I fall short, but regardless, I enjoy what the new season brings!! Excitement and a fresh start to a new year!!

Spring.....

Ever find the desire just to make it simple.  Everything simple.  For instance, your clothing, simple but tasteful of course, and yes on a budget.  Or what about your home, just the pieces you admire, you need and the rest is unnecessary.  Well that is how I go about creating my pieces of jewelry, I want them to be pieces that you can wear daily, you can wear with anything and you can layer with everything.

Just a little tip for Spring....simplify.

Some days....

Some days are so different from others in so many ways. For instance today it has been 6 years since my grandma passed away. She was an amazing person, sharing, teaching and never boring. She gardened, did the crossword puzzle and read the San Francisco Chronicle every day.

Every one deals with loss differently. I know for all the loss I have had the last few years, I have dealt with them differently. It has been a few years now and I think about her with great fondness. How deep blue her eyes were, how much she loved to talk about politics and world events and just all around how lucky I was to have her in my life.

So today I sit in San Francisco were she spent most of her life, doing a jewelry show and honestly being thankful for her, for all the reasons I listed above, but also for all the gifts that she left me with so that today I could be here and feel confident  about where I am today physically but definitely on the inside.

Something new....

I don't know if I read it somewhere or someone said it to me, but one of the things that I have learned over the last few years is to try something new every day.  Doesn't matter what, just something.

I first decided to do this when I was going through a difficult personal time and realized that I was getting stuck.  Stuck in my thoughts, my actions, in general.  So I decided, how do you grow?, do something new everyday.

So I have taken on that outlook over the last few years.  Here are just a few things you can do to push you outside your comfort zone:

1.  Try a new food
2.  Drive to work a different way
3.  Ride your bike to work instead of driving
4.  Shop at a new grocery store
5.  Read a new website
6.  Talk to someone new
7.  Pamper yourself
8.  Read a magazine that is new for you
9.  Try a new exercise or class
10.  Go to a new restaurant
11.  Read a new story to your kids
12.  Play a new game with your kids
13.  Do a picnic inside the house
14.  Call an old friend
15.  Tell someone new how you value them

Lots of different things to do, big and small.  The point is to try them, none of it is permanent, but whose to say, as you grow you may find new things that you want to take into your daily life.  What a gift that would be.

Nobody's Perfect...

Nobody's perfect, especially me.  I like to try to be, but let me tell you that is a failing art.  And so I try my hardest to let things go, and say I am sorry when I am wrong, apologize when I am not right, and do better the next day.

Most of the time it works, but sometimes you find someone who is just darn set on not forgiving, moving on, and going forward.  So what does that do to me, you ask?  Well first off, to be honest, I am not the best at forgiving and moving on perfectly, or even slightly perfectly, but I know it is something I have to work on.  But when someone decides to continue to pick at something that I have done, apologized for, and tried to make amends, it eats at me, my soul, my thoughts and my feelings.

Now, when I talk about moving on, don't get me wrong, I am speaking of the smaller things in life, someone cutes in front of you at the bank, you have to wait longer to see your doctor, you get the wrong item that you ordered.  The smaller things....

So during this holiday season, I propose that we all try to forgive the little things that happen and don't go right.  It will make dealing with the bigger problems in life, that much easier!!!