Adorn the world

The quality of our lives is greatly improved when we actively use the creative spirit residing in us all. I always assumed every human believed this and acted through their creative being to execute with intent even during the most mundane tasks such as washing dishes or sweeping floors.

Patterns on plates, colors of cups and swirls on forks suggested to me where they would best be placed in the drying rack to enhance the beauty of the drying experience. Sweeping the floor gave me opportunity to notice how the dust moved through the bristles and sifted into lines crossing the texture and grain of the uneven wood slats of the worn and warped flooring. These small moments came from the freedom I was given as a young human to day dream in our backyard, staring at the sky through the leaves of our cherry tree or laying belly down on the kitchen floor running my fingers over the tile while my mom was cooking and baking.

The doings of real life were background events occurring as the mundane inspired me from the foreground of my attention. As I grew older my interests opened to include the doings of my mom and grandma. They made things. Lovely things that improved life in small and impactful ways. All questions were answered and requests to learn how to turn fabric into pillowcases, aprons or dolls were warmly indulged. It felt like a secret world that my brothers weren’t even aware of, yet it’s impact was everywhere I looked. My elders were teaching me to see the touches of love they sprinkled throughout our home and encouraged me to join in.

Needles and thread, glue, paper and crayons gave way to paint, clay and bead stringing as I entered the double digits of preteen hood. My faux stained glass windows in the bathroom inspired me to make smaller versions from the old damaged glass slides my mom, a science teacher at this point, gave me because she knew I would find a creative use for them. I painted and embellished them but couldn’t figure out what to do with these tiles. In the meantime I’d move onto other mediums and ways to express my growing interest in fine art and sewing. I was either making collages from the many gifted National Geographic magazines my auntie subscribed me to, or sewing simple skirts to wear on our monthly trips to the many museums in Manhattan.

Seeing the King Tut exhibit opened my eyes to embellishing clothing and seeing jewelry as a sacred art. I told my mom I was the jeweler who made King Tuts golden armbands in one of my past lives. The next day I fashioned a fairly good version of the udjat armband out of clay, along with ankhs made of wire and lots of paper mâché beads painted gold and blue.

Amazingly, not long after that experience, I won a national art contest and one of my collages was chosen to hang in the very same museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art. I felt proud, giddy and so accomplished sitting on a bench across from my work hanging high with its own spotlight. I felt I could make anything. That feeling is still with me. I know that with small steps, paying close attention and patience anything can be learned.

What was also fostered in the 70s was an eco consciousness that shaped my choice of supplies. I found that using items that were going to be discarded made me feel like I was helping Mother Earth. Advertisements encouraged us to not pollute or waste water and I took this to heart. This would shape all I made and make til this day. I currently make beaded vessels from recycled bottles and broken bits of jewelry and tiny seed beads. The resulting mosaics feel sacred and magical. They have the same feel of the embellished glass tiles I made as a preteen. They vessels center me in the making and center my clients in the observing. I love the entire creative process in bringing them to life.

My main source of income is firmly rooted in my DIY jewelry background, and my love of fabrics and sewing. While thrifting in New Mexico about twenty years ago I came across a red suede dress. It was floor length, with batwing sleeves and a long sweeping draped train and huge shoulder pads. Really challenging as a garment but all I saw was soft swingy fringe hanging from my ears. That dress changed my life. As soon as I got home I began to take it apart and carefully shaped small rectangles the would be sliced into what looked like ruby colored construction paper gone through a paper shredder and I was thrilled. I rolled the rectangles into tubes and wrapped them in brick stitched beadwork. They hung about 9 inches from my earlobe and everywhere I wore them people placed orders for a pair of their own.

I was making earrings faster than my hands could bear and started to develop carpal tunnel issues. The aching radiated from my thumbs into my wrist and up my arm. My grandma who was dealing with arthritis suggested scissors with a spring action and sent me a pair from Florida. They helped as I could use them with both hands, so I could get a bit of work accomplished with my left hand. I still have those scissors and use them often. As I healed I expanded my earrings into triangle shapes, layered versions in multiple colors and widths. I still source all of the leather from thrift shops and garment industry waste, making beautiful accessories with the least impact to the environment I can reach. They are also very rockstar! I dig into my creative bag of tricks and craft one of a kind pieces that make the wearer feel special. It’s so satisfying and intriguing, like a new puzzle I have to figure out with each pair.

I’ve expanded my collection of scissors and added rotary cutters too! I couldn’t do this work without them. I’ve recently added stones, paint and embroidery to my earrings and long neckpieces, the ideas are endless and exciting. The quieter I get, the more open I become, like the little person I was, absorbing the beauty all around me. Creativity lives in that space.