A Clean Slate

Every now and then I decide it's a good time to start over. A clean slate, a fresh coat of paint, new design for my website, clean my studio, clean out closets...whatever you want to call it. I think it might be part of my obsessive compulsiveness. Like folding my clothes a certain way so they fit nice and neat in my drawers with very little wrinkles. Or reorganizing my jewelry tools and supplies just when I have figured out where everything is. The sad part is that I forget the new place I have put stored things and end up making a mess anyway, c'mon you know what I'm talking about.

I was talking with another mom today at my son's soccer game and we were laughing how when we were young we had attention deficit issues and how they started to go away by the time we were adults. But as we got older, we started to decline again and having kids speeds up that process twofold. You know, short term memory loss, because there is only so much "room" to remember things for everyone else that your personal memory bank gets depleted. So you end up having to be organized or you forget where stuff is.

But I digress, in my journey as an artist, I am always looking for new methods, techniques, anything to bring out my creativity. I am part of a wonderful group of women that has started a new group, Illinois Metal and Jewelry Artists. We met through this awesome Art Jewelry class at McHenry County College in Crystal Lake, IL. It was like kindred spirits finding our way to the light. The "light" being what drives us to create art. It has really changed the way I look at life since I try to use different perspectives, not just what feels safe or easy. Our intent is to promote our art through a collective effort.

I also signed up for this online class called Homesteaders Metalsmithing by Stephanie Lee. One of my jewelry friends took the class this summer and recommended it to me. As I look at the different projects and style of Stephanie Lee's creations, I have a feeling I am going to love it!

On top of all this, I decided to redesign my jewelry website. A fresh clean simple look that still reflects what my vision is. So what is my vision? Hmm...that's a hard one. The best description I can give is eclectic artisan jewelry with an aged but treasured look. Kind of like how I would describe myself. I don't particularly like shiny new but a little sparkle or glint of light will do. I love to be able to touch and look at a piece to feel and see the work that went into it. You can look at my jewelry and know that I am passionate and enjoy what I do.

I know I promised earlier in the year that I would do a better job of blogging and putting down my ideas but somehow life has a tendency of getting in the way or moving too fast. Part of my Clean Slate theory is to wipe clean, start over and move on. My hope is that all this reorganizing and starting over will clear the path to a clean fresh perspective on my life and my art.