Plenty of hats...

I'm wearing many hats these days. Jewellery making is still at the forefront of my daily regime. I'm designing a necklace for a friend with some vintage beads she picked up at an estate sale years ago. The beads are gorgeous! Unlike anything I've seen. Have a look:


I'm also completing a Photoshop advanced level course at night school. This will soon be followed by InDesign. I'm trying to get up to speed in my knowledge of graphic design software. My hope is that it will open a door (or two) for me in terms of job placement. I've been wearing the unemployed hat far too long and it really sucks!

I'm still plugging away at sending out resumes, and networking, and telling everyone I know, including their grandmother, that I'm looking for work. According to the job hunting books, this is the way to do it. I've also visited two temp agencies as a last resort. And, if that weren't enough, I'm also looking to volunteer at the ROM (Royal Ontario Museum). I love learning about ancient civilizations and dinosaurs!

Friends of mine have been very supportive and have been offering me all kinds mini-projects to keep me busy and inspired. I mentioned earlier in this post about the necklace I'm working on. Another friend, a photographer, asked if I would be willing to tweak some photos of his with Photoshop in exchange for some professional photography shots of my jewellery. Sweet!

I've also been asked by friends, who are launching their own businesses, to design their business cards for them. These are the perfect projects with which to augment my design portfolio!

In my previous post, I had mentioned about working on my on-line portfolio. Alas, it is still under construction. I really want to hit the 'publish' button and make it visible to all, but it's still lacking in samples of my current work. I already have plenty of scanned images of my art class projects from high school from over 20 years ago. I doubt a prospective employer cares about those doodles. I need plenty of fresh, recent work.

So as you can see, I'm working at a variety of things in an attempt to keep busy and I'm also enjoying the creative work process. It takes time, effort and commitment to create things I feel are worthy of displaying.

For instance, I made these two pairs of earrings this past week. I am so pleased with the results that I wanted to share them with you. The 'peacock' earrings are my recent favourites. They are made with Swarovski crystals in two shades of blue for added depth. And the beads splay apart over the silver "Smarties" bead just like feathers, hence the name.


The second pair of earrings which I named 'glitterati' were made especially to be worn on a sunny day. Why? Because the sterling silver beads I've used, pick up the light and sun beautifully due to their glittery, pocked surface. A perfect homage to the sunshine we've been getting lately.


The weather has warmed up considerably and I'm much more inclined to go for longer walks with my dog. He's such a sweet, quiet little dog and he's made so many friends in the neighbourhood, with other dogs and people alike. Neighbours greet him before they say "hi" to me. I'm not complaining though, he's been (the vet and I suspect) through some abuse in his former life in Texas (before we rescued him), so he deserves all the loving he can get. Here is Dexter sunbathing, his favourite afternoon activity.

Back to life

After a long hiatus, I've decided to return to this fair-weather blog of mine. I'm not sure why I have neglected this blog other than the fact that I dislike writing about myself. Yes, you heard correct. I'm one of those people that rather keep her thoughts hidden in the depths of her brain. Sometimes this is counterproductive. Like the dozens of times when I can't remember my dentist appointment because I did not write it down right away. At the time I had convinced myself I would remember it. Guess what? I didn't! Thank goodness for reminder calls.

Blogs are about writing and communicating. It's an on-line diary. I never had a diary as a kid or a tween or a teen. Never! I did not understand the concept of a diary and why would I want to write things down if I can keep them locked in my head for ever...where nobody could find them. Not even me!

It's true. I once used to pride myself on remembering all kinds of details and information and now...now, I'm lucky if I can remember my best friend's telephone number. Aging does that to you.

So, where was I ? Yes, I have neglected this blog for awhile because I have been doing other things that have taken up precedence in my life. Like what, you ask? Well, like getting back into making jewellery. My Etsy shop is no longer functioning and I doubt I will re-activate it for selling purposes. However, I will keep my account on Etsy because I LOVE shopping there.

It feels good to be creating once again. I sure have missed it. I'm not sure how I will pursue the selling aspect of my jewellery production. My friends are very fortunate gals, especially at Christmas time and on their birthday. They know what they will be getting: one of my creations. Sometimes it's earrings. Sometimes it's a necklace. They are always so grateful to wear my pieces and incredibly supportive about my craft.

I have been working steadily on an on-line portfolio, which will showcase my jewellery and also other creative projects. The portfolio will display images of all the things I've worked on in the past like my medical device thesis from OCAD, my charcoal drawings of nudes, my oil and acrylic paintings of yesteryear (as far back as high school) and some very old, out-dated fashion design illustrations that I drew back in junior high. I unearthed a series of drawings from my parents basement a few months ago that I had not laid eyes upon for 20 years. Both my husband and friends who saw these drawings were amazed that I made them because I had never talked about them or showed them to anyone in years! This show-and-tell resulted in many questions from friends about why I never pursued fashion design or illustration as a career. Well, it's a long story but I'll give you a hint..."whaaat iz dis, you want to be a fasion design? Dat is ridicula. No ay, you going to you-niverseti to be a tea-cher!" Need I say more?

So without further blah-blah, here are a couple of images of my recent jewellery work.