Making Jewelry to Make a Living...

The first studio I ever apprenticed at made jewelry, and not much else. I learned what those time&motion experts were on about - how to produce a lot, very quickly. But I longed to make art instead...

Now I am back to jewelry, but with a different attitude. Rather than making the same design endlessly I have decided to make "small batch" jewelry - like limited editions. That way, I can play with the concepts I'm currently exploring in larger pieces (these days, the magic of vitrograph stringer and texture), without feeling like I'm making the choice of "either/or."

It feels great. I feel great. Working at home is probably the best decision I have ever made.

And now I get to go with hubby on trips. Last week, we were in Orlando and stayed at the most amazing hotel - the Bohemian - downtown. It is a Kessler property, and it was like staying in a museum in the best possible way. There is a gallery, and the halls are filled with art. It made me want to hop on & off the elevator on every floor just to look. They have a piano bar with original Gustav Klimt drawings (not to mention a Wusthof grand piano). It is truly sensational, and not outrageous. Plus, it's the kind of place where *everyone* who works there is a gem. I was wandering the restaurant in mid-afternoon looking at the art, when the manager led me to a special event room just to show me the art collection there. Oh, and the table! Made of alabaster, I think, and lit from the bottom so that parts of it glowed. The gal who worked in the gallery was as good as any docent. Now, if I could only come up with the $9,000 for the Jean Claude Roy painting of a field of poppies that mesmerized me, life would be perfect.