As with probably most people who have a creative bend, I had many family members who inspired and encouraged me along the way with their various artistic and creative talents. The artistic gene continues on with my daughter, granddaughter and several nieces.
I always felt so sad for the photos of the men, women and children who were left behind to dwell in the dusty boxes of flea markets. I know the phrase “What can I do with these?” crosses the mind of everyone who loves to repurpose items. I began repurposing jewelry using old photos so these forsaken folks can be adopted into new homes and become “instant ancestors”.
The name of my shop came about while I was repurposing and selling small character brooches made almost entirely from the tiny parts of broken watches and Day of the Dead beads. I had very little sit-down creative time during the day because of my job and family. As an insomniac I realized that I had a whole block of quiet time on my hands late at night/early in the morning that wasn’t being utilized by just watching TV. I started using that calm time to make my art projects came alive. Even though I no longer work during the day, the insomnia still haunts me and I do most of my projects between the hours of 11PM and 3AM.
The fun part of creating starts with a basic idea mulling around in my head, slowly taking shape and ending up, hopefully, the way I envisioned. Sometimes the head and the hands don’t work together and projects don’t come out exactly as planned. With enough thought and a willingness to go to Plan B (even though there really is no Plan B) things can end up even better than expected!
I can always find a new technique or product to pique my interest. Somerset Studio Magazines are a favorite and are chock full of inspiration, ideas, instructions and new materials to work with. I see soldering in my future. Hopefully the fingers won’t get in the way and get injured too badly. But if that does happen at least I will learn rather quickly what doesn’t work. Hopefully old dogs can learn new tricks. I’m depending on it.
A PEEK AT SOME OF MY FAVORITE REPURPOSED ITEMS.
I call this brooch the Outlaw Day of the Dead Josey Wales. It was made from pocket watch parts, Day of the Dead bead, vintage horse head pin and safety pins.
A beautiful necklace made from an antique belt buckle and photo from an antique CDV.
CDV photo of a beautiful child paired with silver buckle I bought from England:
A wonderful repurposed antique European CDV photo brooch. Can’t get more character than this lady! Isn’t she great?
A precious necklace repurposed from a 1940s or 1950s black and white photo and lens from a pair of glasses!
