| A mini-blog of what is new at ZuZu...what inspires....thoughts inception: April 2011 |
Friday, April 15, 2011
I have been thinking about having a blog for a while, and while this isn't truly the correct format, it
is a place where I can write thoughts and share ideas with anyone who might have interest, or
perhaps just with myself. The new season of shows is upon me and I always draw inspiration
from SPRING - which took its time but has finally made its grand entrance. The colors, the light,
the air...they all inspire me, but also auditory elements, like bird songs...clear, varied and silvery.
Ooh...segue of sorts into metals! My excitement last year with a new endeavor: metal-smithing,
led me to classes and books on fusing fine silver. I spent much of the summer in my hot kitchen
sub-studio (a nearby source of water was quite important to me!), with one and sometimes two
torches in hand, creating, experimenting, feeling, observing. That moment when the metal
reaches the right temperature and fuses into a new form that I (most of the time!) control is full of
emotion for me. As humans, we manipulate and use things from the earth every day, but this is
different. It isn't a power trip at all - more like true awe. And it is a bit intimidating as well. Fire,
tools, quenching bowls, burnishers, tumblers, hammers... they are all a part of my daily
repertoire now when I design. The only downside is that silver prices have sky-rocketed, recently
doubling what was already insanely inflated two months ago. From what I read, it's not about
limited supplies (there's lots of silver out there, which is why it has always been a great material
with which to work). The hike in price is about greedy folks trading silver on the market and
forcing a false sense of increased value. It is all imaginary! And yet, jewelers pay more for
materials and are forced to pass those prices onto their customers. Many have started to use
base metals as a (hopefully) temporary solution. I am not fond of brass or copper jewelry, so... I
will continue with sterling and fine silver. AND...gemstones & pearls! I cannot wait for my trip to
the Bead & Button trade show in early June... I have described it as Costco for jewelers'
supplies, running the gamut from seed beads to gorgeous precious gemstones. I will take a
couple of classes while there as well - including one on stone-setting. Today, however, it is time
to work.
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Easter has passed and now begins the inevitable tumble towards true summer. But early on that
Sunday morning, as I drove alongside the Charles River, I saw, against a backdrop of steely gray
skies, deep-hued cherry blossoms - gorgeously vivid and rich. It never ceases to entice my eye
when that pre-storm sky appears. Colors seem to attain an unparalleled level of saturation in a
manner that almost takes the breath away. Today was also such a day. And, in a country where
enormous weather systems and tornadoes ripped across southern states and lives, Boston had
only thunder, lightning and a soaking rain. The deep gray sky served as an artist's canvas to the
brush strokes of preternaturally spring-green leaves. It was a perfect, ephemeral shade of green
- cool and memorable in what will soon be the sticky humidity of July. It was a color affirming life
in the face of all the seemingly distant turmoil and tragedy. Life thrived here as though the day
were normal. Only the daffodils, their trumpet blossoms heavy with rain, bowed their heads.
Sunday, May 1, 2011
May Day! May Day! This week new designs will go into production. My pencil sketches give no
hint of my color combinations, but I am weaving webs of jewels and pearls onto hand-wrought
circlets and ovals in fine silver. These will become pendants for necklaces and focal points for
bracelets, and perhaps small ones will function well as earrings. I guiltily succumbed and
watched the Royal Wedding yesterday. What pomp! ...Some wonderful music and delicious
gowns on gorgeous bodies. Hats were much more prominent than jewels, and the palate of
colors was a real mix, from ivory to nude (hot this season) to cobalt to pale grey-blue. The
queen wore yellow, but I think she was the only one. I will have to decide on my color path soon.
My first show is May 28, at a new indoor venue - the Independent Designer's Market in Harvard
Square. I am excited about that! Cambridge is trendy and artsy and smart.... I hope we will be a
good match!
I have been thinking about having a blog for a while, and while this isn't truly the correct format, it
is a place where I can write thoughts and share ideas with anyone who might have interest, or
perhaps just with myself. The new season of shows is upon me and I always draw inspiration
from SPRING - which took its time but has finally made its grand entrance. The colors, the light,
the air...they all inspire me, but also auditory elements, like bird songs...clear, varied and silvery.
Ooh...segue of sorts into metals! My excitement last year with a new endeavor: metal-smithing,
led me to classes and books on fusing fine silver. I spent much of the summer in my hot kitchen
sub-studio (a nearby source of water was quite important to me!), with one and sometimes two
torches in hand, creating, experimenting, feeling, observing. That moment when the metal
reaches the right temperature and fuses into a new form that I (most of the time!) control is full of
emotion for me. As humans, we manipulate and use things from the earth every day, but this is
different. It isn't a power trip at all - more like true awe. And it is a bit intimidating as well. Fire,
tools, quenching bowls, burnishers, tumblers, hammers... they are all a part of my daily
repertoire now when I design. The only downside is that silver prices have sky-rocketed, recently
doubling what was already insanely inflated two months ago. From what I read, it's not about
limited supplies (there's lots of silver out there, which is why it has always been a great material
with which to work). The hike in price is about greedy folks trading silver on the market and
forcing a false sense of increased value. It is all imaginary! And yet, jewelers pay more for
materials and are forced to pass those prices onto their customers. Many have started to use
base metals as a (hopefully) temporary solution. I am not fond of brass or copper jewelry, so... I
will continue with sterling and fine silver. AND...gemstones & pearls! I cannot wait for my trip to
the Bead & Button trade show in early June... I have described it as Costco for jewelers'
supplies, running the gamut from seed beads to gorgeous precious gemstones. I will take a
couple of classes while there as well - including one on stone-setting. Today, however, it is time
to work.
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Easter has passed and now begins the inevitable tumble towards true summer. But early on that
Sunday morning, as I drove alongside the Charles River, I saw, against a backdrop of steely gray
skies, deep-hued cherry blossoms - gorgeously vivid and rich. It never ceases to entice my eye
when that pre-storm sky appears. Colors seem to attain an unparalleled level of saturation in a
manner that almost takes the breath away. Today was also such a day. And, in a country where
enormous weather systems and tornadoes ripped across southern states and lives, Boston had
only thunder, lightning and a soaking rain. The deep gray sky served as an artist's canvas to the
brush strokes of preternaturally spring-green leaves. It was a perfect, ephemeral shade of green
- cool and memorable in what will soon be the sticky humidity of July. It was a color affirming life
in the face of all the seemingly distant turmoil and tragedy. Life thrived here as though the day
were normal. Only the daffodils, their trumpet blossoms heavy with rain, bowed their heads.
Sunday, May 1, 2011
May Day! May Day! This week new designs will go into production. My pencil sketches give no
hint of my color combinations, but I am weaving webs of jewels and pearls onto hand-wrought
circlets and ovals in fine silver. These will become pendants for necklaces and focal points for
bracelets, and perhaps small ones will function well as earrings. I guiltily succumbed and
watched the Royal Wedding yesterday. What pomp! ...Some wonderful music and delicious
gowns on gorgeous bodies. Hats were much more prominent than jewels, and the palate of
colors was a real mix, from ivory to nude (hot this season) to cobalt to pale grey-blue. The
queen wore yellow, but I think she was the only one. I will have to decide on my color path soon.
My first show is May 28, at a new indoor venue - the Independent Designer's Market in Harvard
Square. I am excited about that! Cambridge is trendy and artsy and smart.... I hope we will be a
good match!
