There is a centering clarity to my work. A discipline that allows being in the world while still being in touch with the soul.
With the window open, the fragrance of flowers is carried in on a breeze. A breeze with the slightest chill, reminding me that warm autumn hues will replace bright summer colors very soon.
And so the pace quickens just a little because I refuse to rush my work. I've got new designs to finish and favorite pieces to reshoot ...
Funny how a few finds, like the ones above, can stir up old memories.
Hot summer afternoons on Short Beach in Stratford:
gentle waves
cool clear salty water
and treasure hunts for starfish, hermit crabs, and tiny smooth bits of
cobalt blue glass - - just to name a few.
Al and I spent so many childhood days exploring this tiny beach. We didn't know until it came up in conversation. It seems we were thrilled by the same things, including the small planes that would fly low overhead, and once in a long while a bright orange creamsicle from the snackbar. We like to think that several hundred beach days ago and before third or fourth grade, Al and I met on the shore one sunny afternoon. And as brief childhood friendships go, shared a treasure hunt on Short Beach.
In Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale, Autolycus, a pedlar of jewels, pokes fun at those buying "all his trumpery" referencing "counterfeit stones".
It seems Autolycus has underestimated many who know that even the noble, including Queen Elizabeth, have been enjoying skillfully mounted glass jewels so well made it is easy to believe they are genuine.

Light amethyst vintage glass jewels
A lighter purple hue of the regal amethyst is offered in a giveaway, with details noted in comments here. The winner may choose these 11mm light amethyst vintage glass jewels set in sterling silver posts with or without plating in 24K gold.

Photograph by Flickr member MicrochipEmozionale
Bold, mysterious, and exotic.
It is the costuming and jewelry that give Greta Garbo's Mata Hari definition. As the drama unfolds, I'm again fascinated by how she jumps
off the silver screen.
From the silver screen to a black diamond and white gold.
When the film finished, I returned to the bench to make Black Ice.