Off to a new home!

All finished and heading up the East Coast.

What is buzzing around my bench today!

 Today I am working on a pair of my queen bee earrings for an Etsy customer.  I created hand drawn templates that I glue to the sterling sheet. This keeps the details of each bee very similar to its partner.

I have done the initial sawing out and have drilled holes for the piercing.

  Here the saw blade is in place, ready to saw around the inside of the black outline.

Here they are ready for final filing and polishing.

Next step...  a run through the tumbler to harden the silver and then attaching the earwires and stinger!

Happy February!

It has been a productive year so far!

I am working hard in the studio this past month replenishing my stock 

and designing some new things for 2012.

My Atlanta friends can find my work at Kudzu and 

I will be showing some new work at the RAD show on Feb. 11th.

I would love to see your smiling faces!

My new goal is to try to post more studio shots and show some works in progress.

I am inspired by my fellow metal working friend Louise O' Dwyer

Who has been posting her works in progress.

~*~

Some new favorite Etsy items!

'Romancing Autumn...' by MetalLuxe

Debeauxsouveni... $433.00	redbrickglass $66.00	Waterrose $82.00
PassionMoonPot... $4.00	jewelsbyldesig... $235.00	ForStrangeWome... $30.00
bpoetic $35.00	MySecretFace $23.90	WildWilderness... $22.00
ing00te $73.00	BlackDaisyDesi... $27.00	ovejanegra $90.00
Itkupilli $3.95	MaisyandAlice $15.00	couvert $97.00
RootsSoapCo $25.00

Treasury tool by Red Row Studio.

Feeding the Hungry

There is nothing more basic and important than the excitement of holiday meals and special treats. Deep within us all are the memories of pumpkin pies... roasted turkey... perfect whipped potatoes... and special bites that have been handed down by culture, religious tradition and family.

The holidays are here and there are many... many folks and children that are not secure in their ability to eat a nourishing meal each and every day... much less have a wonderful holiday table laden with glorious foods. This year and for many more to come I will be donating a percentage of my sales to help feed the hungry. 

The economy is still struggling and many middle class families have slipped into unemployment due to no fault of their own. Food banks are struggling to keep up with the expanded need... 

If you are interested in donating time or money to Feeding America or your local food bank you can follow the links below. Feeding America has links to most local food banks and offers many ways that you can help out. 

Here is the link to Feeding America and the Atlanta Community Food Bank. http://feedingamerica.org/
http://acfb.org/
 

Fall is just around the corner...

Fall is just around the corner and I am SO wanting to get out and enjoy the cooler weather! I know... lots of people love the summer. They don't mind the heat and the bugs, they like to get suntanned and be outside in the hottest of weather. But... I gotta say that I am a cool weather girl. Let me bundle up and go outside seeing the steam off my breath! I yearn for my outdoor fireplace to be burning each night while I curl up in a chair and enjoy conversation with friends and family... 

We southerners don't really get any truly cold weather, but as the days grow shorter my mind slips away and thinks about the refreshing breeze that is just around the corner... waiting for the leaves to turn and start their gentle decent to the ground, piling up in yards and setting the scene for Halloween and Thanksgiving.

While I anxiously await the cool weather I will continue to work away in the studio... Now instead of envisioning my current creations accessorizing summer fashions, I see them wrapped in shawls and wearing cashmere and wool... More long necklaces with leather and substance...

My day job...

I just thought that I would post a blog about my "official" job... For the past 18 years I have been a freelance food stylist in the Atlanta area. I love what I do and often find that people are curious about the details of such an unusual vocation.

I had never heard the term "food stylist" until I happened to meet a food stylist at a wedding many years ago... I was immediately curious and excited! It was not until years later (after my son was born) that I had the opportunity to begin working with her and learning more about the field.

People ask me how did I get started? It was just luck! The seed was planted at that wedding years before and I stayed in touch with that stylist. It just happened that she needed an assistant at a time when I could jump in.

Things were so different then... Camera's that shot film... It took 90 seconds each time a Polaroid was taken to access the shot! That seemed like eternity when you had food drying up on the set! There was no healing brush on a computer to remove pins or toothpicks that were used as support in a shot... If you did not hide them... it was big trouble! In addition to digital cameras and Photoshop the food itself has changed so much!

Today we have what seems like an unlimited supply of beautiful produce. It is really annoying when a client wants peaches and there are none available... anywhere in the world! We are so spoiled...

My style today is looser and more about appetite appeal than it was back in the 90's when clients were looking for a more controlled "perfect" image. Digital photography allows us to get a shot while the food is still really fresh and not worry as much about the little pins and such that can be removed with the press of a button.

I feel like a very fortunate person to have landed such an unusual and fun job. When I talk to young people I tell them to think outside the box and not just focus on jobs that are the most common. There are lots of great jobs out there that we don't even know exist! Explore!

I am including a few images that I styled a couple of years ago. These are images from a really fun job that focused on bread. The Photographer is Carlos Garcia of Garcia Studios Inc.