Last Sunday in October

I LOVE HALLOWEEN!  Fall is my favorite season.  There is something in the air that just makes me feel more creative.

Although, there will be trick-or-treating this evening, I will save some energy for time in my "studio" for creation on a new piece of jewelry.   My boss has given me two lovely necklaces that use several large agates in a repetitive  pattern.  She doesn't wear them any longer and wants to have them incorporated into a much different set up.  She wants chain and some irregularity to the piece.  I ordered a handmade chain, matching clasp and some metal beads to accent the beads from a really phenomenal metal artist on Etsy called Higher Chakra Supply.  Now, I just need to sit down with it all and look at different options.  Should be fun!

Keep watching for updates on the progress of the process!!  Happy Halloween! 

Donation of Jewelry

Today is the day before Halloween, but I am already focusing on the Holdays.  The holiday season is all about giving and I have started early.  I was asked by Attorney Matthew Yokom to donate an item for a silent auction at a non-profit event that he is involved with.  Open Doors is a local Kalamazoo non-profit that will hopefully benefit from the sale of the necklace that I am donating. 

By donating the necklace, I am hoping to do two things.  First, the necklace will hopefully find a good home with someone and the auction will fetch a decent amount of money for the non-profit.  Second, I would love to get my name out and under people's noses.  A free form of advertising and for the greater good.  Please see the picture of the necklace in my Welcoming blog.  The name of the piece is "Tis' the Season".  Happy Halloween!

Welcome....to my new blog

As a close friend says, I "marry the old with the new". A "ReMaryd" original piece of jewelry is literally one-of-a-kind. I like to think of myself as resourceful. The jewelry that I create is not only "original", but each item is built on the idea of recycling the old into something NEW. I pride myself on making a new creation out of items that have a rich history; an old brooch from an estate sale, beads from a broken necklace or an earring without a mate. "These are a few of my FAVORITE things". I love a piece of jewelry with a story. In fact, my most loved souvenirs from past trips are pieces of jewelry or lovely scarves.

When trying to establish when or where my creativity and knack for crafting was sparked, I realized that I had to think back quite a few years to a former coworker who introduced me to the art of wire bending. It was also the introduction to a local bead store that really made my juices start to boil. But, when I think back to my childhood, I have to give my mom and my dad a big pat on the back for making me a "do more with what you have" kind of girl. They instilled the importance and basics of vegetable gardening, hunting for your own food, recycling, composting and helping your family and neighbors and most importantly they lived by example. It is in this that I attribute the need to create out of what is broken. If a piece of jewelry still has some life in it I stare at it, sometimes for days, weeks, or months trying to establish what form it’s new life will take.

I want the jewelry that I create to have a happy home with the person who wears it from this point forward. I am hopeful that the person that acquires my jewelry will see and feel the history, the past, and the resurrection of a beautiful piece of art to wear. However, although the design is new, the parts and pieces are reclaimed...so they may have a vintage look.