New Work

It's been a long time coming but I'll be posting some new pieces in my shop throughout the week.

Here's a sneak peek at one of my favorites:


Click here to see the first new addition...

I made a treasury!

Click here to see the real thing.

"Art is not a Luxury"

As a little reminder to the universe, the phrase "Art is not a luxury" is taped onto the mailbox of a very inspirational woman I know. I met this woman the summer before last when I spent a week volunteering at the Maya Angelou art camp. This woman created the free camp four years ago for the neighborhood children who live in a low income housing development in North Portland. Every summer the same kids enthusiastically look forward to returning to camp, this year bringing new neighbors, cousins, and friends with them. The woman I know welcomes them all, giving them a free week full of art projects, poetry, and songs. Working at the camp was the highlight of my summer in 2007 and it was equally delightful to return to help out this summer.

"Art is not a Luxury" carries several meanings for me. On one level, I think of my own need to create art. It is not something to be saved for a free moment, but something that is essential to my own wellbeing and that therefore needs to be given a similar priority to keeping my house clean or my cat fed. On another level, I think it also speaks to how sharing and owning art can enrich a person's life, and that one should allow themselves to spend money on artwork that they really love.

I recently came across the artist Geninne, whose art and life have also inspired me immensely recently. Here is some of her artwork which I am enamored with:


9/20 Limited Edition Print

Geninne created a series of twenty small bird prints which she is selling in her Etsy shop. I absolutely love how she illustrated old postcards with birds and plants inspired by botanical prints to create twenty mini pieces of art.

8/20 Limited Edition Print

Geninne also has an amazing blog. The past few nights when I have gotten home from work at 11:30 after working ten hour shifts with no breaks I have curled up in bed and unwound by clicking through some of her old blog posts.

6/20 Limited Edition Print

Geninne lives in Mexico with her family where she has created a life for herself that I fantasize about. Her house is art filled and very personal and she encourages her children to think creatively and openly.


10/20 Limited Edition Print

Thank you,
Laura

Macbook Attire

As my laptop from college died a slow, sad death, I recently bought a new Macbook to carry me through this next portion of my life. When I was unable to find a laptop case which lived up to my criteria -- easy to pack, functional, and unique, I decided to make my own:


I love any excuse to visit the Bolt Fabric Boutique on Alberta St. in NE Portland and had a lot of fun designing this sleeve and bringing it to life. I have also added another one for sale in my shop.
Now I just wish I was heading back to school with the rest of my roommates today so I could put my new sleeve to use!

New Art

I just received this new addition to my Etsy art collection in the mail:


It is called "Earth.Water" and it is a limited edition print from AnnaRubyKing. She is an Australian artist currently based out of Athens Greece. Anna makes charming little greeting cards and also some small fine art prints. Check her out!

Button Jar Inspiration

Months ago I alluded to this painting that I had begun:


I let the painting sit in the above state for a while until I finally got up the confidence to commit to actually finishing the piece. I am much newer to painting than I am to jewelry making, and sometimes I let the uncertainty of not knowing whether or not I'll be able to translate my mind's desire for a piece into reality overwhelm me.

The first stages of working on a painting, before I know whether or not I will be satisfied with the final product, are pretty daunting to me and I really have to focus in order to push through my feelings of self-doubt. I guess this sensation probably applies to many other experiences that people encounter, like an amateur runner as she starts a long run, before she settles into a flow.

I've also had a similar experience recently with beginning a new job. Even though I can consciously tell myself that it is OK to make mistakes and to feel unsure of myself at work while I learn the ropes, I am so anxious to get to the point where I actually own the confidence I try to project at work.

With my button jar painting, eventually as I pushed through the brush strokes that I wasn't sure of, attempting to paint both impulsively and intuitively, I found that I had created something that I was happy with. There wasn't a specific touch or detail added which moved me into this new ground of the painting, but somewhere as I immersed myself in the process the painting came to be.
I'm hoping that this will happen at my job as well, that one day I will recognize that I have gradually moved from feeling like I have to go through the motions in order for them to feel natural to the motions actually being natural.

Jewelry Art

I found out that I will be moving to the Sellwood area of Portland in a few months! I am really excited to be in a neighborhood that has more community like Sellwood does. I will also be in walking distance from the post office and library, two places I usually frequent on more than a bi-weekly basis!

I've been trying to snap pictures of the house I'm in now when I can. This is the first place I've lived in apart from the house I grew up in and college dorms. It has its problems, but will always hold a special place in my heart, frequently-flooding laundry room, bedroom in dingy basement, furnace in bedroom and all!

I'm pretty happy with the jewelry displays I created when I moved in here last summer.


I bought open-backed picture frames from Goodwill and attached wire hooks that I made with 14 gauge copper wire to hang my jewelry from. I then used a staple gun to attach ribbon so that the frames would have a way to hang. The best part is that when I move, it will be easy to take these with me to my new house!