Life's a bitch...

but I appreciate her nontheless.
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I woke up feeling utterly depressed this morning. No particular reason, everything is running smoothly in my life, no worries, no stress, no problems, no debt, and yet, I had this completely flat and miserable feeling. Even finding some beautiful feathers in the garden could not motivate or inspire me. In fact, my garden looked like shit. Even the birds, who normally wait in droves at the bird feeders, seemed to have deserted my space.

I wandered back into the house to my studio and opened a box of beach finds, hoping to find inspiration there. But nothing. My muse seems to have taken a walk, leaving me with the dregs of imagination.

When the thought, "life's a bitch" came into my mind, I decided to Google it, maybe find some explanation or inspiration. But all I found was "life's a bitch and then you die" and "life's a bitch and death is her sister". Not very inspirational or explanatory at all. I pondered this for a while and summarily decided that I didn't like those references at all. They must've been written by somebody in a deeper depression than myself and the thought was very scary.

I remembered a quote I had read some time ago, "Creativity is a drug I cannot live without" and decided the only solution was that I HAD to do something creative to break this feeling. Even if it's just something simple, not too complicated, just to get the juices flowing again.

I remembered seeing a nice round pebble, well, stone actually, in my garden earlier (so I DID notice something nice after all!), so I went out in search of it. I gave it a thorough wash and just holding it in my hands brought a feeling of peace. It wasn't long before I was totally immersed in wrapping it in some silver wire, as if wrapping some peace and love into it, safely securing it with some drops of solder. Attaching a ring and adding a chain, it was ready to hang around my neck.

Hand-crafted river pebble (2½" - 5cm) pendant hanging from a leather thong

Pebbles and stones represent solidity, stability, dependability. And that's what I needed to feel today, solid and stable.

Since earliest history, people have collected and admired pretty pebbles, often believing they had magical and healing powers. Even the earliest people told stories about magical creatures made of stone. Pebbles, stones and rocks are a vital part of our earth and our history - from providing us with our very first tools and building materials to giving us a chance to express ourselves through sculptures, jewelry and other fine arts.

Go ahead, hold a pebble in your hand. Feel its smooth surface grow warm in your palm. See it glow with light. I asked myself: Where has this pebble been, and what has it seen, in all its thousands of years of existence? Then I opened my mind to its healing power...

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I go to nature...

... to be soothed and healed . and to have my senses put in order 

Hand-crafted from copper and silver solder . the copper assists in energy flowing more freely

Karee leaf and seed – Hand-crafted earrings made from Copper and silver solder with patina for a vintage look – from my EARTH range of ‘Afrika Street Jewellery’ – displayed on a large Rose Quartz crystal. The EARTH range of jewellery is inspired by nature and this one is fashioned after the leaves of the White Karee tree (Rhus viminalis).

Albert Einstein said, “Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.”

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The passage of time...

To live in this world

you must be able
to do three things:
to love what is mortal;
to hold it

against your bones knowing
your own life depends on it;
and, when the time comes to let it go,
to let it go.
- Mary Oliver

A vintage watch face and amber glass jewels hand-crafted into a bracelet. The beauty of this simple, yet striking, design is that you could make it with inter-changeable, different coloured jewels or any other beads of your choice.

This bracelet is from my "Keepsakes" range.

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Amber stained glass pendant

Who can resist a beautiful piece of stained glass? Buffed into a symmetrical shape, encased in silver solder and adorned with silver wire, all that is needed is to add a silver chain of your chosen length.

The process is simple. Cut an oblong piece of glass in your required size and then grind all the edges smooth (with a glass grinder). Then surround your glass with copper foil - this is the catalyst for your solder to adhere to. Cover in solder, soldering on some decorative pieces of silver wire, solder on a wire ring for the chain and voila! your pendant is complete. You can also add beads to dangle from the bottom section, a nice creative touch.

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Quartz Crystal Pendant

Not for sale

Large 9cm long Quartz Crystal pendant, wrapped in silver wire, with a feather and Turquoise beads on a silver chain - From my hand-crafted jewellery under the label “Earth Range”.

Quartz Crystal, or Natural Quartz Crystals, are the original power crystals. Clear Quartz Crystal, such as the Quartz Crystal Ball, has an archetypal energy, a consciousness that is rarefied and highly evolved, that is packed with wisdom because Rose Quartz Crystal or other natural Quartz Crystal have experienced wisdom.

Quartz crystal has been around for a very long time. How long, no one knows for sure. We do know that crystals were formed in this Earth and suggest the mineral evolution of the planet. Their very being expresses the unity of the four ancient elements.

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