barefoot news and owls and holidays

so one day i was on facebook and someone posted a meme about parenting that really resonated with me.  i followed the link to the facebook page of barefoot five.  do you know her?  as i was scrolling through her photos, i recognized her rings (because i am always checking out people's jewelry) and made the connection that one of my customers was called barefoot mama.  i contacted her to tell her of the serendipitous event and she responded, saying she never takes her rings off.  i sent her this message:

the timing of this seems so perfect, as is so often the case. i've just been rediscovering my power, remembering that my work is so important. during the break that i took from making jewelry i realized that i don't just make pretty things for people to wear. i believe that i make meaningful pieces for women to cherish, to pass on to their daughters. in the tiny town where i live, i've kind of become a new sort of healer. women come to me and we talk about what's going on for them, what they need in their lives, what they're working on, needing, desiring, wanting to let go of... we come up with a stone, or stones, that resonate with that and words or phrases or song lyrics to fit and i make them a special piece to wear and rub and focus on as they go through whatever it is. i sometimes think of my work as the opposite of a worry stone- intention stone, or manifestation stone.

i've made wedding rings for so many local couples over the years; i've made necklaces for mothers to give their daughters when they begin to menstruate; i've made "lanterns" to help women battling cancer; i've made many necklaces for mothers, grandmothers, aunts, etc with the names and birthstones of their children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews; i've made countless dog tags for folks who cherish their dogs as their children; i've made memorial jewelry for remembering people who have passed... 

i am totally rambling now, but i think what i am trying to say to you, without meaning to sound grandiose or melodramatic, is that i think i am ready to really bring this out into the world. and you seem like such a wonderful, powerful woman to partner with! your message that you bring is so beautiful and it really resonates with me.

so let's create together!

one thing led to another and i asked her if she'd like to do a collaboration.  which led to this:

very exciting.  i will keep you updated.

i made this custom owl pendant for a customer's granddaughter yesterday.  aquamarine birthstones for eyes.

and the holidays are in full swing around here.  i am feeling so so grateful for my three girls right now.  they are my world.

hazel's a bit old for the santa visit.

in addition to several local holiday shows, i had my first ever trunk show at my house last week.  it was so much fun to have friends and neighbors over to eat, drink, and shop!  definitely a new silver sparrow tradition.

and theo is really enjoying herself.

there are several new holiday options in my etsy shop right now.  i have added a ready to ship section with items that can still be received by christmas.  i've also added priority and priority express shipping options to make sure you receive your gifts in time.  and, there is now the option to purchase a silver sparrow gift certificate, available here.

dorothy has been a great helper with all of my holiday orders this season, offering moral support and helpful suggestions from my back.

happy holidays!

it matters.

i'm in the shop, soldering some rings together for a new necklace design.  i have a show next saturday and i'd like to have six of these ready by then.  and it's the holidays; i'm busy.  i have a stack of orders to fill in addition to preparing for my show so i am slipping out to the shop or sneaking upstairs to the studio every moment i get.  dorothy went down for an unexpected nap?  i can run out and finish that wedding band real fast.  june's occupied with writing her new book, THE GOLDEN GLORY?  i can go upstairs and buff those charms.  hazel's in her room drawing her endless beautiful rambling doodles too?  well, i'm gonna wrap those earwires real quick.  but it's a good kind of busy, the kind i have newly come to love and appreciate.

there was a time when i felt that the only "meaningful" pieces i created were the big, bold, weighty, statement pieces, with several layers of meticulously cut sheet, big glorious stones, and all kinds of deep metaphysical meaning.  in my mind, that was the work i was meant to be doing, that was what mattered; the other, smaller, more reproducible pieces were boring and the making of them somehow meant that i was not a real artist.  and that mis-aligned thinking is part of what caused my beloved silver sparrow designs to falter a bit, and nearly crash altogether.

during my self-appointed-pregnancy-and-first-year-of-theo's-life hiatus, i realized something.  this work, all of this work, silver sparrow designs?  it matters.  it matters more to me than i ever realized.  it matters in a way that only taking a break from it could have shown me.  because during that break i missed it more than i ever could have believed.  i poured so much of myself into this endeavor.  when it first hatched, i was a new mom, staying at home with two young daughters, and silver sparrow designs allowed me to redesign myself, to identify with myself as more than just a "stay at home mom".  it enabled me to continue to be the brave and adventurous artistic spirit that i am.  it let me continue to be a financial contributor to our household. it gave me permission to continue to create, to have the only type of expressive outlet that has ever properly vented me.  silver sparrow designs made it possible for this supremely introverted small town colorado girl to create meaningful jewelry for and connect with thousands of beautiful women all around the world.

and i am so glad that i missed it so much.  i am delighted that i realized that the tiniest little $8 bead addition to the charm necklace and the small copper dog tag that i can recreate again and again are just as meaningful, just as important, just as much "art", as the $600 necklace that will take me a week to fabricate and i will only make once.  because every one of those pieces is an expression from my soul, from the depths of what makes me me, and every one of those pieces is valuable to someone.

and so i have come to a whole new place with my beloved silver sparrow designs.  it has, once again, saved me.  i get up each day and i dedicate as much of myself as i can to my other child, my "business" (i hate to call it that), in the midst of taking care all of the other parts of my wonderful life that need caring for.  and i know that, just like those other components, the more i put into it the more it will grow.

i'm getting sappy now but i just want to say, to those of you who are still here, after checking back so often and seeing the same old post, or one quick half-assed update, all 6 of you, i am so so appreciative of you!  and thank you so much for being a an extremely important and cherished part of my silver sparrow designs.  and i look forward to seeing more of you ❤️

the other day i had to lock my bedroom door so i could take some photos of my jewelry without any interruptions. (i put a table next to our french doors because the lighting is perfect for this.)  when i looked up from the ring i was photographing, there was junebug, standing outside the glass with this sign.  she is so amazing.

so so thankful

we decided to do something different for thanksgiving this year.  we went camping down in canyonlands with some good friends and ate turkey out in the desert!  

hazel and her friend taylor were responsible for one dinner; they made pasta and little tortilla pizzas.

this is trent.  he prepared the most amazing turkey i have ever tasted.

he smoked his in the grill and we cooked ours in the dutch oven.

see glenn and dorothy way up there?

junebug!

perfection.  it tasted even better than it looks.

chris the photographer

i made my basting sauce on the coleman stove.

yum

maggie made the sweet potatoes and we also had mashed potatoes, brussel sprouts, and some amazing pies.  also, we forgot to bring flour for gravy and we used powdered mashed potatoes and it totally worked.  just remember that if you're ever in a bind.

for the christmas card

and dorothy had a lovely time.

i hope that everyone had a wonderful thanksgiving!  i have been feeling so so grateful for my life these days.  my family is incredibly amazing, i live in a gorgeous & magical place, and i am so very very happy to be making jewelry again.

my etsy shop is quite full these days.  there are some new pieces and lots of old favorites.  i have a show next weekend and i am really looking forward to it.  i will have some new pieces to post after that.

my new line of charm necklaces!

i've been doing a lot of shows and markets lately and i love it!  when i first started doing markets, i created a variety of charm necklaces and sold them as they were.  however, my customers always wanted to switch this charm for that one or add this one to this necklace or exchange that chain for a different one.  so, i started doing it differently.  now, i just have dishes of all different charms on my table, along with a selection of chains.  my customers have so much fun designing their necklaces, and it is great for me to watch them, often asking other ladies that they don't know what they think looks better and striking up conversations.  it's lovely.  for years i've tried to figure out how to replicate this on etsy, and i finally sat down and took the time to do it.  there are so many possibilities!

birthstones and zodiac signs

initials

(hearts, stars, arrows, and feathers can be added)

you can view all of your options here.

the deadline for ordering for the holidays is november 20th!

hazel & june are doing great, and continue to become more and more enormous.

luckily i have tiny dorothy (a.k.a. theo) to snuggle and hold.

and halloween was a lot of fun!

new work! (alternate title- feathers and arrows!)

hello!  i have been doing markets all summer and it has been wonderful.  it has been so great to build up my inventory and get out into the world again with my jewelry.  i had forgotten how much i love that.  now that the season is almost over, i am finally listing some of my pieces on etsy.  here are a few of them:

the trust ring, with an amazing fire agate

available here

the lapis lazuli float ring

available here

raven feather earrings

available here

green garnet feather earrings

available here

rose quartz "joyfulness" earrings (named by hazel)

available here

true hope is swift boulder opal necklace

available here

follow your arrow necklace, with labradorite

available here

arrow of love necklace, with opal triplet

available here

little wren garnet love necklace

(sold)

sweet little deer necklace

available here

the "embracelet" four-strand with moonstone and leather

available here

and a turquoise one too

available here

the apatite feather bracelet

available here

the turquoise feather bracelet

available here

the garnet feather bracelet

(sold)

and a turquoise arrow bracelet

available here

my dearest little dorothy (or theo as she is now being called around our house) is doing great.  we have had some medical concerns with her, which has been very scary, but i think we're okay.  she is very very tiny- only 14 pounds 7 ounces at almost a year.  the doctors have been concerned, and we went to denver for a number of tests.  so far they can find nothing wrong with her.  we continue to pray that she is just a petite little thing and that is all.  she is an absolute delight in every way and i am so so so in love with her.

and hazel & june, of course, continue to astound me with their amazingness every day.  they are such wonderful big sisters and are just growing into remarkable young ladies.

i hope all of you are doing well and i would love to hear from you!