The Art of Awareness Blog Hop

Hello Everyone!   I know it has been forever and I'm sorry about that  *blushes*  Life has been a bit crazy around here!  More about that later, for now, let's get to why I'm posting at last!

I grew up hearing my mother speak of her father, my Grandpa Ray, very wistfully.  Why wistfully?  She lost him to cancer when she was five years old.  She's always spoken of how she wishes she could have really known him and it's always felt so wrong to me that she wasn't able to.

Flash forward to my freshman year in high school.  My mom's mother, my Grandma Ruby, was diagnosed with multiple types of cancer.  I don't remember everything perfectly, perhaps because part of me doesn't want to.  My mother, one of my heroes, went down to southern Oregon to take care of Grandma Ruby for months.  Had to watch her die slowly.  Because there was just nothing to be done, it had spread too fast.  I remember driving down there with my daddy and my brother for the memorial... we stayed in Grandma's tiny house and all I could think was... I'll never hear Grandma sing again.  She had this beautiful alto, smoky, bluesy.

Flash forward again to just a few years ago, or was it more?  Have you ever noticed how time blurs when you get older?  My paternal grandfather was diagnosed with throat cancer.  He was very ill, went through all sorts of treatments and then they decided to take out his voice box to see if that would contain the cancer.  It did and he's still alive today, but he'll never speak with his wonderful voice again.  I'll never hear him tell me the story of my daddy climbing out the window when he was a teenager (and landing in Grandpa's waiting arms lol).  Or about one of his many adventures traveling the world, the beauty of Paris... the gondolas in Venice... the chips in London.  He loved to tell stories.

My father's brother died from a horrible tumor that wrapped around his spinal cord in early 2013

September of 2013 I lost my Grandma Suzy, she'd been fighting cancer for a very long time.  I wrote a post all about her right after her passing, which you can see here:   http://soulsfiredesigns.blogspot.com/2013/09/elephants-can-remember.html

As you can see... cancer has touched my life.  Cancer doesn't care who you are, it doesn't care how old you are, how wealthy, how beautiful... it just hurts.  Devastates.  Kills.  It's real, it's big, and it affects so many.  So many.  TOO many.  I pray.  I pray every day that we find a cure.  For every cancer.  So that is my story, of dealing with cancer.  I'm sorry it's not more eloquent, writing this post has taken me weeks... because it brings back memories.  Painful ones.  But I will say that being touched by it has made me more aware of my own mortality in a way that I hope will help me embrace life.  Because I don't want to miss a moment, for we never know when everything will change.

Here are my two pieces, please excuse the pictures, it has been raining and the light is awful.









Thank you SO much Lori for organizing this and Heather for creating these amazing beads.  This has been a truly wonderful experience and I am so blessed to know you both!

Here are the blogs to hop around, I hope you will visit as many as you can, this is such an important issue and we'd all love your support!

Lori Heather	Anderson Millican	www.PrettyThingsBlog.com (hostess) www.facebook.com/swoondimples (bead artist)
Candida	Castleberry	www.spunsugarbeadworks.blogspot.com
mischelle	andrade	https://micheladasmusings.blogspot.com
Paige	Maxim	http://delightfullittlegems.blogspot.com/
Laurie	Vyselaar	www.lefthandjewelry.wordpress.com
Marybeth	Rich	http://forestofjewels.blogspot.com/
Alice	Peterson	www.alice-dreaming.blogspot.com
Kim	Dworak	http://www.cianciblue.blogspot.com/
Audrey	Bélanger	http://esperianterra.blogspot.ca/
Karen	mitchell	www.overthemoon-design.com
Joan	Williams	www.lilrubyjewelry.com
Jean	Wells	jeanawells.blogspot.com
Ann	Schroeder	www.beadlove.wordpress.com
Gail	Accinelli	facebook.com/oregonmadejewelry
Tania	Spivey	www.moobiegracedesigns.blogspot.com
Mallory	Hoffman	http://rosebud101-fortheloveofbeads.blogspot.com/
Mary K	McGraw	mkaymac.blogspot.com
Shai	Williams	www.shaihasramblings.com/
Beth	Emery	storiesbyindigoheart.blogspot.com
Catie	Doman	http://drcatie.blogspot.com
Lorelei	Eurto	Http://lorelei1141.blogspot.com
Lee	Koopman	www.stregajewellry.wordpress.com
Tammy	Adams	www.paisleylizard.com/blog/
Katie	Nelson	https://www.facebook.com/katiebead
Patty	Miller	http://pattymillerbeads.blogspot.com
Chris	Eisenberg	www.wanderware.blogspot.com
Cassi	Paslick	http://badatbeingmom.blogspot.com/
Charlee	Griffith	https://www.facebook.com/charlee.griffith
Kelli	Nelson	www.afamilyaffarekelli.blogspot.com
Catherine	King	http://catherines-musings.blogspot.com
Melissa	Trudinger	beadrecipes.wordpress.com
susan	Bowie	https://susanbowie.wordpress.com
Jennifer	Justman	www.soulsfiredesigns.blogspot.com/    <<You are here
Cassi	Paslick	http://badatbeingmom.blogspot.com/
K	Hutchinson	http://jumbledhutch.wordpress.com
Veralynne	Malone	www.veradesigns.blogspot.com
Evie and Beth	McCord	http://ebbeadandmetalworks.blogspot.com/
Mihaela	Georgescu	http://michellemaya2005.wordpress.com
Rebecca	Anderso	Www.songbeads.blogspot.com
Charlene	jacka	www.clay-space.com
Kim	Stevens	www.pickingpoppies.blogspot.com
Susan	McClelland	Mistheword12.wordpress.com
Sally	Russick	www.sallyrussick.blogspot.com
Gina	Hockett	www.freestyleelements.blogspot.com
Mona	Arnott	bijouxgemsjoy.blogspot.ca
Sandi	Volpe	www.sandivolpe.com
Andrea	Glick	http://zenithjade.blogspot.com/
Janine	Lucas	http://www.esfera.me/travel/blog/travel-stories
Lori	Bowring Michaud	www.artfullyornamental.blogspot.com
Christie	Murrow	Www.charisdesignsjewelry.blogspot.com
B.R.	Kuhlman	www.mixedmayhemstudios.com
Lupe	Meter	www.gesmpccorner.blogspot.com
Lucy	Bejarano	www.lucybejaranojewelry.blogspot.com/
Stephanie	Perry	www.mustardbeadbystephanieperry.blogspot.com
Elisabeth	Auld	www.beadsforbusygals.com
Carolyn	Lawson	www.carolynscreationswa.blogspot.com
Heather	Powers	www.humblebeads.blogspot.com
Katie	Hacker	www.katiehacker.blogspot.com
Kepi	Rasmussen	www.kepirasmussen.blogspot.ca
Gail	Vanderster-Zwang	www.angelmoose.blogspot.com
Elizabeth	Hodges	http://thewhisperingseas.blogspot.com/

Geek Girl Love...

Hellooooooo my lovely friends!  I, as usual, have fallen into the bad blogging (translation, forgetting to blog) habits...  I tried blogging about a show, thinking it would force me to do it every week (show was cancelled, btw ugh)... alas, no luck there.  I need to try to do this, I think it would be good for me, I ENJOY writing... so why do I have such trouble writing posts?  Bah!

Ok, well, today I have come to tell you of something AMAZING that I only just discovered existed!  It's called the International Geek Girls Pen Pal Club and it is freaking awesome!  I am a geek, I admit it.  I love Sailor Moon and Doctor Who and 80s movies and cartoons and... so many other geeky things lol.  I also love snail mail and reading books and manga.  Sooooo I just signed up for my first pen pal from the club, sign ups are from the 15th of each month till the end of the month :)  Annnnd I just joined their Goodreads book club!  Do I have time for this?  Weeeeeelll....  I'll make it work lol.  It's so cool to be able to find other people who love all sorts of geeky things too :)

I found this awesome site and all its goodness because they are hosting a giveaway by one of my most favorite people on the planet, the incredible Mab Graves.  Love her.  Love.  Adore.  She's not only an incredible artist, but one of the sweetest people on the planet :)

 

She's giving away a Labyrinth cameo... *swoons, falls over, swoons again*  Seriously, if I win this giveaway I might die from joy LOL.  You can check out the giveaway by clicking on this here link:

http://www.geekgirlpenpals.com/2014/05/mab-graves-interview-and-giveaway/

I think I'm finally going to give in and post just whatever I like on this blog lol.  Heaven help all of you lovely followers, you may all run away!  But if you stay I promise it'll be entertaining!  ;)  But my entire "soul's fire" ideal is... what fires your soul, what feeds it, what its passion is.  Well, perhaps if I stick with my passions I'll be able to write a lot more often, yeah?  

Big hugs, everyone, thanks for hanging out with me :)

~Jenn

P.S.  I'm having 30% off any purchase in my shop over $15 through Friday... maybe even through Memorial Day weekend hehe.  Use the coupon code:  SUNSHINE  in the coupon code box at checkout!  

And the winner is...

(Not my pic, hopefully they don't mind hehe)

ME!  Happy birthday to me!  Just kidding, not really ;).  According to random.org the winner is...

#1!  Chantel!  I will need your address, lovely lady!  Thank you all of you for participating in my giveaway and for being supporters of my blog and my business <3  Love you all!

And in other news, I'm ancient.  In celebration of this, I am having a 48 hour sale for those of you that didn't win and would still like something beautiful from my shop <3  Use the coupon code:
BDAYLOVE   in the coupon code box at checkout and receive 31% off your order!  Sale ends Friday!

http://www.etsy.com/shop/SoulsFireDesigns

<3
Jenn

Wherefore art thou Romeo?

As a woman with a very long neglected English degree, please forgive any randomness and the odd mistake or ten ;).  I am attempting to revive long dormant brain cells by doing this wee Star-Crossed project of mine.  I also think I may have to do some inspired jewelry... hmm.. we'll see.  One step at a time.  So, when I first heard about the CW's new show Star-Crossed, the first thing that floated through my mind was... "Really?  A human/alien Romeo & Juliet?"  The premise made me giggle, I won't lie.  But, I am the ultimate R&J sucker, I love it.  I have loved it since I was too young to understand half of it, but the poetry, the passion... even as a very young girl those appealed.

What are the main themes in R&J really?  Young love, of course, but also hatred.  Friendship. Prejudice.  Violence.  The age old struggle as a young person between following your peer group/family unit/popular viewpoint versus your own beliefs.  (Heck, that one doesn't always go away as you get older really, does it?)  And there is also that looming "Fate" that we are warned of from the very beginning of the play... one of the things that intrigued me most about R&J when I first read it was that.  You know what will happen from the beginning and yet, somehow, that doesn't make it any less painful in the end, does it?  Perhaps it makes it all the more awful?  Every missed opportunity, every moment you say in your head, "if only he/she hadn't... if only they had..."  

Now, for the main themes of Star-Crossed as I see them so far... shockingly?  They are the same!  Mhmm, you read that right... apparently the same themes are thought provoking (and entertaining, of course) today.  That is one of the reasons Shakespeare's work has not only survived, but thrived, his themes are still current.  And will always be current, because humans (and aliens ;) ) still long for love and acceptance.  All of us.  

Ok, since I've already rambled terribly, let's just hit some quick things I caught in the first five episodes of Star-Crossed.  (I'm clearly marking which things are from which episodes so that you can skip over SPOILERS if you want :) )

Pilot:

-- Within the first episode there was violence between the two races (actually within the first moments, quite painful, much larger scale and without the playfulness of the rivalry between the servants in R&J), there was also a big party, a balcony scene, and instant awareness between Roman and Emery.

-- My favorite scene is towards the end where Roman and Emery end up holding their palms together in this sweet moment... "palm to palm is holy palmers' kiss..." (R&J, Act I, Sc. 5).  

Episode 10(2):  These Violent Delights Have Violent Ends

--We get an introduction to Roman's uncle Castor, when Roman finds him with his mom... I am noting this for a couple reasons, most notably since I can't sort out whether Castor is mom's brother or his now deceased father... I have to wonder if mom's support of Castor and Roman's distrust has some Hamlet echoes in it?  Hmm, must keep an eye on this situation.

--  Roman tells Emery they are from "two different worlds"... which brings to mind (for me) Juliet on her balcony asking herself or Fate or the moon... why are you Romeo?  Why must you be a Montague?  

--  Later on we get another lovely moment between Roman and Emery where they go palm to palm and Emery is trying to show Roman how they are not so different.   "Tis but thy name that is my enemy; thou art thyself, though not a Montague." Again I am seeing Juliet's earnestness in Emery... the ability to see Romeo/Roman as what he really is, a young man.  

Episode 10(3):  Our Toil Shall Strive to Mend

--  Most notable in this episode for our purposes are a couple of quotes I managed to scribble down (hopefully relatively accurately).  "Hate doesn't take a weekend," says Grayson.  There's that word, hate, and it along with the prejudice is alive and well in this episode.  

--  Roman says in a speech, "Instead of going to great lengths to learn from each other, we hide the truth."  And I'd say, the truth is, that for all their differences they aren't so different, hm?  

--  "[It's] time I embraced my destiny," says Teri.  Destiny.  Fate.  Dangerous words.

Episode 10(4):  And Left No Friendly Drop

--  The scene that most caught my attention in this episode is when Sophia is "poisoned" by caffeine.  When Emery sticks her with the epi-pen she seems dead for a few heart wrenching moments there, then she wakes.  Bringing to mind the play with poisons and sleeping death in R&J.

Ok, going to leave it at those four episodes, since I've been writing this for two days now LOL.  I had a bunch more I wanted to write, but my little boy is ill :).  So until next time... parting is such sweet sorrow...

~Jenn

Star-Crossed... and other news.

Hello dear friends and happy (very belated) New Year!  I am awful, aren't I?  I haven't been on here in ages, the blog that is.  My life has been so very chaotic the last couple of months, my husband finished up a contract, my old computer died a horrible death, I have been slaving away on commissions for a dear friend lol.  Life has been very up and down, but I am grateful for my family, friends, and my amazing customers and followers.

The good news... I have a new computer (which I'm still paying off, but am so happy to have one!) and I reached a huge milestone in my shop, 300 sales!  I did a giveaway on my page, but I think I'm going to have to do one here on my blog to celebrate that and my birthday which is coming up in nine days, yeesh.  So on my birthday or maybe the day after if I'm feeling lazy ;)  I will be giving away this beautiful necklace featuring a gorgeous Marsha Neal Studio pendant (OR if you are a dolly person, I will make you a celtic elven Blythe circlet if you'd prefer (Neo, Middie, or Petite).  So this necklace or a circlet, winner's choice!

or one of these

Hehe, all you have to do to enter is leave a comment saying what your favorite thing is about March!  For an extra entry you may share this post on FB or your blog (FB post MUST be public) and share the link in a separate comment below.  You have until midnight March 25th to leave a comment, winner will be announced on my birthday (March 26th).  Woohoo!

In other news, I love the new CW show Star-Crossed.  Yes, it is aimed at like teenagers and yes, it may make me a bit of a geek.  However, Romeo & Juliet has been an obsession of mine since I was about seven years old... so...  I'm always intrigued by new interpretations of the story.  I am going to attempt to do a blog post every week talking about some of the things I saw in the show that I feel are R&J tie-ins (or other Shakespeare/literary goodies if I catch them, which having finished the first four episodes a couple days ago, I caught a few and am geeking out majorly lol).  Nope, you are not required to read my oddball posts, but if you do, I'll love you forever ;).  First post will hopefully be later tonight or more likely tomorrow.  Huzzah!  

Hope you had an amazing St. Patrick's Day!

Best Wishes,

Jennifer

Introducing the Incredibly Talented Kaleidoscope Kustoms!

Hello everyone!  I hope you had a wonderful weekend :).  Mine was busy with cleaning, blech.  But, my house is somewhat the better for it and that counts for something, right?  ;).  I am excited to introduce you to another of my favorite Blythe people (and another dear friend!) Miss Sarah of Kaleidoscope Kustoms!

The set of pics above are from her latest collection of dollies, all dragon themed!  Aren't they amazing?!  Sarah has the most wonderful gift with lid art, I don't know HOW she manages to do such incredible detail on something so small!  She created the perfect art for my beloved Briony, I don't know how she did it, but with my rather um... lacking direction she gave me exactly what I wanted :D.

Isn't she dreamy?  I can't believe all the exquisite details, the waves, the sun's rays, the faces on the bottle.. the message inside... the expression on my gull!!!  Incredible!

Sarah isn't only talented with carving or painting in miniature, she also has a delightful ability to capture fun or amazing photos.  This is one of her latest ones that is such a perfect little scene (and it includes one of my favorite girls of hers, Carly <3 ).

Isn't it fabulous?  I love how the Blythe world allows such creativity!  Not to mention the wonderful sense of community and I have made the most wonderful friends, including Sarah.  She has such a beautiful gift and uses it to bring dreams to life.

Now, onto the interview!!

Interview Questions

1) Where and when did your obsession with creating things begin? 
My mom is very artistic and crafty so she has always encouraged me to be creative and to continue my artistic growth. My first big accomplishment was having my logo chosen for our school t-shirts when I was in 3rd grade. I went to college for Graphic Design but never really pursued it after school. I have always loved photography and took classes in both high school and college, so when Blythe came along with the combination of art and photography it was true love!

2) Who is the most inspiring person in your life? Why? 
My daughter, Ava. Even though she is only 5 (6 in a few weeks) she is amazingly strong and always pushes herself even when she wants to give up.

3) If you could meet any famous person, living or not , who would you wish to meet? What would you do with them? (Play skeetball, have lunch, tap dance...) 
Dave Matthews. I just think he’s completely amazing! I would go have a coffee with him and then ask him to play his guitar and sing to me until he couldn’t sing anymore. LOL!

4) How did you find Blythe? What drew you to her? 
My mom actually found her on ebay and I was immediately attracted to her quirkiness. It wasn’t until years later after I saw that you could customize them and give them their own personalities that I really got into Blythe.

5) Which of your Blythes is your "mini me"? Which is the one you wish you could be? 
I don’t really have a “mini me” girl. None that look like me at least. I customized about half of the girls that I own so I feel that they have a lot of “me” in them. I sometimes wish that I could be a little punk like my girl Billy.

6) What is the story behind "Kaleidoscope Kustoms"? How did you come up with the name? What is your creative process like? Where do your best ideas come from?
After I got my first few girls customized I decided that I wanted to try it myself. I thought it would be easier for me to portray what was in my head if I did it myself rather than trying to explain it to someone else. I have always been strong in my color choices so I wanted to pick a name that had to do with colors. And I liked how Kaleidoscope Kustoms sounded. I do a lot of brainstorming before I start on a girl. I get inspiration from everything around me that I see and hear…art, music, nature, colors, books. Once I have the idea or theme then I will do a “plan” photo where I can see how everything will look together. I only work on one custom at a time so that I can focus completely on what I am doing with that girl from start to finish. After I have my plan done then I will usually split up the work into two days. One day I do all of the prep work (scalp, eyechips, carving, sanding) and the other day I do the color work, eyelid art, assembly and pullrings. I really love to work on the dolls that I can do all of the little details on (eyechips, pulls, charms) because then I feel that they are complete. Lastly I pick an outfit (usually out of our Rag Bag Designs Etsy shop) and photograph them. 

7) What five things couldn't you live without?
My family (even though they drive me crazy most of the time), internet, my camera, music, and unfortunately coffee.

8) What is the best part about Blythe? About the community? 
There are so many things I love about Blythe. This hobby has given me so much – a place to get away, a creative outlet, a way to help support my family, amazing friends. The best part of the community is the love and support from the friends I would have never found without Blythe. I seriously get teary eyed when I think about how much this community has done for my family.

9) Anything else you'd like to tell us about you? About your work? 
I appreciate each and every one of my customers. Thank you for trusting me to create your girls for you! I hope that they bring you as much joy as they do me when I am working on them.

Sarah's Links:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/kaleidoscopekustoms/

http://www.kaleidoscopekustoms.blogspot.com/

https://www.etsy.com/shop/BlytheRagBagDesigns

Thank you, Sarah, for doing this interview and for being the awesome person you are! <3

Introducing the Lovely and Talented Kawaii Kandy!

I am utterly delighted to get to introduce you to another of my dear friends in the amazing Blythe community.  Maggi was my very first "Blythe friend".  She came to me about a year and a half ago asking me to make a very very special necklace for a very special doll.  Here is the doll (Ty) wearing the necklace I made her <3

After creating this special necklace Maggi and I developed a friendship :)  I looked forward to seeing her amazingly creative photos and her quirky and fabulous dolls.  (Pixy is my favorite, though Pepper is a close second, and all of the others come in third LOL, I love them all!!)   After a while, Maggi started making these fun and fanciful crochet hats and opened her own shop :)

Maggi is one of the kindest, sweetest, most fun and fascinating people I have ever had the pleasure of knowing.  I would not have survived the last year and a half without her humor, her warmth, and her friendship :)  Introducing... Maggi!

http://www.artfire.com/ext/shop/studio/KawaiiKandy
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kawaii_kandy/

1) Where and when did your obsession with creating things begin?

I've loved creating things as long as I can remember. My mom was always making something or other so I definitely got my creative side from her. :)

2) What is your favorite fairy or folk tale and why?

The Hobbit. I know it's not technically a fairy/folk tale but one of the reasons Tolkien wrote it was to give England its own fairy tale/mythology besides King Arthur and that's always stuck with me. I read the book every year and I still find it thrilling.

3) Who is the most inspiring person in your life? Why?

My kids.  They're full of joy and are so innocent about the way the world works. I'd pay good money for that sort of happy ignorance. :D

4) If you could meet any famous person, living or not ;), who would you wish to meet? What would you do with them? (Play skeetball, have lunch, tap dance...)

Hmmmm...probably Jane Austen. She was so snarky and sarcastic...just like me. :)

5) How did you find Blythe? What drew you to her?

I found Blythe through Pullip dolls back in 2008 I think. I collected Pullips for a while and Blythe wasn't even on my radar until around 2012. I think what ultimately drew me to Blythe was how much personality they can hold, this probably wouldn't make sense to anyone other than Blythe collectors but those plastic faces can show a good range of emotion. lol

6) Which of your Blythes is your "mini me"? Which is the one you wish you could be?

Not sure I have a "mini me" but each of my girls has some facet of my own personality and/or quirks. :D

7) What is the story behind "Kawaii Kandy"? How did you come up with the name? Where did you come up with the brilliant idea for hats?

I came up with name Kawaii Kandy back in my Pullip days. I wanted to start a Flickr account and loved kawaii style so then I just started thinking of things that could go with the word "kawaii". The fact that it's sort of became the style for my Blythe hats is pure coincidence...or kismet. lol

I decided to start making hats because I needed more money to fund the doll hobby. LOL  I felt I could crochet reasonably well so then I just started making a list of possible hat ideas that I could try out. I decided that I needed to think of something to set my hat apart from everyone else's and the rest of history. :D

8) What five things couldn't you live without?

The internet (LOL), kdramas, my family, my friends...and glitter. HA!

9) What is the best part about Blythe? About the community?

Blythe is just fun!  She helps me escape when I'm having a bad day, she inspires me to be creative and she has helped me connect with people I wouldn't have otherwise known. I feel the same way about the community. :)

10) Anything else you'd like to tell us about you? About your work?

I just try to make people happy. I'd like to think that they can see my pictures or my girls or my hats and smile for a moment. Sometimes all people need is a moment to reach the surface again.

 

Thank you, Maggi, for doing this interview and sharing your wonderful self with us :)