Vintage Assemblage Wedding Jewelry and a bit about Summer

Well, once again, I've been away awhile...busy with life, children, work, and getting better.
I've found myself relishing the cool days and the rainy weather we've been having...strolling around the yard after the rain subsides, looking for bits of roses and green things to trim to bring inside. I can't bring myself to cut any roses unless they are almost ready to shed! If there are enough blooms, I'll treat myself to some little buds. Our bushes are still young and not producing tons of roses yet. I've always wanted a rose garden, but never took the time to cultivate one...or splurge on bushes! This year, my husband has been lovingly planting them all over our sunny back yard. Such lovely colors... and I cannot convey the incredible sweetness of the scent some of them have...there is one in particular that is large and pale yellow that smells so amazing that it is difficult for me to tear my nose away from its velvety splendor...have you ever smelled a rose like that?
Today, I brought a  few inside to enjoy, along with some bright orange day lilies and a sprig of hydrangea...

I've never been a big fan of summer, but life has a certain amazing sweetness these days. I feel like I am more fully present in it. Less worried. Practicing being more mindful. Praying more. Feeling more and more grateful for my life, my family and my relationships.

I've been thinking about weddings again...and how much I still love making special occasion jewelry! I found myself making a couple of vintage assemblage bridal hair combs for the shop from some of my pretty vintage jewelry parts and pieces...this is one I was particularly fond of~

Cherry Blossom and Crinoline, shabby bridal comb

I used a bit of antique crinoline, a large leaf brooch, a gold plated flower piece from an old bracelet, and a few vintage shabby pearl and rhinestone earrings...I have had a couple of brides that I've made jewelry for send me amazing photographs of them wearing their jewelry and it is always so deeply touching for me to see. I feel so incredibly fortunate that they want to wear my work out of the thousands of jewelry designs out there to choose from...my work speaks out to them somehow, through the thousands of others...and I am so incredibly grateful to be a part of something like this~

Jenny's Wedding

I think it is because it makes me still believe and have faith in happily ever after.

xoxox,
Jennifer

The 4th of July, (a re-post of something from last year that you may have missed.)

Chicago circa 1940's

     I think of this little girl every fourth since I found her picture almost 6 years ago. This, aside from family photographs of course, is my most prized and adored photograph. I have made up a thousand stories in my mind about her and a thousand questions....where was she?what was her little name?who decorated the buggy?did she tie her own boots? Did she have a good life? Somehow, does she know what she means to me?Though I know she has most likely left this world already....somehow does she know that I send love to her every time I see her face?
I'd like to think so. It gives me peace to think so.
I don't think I could manage this life if I lived it believing there was nothing more after this world...that this was all there is...that there was nothing divine about our humanness...
      Somehow this has me thinking about my father and how I hear his voice speak to me often since I learned of his death. In the small and quiet places when I can talk to him out loud, he answers me. Is he really speaking to me, or is it just a way to cope with his loss? to cope with the profound loss of the hope for reparation that came with his passing from me? Does it really matter?
My thought is, that as long as love and gratitude and wonder take the place of hate and despair and hopelessness, then the world is better....humanity is better....and healing takes place. And that is what works. It is those things that make a difference. It has nothing to do with religious rites or "moralists" or the people out there trying so adamantly to prove that no God exists. I think it is about loving the questions and regarding the mystery with wonder.
      This little girl, the one in this photograph, does she know how she's changed the world? By posing for a photograph on a hot July day so long ago. Simply standing there in her boots and in her innocence...she has changed the whole world. And she knows it because I tell her, and she hears me...and because I am here to tell her story with love and gratitude and wonder.

Do you have a favorite photograph? If so, can you share a bit about it with us? It is very easy to comment. No need for an account. Just use the "anonymous" feature.

Love and Light,
Jennifer

Quilts of a Thousand Prayers; an interview with an extraordinary woman, Cindi Tyburski

My beautiful quilt, a gift from Cindi. Also, my most favorite pillow from her shop.

(a small excerpt from our Etsy conversations)
ME: "I've been feeling awful...barely able to finish the day...and not sleeping well...
I want you to know that your quilt has become a comfort for me...I actually hold it like a child would a security blanket throughout the day when things are particularly bad..."
CINDI: "I often wear a quilt too--my mom made one for me--she calls it the quilt of a thousand prayers. It makes me feel better, I can feel her love."
I met Cindi on Etsy a couple of months ago, when I discovered her shop filled with lovely one of a kind pillows, vintage pre-cut sheet bundles for quilting, baby quilts and even colorful quilt kits...through our written conversations, Cindi has become quite an inspiration to me as she battles her own rare illness and  keeps her spirit strong with her unwavering faith in the divine, through her creativity, and selfless giving. Cindi uses the proceeds from her etsy shop sales to buy supplies to make quilts for children fighting cancer.
I asked her a few questions so you could get to know her and be inspired by her and her lovely work.

part of my personal pillow collection! Perfect on the vintage sofa...

more beautiful vintage Barkcloth  pillows...

ME: "Cindi, tell me a bit about how you got started with quilting and how you got started creating quilts for children with cancer."

CINDI: "I began to sew when I was 5, my mom would let me sit in her lap. I would steer the fabric and she would press the pedal. We made baby doll clothes and later clothes for me. I have a truly wonderful Mom.
      I started making quilts for kids battling cancer a long time ago. Something about quilts is magical to me--they carry healing and I think of these children and their brave strong spirits. I pray for them, even though I don't know who will get what quilt. It seems God and/or His Angels somehow guide these efforts. One of our recent receipients was a little boy who had a brain tumor. His pastor had visited the day before my daughter delivered his quilt. His pastor told him that "FROGS" was to be his word, he was to say it if he was sad or scared. His pastor said the meaning: Forever Rely on God's Son. He loved his FROG quilt and his Mama said that she couldn't get it away from him to even get it in the wash. (She sleeps with it now and it brings her comfort.)"

ME: "I love the vintage bark cloth you use in your pillows, what is your most favorite medium?"

CINDI: "Vintage Sheets, bright colors, and whimsical cotton quilting fabric."

pillow currently in Cindi's shop (click image to be taken there!)

vintage quilt kit. all you have to do is sew it together!

 ME: "Tell me what you do when you feel discouraged?"

CINDI: "I really don't get discouraged. For me thinking of these brave children means I have nothing to ever be discouraged about. You see, no matter what, they show extraordinary strength of spirit and love so pure. They are my inspiration."

Please stop by Cindi's Etsy shop and see what's new! She is an extraordinary woman  who I am so grateful to know and introduce to you. I love knowing that the things I purchase from her shop help a very special cause...bringing comfort to sick children. Her work is impeccable, creative and just beautiful. You can seriously feel the love she puts into it.

With Love and Light,
Jennifer Valentine

Silent Prayer made Visible, Vintage Assemblage Religious Jewelry

Some of you have been wondering where I've been...I've been making the best that I can of my days, which have been consumed with being a mom to four children and dealing with significant pain issues, nausea, exhaustion and tremendous difficulty getting moving in the morning. Not good for me, who was always quite the morning person...I have suffered with  neuropathic pain for several years now and was diagnosed with Fabry's disease in January of 2010. It's very very rare, but it put a name on the neuropathic pain issues I was dealing with. My condition has deteriorated quite a bit in the last few months, and as of late, I have had  trouble breathing, and a lot of weakness which landed me in the ER last weekend.
And finally another diagnosis: Fibromyalgia. Through my struggle, I have continued to work when I can, determined to continue doing what I love in quiet prayer. No matter how foolish it may sound, I am a strong believer that whatever happens to us has a reason...a divine reason that we cannot comprehend.
I don't consider myself an organized religion type of person, but I believe in Christ and in the existence of God. I experience miracles every day...connections in life that just cannot be happenstance...
I believe in a divine plan...that the people and circumstances in our lives are there to teach, to reveal, to help us learn to love as God loves us.
There is a bible passage that I keep over my work table that reads:

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart,
and lean not unto thine own understanding.
In all thy ways, acknowledge him
and he shall direct thy paths.
                 Proverbs 3 5-6

Here are my quiet prayers made real:

"Like Water into Wine"

"Like Water into Wine"

"Dreams of the Sacred Mother"

"the Dogwood Tree"

"Dreams of the Sacred Mother"

"the Dogwood Tree"

These necklaces will be available on etsy soon, along with the stories that inspired them.
I am finding such joy in the little things...finding immense joy in my children and my friends and my dear husband..and I am staying strong through my faith, which has become so much stronger through this illness. I am sending healing thoughts and light to those of you reading this post. You are never far from my thoughts.
I'll be back tomorrow to tell you about someone very special to me,  my dear friend Cindi of Cindi0 on Etsy.
An extraordinary woman dealing with her own illness, who makes beautiful quilts for children with cancer...stay tuned.
Love and Light,
Jennifer Valentine

Unconditonal Love and the Dead Bee Heart

I raised my voice at my 6 year old yesterday. It happens rarely and he is very sensitive....so he writes me a note. I have only gotten two notes so far...so I guess I'm doing ok. I was having a particularly difficult morning and in my frustration to try and get him motivated to get ready for school, I told him he needed to get dressed, NOW. As I went about getting myself together for the day, this note appeared on my dresser, quite matter of factly. Delivered by a frowning and resolute little boy.   

Needless to say, it immediately lifted any frustration or crabbiness from my mind and replaced it with laughter and gratitude. It has been said that our children are our greatest teachers. I believe it.

His frustrated scribbles inside a cut out heart shape said it all. I think it is about unconditional love....like the love we have for our children...like the love that God has for us. No matter how much we "mess up". No matter how many mistakes we make or how often we stray, God will always accept us back into the fold of his heart, dead bees and all.

New One of a Kind Jewelry and a Coupon Code Just for You

I've been trying out some new ways to photograph my work...and I really like it. it seems to be more me. To celebrate the new "look", I'm offering a discount code for 15% off all items: MAYFLOWERS
Just click the images to be taken to the shop to see what else is new!
Blessings and Light,
Jennifer

Gifts of Love

I just want to share with you some unexpected joy I've received, just because. Sometimes I feel so unworthy of such gifts...but when I'm feeling like I've been feeling lately, I'm so grateful for their presence here around me.
Last night I wrote these words: "I don't have the strength to fight for me today. I just want to sink into this bed and these soft feathers and old quilts into oblivion....simply fade away like dusk...leaving a trail of stars. I'm really not afraid to die. I think I'm afraid of what I'll miss...will I be looking down on my children from heaven or visiting in their dreams, like my father does to me...?
the constant daily pain and creeping numbness have just become something I've learned to live with, but this disease scares me. Why this slow decay? Why now the fumbling hands as I try to create? Why, after 40 years of living, have I finally found my creative joy, only to have it taken from me bit by bit?"

This morning, I awoke feeling a little better. The cats are all out playing in the yard...it is overcast and cool. My dear husband is outside transplanting clumps of violets and wildflowers and daffodils from the back edge of the yard to the front, around our statue of Mary and around the side of our home...It's quiet except for the red winged blackbirds and sparrows tweeting in the trees next door... I hear his shovel turning soil and the hose spraying and the soft sound of curtains breathing in and out with the gentle morning breeze. Life is so incredibly good sometimes I am moved to grateful tears. And then I feel rotten about complaining about anything. I know there are people out there that have it so much worse than I can ever imagine...but it doesn't change my story or my struggle for some semblance of a "normal" life.

Jenny Lee Wentworth sent me this painting recently! It was a complete surprise! and such a delight...I cherish it....and the incredible thoughtfulness and selflessness that went into her work. She even used real egg shells at the bottom and lace from one of her favorite worn out shirts along the bottom. I love the colors and the softness and the words....her blog is a gentle space where she shares her journey into painting and into life itself...wide open to possibility and hope. You can find it here.

My dear friend Carissa Paige is another dear soul who sends me the sweetest things...this just came for my birthday this year and I'm filling it with favorite letters and things.

top of the box

bottom of the box

How sweet is that? It is a big wooden cigar box, painted and screen printed with one of my favorite girls...Carissa Paige is another gentle and dear spirit that I am so grateful for...her etsy shop is exploding with pastel color and movement! You can see it right here.

sweetness from Carissa

Last for today, but definitely not least, sweet Corinne from September House sent me this amazing unexpected gift! I love love love her sweet necklaces..I had ordered a custom necklace with queen anne's lace after I wrote this post...something about the hand embroideredness of them...and the simplicity in design and sweetness that I love. I lost that necklace somewhere along the way and ordered another recently. It came as a gift instead, from Corinne...I cherish it!

I just wanted to share a bit of life with you today...and some things that make me smile. I hope you have (or had) an amazing day today!
xoxox
Jennifer

Checking In to Say Hello!

I couldn't stay away for too long. Been busy creating custom vintage assemblage jewelry orders! I wanted to share with you some haircombs I created for a sweet person in the United Kingdom. I had to take the photos with my ipod because my camera died...so the picture quality is terrible...but you get the idea anyway. She wanted vintage elements in gold leaves with diamonds and pearls...

I hope you are all doing well....I'm working on some small changes to the etsy shop...making new pretty little keepsake boxes to send the jewelry in, made with vintage wallpaper cut outs. I'll show them as soon as I get my new cheapy camera from walmart! They're pretty cute! Also, new earring cards...oh, and I'm making lots of new earrings and such. Come back soon, ok?
Love,
me

Beautiful Vintage Assemblage Jewelry and Things, for Just a Song...Oh, and Some Change

I'm taking a little break from blogging...my life is a little troubled, and I guess I don't really want to talk much these days..I just want to work...making my vintage assemblage jewelry is my solace...my escape into shiny and bright and Springtime....it takes me elsewhere.
Sometimes my mind wanders to French markets among the bustle of tourists and the Eiffel tower in sight...sometimes it takes me to Puget Sound, with the light scent of the water in my nostrils and the moist green of the ferns and mossy forests from where I traveled so far to get here....to this small town in Michigan. I have become accustomed to this place and all of its hope and  its hopelessnesses.
Always, though, I think of you...and the things I create for you to wear...for you to feel pretty and loved and sparkly as you go about your days. I am speaking to women tonight because I think I only have one or two male readers.
Each piece I create tells a story. A story of  the history and the resurrection of what was once lost to time...but also, know this;
each piece tells the story of hope and of love for you. Hope and love for myself and for each and every woman and girl who struggles with self worth, with letting go, with the negative voices. For you who struggle with mistakes and regrets and wavering faith...like I am this moment.
I have made, and remade my life over so many times....and now I feel the pull to begin again. To recreate myself. My life. My work....(and once again, organize my work space!)

In any case, I am having quite a sale over at the shop. I have marked most things down as low as I can make them go. It will be closed for about a week or two in May, while I gather myself, find my center again, and make new things...take photos...write stories....make plans. Some of the things you see will not return again...but I will!

Blessings to You and Yours,
Jennifer Valentine

Loving Spring and a Coupon Code (just for you)

I've been keeping busy, with spring on my mind...

one of a kind flower arranging...

I'm just so happy that spring has arrived...though it has been raining and raining...I'm off to enjoy the rest of the day! But I wanted to leave you with a secret code for 15% off my already lowered prices in the etsy shop.
Just use the code EASTER2011 at checkout. I'll even throw in free shipping (refunded after the sale) just because you are here! Don't worry, you can use your secret code until next weekend. I just got some amazing vintage finds from my lovely source in France. (I have already used some of the gorgeous pink glass in the earrings above).
I hope everyone has a wonderful Easter Weekend!

Love,
Jennifer

Where Does the Time Go?

I celebrated my 42nd birthday on the 13th....with a new funky hair-do/highlight thing...I've been wanting a change...and well, I got one. And afterward I felt guilty for being so vain that I'd spend money on highlights....the usual internal tug of war when I spend money on myself. I'm still not used to seeing the new hair...I was a blond until age 4 1/2. Does that count? but do I think I like it. I used a photo app I have on my ipod for my 42nd birthday picture because it is sooooo much kinder to my face! I'm seeing wrinkles pop up in weird places, like under my chin...what's with that?!

We are welcoming spring here in Michigan. It is bursting out everywhere. My favorite part is the tiny clumps of violets that appear everywhere in the yard

and then the daffodils arrive on the very back edge of the yard in big clumps.

I recently watched the movie Eat, Pray, Love...I read the book years ago and just loved it, so I was pretty excited about the movie too. In the movie she talks about the Art of Doing Nothing. I thought about that. I asked myself, if there is ever a time, aside from sleeping, that I am ever just doing nothing? The answer was a resounding "NO."
So I went out into the yard one day this week and did that very thing. I took a photo of it for my journal...this whole notion of nothing doing was different for me, the multitasker-alwayshavingstufftodo-er.

There is a lot to be said for this whole doing nothing concept. I like it. I think I want to do more of it. I did nothing for a full 30 minutes or more....well, I did pet my cats...but I felt the breeze on my skin...the sun on my eyelids...I lay down and breathed in the scent of moist dirt and grass. I began to feel closer to myself...closer to the earth...closer to God. Just those few moments refreshed my spirit and reminded me of what I love best in life: being present in the outside world.
Do you ever practice the Art of Doing Nothing? If you do, where is your doing nothing place? What is your most favorite part of the season you are in?
Thank you for being here today. I'll be back soon with more news and such!
xoxox
Jennifer

Love, a most favorite poem by a most favorite poet, Billy Collins (and some portraits of Saints)

The boy at the far end of the train car
kept looking behind him
as if he were afraid or expecting someone

St. Teresa

and then she appeared in the glass door
of the forward car and he rose
and opened the door and let her in

and she entered the car carrying
a large black case
in the unmistakable shape of a cello.

She looked like an angel with a high forehead
and somber eyes and her hair
was tied up behind her neck with a black bow.

And because of all that,
he seemed a little awkward
in his happiness to see her,

whereas she was simply there,
perfectly existing as a creature
with a soft face who played the cello.

And the reason I am writing this
on the back of a manila envelope
now that they have left the train together

is to tell you that when she turned
to lift the large, delicate cello
onto the overhead rack,

I saw him looking up at her
and what she was doing
the way the eyes of saints are painted

when they are looking up at God
when he is doing something remarkable,
something that identifies him as God.

St. Catherine by Raphael

St. Agatha by Niccolo de Simone

Reaching Out Together with the Red Cross

I bought quite a few vintage gems recently...and I've been waiting for their arrival so that I could do a fundraiser for the Red Cross. I know with so many crises going on, great organizations like the Red Cross are strained. I want to do something manageable and something simple. And the reason I waited until now is because so often, we tend to jump in to help in a crisis situation right at the very beginning, but then life gets in the way and our focus is redirected elsewhere. It isn't our fault, really. Life just happens. We get caught up in our own worlds.
When my step father died more than 25 years ago, people came from all around to help....and in the Deep South, what people did to help was bring food. LOTS of food. I was 14, and deeply grief stricken...and all I could remember seeing the next week or so after his death was literally every surface of our home covered with bowls of salads, casseroles, cakes, pies, bread, meat, sandwich fixin's....and I think food was the last thing on our minds. We had to eat though, each visitor would say.  Cooking wasn't really on the agenda either, so the food was really nice to have and bless all of the sweet sweet folks for bringing it. Truly. That is just what a good Southern neighbor did...and we had a lot of them. But what about later? When all the old food had to be tossed and the funeral was over and the flowers and cards stopped arriving and everyone went back to their everyday lives....and we were still floundering around inside of grief and uncertainty and heartache?
Then would have been the time for someone to come around and offer food, or to cook or wash clothes or help in some way. And actually, a few folks really did. And it was a comfort, but time went on...
Those of us who have suffered deep, deep loss completely understand why I waited to do a fundraiser now. A month after the earthquake in Japan. I don't expect to make a whole ton of money, but whatever money we give now is right where it is needed the most. Well, that's just the way I see it I guess.

So, for the next month or so, I am offering all of the proceeds from the sale of these earrings in my Etsy shop to be allotted to the Red Cross. You get something beautiful to give as a gift, or keep for yourself, and we both feel like we've helped in some way...even the smallest way helps. It really does.
 If you aren't a fan of the color in the listing photo, I have other options. Just leave your choice of the following colors in the message to seller at checkout on etsy. If you don't see the listing, just wait a moment for me to renew it. The price is right for these beauties and I'm hoping you will spread the word! They will each come sweetly wrapped. I will also ship to another address if you'd like that.

the colors available right now are:
Siam red
Smokey topaz (lovely brown color)
Plum
Light Pink
Aquamarine
Peridot
Light Amethyst
Montana Sapphire

montana sapphire

If you don't really want the earrings and you'd just prefer to donate,  click here to be taken to the Red Cross donation site.
Thank you for your help!
Blessings to You and Yours,
Jennifer

Winners of the Giveaway!

being silly with my oldest Daughter a minute ago

It's Friday morning....well, it was.....after an emergency vet visit for Cutie, whose Christmas antics post seemed to make lots of you smile! He's ok. Just a fever and a cold. Whew! He scared me there for a minute...or two.
SO, I'm back after throwing on clothes and no makeup and a hair-don't and rushing to the local vet to give you the winners of the Giveaway! (and winners, be sure to get in touch with me!)

Mia, you are a winner of the earrings!
Karen, you are an earring winner also!
"I aim for Grace", you are a winner of the feather hairpins!
"Teal Water", you are also a winner of the gold plated feather hairpins!
and the last drawing was for the magazine and, Terri Ann, you are the winner of a copy of the Jewelry Affaire magazine!....I feel weird asking if you want me to sign it....I mean, just in case I get super famous or something...you know....(laughing)
I hope everyone has a great day! Remember it's April Fool's day!
I've already been fooled once. I'm soooooo gullible.
So LOOK OUT. And now I have to research why all the vintage April Fools' cards involve someone holding a fish.....I think maybe because "Fool" in French means "Fish"? So it's just the French cards...

Thank you CHICKS57 on Flickr for the amazing antique postcard images.

What Makes Your Heart Flutter?

     My little article in Jewelry Affaire magazine is published and the magazine will be available on newsstands or to order online through Stampington on April 1st! I got my issue already and I am completely humbled to be included in this amazing and gorgeous magazine with so many talented artists...I don't quite feel like I should be there, you know? I have to remind myself though, that just because my work is fairly simple, it doesn't mean it isn't worthy of being seen.
I need to remind myself, and you today, that comparing ourselves to others that seem to be more than we are; more talented, more beautiful, more significant, more worthy, is a "sure fire" way to become quite unhappy.
There are days I look at my work and shake my head...and the voices rattle around in there saying things like, "who do you think YOU are?" "Anyone can do what you do." "You're wasting your time. This will never amount to anything." "You'll never be as successful as Nina or Stephanie or Kelly Rae or, or, or..." I literally have to tell them out loud to JUST SHUT UP! And I keep on creating.  I think we all probably have those nagging negative voices, don't we?
So don't let those voices take over! Sometimes, it is really hard isn't it? Have faith in yourself. I have faith in you!

So when I saw this come in the mail today:

and the voices in my head said, "well, you have no business in a great magazine like this." I took a deep breath and firmly told that voice. "I am worthy. I do have something to offer this world. My work is beautiful in its own way...a way that is my own beautiful way."
 I don't feel like my work is really "mine" though. I feel very much like it is a gift... and I truly believe that each of us has a special gift, unique to us, if we take the time to explore ourselves and find it.
What makes you loose track of time? What leaves you breathless? What makes your heart flutter? What brings you true delight when you do it? The answers to those questions will be your first clue. Unfortunately, the first answer that comes to mind for me, is eating chocolate cake....so you might have to move down your list just a little and that's ok....
I urge you to take a few moments today just to explore YOU.

My sister, Kelly Rae Roberts, has new prints that ask questions like these and more. This one is one of my favorites and it can be found here, with so many other new prints that she has added to her online shop!

Next Friday, I am giving away a free copy of the new Jewelry Affaire magazine (which is packed full of tutorials, beautiful jewelry and stories) trust me, it is a beautiful publication! I'm also giving away two pair of my best selling vintage jewel earrings,

lots of pretty vintage colors to choose from!

and also two pair of feather hairpins.....I am so amazed at how many ladies love these!

All you have to do is leave a comment to be entered. No hoops to jump through or anything....You can even leave an anonymous comment with your name (first name and first letter of last name please!) if you'd like. I'll announce the all of the winners next Friday, April 1st, so I'm really hoping for lots of entries! But please enter only once. There will be 5 chances to win something!
I just love doing giveaways and I appreciate you all so much. Thanks for being here today!
I'd also really love to thank Beth Livesay of Stampington & Co. for believing in me and my work....such gratitude I have for you Beth!