My Beautiful Secret

I dreamed of you last night.
You were my beautiful secret, among the class
of delighted beginning painters,
disciples of your inspiration,
tribe of your tribe.
In secret I embraced you like a big sister would,
after a long journey home to you.
I called you shorty and I stroked your cheek.
It filled me, this dream.
Until I can see you again.
Beloved sister.
Beloved.

The Chopper from Nam

It is not just today that I remember you,
or your stories of getting on "the chopper" for a brief reprieve from the war to come see me right after my birth.
And there were times I wished you would have died there. That would have made a better story than a man who found the bottle more important than me.
There were times I wished you away, and hoped you would be replaced by the kind of father that I always dreamed of.
I got my wish, but then I lost him too.

I think of your stories of Nam. The ones you told me with tears in your eyes, and the ones you said you could never talk about...only then were you a man of few words, except how much you hated rice and what "dinky-dow" meant and how scared you were.

I remember laying my head in your lap. You smelled of grease and cigarettes and liquor. You told me I was daddy's little girl and that I'd always be just that. And I loved you in spite of yourself just the same.

When I think of you now, my heart aches. Because the unfinished business of you and I still keeps the wound a bit raw and open no matter how the years pass. Sometimes my heart aches for your voice and the roughness of your hands holding mine, and one more chance to fix things...but time does have a way of smoothing the creases. Finishing the raw edges and sewing together only the good stuff with the thread of forgiveness. 

I remember you proudly pulling the army green jacket you wore to war, out of the closet to show to me. 

I remember dancing with you to the beach boys.

I remember you keeping the christmas tree up until I got there that first summer.

I remember your rough and awkward embrace.

I remember your laughter.

I remember you.

Dad in his dress uniform, second from the left

Falling Up

Today, you and I, lay under the relished shade of the volunteer Mulberry tree.
Its berries, still tight and spring green. Nothing came between us but glinting slants of sun through the branches above, and for a very long while our world was silent, except for the soft chorus of our voices and far away birdsong.
Blue, blue sky and puffs of distant clouds were heralding the late afternoon heat to come, but we were cool together then, in the early hours of the May day.
The mortgage was not calling to us, the must do list wasn't mercilessly pounding like storm waves...the weight of things not pressing in.
Just you and I, for a beautiful while,
falling up together.

Dear Emerson

"Emerson, I am trying to live,  as you said we must, the examined life. But there are days I wish there was less in my head to examine. Not to speak of the busy heart."

Mary Oliver 

Today was one of those kind of days.
The one in which I found myself lost in thoughts of how far I could get from this particular life on the money in my bank account...
Which meant I was not going to get very far.
I caught the sky over an open field as I was driving and decided to pull over. I marveled at the beauty of the clouds and the way the rays of the sun made streaks, like light is depicted in ancient religious paintings.

 Emerson would have been proud... 

Anna Wintour Collet Necklace featured in a Stunning Bridal Shoot!

I was so thrilled to be invited by Kat Howes to have my beautiful Anna Wintour inspired navy blue collet necklace and french flourish earrings included in this amazing bridal shoot by Best Day Ever Studios. What a thrill it was to see my work professionally photographed and styled! Isn't the model beautiful? Everything was supremely gorgeous. I am one happy girl! Please see all of the links below for photography credits, veil credits, cake, venue, etc. Very talented people! And Please come by my shop, Sacred Cake, for this necklace and more in this seasons most popular colors.

collet necklace

collet necklace and french flourish earrings

Anna Wintour Necklace

Sacred Cake's navy blue french inspired bridal earrings

THANK YOU KAT! DESIGN & CREATIVE DIRECTION: Best Day Ever Studios

LOCATION: The Arbors Events
PHOTOGRAPHER: Peepsakes Studios
HAIR & MAKEUP: Simply Beautiful Artistry
FLOWERS: New Creations Flower Co
CAKE: Got What It Cakes
ACCESSORIES: Ritzy Rose
JEWELRY: Sacred Cake
HEADPIECE: Gilded Shadows

VINTAGE RENTALS: Mason Dixon Rentals
INVITATIONS & MODEL: Tessa Machen

EVENT RENTALS: Cooke Rentals

GOWN: Pixton Bridal
MARQUEE HEART: Darling Weddings

Don't for get to pin! Find me on Pinterest at SacredCake.

Find me on Facebook at JenniferValentineJewelry

You know, I'm on Instagram too?! Here.

Twitter? WHEW! I'm here!

Have fun exploring all of the amazing vendors responsible for the amazing bridal shoot. It takes teamwork right? SO TRUE. Working together makes great things happen.

Amazing cake by "Got What it Cakes" (click photo for link)

As Angels Must

     I've done it a thousand times...with each child. Jeremy (in the photo) is my fifth (and last ) child, and tonight I watch him sleep just as I did with my Jonathan, my Rebecca, my Emily, and my Christian.
I brailled the contours of their faces with my eyes, stopping for a moment to ever so lightly trace a little finger or the edge of an ear.
     As I watch, my mind overflows with thoughts of what their dreams are like, how much I want to protect them, who they will become...and of course, what they think of me and what moments they choose to remember and cherish long after I am gone from this world.
     I can only hope that my super silliness and singing and holding hands and twirling to the Bee Gees, favorite books read before bed from dog-earred pages, soft words of comfort in the stillness of nighttime and heart shaped birthday cakes and rolling down grassy hills...all of those things...I want them to remember always.
Never the impatient sighs, the old cliches, the exasperated tone or the words poorly chosen. Though I know they will.
I can only hope they choose the light and laughter and lots of the silly.
     I swear there is no sweeter sound in the world than a child's laughter...except perhaps the sound of their breath as they sleep. So beautifully as angels must; carried in sleep by the hands of God and the tangible tide of a mother's love.

DIY New Life for Old Plates, Millinery Flowers and Junk Jewelry

I wanted to share  a little project I love to do when I have some spare time away from making jewelry to create FUNctional assemblage pieces. I have collected shabby old vintage and antique plates for many years now. I wrote about it in 2012 for Stampington, along with a mirror plate project that was a bit more simple. I love this little plate mirror project because it incorporates many things that I love to collect~ mirrors, vintage jewelry, old plates and vintage millinery. I love the results I got with this recent project. I think the key is not to over think your design...just go with it! You can always go back and add or subtract as you see fit. When I first started this project, I did not tape the mirror in place on the plate and it slid to one side and cured that way. I decided to fill the bottom in with flowers and broken bits of vintage jewelry. This one has a shabby old vintage watch in the mix, as well as flowers and velvet leaves from old hats, vintage pins with missing rhinestones and backs, and bits of tatted lace.

Basic materials you need for this project:
broken jewelry parts (Ebay, Etsy)
old (or new) millinery flowers (Estate sales, Etsy, Thrift Stores)
round, beveled mirror that fits into the center of your plate (I got mine at Michael's)
old plate (check thrift stores, garage sales, estate sales)
E-6000 and/or hot glue gun (Michael's, Walmart, Etsy)
popsicle stick
blue painter's tape (hardware store, grocery store)

close up of assemblage mirror plate embellishment

large chipped vintage Wedgwood dinner plate, embellished with flowers and old jewelry

Spread the glue onto the back of the mirror with the popsicle stick and place on plate. Tape edges down with the painters tape until cured (about 8 hours).

Tape should peel right off, leaving no residue.
Use hot glue to adhere the millinery flowers to the plate. Since they are not weighty, they shouldn't come off easily.
Use the E-6000 to adhere the jewelry parts, using the painter's tape to keep pieces from sliding around if necessary. Let cure for 12 hours before hanging with a plate hanger.

 If this inspires you, Don't forget to pin this to your craft board on Pinterest! (and please credit me as well!)

If you would like to purchase these one of a kind pieces, visit my Etsy Shop.
www.SacredCake.Etsy.com

Slipping into Something More Comfortable

Ladies, let's face it. My waist 'aint what it used to be. So at about 40 years and five children later, my waist decided it wanted OUT. I'll be 45 in a couple months and I have not seen it since.
Did my waist line ever exist? I think it actually left the building. I am working on weight loss, but it has been a slow process. It has been about lifestyle changes, breaking old cake habits (new cake, old cake, birthday cake, coffee cake, anykinda cake) and trying to work in more exercise. I've lost two dress sizes this past year, but I'm not certain my waist will ever come back no matter how hard I look for it. One thing is certain, the good lord made clothes for us waist challenged ladies. I've taken to low slung jeans, with a wide cuff, a pair of cute comfy shoes and a sweater or a tank and a funky jacket for those hot flash kind of moments....I'm either freezing or boiling and nary the twain shall meet.
I wanted to share with you some easy to wear goodies I've discovered over at my favorite handmade marketplace, ETSY.
Whenever I complete a major milestone, or a big project I've worked hard on, I reward myself with something pretty. Recently, I bought two more beautiful hand dyed vintage slips from a favorite shop called MIREIO on Etsy. Wende is so kind, she keeps an eye out for slips in a larger size and lets me know when she's made them up. Not only are they hand dyed to perfection, she makes an amazingly beautiful flower pin that matches the slip color.
These are perfect for layering, wearing to bed, wearing under a favorite denim jacket...perfect for travel. I wear mine over leggings or jeans with a cute thrifted jacket. (I am ALL about thrifted finds.)

My Hand Dyed Vintage Slip Collection from Mireio

A Slip from Wende's beautiful Travel Pretty Collection

Another lovely shop I've found, and have loved for an eternity is Pamela Tang on Etsy. Her clothes are generous and forgiving with just a little fitting where it counts. After years of waiting, I finally purchased a lovely duck egg blue linen pinafore that I've long coveted.
It was a defining moment for me to finally "gift" myself with such a pretty piece. All the way from Australia...made just for me.

just for me

Photo from Pamela Tang on Etsy

Please come Follow me on Pinterest! http://www.pinterest.com/sacredcake

My Grace

Jessica Seivane said this to a friend of mine on Facebook when she needed encouragement today...Thank you Jessica. Though I don't know you at all, you softened my heart today. I truly needed to be reminded of this verse and wanted to share it.

Corinthians 12:9-10 But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Amen.

That is why, with careful consideration, I chose to get this, my only tattoo awhile ago...done in my mother's handwriting (which is very precious to me), and placed on the inside of my left wrist...as a reminder of God's grace at work in my life.
Always there.

Loving the CHIN I'm In

I'll be 45 soon...and it shows.
My hair is noticeably thinner and I've just let it grow like long rye grass on top of my head. Sparse and whispy like cotton candy...and it's ok. They say your hair falls out two months after a stressful event...but I can't think of one that would be any more major than others...I think it is just age and genetics. I'm ok with that. I'll either cut it impossibly short and dye it blonde, or just wear a hat. I'm still thinking about my options.
I have "crows feet" around my eyes, wrinkles and lines that get longer by the year...but I celebrate it. I earned my stripes fair and square...from lots of laughter. If laughing so much in my life means I get wrinkles to prove it, then bring 'em on! Laugh lines! The best kind of line in my opinion.
But can we talk for a minute about my chin? My chin has always been an issue with me. I've been painfully aware of it, and have been since high school, though no one ever made mention of it...they only teased me relentlessly about my unusually long legs. Bet those women wish they had my legs NOW. (smiling to myself) Though I'm sure no one else goes home at night and says to their friend or spouse, "Did you SEE the CHIN on her?!" It isn't really that bad, but we know how we magnify, in our own self defeating way, our flaws both real and imagined. You do it too. I know you do. It's part of being human.
I had a dream the other night that my birth father came to see me and we just held each other for the longest time. He asked me what happened and I said to him that I was getting old, and that was the reason I didn't look the same as the last time he saw me. I told him I'd be 45 soon and that years have a way of sneaking up on us.
They have! Suddenly I need glasses! I carry "readers" in my purse for the times when my regular glasses won't do.
But I am embracing the changes. Almost in a curious, science experiment kind of way.
I go most days without any makeup, and once and awhile, I catch a glimpse of myself in the post office window while waiting in line and I think, damn, I look awful! These people probably think I'm really really sick!
I am, and always have been prone to dark circles under my eyes and now with  the extreme hair loss and pale crepe-y skin, people must wonder! (and that is ok too)
Though they might wonder, I see wonder. Instead of going into aging kicking and screaming and smearing creams and potions onto my face and neck and fretting about looking older, I marvel at the aging process. I almost laugh at it. What I love most is, the learning process that comes with it, and being o.k. with who I have become.
I would imagine for years how I would look with a suction/lift "chin job"...looking in the mirror with my hands holding my little second chin up to see how I'd look with no "pouch" there...
BUT Today I had a revelation.
My youngest son and I were up here in my little studio and I had on the most amazing, colorful,vintage rhinestone necklace that I just repaired. He noticed that the rhinestones were catching the sun and making rainbows. All around us were colored orbs on the walls and ceiling...moving as I moved, and reflecting upward on my chin.
I asked him to capture a photo of it.
He took this one, and this one~

This is me. Unfiltered. Unsoftened. Unmade-up. But NOT Unhappy. This is the real me and the chin that I have, until today, had such disdain for and have been self conscious of my whole life. Even at my thinnest(in high school), I still had this wierd little second chin!

My chin has seen so many good things...beautiful necklaces that I, and other amazing artists have created. Sunlight reflecting from the waters of Lake Santa Fe. It has been caressed by cool mountain air and wind from southern beaches. It has been touched by tiny baby hands. It has traveled with me through life and stretched out with yawns made from remnants of the most amazing, most awe-inspired days. And it has stretched with the weight of my body, pregnant with life. 

My chin has never been happier.

Do you have a particular part(s) that you can make peace with today? I'd love to hear about it! Please leave a comment.

Ten Thousand Saints

     As the snow keeps pouring from the sky...covering my part of the world in a lovely white, I fear that my patience with winter has grown weaker with each passing day! I am so ready for spring!
The house is quiet, which is rare these days, and I can concentrate a bit to write. Grand babies are asleep, and the big boys downstairs in the "man cave" eating subs and playing games. Around here is a little crazy as of late, since my youngest daughter is temporarily back home with her children. Life is very full with homeschooling our youngest, trying to keep our 18 year old son busy, my husband Ken teaching college, me working away and trying my best to stay well and energized, and our  daughter trying to find her way through school and parenting and life.
Life is very VERY full. 
     Recently, I was asked by an amazing man and very talented stylist, Christopher Fulton, to create some hair jewelry pieces for an upcoming movie he is working on. It was quite a challenge, which I truly love.The movie is set in the late 1980's, so I had to do some period pieces, which was great, (since I was very much there in the 80's and all) and I remember that time very well....(I'm smiling to myself)
One character is a high class woman, for which I made a selection of barrettes, combs, modern pony tail holders, hair bands (made from vintage modern necklaces), and clips~

80's style hair jewelry

The second character is a bohemian type artsy woman, quite the opposite of the first character. She has long, flowing hair and needed pieces in a boho-hippie style...hair sticks and simple pieces reflective of her character. For her I made hair sticks out of antique fan parts with authentic Art Nouveau pieces, combs and ties made from real Art Nouveau and Victorian Gothic buckles, and a leather barrette made from a very old tooled belt that I aged and sanded further to make it look as if she'd had it forever~

bohemian style hair jewelry

The movie is called Ten Thousand Saints.  I am so thrilled to be a small part of the whole huge process. Thanks to late night photo-texting and Chris' infinite patience and support, I was able to pull this off in a short time frame and come up with usable pieces for the shoot.
I think that is what I like most about creating the things I do...I get to be a part of something much bigger in the world...people that wear my work carry with them a bit of myself, my thoughts, and my deep love for my work and for humanity, into weddings, huge events, little victories, into work and now into a movie...how truly wonderFULL life can be.

me, circa 1988 (see? told you I was there!)

Lovely Ethereal Abstract Landscapes

I just wanted to share with you some of my favorite things lately. Comfort food for my spirit while the snow piles up outside! I want to begin with Tracey. My latest obsession, the ethereal, heavenly paintings of Tracey Nicholas on Etsy.
Her ethereal abstract landscapes surround me in my second story studio/bedroom...this attic room from which i write has one larger window and little oddly placed windows that make it difficult to see outside, and her paintings make a soft landing spot for my eyes during the hours I spend up here working. The last one I bought so moved me me with the title of it. It is called "All I Know"...a lovely mix of soft pink, white and even a touch of orange...
My studio/bedroom has become a haven for me...a place to dream, have tea with friends...a place to write and create. I am building a lovely nest in soft hues of pink and white and aqua blue. It is a bit untidy at the moment, but what real life is truly as tidy as a perfect photograph? That is what paintings like Tracey's are for...

Frosted Window "Pains"

View from Studio Window This Morning

     This year I am focusing on letting go. Mostly letting go of people that I love deeply...ideas of what relationships should be...and what they should not. Trusting in the process and that everything is as it should be is unsettling for me, when some relationships feel so unfinished...like the end of a record, static in my ears, and I cannot lift the arm to start the music and dancing again.

     Here, in the depth of winter, I go within.  I know that the process is not about them, but about my ideas and expectations of what love should be. It is about letting go of my firm grasp of faux control and allowing love to heal. It begins with loving myself more. It begins with believing that I am enough. It begins with forgiving myself...because no one is better than me at demolishing my self worth...

I'm the best self ass-kicker there ever was. Even at nearly 45 years old, I still flagillate myself for things I did 20 years ago that I know need to be put to rest. I am not the same woman I was at 20 or 30 or even 6 months ago. I have the gift of introspection...I am ever evolving. 
     Forgiving myself is much harder for me than forgiving others. Letting go is hard...and I wonder why it comes so easy for others. Trust is hard, but I cannot profess that God has a plan and then question it.
I want you to know that you are not alone in your struggle. I am here too. Peeling my own white knuckled fingers off of the edge of certainty. Falling is never easy. But you are not alone in it.
Let's trust. Let's let go together, shall we?
One.....two...........three!

New Vintage Jewel Collets Inspired by my Abiding Love of Impressionist Paintings

A new collection will make its Debut next Saturday. Romantic bridal (and beyond) jewelry inspired by impressionistic paintings, past and present, also stemming from my love of the collet neckalces.

deep navy blue vintage rhinestones, pale sapphire navettes
 and tiny swarovski crystal dangles...Delicate.

"The Railroad" by Manet

vintage jewel collet necklace, rare vintage rhinestones

Japanese Footbridge, by Monet

Please visit me at www.sacredcake.etsy.com next weekend for the collection debut!

64 Gifts

Yes, that's me. The lady in the oddish black hat In isle 2. I'm the one a little sleep deprived, sniffing an open box of Crayolas and sometimes packages of Pampers. I've had that same hat for eleven years of badhairdays. --been sniffing boxes of crayons much longer. There is just something about a box of new crayons... Untouched tips full of color and of promise and they have always smelled the same. Since those summer days at my grandparents picnic table when i would break open that box of 64 gifts, so thrilled with my favorites of periwinkle and gold. A new box of crayons smells like hope to me.

Straining Toward Home

....overhead, the Geese with their necks outstretched,
Are straining toward some mysterious home.
And i, here on the ground,
fumbling to find direction.

Looking Back

This month has been oddly very slow at Sacred Cake, but I can't complain. It is affording me the luxury of playfulness and time to look back at favorite pieces to be inspired, contacting customers to say hello, fiddling around at my old table and organizing my area.
Browsing through the earlier days in the "sold" section of my shop, (before the Anna Wintour "vintage jeweled necklaces" caught fire and took over!) I noticed some of the stories that I wrote to go with the pieces I sold.
After all, my tagline is that "Every piece tells a story." Though I rarely do that anymore...we can always begin again. I am a big believer in every day being a new beginning. Lord knowits I need that...it keeps me hopeful!
Here is a little story I came across, and the piece that went with it~

"..she ran her hand noisily along the coolness of the chain link fence during her walk home from the shop until she arrived at her favorite spot. There at the edge of the fence, among the shreds of dirty paper and old faded wrappers, were clusters of fragrant wild roses....like tiny scarlet bouquets that grew there just for her."


Feeling the need lately to root myself in what speaks to my heart. I'm creating more assemblage jewellery pieces, bridal pieces, functional art and I might even begin the book that has been floating around in my head for awhile now. I'm also hoping to get back into some favourite magazines next year.
Here are some new assemblage pieces currently in the shop.

Find me also on my favourite sleepless night haunt, Pinterest!
I have boards of Miriam Haskell Jewellery, 1970s fun stuff, needlepoint, pottery, and even one I've begun on Confetti ware...Also, favourite quotes...love that one.
Http://www.pinterest.com/sacredcake

Gift Certificate Giveaway over at Sacred Cake!

Jennifer Valentine's Etsy Gift Certificate

Please visit me on Facebook at JenniferValentineJewelry for the giveaway! I am giving away two 25.00 gift certificates to my shop! Leave a comment on the piece you love best and perhaps even why if you have time.
Each comment will have a number. I'll draw the numbers next Sunday afternoon!
I am adding new things this evening. You will have a lost to choose from!
Gearing up for the holiday season...is it THAT time all ready?!
Hope you all are well and finding your joy...use the good china. light those special candles. treat yourselves well.
XO

First State of Mind

 

     To whomever vandalized the street downtown, I thank you from the depths of my heart. I needed this sign that day...a reminder that love will always prevail, and that ugliness and animosity never does in the end. Love is the only thing that is real.
     Small town life has its many charms. I've embraced my life here and the lovely people I see every day with smiling, welcoming faces...I find comfort in the familiarity. But there are times, when this small town existence feels very very small. Rumors spread. People talk about each other and believe the hearsay. I'm not one to believe a rumor, or perpetuate one. I like most everyone regardless of their faults, because I have insight and self awareness.
I am as flawed as the next person.
     I've been bothered by something that I experienced here recently... The last time I experienced this type of treatment, I was married to an abusive man and I have done my best to forget the way I felt all of those years ago.
     The encounter still brings some sadness to me as I write. My faith in humanity was truly tested. I was made aware that there are still those people in life that will not be satisfied until they see you fall. I was looked down upon like I was a piece of garbage. I was told with a sneer to "just sit down", as I tried to explain my feelings. And as the tears came, and as I sat, the person who resurrected those old, buried feelings of no self worth actually smiled with satisfaction, seeing the pain I was in. I could not believe what I was seeing.
     I was once again, in that place of abuse. The feelings of helplessness and anger and sadness rolled over me like waves, that I had forgotten ever existed, for over 20 years.
I became allowed myself to become, a victim....a cowering shell of the woman that I have spent the last 20 years "working on" to become whole and ok with my past and with my life here in small town, USA.
     My experience that day had me wondering if all the work I have done means nothing...if one person could tear me down so easily. If one person could determine my self worth in just a few minutes of time.
I allowed myself to become a victim again instead of staying strong in my faith that God is always with me and that I am worthy of love and acceptance. Worthy of being heard and seen. Supported by his hands, always.
     All of this from a conversation that was less than a few moments. It stemmed from a misunderstanding that I had already long ago forgotten, but one that had obviously been seething and bubbling in the mind of another who could not wait to get justification and revenge.
     Call me a fool, but I am one of those who believe that even the worst, hardened criminal still has that tiny flame of goodness inside of them. I am one of those who believe that God is present even in the "worst of the worst" because we are all of our creator...I am one of those people who believe that everything that happens, happens for a reason...and that all will be understood in God's time.
     I am not angry with myself anymore for breaking down. For crying as I sat there in public humiliation. Especially laying my vulnerability out only to be laughed at with such smugness and the kind of mean that existed in my life so long ago that I had forgotten how it felt.
     I guess what I am trying to convey is that I can only get up, dust myself off and get back on the horse. Just when we think we have overcome so much, done all the work and covered all of the "stuff", there is always more learning and more growing to do.
And so I am reminded to be gentle with myself, and be continue to be more forgiving because the others that I encounter in this life don't have it all together either. We are all only human. We are humanity. We are all works in progress.

 

I am a Canon Rebel

 So, you think you need an expensive Canon Digital SLR with all the fancy-shmancy buttons to take a good photograph of your assemblage jewelry? This camera was my camera for almost all of the years I've been photographing jewelry to put "out there" in my Etsy shop, Sacred Cake. Yup. This is the one I've used. And it was used when I got it.

Old Betsy Blue

She's been dropped, bopped and treated very poorly by my grandchildren...she's had amateur sand removal surgery and when I got tired of the blue showing up in the reflections of my photos, I hurriedly tried painting her with white nail polish...over the red polish that was on her when I bought her...I even hid her behind a blank page with a hole cut in it for the lens so her color would not show...

and I still got photos like this

photo of bridal earrings taken with Old Betsy Blue 

And this

aqua blue collet in silver

Now (thanks to the three easy payments plan on HSN) I have a brand spankin' new Canon Camera...but reluctantly purchased and only because the lens shutters on Old Betsy Blue had to be removed in order for the lens to retract. And it is still NOT a Canon Rebel digital SLR (cue angelic heralds and boy-choir music wafting in  from above). It is a basic Canon camera like I had, but with a better zoom. Drawback for photographing jewelry, once again, is the COLOR. Will I paint my new camera with white paint or nail polish? Probably not.

Will I make a white paper with a lens sized hole in it and hold said white holed paper onto front of camera while trying to take a decent photo? Most likely, if it is a super shiny thing that I don't want to see a big black blob in when reviewing pictures.

this is me zooming with new camera

I never thought I'd be one of those old sticklers that doesn't want to try "new technology", you know? But I was resistant to learning a whole new camera all over again! What I had worked. If the lens had not gotten scratched from it having no lens doors from it falling in the sand at the lake while taking pictures of those meddling kids...none of this would have happened... Me and Old Betsy Blue would still be working together after almost 4 whole years.

Would you like to know some of my secrets? I'm going to tell it all for you right here. Because I really like to teach. I like to share what I know.

Here are a couple of non touched up photos from my new basic Canon~ on automatic....not too shabby eh? You can take good photos with whatever you have. Trust me. Can you see a huge difference between the photos above and below?

photo of earrings taken with Big Black 

Come back soon because I'd like to share with you some simple tricks to use to take better photos for your online shop.