Vintage Georgian Collet Raffle and Assemblage Earring Giveaway!

I really want Jenny to make it to Italy. She has worked so hard to get half way there. She has been working hard and adding her own money, and painting these lovely things to auction off to make more. Jenny says, " Painting is my passion. The magical Misty Mawn is teaching a class in Italy at the end of September and I have been dreaming about going for a long time. I tucked the dream away thinking that is just wasn't possible on my salary. It was always there in the back of my mind prodding at me. I decided I didn't want my dream to dwindle away so I'm asking for your help to make it a reality."

georgian collets by Sacred Cake (value: 110.00)

Like I said in this last post,   helping others foster their dreams somehow helps us to foster our own. It keeps us focused on what is real. What is good. What is relevant.
Love.
Love for humanity. For eachother.
At a time when the news is full of negativity and despair, there is always a flicker of light.
The God given goodness that resides deep within each of us, in this moment.
Generosity.
Giving.
Grace.
I am offering your choice of three of my best selling necklaces in a donations raffle! Entering the raffle is easy. Just choose the necklace you'd like to win, press the donate button at the bottom of this post, donate 5.00 or more, and specify which necklace you'd like to win! Each 5.00 increment counts as one entry.
You will also be entered in an earring raffle just for donating any amount! So, you have two chances to win.
Each 5.00 increment you donate will be entered in the drawing for the necklace you specify. This is HUGE!
Your choices~

vintage pale pink rosaline collet

vintage pink rosaline collet by Sacred Cake

A gorgeous pale pink jeweled collet that would make Marie Antoinette SWOON. Trust me, you won't want to take it off! Just type the word "pink" when you enter.
Next~

my daughter, Rebecca, modeling my necklaces

chunky pale yellow collet by Sacred Cake on Etsy

This lovely chunky pale yellow collet  will steal your breath when you see it in person. Trust me when I tell you that it is worth a five dollar donation to enter to WIN IT! Just type "yellow" in the text box when you enter.
and last, but definitely not least, this lovely assemblage piece~

"In Memory of Bees"

Bee and rhinestone assemblage necklace by Sacred Cake

This gorgeous vintage and antique assemblage bee necklace will become a favorite! Just write "bee" when you enter your donation.
Now for the extra special part! Even if you don't win a necklace, you will STILL be in the drawing for a pair of these~

vintage aqua assemblage earrings by Sacred Cake

and  these~

vintage rosaline earrings by Sacred Cake

and these~

orchid earrings by Sacred Cake

This donate button will take you to the safe and secure Paypal. Don't forget to specify which necklace you'd love to win. AND remember that EVERYONE who donates will get a chance to win earrings too!

Thank you for being here today.
Blessings and light to You and Yours,
Jennifer Valentine of Sacred Cake

painting by Jenny Wentworth

New Georgian Collets, Inspired by Anna Wintour

collet in deep pink and gold

I've got new Georgian styled collets in the shop! These go beyond the Anna Wintour inspired collet necklaces that I have previously done. They are entirely my creations! and they are quite lovely.

hand antiqued jeweled collet in rosaline

collet in Montana Sapphire

The stones lay like little jeweled flags around your neck, and I have made them in many colors! You can see them in my Etsy Shop. Unlike the other jeweled collets that are worn short, these can be worn at varying lengths, so they are wonderful for layering!

layered collets in Peridot, Montana sapphire, and clear antique rhinestones with gold plating

I have gotten the sweetest compliments on these new "like little jeweled flags" collet styled necklaces...little labors of love, they are, but one that the brings satisfaction of creating something lovely. Something to be enjoyed and treasured. I've also been working on a few historical reproduction type pieces that I have seriously enjoyed creating...such a luxury to create these gorgeous and decadent jewels. I think custom orders are my favorite for this very reason!

Royal Emerald Collet with beautiful crown settings

Royal Ruby Collet

 Here is one I created out of a stunning vintage brooch sent to me by a sweet customer...a wonderful collaboration between she and I, that turned out swimmingly~

custom created collet in pale amethyst with vintage brooch

Did I already say how much I love doing custom work?

I'll be back very soon with a funny little bird story...

me and "birdie"

Did you know that I have a facebook page? You can keep up with new products, posts, sales and free products on Facebook , right here.

Decorating Ideas with Vintage Jewelry

Just fun kind of post about what I've been doing with some vintage jewelry as home decor! Vintage jewelry can be found so many places...garage sales are probably the cheapest place, followed by thrift stores, flea markets and then antique shops. Also, online one Etsy and ebay!
The vintage rhinestone necklace stash above has come from several years of picking them up for a dollar or two, or tangled in one of the bags of junk jewelry I've purchased to make my assemblage jewelry out of.
My first idea was to use the vintage necklaces as curtain tie backs~

vintage rhinestone necklace tie back

vintage brooch, vintage multistrand curtain decor

 I use old  shabby pieces of lace held in place by vintage brooch to disguise an ugly lampshade, and an old multistrand vintage pearl necklace (bought for a song) to use to hold the curtain back from the window. I made a pendant lamp out of antique lace scraps as well. Here is the lace pendant lamp idea.
I love very shabbiest of things, and this old lace dress is a favorite that graces an old painted door that leads to the laundry room and storage area. Notice at the top of the hanger, I have put an old brooch. Very easy. Just close the brooch and slide the brooch over the end of the vintage hanger. This is a great way to display special jewelry that would otherwise be languishing unseen in a box somewhere. Behind the dress  is a holey old lace table cloth I added for more texture. I think when decorating with lots of shades of white, it is important to have layers and lots of texture.
The little felt and button heart pocket was a gift from my mother, and seems to go perfectly with this little vignette.

antique dress with vintage dry cleaner hanger and pearly brooch

for us, the shabbier, the better!

My husband and I both love super shabby things in shades of white mostly. We are slowly renovating our old home, but that doesn't mean that it can't be  enjoyed and decorated in fun ways in the meantime! I found a fun use for the pile of vintage necklaces, that I combined with the chandelier in my studio, which is already festooned with antique "Willow" children's tea set pieces and old chandelier crystals. The antique chandelier is from the early 1920's, and came with a gorgeous slag glass marble held in the center by long leaves of metal. I'm still considering painting it white eventually.

antique chandelier, tin Willow plates, rhinestone necklaces

assemblage chandelier with rhinestone necklaces and children's toys

The chandelier looks much better "in real life"...very sparkly! I don't have the best kind of camera...just a point and shoot type. As you can see, the ceiling is missing from the studio! I kind of like it, but I'm thinking it needs something else...maybe old doors or window frames? I'm thinking old linens and some tacks. I'm SO not wanting to do sheet-rock. Lord save me from sheet rock!

The butterfly mobile in the background came from a favorite Etsy shop called Royal Buffet. Mollie, the owner, has also written a wonderful book on paper craft which  I LOVE, (did I mention I am a paper hoarder?) 
Mollie's book is called ~ Make & Do: Paper Fascinations for Every Lovely Occasion.

antique mirror with paper garland and old brooch

 I often festoon mirrors and picture frames with broken brooches. The one above is a big rhinestone brooch that I glued on to a piece of filigree, then attached it tothe mirror with a tiny nail. The garland is something I made years ago for Christmas, but I like it so much I left it up. It says "Joyeux"...French word for "Joyous". I love the juxtaposition of sparkly things with shabby things.
I hope you like these ideas.. Please share them with friends. I'd love to hear your ideas as well!

Blessings to You and Yours,
Jennifer Valentine of Sacred Cake

A Dream to Paint, 10 days can make all the difference

I met Jenny a couple of years ago, when I created a special assemblage necklace for her using a special thimble that belonged to her grandmother who had passed away. She and I have formed a special connection and I have watched her painting journey from the very beginning...always trying to encourage her along the way, to follow her dreams. She has the talent.

She has a dream to paint with Misty. She is asking for help.
I  so admire her for that.
So often when we want something so badly, we become frozen by worry and with wonder about how others will perceive us...so we sit in silence while our heart aches for what we truly need. Some of us were raised never to ask for help...that it is a sign of weakness....a sign that we our out of control of ourselves and our lives. Not true.
Jenny is my hero. She has put herself "out there". She wants this so badly, she is willing to open herself and be vulnerable to rejection and negativity. I call that strength. Not weakness.
Do you have a dream?
What would happen if you asked those around you to help you achieve it? Even in the smallest way?
What is the worst that could happen?
The worst that could happen is that they could simply say no...then, move on to share your dreams with those that will be supportive and nurturing of it.
She is asking.
I am asking.
Please say yes.
Fostering her dreams will help you to foster your own. Trust that. Put it out there, and just see what comes back.

Donate button is on her Right sidebar on her blog right here~ http://www.jennyleewentworth.blogspot.com

Your presence here is warmly felt, and I am so grateful for it.
Blessings,
Jennifer

Stain (Memorial Day 2012)

my father, circa 1968

Today I remember you.
Or what there was of you.
The same stories you told me
about coming home from Nam
to be there when I was born.
Stories about getting on the 'chopper
and then me falling asleep on your chest.
And excuses for why you disappeared.
I see your photo now and then
the tears come, but just a little.
I choke them back.
The war changed you.
All smiles before,
all drunkenness after.
And I, left behind,
then found again,
then left behind,
then found again.
Years would pass with
no sign of you.
No sign except
my own reflection,
my roundish nose,
my one crookish eye,
my smile.
Today is not the only day
I think about you.
But today I am forced to
bring you out of the old suitcase
of memory
and trace my finger over
the writing on the backs of these photographs
of a young G.I.
The only handwriting of yours that I have ever seen.
The last trace of you
that I have.
The only physical things.
These photographs of a lost boy,
a lost man,
a lost father.
Gone forever from me,
but the stain of your memory
remains there in my own reflection.
My nose is yours,
my crooked left eye,
my cheeky smile;
my broken heart.

J. Valentine

my father, second from left, circa 1968

The Messy Middle

Below is a poem that is currently on SARK's call line. Read by her.  I call it when i need someone to tell me that I really matter. When I need someone to give me a virtual hug. When I need a cheerful voice of affirmation and I can't think of anyone to call that I'd like to burden with more of my life "stuff". SARK doesn't mind. I'm grateful that today her inbox had room for my message of thanks back her. If you'd like to call it, here is the number~ 415-546-3742. Her website is www.PlanetSark.com ,for more inspiration, free printable things, wallpaper, workshops and books.

Benjamin

Life has become so much more full, since we've become full time caretakers of our little grandson...so full of joy and smiles and song and fumbling for what works; full of so many shifts that were sudden and stressful and rewarding and a whole mixture of joy and sadnesses as well. Susan Kennedy calls it "the messy middle", where most of us spend a lot of our time living.
I find myself blaming myself for the way my youngest daughter E. has "turned out" so far,even though I know in my heart that I have been the best mother I could be. Wondering where it was that I went wrong. She is 19 now. Watching her destroy herself again and again when I've spent so many years doing my utmost to build her up and foster her dreams, is so difficult. For me it is akin to watching a terrible car crash coming that I am helpless to prevent. For my husband and I, it is a feeling of fresh grief and loss, mixed with hope and fervent prayer that she will one day find her way. And a feeling of exhaustion from trying to juggle my work, his work, new baby, homekeeping, our relationship and two other boys (ages 7 and 17) that need us too.
I can say that I am proud of E.'s selflessness when it comes to doing what is best for this precious and happy go lucky little fellow. She knows his best place is here with us until she "sorts out her life." I am grateful for that. And so incredibly grateful for this~

And grateful for SARK (Susan Arial Rainbow Kennedy) and her message line, and for introducing me to a now favorite poem that resonates so deeply with me.

Kindness

Before you know what kindness really is
you must lose things,
feel the future dissolve in a moment
like salt in a weakened broth.
What you held in your hand,
what you counted and carefully saved,
all this must go so you know
how desolate the landscape can be
between the regions of kindness.
How you ride and ride
thinking the bus will never stop,
the passengers eating maize and chicken
will stare out the window forever.


Before you learn the tender gravity of kindness,
you must travel where the Indian in a white poncho
lies dead by the side of the road.
You must see how this could be you,
how he too was someone
who journeyed through the night with plans
and the simple breath that kept him alive.


Before you know kindness as the deepest thing inside,
you must know sorrow as the other deepest thing.
You must wake up with sorrow.
You must speak to it till your voice
catches the thread of all sorrows
and you see the size of the cloth.


Then it is only kindness that makes sense anymore,
only kindness that ties your shoes
and sends you out into the day to mail letters and
purchase bread,
only kindness that raises its head
from the crowd of the world to say
it is I you have been looking for,
and then goes with you everywhere
like a shadow or a friend.

—Naomi Shihab Nye from Words Under Words: Selected Poems

Blessings to You and Yours,
Jennifer Valentine

New Assemblage Jewelry and the First Casualty of the Simplicity Project

Just a peek into what I've been creating lately...working on cuffs and lots of creamy pearly rhinestone infused things...maybe because so many weddings seem happen in the spring and early summer months...and over this past year, I've been so inspired by an amazing wedding blog called "Ruffled".

When you visit, be sure you have some time to look and be inspired by all of the amazing DIY  weddings. Some serious creativity and l.o.v.e. over there...as well as creative wedding photography that will delight and amaze you! I get it delivered to my mailbox each morning and it is a sweet way to start the day with a peek at people in love. They also celebrate same sex marriages, which I find extremely refreshing and poignant to see.

Antique Assemblage Cuff in the SHOP

Custom Vintage Assemblage Bridal Comb

Custom Bridal comb in Silver, pearls and rhinestones

Shabby Chic fern and pearl earrings

OK, so in my last post, I spoke of an attempt at re-simplifying my life. Letting go of extraneous stuff...and stuff I am keeping from a woman that no longer exists. I figure, if I really want to remember certain things like these~

Steve Madden Mary Janes Circa 1998ish

Things like these very outdated, almost vintage Square toed Steve Madden Mary Jane heels that I bought so long ago and have worn only a handful of times. I am so not a "shoe" person. Really. I am a very conservative shoe person. I wear only Mary Janes. I only have a few pair now...but really only because I now have to wear very good shoes due to the fact that my feet have chosen not to function properly anymore. Heels of any kind are no more. 

These shoes are a part of a woman that does not exist any more. She hasn't existed for many years...and neither have her heel wearing feet, but still, there was that hope...you know? I know you know.

So as a symbolic gesture, these go first. Because believe me, these shoes are extremely difficult for me to part with. Silly isn't it? They're just shoes. Outdated shoes. They hold no power over me...yet I have had them in the "to go" pile sooooo many times, and taken them out and put them away sooooo many times. This time is it.

Even as I write, I'm thinking of how I can salvage them! Bookends? Doorstops? Planters? Decoupage? Paint?

Remember in my last post when I talked of having the 100 things already down pat in the mid nineties and I didn't even know it? Well, these shoes were a part of my 100 things. I've carried these shoes all over the country. They are more than just shoes. They were a part of me. They were apart of my identity. A regular resident in closets here and there, from Florida to Washington to Florida to Washington and finally to Michigan.

If I can let go of these shoes, I can let go of more.

I'm doin' it.

I'll put the photo in my journal for old times sake.

Free Ephemera Giveaway, and an antique Blue Bird Etching from 1876

Fresh from my burgeoning  paper hoard, an antique etching of blue birds from a catalog from 1876. Yes, the date is absolutely correct...can you believe it? It is so old it is bound at the top with string.This would be so amazing in a frame, or reproduced for a collage. Just click on the image, choose save on your computer. It was scanned at a very high resolution, so it can be made quite large. I hope you love it as much as I do. I have a "thing" for birds...

So, In the spirit of the Simplicity Project, I'd like to talk just a bit about my paper hoard. Going through it yesterday, I realized I have more old paper and ephemera than a person really needs.
I think I have devised a creative way to slim down my collection.

I have an unreasonably huge assortment of old photos, book covers, journals, sheet music, game cards, advertisements, old stamps and other paper items that I've been adding to over the years that I'd love to share. I  need to share. If you'd like a very large envelope stuffed with wonderful ephemera, send $11.00 to me via the Paypal button below. That will cover cost of shipping and the large brown envelope. I will be sure to stuff your envelope with great things for collage, and encaustic work, and know that my wonderful collection will go to good use! Let me know in the message at checkout if you'd like more vintage magazines, handwriting, old photos, vintage envelopes, more stamps, more sheet music, advertisements, words for cutting and pasting, etc. and I will create a custom envelope for you, to your liking. Thank you for helping me with this. I just couldn't put all of this wonderful old ephemera in the recycle bin! Please let people know about this offer. I have so much to share!(click button below to go to checkout)

                                                                

Really Noticing, and Thoughts on Simplicity and Enough-ness

antique books from my mother, antique creamer, hydrangeas

Today I took just a few minutes in an exercise I call "purposeful noticing". I do this when I find myself sinking into the cavern that sometimes opens beneath my feet if I let it. It begins with pangs of self doubt, a bit of worry, thoughts focused more on the lack than on the abundance...and before the pit opens and I fall in, this is what I do. (all of the photos you see here, came from the same ten or so minute exercise this morning).

vintage linens in the bedroom window

I find it is always the simple things during this awareness exercise that catch my eye. The shadows of the old linens in the windows, the one favorite sugar bowl filled with dried hydrangeas; that I've taken from one end of this country to the next and back again; intact, I might add...and I remember when there was a simpler time, when that one sugar bowl along with one favorite plate was all I really had, on a shabby little white mantle in the country in the deep south. It was all I needed. It was all I could afford. And I was still a happy person.
There has been a noticeable little undercurrent throughout my life since the days of my walks in the woods as a young girl of 9...and the undercurrent consists of the love for the simplest things. Poetry stuffed into an old suitcase. One extraordinary wildflower. A shabby old book. Vintage linens. Pressed leaves...the shape and look of hydrangeas...painted white walls and salvaged furniture....a favorite old brooch...walks in the woods...laying beneath trees...

When did my life become so complicated? The sugar bowl has now become a vast collection of antique ironstone platters, plates, pitchers and vases and a big 'ol cabinet to house them all. The brooch has turned into vast amounts in stacked boxes and containers of vintage jewelry pieces and parts that I can never in a lifetime use up, because I keep buying more before I use what I have. The old suitcase has turned into at least twenty two vintage suitcases, along with countless little boxes, antique trunks and containers.

bridal earrings I made, atop little antique paper boxes from my (shrinking) collection

I feel like my life has lost its simplicity somewhere and there has, along with that thought, come the revelation that I am not being true to myself in so many ways. I'm not honoring my true spirit.
Fear is what is keeping me from myself... it took writing that word, "fear" just now, for me to realize exactly that.
What if I do simplify back to the days of that one suitcase? Back to the days when I made jewelry to please myself...before it became all about selling jewelry that I cannot even afford to buy for myself...while my first love, vintage assemblages, gathers dust on my desk? I fear what will happen financially if I stop creating the jewelry that has now become what I sell most of and most often. The jewelry that is of my alter high society event ego?
Maybe I fear how empty this big house would look without the stuff that it is stuffed with and then maybe realize that this much space isn't really necessary. Maybe I fear my Etsy shop will just be overlooked.
And in exploring this feeling of not enough-ness, and fear, which comes right along with the cavern that I discussed in the beginning of this post, comes the camera exercise. If you try it would you share your thoughts and photographs with me?

morning feet

I am asking myself lately, what exactly can I live without? What possessions do I truly need to be happy? Are any extra possessions needed at all? And what is considered extra?
I heard of the 100 thing challenge awhile ago, but never thought I could do it. While writing this post, I realized that I already had done it by 1998. I really had. Before Dave even began talking about it I think. But then came the backslide into acquiring more and more.
You can read about the 100 Thing Project at www.guynameddave.com.

What is enough?
I want so much to get back to that one plate, one sugar bowl, one suitcase mindset...to let go of the material things that need dusting and shuffling around and finding a place for.
Even if they are just cheap old things that only cost two dollars and it was such a great old pitcher how could i go home without ONE more old pitcher for two dollars?
                                                           sigh.

This word was brought to me yesterday, with a visit from a dear friend, Michelle Stambaugh, an amazing potter whom I adore. And my word mantra has become this~

A One Word "simple" Bowl by Michelle Stambaugh on Etsy

Simple.
A glorious soothing pool blue swirl of simple. (that is far from simple!)(her work is extraordinary, highly detailed and vibrant)

I think I'm going to call this "The Simplicity Project". I don't think I can narrow it down to just 100 things like Dave. At least not just yet.


**More of Michelle's Work Can be found right here:
www.mudluscious01.etsy.com