"Say Yes to the Dress!"

May 14, 2015 - You still have time to buy tickets:)

Every year since its inception, Women's Empowerment graduates are the special guests at the organization’s annual Gala. This event is the largest source of fund raising for the non-profit, with almost 100 graduates in attendance along with corporate sponsors and community donors.

For some women, it is a chance to be part of a festive evening that they might not otherwise experience. But more importantly, it is an evening to highlight their achievements and victories, both large and small, as they strive to make a better life for themselves and their children.

The preparation leading up to the Gala begins early in the year, as staff and volunteers begin collecting gowns and evening apparel from the community.  The huge storage area bustles with excitement as the event draws near, as each woman arrives at her appointed time to find the dress of her dreams.  To help her along the way, each woman has her own “personal shopper”, a volunteer from the community who helps her navigate the racks of gowns, hundreds of shoes, purses and pieces of jewelry.

All she has to do is “Say YES to the Dress”.

Not sure who had more fum...the ladies trying on the dresses, or the volunteers helping them...

 

The perfect shoes for the perfect dress???

So many purses, so little time...

When I showed her how beautiful the back was, she said "YES"!

The right necklace makes you feel special.

And the right earrings...

We loved how a dress was tried by multiple women before it found the right home...

She rockin' this dress!! It's a definite YES!

Mother and daughter and baby on the way!

You can't go to a Gala without showing off your "Bling"!

And just in case the women couldn't find the perfect bracelet or earrings, I held a two day "Bling Class" for the grads attending the Gala.  I brought all my beads from home and helped the ladies make their own jewelry for the event.  Many of them had never made any jewelry, but were thrilled with their results. As an added bonus, it gave us all a chance to visit, laugh and share while creating a memento of sorts from their evening at the Gala.

 

Couldn't have done better myself! I can't wait to see them all at the gala!

Laurel. 
Support Women's Empowerment with a donation 
on the May 5th Big Day of Giving!

Knot One, Knot Two...

LaurelLeaves Jewelry crashed and burned over two years ago. Contributing to her demise was the overall pressure to produce one-of-a-kind jewelry pieces month after month after month. I had quite a following of clients wanting their own special and unique creations...so I spent many a sleepless night designing in my head, instead of sleeping. 

Secondly, I discovered the magic of Charming Charlie...how could I compete with the store's plethora of necklaces, bracelets and earring in every conceivable color and style, not to mention their Made in ------ prices? Today, I am a huge fan of CC's, but I will admit that even though they don't have the quality that my pieces had, they are sure fun, very accessible and reasonably priced.

And finally, I guess I just got bored.  Those who know me well, know that once I have totally conquered a craft (with the rare exception of sewing which I have done for 55+ years), I tend to move on to the next creative thing to continue to stimulate my brain. Unlike sewing, there are only so many ways to make a necklace. However,  I do honor my pieces by doing occasional repairs for my customers...after all, if you wear a necklace to death, expect it to give way at some point in time.

A friend brought over a necklace (not one of mine) that she had received from her daughter. When she opened the box, the string had broken and all the glass beads were loose. She asked me to restring it, and I agreed - it's a very simple thing - stringing beads. But while I was doing it, I was reminded about the pleasure I used to get hand-knotting beads into a necklace.

Hand-knotting is an art form. I requires patience and care, though I have seen the women in Chinatown knot a string of pearls faster than you can say "necklace". For me there is a rhythm to working the cord around your fingers and using the sharp tweezers to form the knots.

LaurelLeaves Jewelry must always have my signature glass leaf...

 

The beauty of knotted beads, just like expensive pearls, is that knotting allows the beads to "float", keeping them flexible around your neck...

 

That was so much fun, I had another strand of stone beads that I finally decided to knot as well. The holes in these beads were bigger, so I had to use a heavier cord...

They look like lapis, but I don't think they are... didn't cost that much!

 

I found this beautiful sterling silver necklace embellishment at Nordstrom...I planned all along to put it on a strand of beads that I knotted myself.  Lovely! And I can put it on the green beads as well.

 

People still ask me if I'm making jewelry. Every now and then I see one of my creations on a friend and I remember making it.  It makes me a little nostalgic and I think about starting again. Hand-knotting these two necklaces was very enjoyable. But then again, I didn't have to produce 100 new one-of-a-kind masterpieces for a party. That's when I come to my senses.

Laurel. I'd rather sew...

Cowgirl Up!

I'm not really a cowgirl, but I might have been one in a former life. As I thumbed through the pages of my latest "Cowboys and Indians" magazine, I felt a wash of covetousness creeping over me. I wanted everything in the magazine - furniture that would look great in our hacienda, boots that would make a rodeo queen drool, and skirts and dresses that are begging to be twirled around the dance floor to "Sweet Home Alabama".

Feeding my secret yearning to be a Texas girl at heart (after all, I married a Texas boy) are the photos of the jewelry.  Oh the jewelry! When we traveled to the Southwest last year, I splurged on a Rocki Gorman pendant and I have worn it to death - it goes with everything! There's just something about turquoise that makes my heart sing.

This month, there was a stunning necklace featured in this month's magazine - it was a simple set of long strands featuring the same colors of stones in my pendant, but also featuring lots and lots of $$$. So....you all know me: "I could make that necklace myself!"

Katerina's Treasures is right down the street from my house and Rosie was featuring some bead strands of glass and natural stones that I knew would make a fabulous necklace, and I don't mind saying, would be at a fraction of the cost of a designer necklace. I am on a fixed income, you know.

I added some beads from my own stash to complete my necklace.

Why not make a bracelet or two...

Cowgirl Up, Colette!!!

Laurel. California Girl in need of new cowboy boots!

Jewelry for a good cause..

Every once in a while I am asked to donate a piece of my jewelry to support a worthwhile non-profit organization, usually for an event or gala. Though I haven't been making much jewelry lately as I have focused on dressing Colette and knitting, I am happy to do it.

A friend asked that I donate one of my one of a kind necklaces and I just happen to have several worthy contenders.  The event is a fundraiser for the Performing Arts of Roseville to be held on April 24 at Sammie Hagar's restaurant at 238 Vernon St., Roseville, CA 95678. Live music, great food and some silent auction items.  That where I come in. (In fact, if you're in the Sacramento area, you may just want to grab a bite at Sammy's that evening - a portion of your check goes to benefit the performing arts.)

One of these lucky necklaces will be there and hopefully find a new home with an enthusiastic "patron" of the arts!!

1). Fused Glass (yes I made it) with free-form bead work...

2.) Hammered silver wire with turquoise

3.) Stunning bejeweled fob with tiny leaves...

4.) Turquoise and red jasper with one of my twisted wire pendants..

5.) Long necklace with wire wrapped glass, turquoise and jasper...

6.) Turquoise, copper chains and bobbles.

7.) And if they want the big guns ($$$), there's my pearl and shell extravaganza...

So, which one should Lori choose for her event??

Laurel. Support the performing arts!

"I am NOT a Type A"

...this I have vehemently denied from the first time I ever read about personality types. Type A people are intense, over analytical, obsessed with busyness, obsessed with everything and probably weird.  We always point to "those" people and mutter behind our palms "she's SO Type A!"

Myself, I am not a Type A, but rather an overachieving artist, I'd like to think.  That is, unless you look closely at the things that I have a penchant for tackling. What idiot would agree to making a soccer banner, creating a bride's necklace and designing the groom's mom's wedding attire? Hmmm...sounds like a duck, acts like a duck....

Here's the deal...the real problem is that these creative opportunities come in cycles. By cycles, I mean all at once. Before I know it, I'm in over my head, even though I am ever confident of my capabilities.  And, I want to do them all! If it weren't for the other projects that seem to beckon me, whispering softly "here Laurel, work on me this morning" I would be fine.

For instance...that beautiful, maddening lace scarf that I mentioned a few posts ago? I finished it.  I was obsessed with working on it when I should have been working on the bride's necklace.

Done. (Check that one off the list).  Wait, it wasn't on the list...

Type A? Heaven's no! Challenging yourself is important.  I get impatient (that's not a Type A trait, is it?) with people who claim they can't do this or they can't do that, and I just ask "Have ever tried?  Challenge yourself...you might be surprised!"

When the Coach asks for a soccer banner and the Coach is your favorite daughter-in-law, what can you say? So let's go for the most elaborate design you can find, Laurel...it's your normal M.O. Forgot to take a picture but it looks something like this image...The letters were murder...thank God my daughter helped with this one.  Done in time for team pictures!!

 



I also finished the bride's necklace and earrings this week, but I can't show you the whole thing (Bride's like to keep these things under wraps. The pearls are exquisite.

In case you're wondering, I haven't touched the art quilt for a couple of weeks, but at least I have started on the free motion quilting...I had to put it aside while I worked on the banner.  And Colette is waiting rather impatiently for attention as well. Come to think of it, I believe that she is definitely Type A - why else would she be in my face all the time???

 

Laurel. I heard that! I am NOT weird.

 

The pleasures of sewing...

Colette is in hog heaven today.  She knows I'm off to the City to visit Britex fabrics. Even though I'm not shopping for her specifically, she knows that it will be hard not to resist the beautiful "drapey" knits or wonderful linens lining the walls of this San Francisco institution.



Today I am shopping with a friend to find something gorgeous and flowing for her son's wedding. I've been researching designs for "real women with curves", and I've come up with a nice silhouette for her. Colette is trying it with some of my fabric. Black is now okay for weddings, especially formal evenings, but we will be looking for something in my friend's color palette.  I'm thinking blues for a blond, huh??

Now all we need is to parlay some fabric...and have lunch, of course. How blessed am I to live two hours from San Francisco?

And tomorrow? Off to the Gem Faire to find just the right pearls and crystals for the bride's special day and maybe something for her new Mother-in Law?

Laurel.  I love weddings!

Seeing Red...

I love finishing stuff. This past weekend I worked furiously on my new art quilt (another post for another day:) and I completed the applique portion - a huge accomplishment, since it took me over a year to do the California Harvest art quilt, and I've only been at this one for a month or so.

As you may know, I haven't put the same zeal into making jewelry of late. Call it burn out or "the end of an era" - whatever- but I haven't been selling my jewelry these days. The last of my normal cache of 80 to 100 necklaces was sold to my friends/customers last Spring and I have only made a few custom pieces since. I have reverted to my old "I-need-something-to-wear-with-that-I-better-whip-something-up" style of jewelry making...not thinking about selling so much...more about the pure joy of creating beauty and style.

I don't think that I am much different from other artists who one day find markets for their wares, then get caught up in making a buck off their talents. It doesn't take much success to spurn us on and before we know it, we have begun to adulterate our art to appeal to the masses. Everything has a price tag. It's sad in a way, as there is little else more satisfying then creating a masterpiece just for the pure joy of finishing it, knowing it may never grace a wall, or in my case, any neck but my own.

My favorite jewelry pieces are those that only the most brave fashionista would wear...go BIG, go BOLD and for Heaven's sake, if you're going to wear jewelery, MAKE A STATEMENT!!! The 7 Eleven, Bounce Town or a favorite Mexican Food restaurant would not normally see the likes of anyone walking in adorned with one of these little creations. 

I start with thin wire and a few beads and just start twisting and weaving, adding beads as I go. And since I adore sparkle, I picked the beads and baubles with the brightest colors and shine for this one. I didn't choose red, it chose me. I spyed ONE RED BEAD in a shop a few months ago and it became the inspiration for this necklace:

The beginning of a masterpiece 

Add more beads, more wire, more twisting, more weaving and....

So I'm thinking I'll wear it to Walmart today when I go pick up detergent...

with a crisp white sundress and some red flip flops.

Laurel. I need a party!

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