Gonna have an Earth Day

     That was the title of  the play we did in the 4th grade, "Gonna have an Earth Day" and I played Small Voice, the one that finds out that one 'small voice' can make a difference.  It's been quite a few Earth Days since that play and now, I am going back to being one 'small voice' at this years Earth Day Festival in Nashville, TN's Centennial Park.  This saturday, I will be taking my salvaged jewelry and inspiring people to think about reusing everyday objects. 
     My main focus for my jewelry lately has become using objects that have lost their official usefulness.  I will be selling lots of button rings, earrings made from plastic bottles and containers, bracelets made from salvaged electrical wire, and pendants made with expired dog tags.    Now, when I throw things away or recycle them I think first, can I reuse this one more time before I stick it in the pile? Because ultimately, for most things anyway, reusing saves more energy than recycling. 
     I don't stop at the actual jewelry. Instead of putting greeting cards from Christmas and birthdays into the bin, I use the pretty blank parts as cards for my earrings and tags for my necklaces. I have about a dozen old peanut butter jars that I use for beads, wire scraps, and catchalls.  Old tins and sturdy boxes are used for shipping.  Clothes with holes or stains get cut up for jewelry bags and shopping sacks. My displays are made of an old pair of shutters, scrap lumber, an old art case, and a mismatched sheet for a tablecloth. I have driven my conventional husband crazy with all of my salvaging and hopefully it will payoff. 


I hope to sell lots at the festival on saturday, it is my business after all, but I hope that my creations will inspire people to think about what they buy and what they throw away as well.  Earth Day is a day for inspiration afterall, its a day when all us 'small voices' get together and make a difference.


     If you would like to know more about the Earth Day Festival in Nashville go to www.nashvilleearthday.org

The search for displays

I have been searching and brainstorming for good ways to display my jewelry at the festivals and craft shows I am entered in. I have seen some really awesome wooden display stands online and really want to make something myself to save money and make my jewelry stand out from the huge masses available out there (pun intended).  I have lots of logs and wood that is nice and seasoned in my backyard from before we put the gas logs in our fireplace.  (A side note on gas logs: I miss the crackle and smell of the wood fire but the gas does heat better than wood.) But back to the topic at hand, I am fairly handy so my plan is to try to create something that will reinforce the fact that my jewelry is one of a kind.
In the past I have used copper wire and seasoned wood to create lovely display pieces but I want something more substantial than the slim trees of my earlier designs. Therefore, I am entering the world of creating in wood.
After a trip to the wood working capital, Gatlinburg's Arts and Crafts Trail
in the Great Smoky Mountains of Tennessee just a few weeks ago, I am brimming with confidence that I can create something just as spectacular as the amazing pieces there! (They make it look effortless, but I think it will take more than just effort.) I have built some pieces before, taken a few classes in carpentry and worked a little in a shop, so of course I can create something awesome right?!


Wish me luck!!!