What a year this has been! I decided at the end of 2017 not to travel for jewelry shows, after having an expensive and downright awful experience at a show in DC last year. So I stayed close to home, and it has been great! I moved my WEST tent inside to Blue Genie Art Bazaar, which was wonderful. The venue is great, the people that bought my jewelry have become friends (and some we have discovered are related by marriage to some of my cousins!). I would love to go back next year if they'll have me. I just finished a few holiday events...the Women and Their Work Red Dot auction, and also was thrilled to have my work in their gallery store, even for a short while. A house party to thank all of my friends and supporters was a big success, with lunch and proseco and jewelry galore! I made more new friends, and even sold some jewelry. I also did the Umlauf After Dark event in December which was lots of fun. The outside gardens were beautiful, the music was perfect and thanks to my trusty space heater, the weather wasn't a problem. My husband Jody loved the sculpture garden so much that he joined the Umlauf, so we can go back and visit whenever we want. I'm ending out the year finishing up custom pieces and getting ready for my next show, a pop-up shop at Little Sister Salon in February. Keep tuned for more details.
This year was also very rewarding for the private commissions I did. I finished a lovely ring for a dear friend, made with her tri-color topaz, a really beautiful stone. I made a yad (Torah pointer) for my synagogue, to commemorate a new Torah we had written, by a women scribe. It was a joy to make, and I was thrilled that it won a Faith and Form Honor Award from the IFRAA committee of the AIA. The lovely little spice box that I made last year also won a Faith and Form Honor Award, and was published several places; my favorite being our hometown magazine Tribeza.
I also made a pendant for another friend using her smokey topaz. I added 4 Harmony diamonds (ethically sourced) with gold and silver, and in the end realized that the gestalt of the piece was what I was trying to achieve. And to end the year, I was a semi-finalist in the Texas Works Awards. What a kick that was. I want to thank everyone who on-line voted for me, I am really grateful. The experience was wonderful, and I hope to attend their conference next year to learn more about marketing and promotion.
So thank you for helping make this year memorable. I enjoy making jewelry that you love to wear...we're a team! Cheers to an even better 2019...
Here are links to some of the places and events I mentioned. Please take a look and support them too!
http://west.bigmedium.org/about.html
https://womenandtheirwork.org/
https://www.umlaufsculpture.org/
https://faithandform.com/feature/2018-awards-program/
https://tribeza.com/
https://www.texas.works/