"Prayers For Richie" Fundraiser

Okay, so here's what I've been working on ...

I'm thinking you probably know my nephew Richie's been on something of a journey.  He had surgery the Saturday after this past Thanksgiving to remove a brain tumor that was found to be cancerous.  You can read more details on the FundRazr site his sister Alexis has just put up to raise money for his ongoing treatment and medical bills.

First off, this kid is amazing.  The night before surgery, he performed an impromptu concert from his hospital bed; 3 days after surgery he was once again entertaining his visitors.

Richie's got a tremendous support network of devoted family and friends.  They just held a benefit concert for him and are planning another one in June.  And, as I mentioned before, Alexis just set up a FundRazr site.  I figure there's strength in numbers so, in the interest of providing options and because I feel a strong need to do something to help, I designed a special medallion to add to the fundraising efforts.  

My nephew's got big plans for the future.  He has a vision to set up a foundation; through music and his deeply held faith, he wants to help other kids going through similar journeys.  We're hoping to raise enough money to pay off the medical bills and then get his foundation going.

And before I continue, one really important thing you need to know about me - probably the hardest thing for me to do is ask for help ... with anything.  I am notoriously pig headed, stubborn beyond reason and have to be on the verge of being crushed to ask for assistance of any kind.  The other thing to know, I'm bad, but my little brother makes me look like a total go with the flow girl.   

I'm realizing one of the biggest lessons we're both getting through Richie's ongoing journey towards healing is how to ask for help.  I have to accept there's nothing I can physically do to change what is. What I can do is join in the daily (2pm CST) Prayers For Richie.  What I can do is create this medallion to raise money to help with Richie's ever growing expenses.  It's a start.

So ... the medallion.

For right now, they're hand formed by me in metal clay ... I'm hoping these go viral and I have to figure out how to get them cast.  On one side I stamp my All One icon ... we truly are All One.  On the other side, I've designed a Prayers For Richie logo - P4R.  They're averaging about 3/4" in diameter.  I'm stringing the medallions on red nylon Chinese knotting cord so they can be worn 24/7, they adjust from 30" down to 16".    I'm also stitching up the little muslin bags with the P4R logo stamped on them.  Here's a little closer view ...

I have the Paypal button set up as a "donate what you can" option.  To keep this project sustainable, I'm asking for a minimum donation to cover my cost of materials and postage.  I want this medallion to be available to as many people as possible so I'm doing both a bronze and fine silver version.  For the bronze, I'm asking for a $10 minimum; for the fine silver, $25.  Of course, more is definitely mo' better and greatly appreciated.  Every dollar over my actual expenses will go towards Richie's bills.

I'm a little cross-eyed from figuring out all the details.  I finished and uploaded the webpage and after I finish this post, I'll head over to blast the link all over Facebook.  Like I was saying ... I'd love for this to go viral.  

I'd love for you to share this post and links with anyone and everyone.  If you feel so compelled and are able, a donation to either the FundRazr campaign or for a medallion would be truly wonderful and deeply appreciated by a large number of people.  Every cent helps.

My intention is to create a vast network joined together with these medallions.  Clasp the medallion and know we are All One.  I hope you'll join our Prayers For Richie community.

with deep gratitude ...

l i g a - kvk

quick like a bunny...........

......... So very happy to say I've been listing Talismans on Etsy!

 

 

Have a safe and blessed Thanksgiving Holiday ......
with deep gratitude
l i g a - kvk

where to start ......

....... it's been such an extraordinary week.
The Etsy Anniversary sale was a great success.  That success provided funding for a psychic consultation (a great story) and an amazing haul at the gem show (the story continues) ... so a huge huge thank you to my Etsy following ... I am so very blessed.

First the story of the psychic. 
I know, for myriad reasons, we've all lost touch with people in our lives.  After 13 years (maybe longer), I just reconnected with a dear friend.  I've tried off and on through the years to find her via the internet.  Back when we were in touch, she was working for her brother's backpack company, Osprey packs (world class, top of the line packs) as well as building a photo journalistic portfolio with a focus on child labor in India and building an adobe house in SW Colorado with her new husband.  We last saw each other when she came east to do a series of technical workshops for the packs.  I road along ... a glorious week of chatting and traveling.  Back in February, I took another shot and there she was. 

Rachel and her family, husband and 2 kids, had moved back to her home town of Santa Cruz, CA.  Along the way, she'd gone back to school and become a counselor.  Turns out she's also been developing her psychic gifts through the years as an added component to her counseling skills.  I emailed her straight away and waited and waited.  No idea if she'd gotten the email or if she was interested in reconnecting.  Then a few days ago, she emailed me back!  I burst into tears when I read her email ... I was absolutely overcome.

It's a teeny picture, but here's my long lost friend, Rachel Pfotenhauer.  Further emails were exchanged and, after my wonderful sale weekend, I decided to splurge and see if she would do a reading for me.  Not being particularly patient, I thought it would be helpful to do the reading before heading to the gem show.  It all fell together perfectly ... yesterday afternoon we did one of her full readings.  I've had my horoscope done with a private reading and I've had two other psychic readings, one in person, one distant - I wrote my questions, she sent me a tape of the reading.  Rachel's currently in Kauai, so our reading was over the phone.  Basically, I was blown away.  This was hands down the most thorough and coherent reading I could have hoped for.  Throw in reconnecting with a dear friend and it was about as wonderful as could be.

A big part of the reading was about my current work - All One Talismans.  The message was clear, brace myself and get ready, these are going to be big.  I asked if there was any advice on things to look for as I wondered through the gem show ... the answer - black something, maybe obsidian and something that looks like tiger's eye.  Basically, just listen to my intuition and I won't go wrong ... and stock up!

So stock up I did!  Here's my superb haul ...

I found some amazing things.  The 'tiger eye' stones I found are way more interesting than plain old tiger eye, they're fire etched agate ... I got a bunch!

The black ended up being black tourmaline nuggets along with some very dark kyanite and some African coconut discs.

I got a bunch of really excellent aquas ... some very cool Chinese turquoise (I just love those thin squares), apatite nuggets and a variety of aquamarine shards and nuggets.

Then there's the greens ... vesuvianite shards and more Chinese turquoise.

I got more nuggets in browns and some rich russets and red ... from right to left - African amber, scapolite, garnet, hessionite garnet and sunstone.

Then there's this very cool find ... apatite nuggets that I'm going to top drill - they're in the 1 to 1 1/2" long range.  I bought six ...

But hands down, the coolest thing I found was agatized bamboo.  I've never heard of such a thing.  But they are amazing ... and hollow!    They make a wonderful sound when they clink against each other.  I just need to clean out the cores.  I bought eight ...

Normally, the gem show is one of my big social events of the year.  Today, I wasn't so much anti-social as supremely focused ... a focus that paid off in spades. 

The mystery component of the Talismans arrived in the mail today ... experiments will ensue, the big reveal to come ... not sure when.  But stay tuned, 'cause like the song says, "I'm just so excited!"

l i g a - kvk

random thoughts

........ regarding All One Talismans
There is a tale to be told, a story to be woven.
There are questions to ask and answers to be rooted out.
Dreams will be made solid and visions will be transcribed into three dimensions.
Feeling an enormous sense of possibility.

....... regarding rooting out dormant parts of my psyche
I've been wanting a tattoo inside my left forearm for at least six or seven years.  All I knew was that I wanted a string of dots in there somewhere, no idea what else.  I think I'm finally closing in on a design.  A while back I shared a vision I have of myself, standing squarely on a mountain peak, a warrior or maybe a wizard's staff held firmly in my hand, looking out across a great expanse, an aura of calm and great power radiates around me ...

In my copy of A Wizard of Earthsea, there's a little glyph at the beginning of one of the chapters.  It's always intrigued me and I've drawn my own versions on bookmarks and in my journals.  Re-reading this slim volume, that glyph hit me again.  I'm thinking it can represent my own staff of power, the dots are the connection to the earth.  Here's my current design and a test drive in henna.

My clumsy henna work is much wider than my intended design, but at least I can get an idea of what it would be like having my forearm permanently adorned.  I'm thinking it needs something at the base of the dots - a grounding symbol to anchor myself and my power.    
 
........ regarding the urge to pick up needle and thread
I am compelled to stitch, yet I resist.  It feels like fear, but how could I be afraid of something so innocuous?  Why do I resist?  I want to stitch and assemble windfall bundles to dye fabric, roam and gather and follow nothing but my intuition, yet I resist.  I have work to do, I must focus, I must stay on task, I have to earn my keep.  My heart longs to connect with fabric and needle and thread ... yet I resist.  Definitely feels like fear.

I did pull out my sewing machine this past week.  I finally decided what I wanted to do with a beautiful piece of mushroom colored bottom weight linen ... a sort of dirndl skirt with shoulder straps.  I dove in without a pattern ... I can totally do this.  Cutting board on the floor, rulers and scissors and t-square and rotary cutter and measuring tape and straight pins strewn about.  After some figuring, the cutting began.  Still figuring it out in my head, ah - I have enough fabric to put in pockets.  I root out a pants pocket pattern, lay it on the piece of fabric and cut the pockets, then the waistband ... then I realize I've cut the pockets and waistband from the main piece of skirt fabric ... the 'extra' fabric is to my left.  "Darn, I wish I hadn't done that."  I'm thinking ... Skirts shouldn't have seems down the front ... Tim Gunn comes to mind, "make it work."  I soldier on, get very close to what seems like a finished product, hold it up to me ... "yes, that will work."  Try it on ... no.  It's bloody huge!  Orlando is wearing my project right now while it rests and I figure out how to "make it work."

There's definitely new moon energy moving through me, nesting and nurturing and creating.  Thinking that's fueling the sewing urge.  Nurturing is taking shape in the form of putting up tomatoes ... 20 pounds of deliciously ripe jumbo tomatoes waiting to be roasted from Mountain Harvest Organic Farm via our N. Asheville farmer's market.  Greens in the sink ready for juicing.

   
The final batch of roasted goodness ... core, drizzle with olive oil, season with Urban Accents Fisherman's Wharf spice blend.  Roast for 2 1/2 hours at 300 degrees.  Cool, slide skins off, give them a good stir, then ladle into quart size zip-locs and freeze.  OMG - they're incredibly sweet and delicious and, if I can keep my hands off of them, they'll be such a treat this winter.

   
So, the tomatoes are frozen, the dirndl is resting, I'm searching for an appropriate glyph to anchor my tattoo design, there's still a pair of work pants for Dave that need hemming (they've been hanging in my workroom for months), a design sheet for a sheet of rubber stamps has been sent off - a new, top secret project that I'm itching to reveal, but just not yet, I'm planning my strategy for the gem show later this week and the little vintage French lunch tin that holds my hand sewing things is waiting patiently on my worktable.

with heartfelt blessings and enormous gratitude to those of you making use of my Etsy anniversary discount (through today) .....
l i g a - kvk

who do I think I am ...

... to call my work Talismans?

... to imply that I am in any way tapped in or gifted?

... to imply that anything I create is anything more than mere ornament?  I have no special training, I have no credentials.  I'm not a healer or a shaman or a psychic. 

This is some of the monkey mind chatter that's been going on in my head as I transition from working on wholesale orders to focusing full time on my talismans.  And the thing is, I think they're valid questions.

But there are a few things that I do know about myself and since I'm asking, this is who I think I am ...

I am a maker.

I am motivated from a place deep in my core, a place that feels nameless, but that I know is the center of my heart and spirit.

I can't explain the origins of the impulse or inspiration for the talismans.  Not long after I started making this body of work in 2008, I had a dream that I made jewelry in a past life.  As I create this work, it really does feel like something remembered rather than learned.

When I'm designing the themes and then assembling the elements, I make every effort to keep my mind out of it.  When I select gemstones and components, I don't choose them for specific properties or attributes.  It's only after the piece is assembled that the message of the piece becomes clear.
 
An on-line friend makes extraordinary work that is talismanic.  She is trained in shamanic traditions and has the credentials.  This is what got my monkey mind going.  I started thinking that I should undertake my own training - but in what exactly I wasn't sure.  Then I got to thinking that what I've been doing since the very start of my jewelry making career and my very best work has come from following my intuition, my heart center ... listening to that voice from the nameless place.

It makes no sense.  I can't explain it.  I think that's best.

What I know and what I've experienced from day one of putting my talismans out into the world is a resonance and recognition and connection with like-hearted people.  The Talismans are a conversation and a creative collaboration between me as the maker and the person receiving the piece.  I can set an intention for a piece, but it is not complete until it connects with someone.  That connection is like the key in the lock, the yeast and the warm water.  The collaboration and connection is everything.  It completes the cycle and gives the piece its power.

Who do I think I am?  I am the catalyst and the medium in a beautiful exchange of love and heart-felt intentions.

l i g a - kvk 

p.s. a big THANK YOU to Clara for the collaboration insight ... a key piece of the puzzle.

summer blessings

It's going to be a hot one ... possibly 100 degrees ... a rare thing in this part of the world.  But I am blessed to live in a relatively new home with a/c and double pane windows and thick blinds to shut out the hot sun.

After a restless night, I woke up this morning very foggy, with a headache and feeling kind of blue.  I am blessed to have a good friend close by that I can drop in on for some much needed creative conversation and a jumbo cup of toddy coffee.

Before diving in to working on the Talismans, it all seemed very clear and straightforward.  Now that I'm in the middle of it, it feels kind of overwhelming ... that forest and the trees thing is in full swing.  This is where I make a concerted effort to not think about anything and just do the work that's calling my scrambled attention.  My efforts have been well rewarded.  I am blessed to create work that is well received and supported by a world-wide audience. 

"I Am Heart Centered" is going to California

"Truth Is One" is going to Japan

"I Am Awake" is headed to the U.K.

The new home for "I Am Grounded" will be in Washington state

I am blessed to have the desire and the skills and the hardware to create the business graphics I need when I need them.  I've spent the whole week working on Etsy listings ... not how I thought my week would go.  When several of the new Talismans sold right away I realized I had bits of graphics for the product info but nothing finished.  All of yesterday was consumed by designing a product info card for All One Talismans.  I was pretty close when I shut down the computer last night.  I did the final tweaking this morning and I'm quite pleased with the results!  The background image is actually a photo-shopped image of a globular star cluster ... one of those little details that no one else will realize, which I rather like.  I like having all the bits meaningful, makes for a much more cohesive whole.

 Blessings are raining down on this hot summer day.  May your day be equally blessed.

l i g a - kvk