Here I am in my latest jewelry creation , a necklace of  black stones, decorative beads, and of course, the noble bone skulls. It is approaching one of my favorite holidays, Halloween, an occasion of much celebration here  in my town of Sedona  and other areas in the Verde Valley. This particular piece is for sale in the Heritage store in Jerome, AZ 

It is a very ancient celebration , dating  some  2,000 years back to the Celtic celebration of Samhain. It was the end of summer; the crops were in; it was time to celebrate before the dark and death of winter time. There was a belief was  that on October 31st, the ghosts of the dead could return to earth, before their Celtic new year of November 1st.  

In 1000 AD, the Catholic church made November 2nd "All Saints Day" to honor the deceased. In Mexico, it became Dia de los Muertos, day of the dead. It was the immigrant  Celts, the Irish,  who brought  this  holiday  to America, with candy and costumes, a long tradition.  What a melange of the ancient, the  religious, and holiday spirit has evolved into this modern day celebration.So I like to celebrate by dressing up and creating some fun fashion for  this magical, mystical holiday. Comments?

Sounds of Ceramic Windchimes

I have been making porcelain wind chimes again. For me, it is a kinetic art form, as well as one of the first musical instruments.  Thin, texured pieces of porcelain are rolled and cut out, fired once, and then again at a very high temperature with the color added.
 Here I added small, turquoise creatures and beads for a specific client's order. I chose the earth tones of iron oxide. However I have used cobalt blue, and am working on   a green hued chime at present. 
I included a picture of me holding them outside in the sunlight.  I use fishing line so there is the appearance of all the pieces floating in the breeze. I love the sound that the clay creates as the wind makes them dance.
Historically,  wind chimes have been found in Africa, dating back to  3,000 BC. Early models were made from natural found objects,  such  as bone, shell, or bamboo. later The Chinese passed them onto the Japanese, and then to the western world in the 1800's. 
There is something very soothing and meditative, hearing the sounds of the small pieces of porcelain ring against each other. I guess it is a sound of summer, which has finally arrived here in Sedona.

Different can be good.

What can I say. I am vacationing in north San Diego. Even artists living in gorgeous Sedona need a change of scenery sometimes. 
Since my studio is at my home, sometimes it feels like I never leave work. There is always a project to work on; a show coming up; the studio needing cleaning. That is the dilemma  of the working artist. 
I used to live at the beach, Venice to be specific. To get away I would go to the desert. Now that I live in high desert, I crave the cool ocean breeze and cold water adventure. That's life. Different can be good.
I will fill you in with an update when I get back.