Good morning and happy Monday! It’s almost fall, right?! I’m feeling myself gravitating towards sweaters and boots, and looking forward to the colors changing in the trees. . . even if we probably do have a lot more summery weather ahead of us in the SF bay area.
With the changing of the seasons, I find myself thinking a lot about how things evolve - both practical and literal (like cleaning out my closets) and more metaphoric (like sweeping old and not-useful thought patterns out of my head.) From this thinking springs my thoughts about Tangleweeds and the direction I'm headed with my creative work..
When I started Tangleweeds ten years ago, I knew I wanted Tangleweeds to be my art - not just jewelry, but my way of communicating with people my way of seeing the world. I've always had a strong knowing that everything in this life is connected - both in ways we can see and understand and ways that are unknown and mysterious to us. When I dreamt up the name Tangleweeds it was as an embodiment of this idea - of the interconnectedness of all things. That's the more ephemeral part of the story behind Tangleweeds.
Here's where it all relates (or connects) back to jewelry: The art of jewelry is as much about the connections you make between elements, be they metal, stone, ceramic, plastic, or any other material, as it is about the amazing design you dream up in your head. Because without the proper connections in jewelry your design is just going to fall apart.
And without connections in life to people, animals, things, and places that we love life kind of doesn't feel right, or falls apart, if I'm to use the same language I just used to describe the art of making jewelry. Another way of putting it: life is an art-form just like making jewelry is an art-form.
As I move forward with Tangleweeds this year and in the years to come I know that I want to explore this idea/metaphor/truth both in my current art (jewelry making) but also through my communication with you and others via my newsletter, social media, this blog, and in person at events. I also hope to explore other creative mediums. . . of which I’m not going to define in a concrete way. I’m interested in exploring new methods and developing new skills with jewelry making, but I am also interested in diving deeper into other creative interests as well. Because it's all connected, and one creative medium helps fuel the creativity that drives another form of expression. Additionally, I'm also taking a honest look at my business and really considering all the ways I can move towards a more green and sustainable business. (I almost wrote about this today - the siren call I'm currently hearing - that our planet desperately needs our love and what part I can play in all of it. I'll definitely explore these thoughts in future blog posts.)
I hope some of what I wrote about here resonated with you this Monday morning. And if you'd like to read a bit more about my Tangleweeds backstory, this archived newsletter is a great read about how I try to find the beauty in the everyday.