35 Years of FUN!
On Thursday and Friday, August 9th and 10th, we will host our friend and talented gem designer and cutter, Richard Homer, for another of his popular Gemstone Roundtables. Richard has long been one of my very favorite faceters. I have many of his stones in my personal collection, and he is a favorite of many of the store’s ‘besties’ as well. His concave faceting technique and precise geometry in his designs make his gems speak in ways you have never heard before and sparkle in ways you have never seen before. Quiet and ordinary gem material like in the quartz family (amethyst, citrine, prasiolite) will twinkle in ways that only concave cutting can bring out. With extraordinary and rare materials like sapphire, emerald, ruby...it’s nearly impossible to describe the light return that you will see when these gems are cut by Richard. I feel somewhat like a Minnesota State Fair carny but:
You Must See It To Believe It
Richard has been bringing his new creations to us for nearly 15 years! His return every other year is always anticipated by us all and this show is no exception. Please call us as soon as possible if you would like to attend-we have very few seats available at each night’s show!
For many of these years, I counted how many Gemstone Roundtables that we had done but after passing the ‘100’ mark some years ago-marking the years of other things took my attention.
This December 1st at our Annual Anniversary Party,
We will celebrate our 35th business birthday!
When I did a thesaurus search for alternate words for ‘business’, what I found lit the spark to so much of what I felt my career has been about.
A Specialty - I knew from my very first craft fair that doing one-of-a kind work with a client was what I would love most. A new project with a new personality every time, held my attention best. I never judged or felt attached to any design ideas that would come out of these collaborations knowing that the next appointment would produce more new ideas. Fun!
A Craft - I identify with being a craftsman more than an artist. Art is instinctive and biased, some of us like loose, messy, abstract art like the work of Picasso or Pollack. Others of us like tidy, ordered, life-like art like Rembrandt or Degas. Craft implies a deliberate construction path and proficiency. Pursuing the highest quality of work in the finished piece was always the most important element to me. The design was always less important than how it was put together. At risk of being misunderstood, it nearly did not matter what each new piece looked like as long as every detail was well made. ‘Form Follows Function’ became my motto that I have repeated hundreds of times to so many. Ouch-sorry-but it really does. (Coined by Louis Sullivan 1856-1924, architect/employer/mentor of Frank Lloyd Wright) Yah can’t spell Function without Fun!
A Livelihood - Lively is a mild understatement of the level of fun it has been making custom jewelry collections and having events to show you this work over all these years. Craft fairs, trade shows, Gemstone Roundtables, Africa and Tucson Previews, Art Openings, Anniversary Parties, Fashioning a Future runway shows, Extraordinary Women Series events.....and there’s more coming! Lively Fun!
A Game - My business has always been a navigation through challenges, devising strategy, forming allegiances all while having fun. It has never seemed serious or dramatic. A Fun Game!
A Pursuit - Pursuing what I thought was ‘the next big thing’ has been my strongest motivator and consistent passion. I don’t mean spotting growing trends-I never cared much about knowing what other jewelry designers were doing-I mean the instinct for new ways to engage my own clients with new jewelry ideas/collections. Gem Roundtables were a hit from the start and now I’m pursuing the stories of Extraordinary Women to design jewelry for them and bring attention to their accomplishments through these collections. When a new idea like this starts to take shape, its totally intoxicating! Extraordinarily Fun!
A Calling - I think we all know a ‘career’ is something you choose but a ‘calling’ is something chosen for you. I felt completely chosen to do custom work. I studied sculpture in college but not until I had a client commission a piece and collaborate on the design, did I feel this calling. And it never stopped calling. Persistently Fun!
What One Is Into - This is the definition that fit the best. I have always been really ‘into it’. Physically, mentally, and even spiritually. All Consuming Fun!
Out of all the definitions, the one I did not even remotely identify with was ‘Occupation’. Other than being totally and completely mentally occupied when a new idea was coming up from somewhere-the word Occupation has always failed to capture how I feel about what I do. Occupation suggests JOB and I have never felt like I was plodding/laboring/grinding while I was making or designing jewelry. Well...maybe only when I actually WAS grinding :). My work has never been work.
And you thought, all these years, that I was doing work for you as I made your wedding rings and anniversary gifts. By participating in this joyous journey, you have helped provide the most FUN adventure I could ever imagine.
I am honored, grateful, humbled and nearly weepy. Thank you
