Thursday Night Shennanigans!

This last Thursday found us at it again, with a lovely crowd of friends gathered, and even a surprise visit from Ada who popped in at the last minute and worked on a jewelry project with Wendy. Janis was in to see us and work on a project, and she was sporting a darling little necklace all woven in beads and garnished with some adorable celluloid buttons she bought from me a while back (Yes, Janis, I noticed!). Jane Perry joined us early in the evening, so we had the pleasure of her company, and everyone got to ogle her adorable little kits for the upcoming class.

Here is Ada with her finished "Salvation" Bracelet, all made from vintage religious medallions.

Here's our Dede chatting with Sue, for of course, as per usual, it was a dead-heat gabfest here with the decibel level reaching some amazing proportions at times! Sue came and finished up a bracelet she had started the week before and after we checked all the connections, she was sporting that for the remainder of the night...

Our new friend Amy and Patrice Demory are looking over Amy's work as she gets some advice from Janis on techniques and materials.


Here is one my favorite people in the whole wide world, Carole, working with some of her beautiful fabrics...doesn't she look serious?

Here's hoping we see some of your happy faces here next week! Our extended hours (4-9 p.m.) are helping out for those challenged by traffic, so show up anytime after 4:00 for the fun and frolic. Plus...

I am talking with Kim at the Brownstone Cafe across the courtyard, and she is going to see if she can put together one Thursday a month for us in the courtyard, where we can sit outside and have a light dinner and then continue our evening there in the beautiful weather we are enjoying right now. Stay tuned...she will give me a price and a minimum head count so we can start plotting the fun!

p.s. my bean and queso dip was a big success...yum!

The Bluebird of Happiness has Landed!

Isn't he the sweetest thing you have ever seen? He came to visit me a while back and now he is back to stay for awhile, and come to play with us! This adorable little guy is the creation of Jane Perry, of Make~Believe, and this little mohair bird is a kit and will be a class on July 19th! Look at how beautifully these little guys are kitted up by Jane; the kit includes instructions, a pattern for you to make more if you wish, the mohair, special thread and needle, and even his little beak! The box is even stuffed with shred so you can gift your bird after completion if you wish. The sample above will be on display at the store so you can see what else you can do with your bird of happiness after he is done.

There are four colors available in the soft, shaggy mohair: pale blue, pale pink, creamy pale yellow, and a soft white. You can purchase the kit and work on it yourself, or come to the class which includes the kit. You'll get an email with all the class details.


You can imagine my delight when Jane emailed me said not only would she bring kits to the store, but would teach the class as well. Having Jane teach has been high on my wish list for a long time, and my heart leapt when her email came saying that there is no place she would rather teach a class than Gilding the Lily (isn't she sweet?). If you do not already have the pleasure of knowing Jane, you will delight in her kind and gentle spirit, and be inspired by her talent and modesty! Marking my calendar already....

What, where, when...

Today is one of those days when I find myself questioning....everything. Oh, how tiresome a trait is that, when one is already overloaded, but nonetheless, I went there. WHY am I doing this? To WHAT end? Is it REALLY important? And yes, I really do think about these things. Especially in the context of the very incredible people I meet each day. Do I -- and what I do -- really matter?

I am sitting here right now, feeling rather Carrie-ish in front of my Mac, pondering these little life lessons to be learned, and wondering just how impactful it is to be a keeper of things, an archiver of the obsolete, a fan of the obscure. It is, without a doubt, a highly sketchy occupation to have chosen, but when it all comes down to it, I will tell it to the mountains that it chose me, not the other way around. There is definitely the aspect of it having landed on me, rather than me landing on it. A little biblical in that sense, but very true.

I spoke with a friend and colleague in Boston recently, who asked me how I had ever had the foresight to buy and save toward this end... this culmination of creative I-don't-know-what that is burgeoning in our culture right now, and in particular, is manifesting itself as a movement of women realizing themselves and expressing same in ways that defy categorization. I can't answer that...no revelations there, only a drive to preserve what I felt was worthy. If it pans out, I guess I pulled the long straw. In the end, all that matters is that I chose what mattered to me. And how lovely that my selfish ends mattered to anyone else...

Bottom line, I have met -- in the short time I have really applied myself to this project -- the most amazing, surprising, entrepreneurial, sensitive, artistic, loving, sharing group of women that ever graced this earth. No shit. I am blessed once, twice, thrice. Take that for what it is, and what it will be. Stay tuned.

Fallen Angel...

As I walked from my car this morning with an armload of things, this is what I saw in front of Gilding...this poor little fallen angel, a tiny bird not half the length of my hand. I opened the door, shut off the alarm and went back out to get her, not wanting the threatening skies to pour down on her. She was still soft and limp in my hand, and must have been injured and fallen from the tree just a short while before I came upon her.

It wasn't the best start for a day, but I decided to ponder a little all the good things that are happening in my life right now, and all the wonderful people that have wandered into it of late. There couldn't be a better time than right now, and even though there is enough stress, hours of hard work, and the pinch of pennies to last me a lifetime...there is still so much to be thankful for, so much worth working for, and blessedly, the breath in me to do it. Not so my little fallen angel...

Soul Creations Has Landed!

Well, our Wendy has finally landed and settled down into a new spot with her jewelry and accessories, and can now get back to work creating more of her wonderful designs.

Wendy has a lovely little spot situated in one of Fullerton's newest shopping destinations, Sabrina Contreras' Carpe Diem Experience. Carpe Diem is located on Harbor Blvd. at the corner of Santa Fe and Harbor, just one short block south of Commonwealth, so not far away at all! Sabrina's eclectic and artistic mix of decor, furnishings, art and accessories is the perfect backdrop for Wendy's highly original creations, and in fact, Wendy has a new business name, Soul Creations!

If you attended the Mercantile Flea Market, you know where Carpe Diem is, and you'll have to pop in and see the store, during the week or at the next Mercantile Flea, coming up in just another week! I will be there, and my daughter Nathalie will be helping me run the booth after I run to my "second shift" at Gilding the Lily. She's moving back home in two weeks and will be taking advantage of this opportunity as well to clear the dust from her corners! Should be fun...




Here are a couple of more shots from Wendy's new space, which she is settling into quite nicely. She and I did a jewelry show together recently which was lots of fun, and we got to see (very briefly for me) Lisa Spears and Bridgette Antonelli, both very creative gals in their own right. Wendy and I are hoping to collaborate again on something soon...stay tuned!

Here's a last shot of the case where some of Wendy's killer necklaces are hanging out, as well as a few beautiful bracelets. Not all her wonderful things are in the store; you can also find her on Etsy, the place for all things handmade, at www.wendyhumphreys.etsy.com.

A Gilded Gathering

Thursday night...

Was a delightful gathering of creative souls with busy hands and even busier mouths, as we chattered the night away. Here you can see Patrice's nimble fingers working away at a wonderful millinery bandeau for a historical bonnet she is creating...
Kelly and her friend Ruth Rae showed up and were working on sorting out instructions for some earrings Ruth had created, and Kelly was sporting the most incredible pair of earrings herself, with large faceted green chalcedony framed by tiny emeralds...wow! I secretly hoped that Wendy would be able to contain herself and not tackle Kelly in the parking lot and rip them out of her ears...

Karen Lawson came, just for a short while, but she and Wendy managed to cram in a short yack session nonetheless...


Below is Sue, who bravely going where no one had gone before, snatched up one of the new "Salvation Bracelet" kits and set to work on it. With zip-zero-nada experience with jewelers tools and such, she was my hero for the night, finishing up all the main components before leaving for the evening!

Here is sweet Ruth...I marvel at how she and Kelly work so well together and yet are so different; Ruth is a deep well of calm and patience...Kelly is a whirling dervish of energy. They were the yin and yang of creativity that night!


And then there is our dear Dede...don't we just LOVE her?! She was regaling us with stories about work and then Kelly pitched in with a few of her own, and it was too funny for words. I think we all belly laughed until we were teary-eyed.


I did manage to get a few things done that night, including getting started on the kits to send to Nancy's new store in Reno, who grand opening is this Thursday...all fingers and toes crossed for a spectacular opening night success! Ruth is going to be there to help her, and I just know it will be smashing!

Ciao for now, Nancy

Envisioned Pendant Class

Vintage Optician's Lens Necklace or Brooch

This adorable necklace will be taught by Sherry Goodloe, an accomplished artisan and teacher who is new to Gilding the Lily. Sherry and I connected through blogging, and it turned out she knows our Dede very well, and we all met up at the first Mercantile Flea market in Fullerton and visited for a time. Sherry is a pure delight, and I know you will like her easy going ways and fun loving attitude.

Sherry will be teaching the class how to create this mixed media collage pendant or brooch using vintage optical lenses, your choice of photos or images, and any found items you would like to include. Bring your own photos (or copies of each), old jewelry bits and bobs and anything you think is promising! Sherry will be providing the vintage lenses and the techniques!

You will design a beautiful necklace or pin from a vintage optical lens, personal photos (I will have clipart available as well), rubberstamped images, words and/or quotes. Old watch parts and various other metal pieces and buttons will be available to embellish the outside of your piece.

After completing your one-of-a-kind piece, you will make a no-sew, rubberstamped, fabric bag to put it in!

All materials are included in the workshop fee with the exception of any personal photos you would like to use. Please bring toner-based, color-copied photo(s) - no inkjet. Even if you will be using b/w or sepia-toned photos, please have them color-copied (at a place like Kinko's) on their toner-based machine. Keep in mind that your photo will need to fit within a 1-1/4" circular area. Have several copies printed to "play with" in class.

Class will be held on Saturday, May 24, at 10:30 a.m. in the morning at the store. I'll bring something for you all to nosh on at break time and something to sip as well. Sherry needs at least five people to teach the class, so respond to me early to save your place. Workshop fee: $45.00.

Hope to see you there!

Nancy

714-680-8805 store

714-349-2069 cel

Belated Mother's Day Post

This is courtesy of my mother, who brought this to the store on Friday. I have the luxury now of seeing my sister and my mom almost every Friday; mom gets her hair done at Salon Unity two doors down, and my sis comes over and pitches in on any project at hand (yesterday it was lamps and wiring). The bonus yesterday was that my daughter Nathalie arrived there, too, and Grandma pulled this out of her purse to pass on to her, along with something else. This is a poem my sister wrote in 1996. I read it out loud to my daughter (while Linda cringed and hid her face), and barely got through it, it was so wonderful. We were all a little damp at the end!

Mother Are People

Mothers are people who cook things,
like breakfast or lunch or a snack;
Dexterous people who hook things
which button or zip up the back.

Mothers are people who blow things,
balloons and kisses and noses;
Green-thumbish people who grow things
like petunias and poppies and roses.

Mothers are people who send things,
like letters and strawberry tarts;
Magical people who mend things
like blue jeans and elbows and hearts.

Mothers are people who find things,
like mittens and homework and germs;
Fuss-budget people who mind things
like cuss words and snowballs and worms.

Mothers are people who sweep things,
like porches and cobwebs and rugs;
Soft-hearted people who keep things
like artwork, reports cards and hugs.

Mothers are people who nurse things,
a boy or a girl or a spouse;
And all in all there are worse things
than mothers to have in your house.

Warm regards, N

Just Ducky!

I made Lisa promise to send me these, and due to a modem that went south, I am just getting to post them, but is this cute, or what!? She called me from her cel phone, sounding just a little frantic, and wanting to know where a good place for ducks would be...the curious part of me wondered why, and she confessed the she had just rescued a family of duck waddling across a major thoroughfare and was driving with one hand, phone cradled between shoulder and ear, the other hand trying desperately to keep closed the flaps of the cardboard box which held the duck family, mama and six little ones...


I volunteered that Craig Regional Park would be a delightful new home for them, having lived across the street from there for years. She immediately recognized the name and set off for the park, but promised to snap some pictures for us with her cel phone. Here are the little darlings and mama checking out there new digs, after vacating the box....


Here is mama with the brood in tow, heading for the lake...


And in they go! Look at those handsome mallards checking out the new girl in town, single mother or not!


The babies take to the new location and start swimming immediately, leading mama out into the lake and new adventures that hopefully do not include crossing Associated Road at Imperial Highway...



Thanks, Lisa for sharing with us! This so reminds me of when we lived across the street and the ducks would come visit and swim in our little streams, babies and all. Happy memories!

Upcoming Class: The Embellished Shade

Karen Lawson will be joining us on Saturday, May 17 for an exciting class in shade embellishment. Many of you have seen her stunning shade on display in the store, and Karen will be showing us how she creates her shades, start to finish.

This hands on workshop will in several skills; Karen will demonstrate how to make three styles of ribbon flowers using French wired ribbons, as well as one style of leaf. She will also bring a limited supply of photo transfers on cloth, and will demonstrate the technique for transfering your favorite images to silk and other materials.

Class will start at 10:30 a.m. and last approximately three hours. We'll take a break mid-class and have some refreshments. Cost for the class is $45.00, payable by check to Karen. If you would like to reserve your place, please drop your payment in the mail or by the shop ahead of time to save your spot. Here's what you'll need to bring:



Supply List:

505 Spray and Fix temporary fabric adhesive

Fabritac glue

Fabric scraps (4-6 coordinating fabrics, roughly 1/4 yard each or less, depending on the size of the shade you plan to make)

1 Pre-fabricated lampshade (Target is a good resource)

Needle and threads to match your choice of colors in ribbons for your flowers

Wired French ribbons (Plan on 1/4 yard per leaf, 1/2 yard for one of the simpler five-petaled flowers, and 1 yard each for a folded rose and a pansy)

One pair of craft scissors and one pair of fabric scissors
Bits of lace, trim, gimp, ribbon, buttons, junk jewelry...just about anything you can think of to embellish your shade!