Influence of Surroundings ...



Birch Bay Sunset




Birch Bay shells, beachglass, pebbles

Like a lot of artists, I'm heavily influenced by my natural surroundings. Having lived in Birch Bay on the west coast of WA for seven years, I still feel the water sloshing around in m'brain even though I'm now in Spokane!

A number of years ago I read a Barbara Kingsolver non-fiction "High Tide in Tucson" about transitioning from ocean to desert. If I remember correctly, she wrote of her hermit crab still moving through its cage in time to the far away tides.  (Her insights about nature, desert, creativity, politics, et cetera are almost lyrical and well-articulated. I highly recommend this as a good read!)

However, I am planted here in Spokane for the present and this is where I have to find a new ebb and flow. It'll happen ... with patience.

It will be fun to see what new Birch Bay Kay jewelry will result from this new environment in Spokane, WA!

Beginnings are invigorating, aren't they?





Bits of sterling and a Birch Bay shell
on my workbench

 Beginning a new dialog, sharing personal secrets and musings of an artisan from her studio is a little daunting. I work in a solitary environment, and seldom have anyone to chat with about what I'm creating or what inspires a particular piece of jewelry.

It's time to reach out. So many people who have purchased my jewelry online at http://www.birchbaykay.etsy.com/ or at shows I've done in the past have expressed a desire to know more about what goes into making the jewelry with which they have chosen to adorn themselves. They want to know more, can you believe it? What can I tell them? They have good taste in jewelry!

As I've said, this prospect is a little daunting, but let's have a go at it!

This word "prospect" brings to mind prospecting, mining, digging. With a little digging and mining, we just might uncover a nugget or two of interest. If you have specific questions, please feel free to email me and I'll be happy to reply either through this blog or to you personally.

Within the last two months, I've made a radical lifestyle change. It will be interesting--to you, too, I hope--to see what effect it will have upon my jewelry. I've moved from Birch Bay on the west coast of Washington state to just about as far east east as I can go without stumbling into Idaho. I'm now living and creating in Spokane. However, at this early stage, much of my aesthetic is still affected by the ebb and flow of the tides on the beaches of the Puget Sound, the Strait of Georgia. But there is a different feel to Spokane, a different energy. How will Birch Bay Kay transition into a warm, dry environment far from my beloved beaches?




Seaweed on the beach at low tide

 Environment is very important to my sense of well-being. Although different here, I've already started finding places that feed my need for connection with the earth. The grasses sway in the winds much like the seaweed. With my eyes closed and the sun shining on my face, I could be just about anywhere ... everywhere!

Yes, I think this transition will bring about a welcome change!