The Birth of My Animal Lover’s Line

paws & bones necklace

Further down I tell the story about my claim to fame.  This is the prequel to that posting, so you may want to read this first!

I have a very good friend named Julie.  She is, without a doubt, the most passionate animal lover I know.  She and a group of equally passionate people worked very hard and were able to start the Menominee Animal Shelter here in town (http://mashelter.org).  She has worked tirelessly for the last five years fundraising and doing everything in her power to bring notice to the needs of the animal community.

A couple of years ago, she called me up and asked me to create a necklace and bracelet set for her mom’s birthday.  She learned her love of animals from her mother, and she wanted the jewelry to be animal related.  We tossed a couple of ideas around and I said I’d work on it.  I found wonderful charms with paws and bones, and I paired them with Sterling Silver and gold plated accents (a mixture I LOVE).  Well, to make an even longer story short, her mother loved them, and so did Jules, who ordered several more sets for gifts.  I decided it would become my way of helping the Shelter (other than adopting more animals I don’t have room for…now) and I decided I would donate back a portion of the proceeds to the Shelter.  I have been able to donate to a cause near and dear to a lot of hearts while creating the jewelry I love. 

 Someday when my children are grown I have no doubt I will become the crazy cat lady who lives with a houseful of feline companions, and I will be a frequent visitor to the Shelter for that reason.  But for now I will help in the way I can – by spreading the word about the Shelter and helping by giving back to a good cause.

Paws earrings

Where does the time go?

I can’t believe the summer is almost over.  I was overly ambitious with my class load, and I have barely had time to do anything this summer…even making jewelry.  I keep telling myself it’s a season of my life and it will all be worth it, but when I see the days slipping away and another school year ready to begin, I get a little melancholy.  Another summer has gone by and the kids and I didn’t take that vacation to Mackinac Island…another summer and we didn’t spend any lazy days at the beach…didn’t look for beach glass…on and on the list goes.

How can I squeeze some creative time into my wild life?  I won’t give up my time with my kids.  They are growing up just too fast.  And they still want me around…so while that’s going on I’m going to be there.  I know I need to use my weekends when they’re with their father better.  I tend to sit around and feel sorry for myself.  Maybe I need to look at those as creative retreats instead of dreading them. 

I don’t know if I can, but I’m going to try.  Because I am an artist, and being creative is essential to my mental health.  I will be a better mother and a better person if I can indulge that side of myself.

I’m not doing a good job at being more organized, but I’m hoping I can make this work…we’ll have to wait and see.