The Blog Picture - A Story Behind

Greetings! I know I've been a little bit quiet still. But it's been on my mind to get back here. A few of you have asked about the design featured as the mainstay of this blog. There are a few of you who know me & the story behind it. It's not something I talk about much, but as I have shared before when speaking about heirloom work, sometimes powerful things, including design come from a deep emotional place for me.

Almost three years ago in March I received a phone call as I was driving over to Long Grove, to help my good friend Lynne at Olivia's Past by standing in for the day while she attended a style market. I will never forget it. I was running late... it was the first day of Spring Break for my children & I was racing to get there. I was calling Lynne to let her know I was behind & to ask if the neighboring store could post a note that I'd be there shortly... as fate would have it, she decided not to go to market & as I was on the phone with her, another call was coming in... a call that would have an unimaginable impact on me, and which still has a profound meaning that I never thought would happen and affect me or continue to be such a part of who I am today.

The other call was a caseworker who was very involved in my mother's life, calling to tell me that she was in the hospital in the end-stages of pancreatic cancer. I know... I know... shocking right? How can this be? What had led up to & transpired that you didn't know your own mother was dying? At least this is how I feel & think I would ask if I were the person on the other side of this.

There is alot of back story to my circumstances which I may or may not share here just because I don't know how well-received it might be. We all know that there are difficulties and circumstances involved in all of our relationships. I will just say at this point that my mother had been diagnosed later in life with some serious illnesses, to include some things surrounding her mental health. Those challenges created issues within my immediate family & deeply affected my children to the point where I had decided that some distance would benefit them. It was the single and most hardest decision of my life! To this day, I do still feel it was the right thing to do by my children - but it did and still does have everlasting effects on how I feel with regard to my relationship with my mother.

From the day I received that phone call, to the day she passed away was 2 1/2 weeks total. In my mind a lifetime of emotions & trials played out. After I received that call, I went directly to the hospital where she was staying. It had to be the most surreal moment of my life. I'll back up to only 2 months earlier when I had received a phone call from her & we had a subsequent visit together which went superbly well & she told me of her illness. At the time I remember feeling that I was capable... and willing to be there for her in her end time. That I possessed the ability & wanted to be there to support her. Ah...but you know as well as I, time can get away from you. I got busy with children and my business, and before I knew it, I was getting this phone call.

As I said, this was all so surreal. I couldn't believe this was really the end. I didn't understand the gravity of the situation. The hospital staff was looking for guidance from me...why me? I haven't been here, I feel I don't have the right to make decisions. Others in her life felt very strongly that I had no right either. There were so many good people in my life that told me to do what I felt was right for the both of us - right then, period. And after the difficult decision of putting her in hospice, I decided to spend every opportunity I could with her until the end. It is a choice now that I made that I am so truly grateful for. Despite all the hardships & challenges through our life... no matter what had transpired in the recent years, she left this earth knowing that I loved her and I felt her love in return.

This was such a crazy time...my children were on Spring Break, there was an upcoming family wedding, my husband who still after almost 14 years was travelling out of town full-time for work. The people during this time who surrounded me were my rock. They know who they are... I expressed what I felt in my heart at the time to each one individually & they know that I feel much love and gratitude. On mom's last day here, something kept pulling me to stay all day into the night...I cannot tell you what it was that kept me there...it was just a sense, a feeling to stay. The woman in the bed next to her would see me break down as my mother could no longer communicate and she told me to be strong... my mom was scared too, but I needed to be strong for her. Her last loving act was to take my face in her hands and give me a look that was so full of love...her last lucid moment. This is how I knew it was right - for the both of us for me to be there. I left that night and 3 hours later I received the call that she had passed.

So, we had this family wedding that weekend. There was no way that I wanted to change that circumstance... there should be joy & celebration and I just didn't want that to alter. So I postponed memorial services to the following weekend. In the meantime I had chosen some pink, frilly and feminine outfit to wear to this event which would have totally shocked my family - but that is who I am - unpredictable. Of course I no longer felt like wearing it and my teenage daughter was thrilled that I had decided that it was hers for the event. I didn't even care to go at this point, my heart wasn't in it. But something drew me down to my studio...

I designed what I considered to be the most formidable & bold piece of my career at the time. And that is the necklace you see pictured as the mainstay of this blog. Bold...embracing...powerful - and even a little forboding... I put every emotion I had into creating that design. The crowning glory centerpoint is a 1930's czech shoe buckle embedded with black czech faceted glass & rhinestones. The necklace is comprised of hundreds of czech 1940's faceted glass beads & a bevy of 1950's silver polished swarovski. I dressed demurely for that wedding in black denim wide-legged trousers & a 1940's style black satin wide collared jacket with peplum... and made that statement... I'm here... I am happy to celebrate the wedding, but the glorious focal at my neckline is where I am, anything I had left to give that week was in that design. Oddly enough, at least to me, everyone realized it. People gasped when they saw me...pale & forcing a smile...knowing I was in pain but there in support of my family and that design was approached by many that night, and those who know me well understood the meaning & the power behind it.

It was the only thing I would design for about three months. It was all I had to give of myself to my art at the time. It will always remain with me and become an heirloom in my family. While black is the color of mourning... I feel that this represented the boldness of the last couple weeks I spent with my mother. That no matter what had transpired... we dared to make amends. And I dared to be bold in celebrating her in that design....unconventional, non-traditional. That was who we were together - no matter what.

I truly hope that I have not offended by sharing this story. I somehow felt as the 3rd anniversary of my mom's passing is coming upon me that this was the time to share...

And We Have A Winner!

Congratulations to Heather of The Pine Cone Tea Cup! http://www.etsy.com/shop/ThePineConeTeaCup She is the winner of the custom-made vintage beaded pendant necklace. I have only had the fortune to have a few conversations with her so far... but such a lovely woman. She is a busy mommy of three who still manages to find some time to express herself creatively. Check out her super cute blog at http://thepineconeteacup.blogspot.com/. Welcome Heather! I look forward to getting to know you :)

NEW BLOG GIVEAWAY!!!!

Be the 50th follower of my blog & receive a custom-designed vintage beaded pendant on sterling silver chain! The above are personal designs just as an example... The lucky winner will be able to choose the bead colors of their choice :) And I thank you in advance to all of you participating. I will hold giveaways in the future to my present audience so that others will have a chance to win. You rock!
--lisa

I Got The Blues!!!!!!!!!

And boy do I have the winter blues bad! Going on week 3 here of no ambition, LOL! I want to be motivated...really I do! BUT, something is holding me back.

With that said, I do want to say welcome to all my new followers. Thank you for finding me interesting & crazy enough to listen to what I want to say :)

On a positive note, I did have the opportunity to go with my good friend Lynne and 2o year boutique owner http://www.longgroveonline.com/merch-pages/Olivias/Olivias.html to the Deerfield Clothing Show http://www.thedeerfieldshow.com/DeerfieldMainPage.html. For you designers out there - the spring color trends are brights! Orange, yellow, green & turquoise. I finally feel that I'm at a point in my career & inventory that I can start designing now for Spring & feel a bit ahead of the game. Instead of all this "realtime rush" where I am designing in the specific season. NUTS!

I am looking forward to going to going to the Midwest Vintage Clothing, Jewelry & Textile Show held annually @ The Hemmens Cultural Center in Elgin, IL http://www.catspajamasproductions.net/. It's held 2/26 & 27 & I love going Friday night when you can dress vintage & get a reduction on your entrance fee...fantastic caterer provides wonderful food & there is a vintage band...and of course you can have a cocktail. It's always fun to browse around with some wine, LOL.

There are several vendors who I only get the opportunity to see once a year & I look forward to catching up with them & seeing what goodies they may have in store for me to acquire & repurpose. I get some of my most extraordinary finds from some of these dealers.

Okay...I'll close now, because I know its not so peppy this time :) I have to find my feature list for doing the People Who Have Touched My Life...Touched My Art Series...maybe that's why I am frustrated!

Two more things: I am thrilled to be a new member of the VESTies! Vintage Etsy Society Team. This is spearheaded by my good friend & ardent supporter Martha of OpenDoorStudio http://www.etsy.com/shop/opendoorstudio. Martha is so savvy at finding some way cool vintage finds. It is her idea to bring together people across the country, with a concentration of people in Illinois to discuss & share on different levels about their vintage shops and artisans who re-create with vintage finds. More about us on our blog @ http://vintageetsysociety.blogspot.com/.

Secondly, I am running a contest on twitter that my 650th follower will receive custom designed earrings http://twitter.com/blastpast64.

Promise to be back soon, in much better spirits & with some fabulous photos & stories to share!

Bridal Bliss

Okay...okay, I will be the first one to say that I generally avoid bridal orders. These lovely women are experiencing so many emotions, I simply don't want to add to the drama, LOL! That's not to say that I don't do them, but I have to have a really good feeling about the person & the design concept :)

With that said, I have to say that my old friend Kellie was the most superb....flexible & easy-going bride to work with in my career! Kellie & I met years ago through a local email chat group called Chicagoland Moms. When all our children were younger, we would get together at a local McDonald's, Chuck E. Cheese... whatever agonizing, er wonderful play environment our kids would enjoy. We also organized dessert nights, Mom's Night Out & some other activities. Although we don't get together now as we used to, we have all managed to stay connected through Facebook.

When I was starting up my Etsy shop, http://www.etsy.com/shop/ablastfromthepast I really was overwhelmed by the idea of photography. I had always heard that the pictures needed to be superb because afterall, this is your significant selling point on the web. As an exercise, I decided to photograph all my personal designs in groupings & post on Facebook for my friends & mentors to critique. Kellie took a peek & got in touch & asked me to design her wedding jewelry. I was so jazzed. My husband was giving me the business about being behind on something I was like "hey, I got an order JUST from posting sample pictures, leave me alone, LOL."

Much later a mutual friend would ask how did we accomplish this without ever seeing each other or my seeing the dress in person. I haughtily replied that I am just that damn good. Okay, so that was bratty...but seriously, having my designs in & working for Olivia's Past in Long Grove has really given me the opportunity to hone my skills in designing for fashion. Kellie emailed me some pictures & I was able to discern by the dress style & knowing her personality, what would go best.

Kellie is just as funky as I am. Spirited but soft-spoken & gentile...but she has a wild, interesting "I don't conform" attitude. As I'm reading her describing the wedding & the fact that her & her daughters would all be wearing "chucks" to the reception. For those of you who don't know what those are (come on!!), Converse All-Stars! My girls wear 'em too! And of course in true style, this event took place on New Years Eve.

Kellie is the perfect person for a cha cha. She saw one of mine & wanted one to go with her dress. By the time I was done, I called it the monster - I liked it even better than mine...but that's how its supposed to be, right? Made pretty much entirely of 1950's components, the most rockin' confetti lucite, silver polished swaroski & old rhinestone balls - it truly was glammy.

We won't talk about the little bumps in the household that had me sending the bracelet UPS overnight just 2 days before the wedding. I will tell you this though, any other bride would have strung me up. Kellie is so laid back and for that I am truly grateful!

I always feel the best design comes from your soul. I'll let you in on a little known secret. I am best inspired when I listen to music. I mean my whole house rocks when I'm in the studio designing & am "in the zone." My family has learned to tolerate it & often sneak peaks to laugh at me...because at any given point you could catch me popping up from my chair "getting my groove on." The reason I am sharing this is because all good things happen for a reason. I had a good free flow of karma & peacefulness going on when I was designing this - listening to Peter, Paul & Mary. About half way through the design, The Wedding Song - There Is Love started to play. And yes...I was bawling like a baby. Kind of hard to see when your wrapping headpins - but I just let the tears flow, everything happens for a reason.

I wish much love and happiness to my friend Kellie, her husband & family. And thank her from the bottom of my heart for allowing me to be a part of her special moment.

Heavenly Heirlooms - Part II

Well HELLO!!!! I thought I'd be back here sooner, but we all know the holidays bring much craziness & we're all so busy. The trunk shows were a success! Opening the studio this year & leaving it open was the best thing I did, which also created alot more work & hence put me a bit behind on other things. Still have fudge & pies to bake & gifts to wrap, but I would rather blog :-) Procrastination at its best.

I really wanted to share about my Christmas gift. I call it a gift because it was another rare opportunity to share my art with someone & create something beautiful. I have a lovely client - Mary Ellen. Her & one of her colleagues are my favorite earring buyers. They teasingly try to outdo each other on whom has the best ones made by me. Awe... shucks :-)

Both of these lovely women came out & supported me during the studio show & I had some subsequent work to do for them. I went to J.B. Winterberry where they work, which by the way is a fabulous antique/gift shop in Wheaton, IL to deliver fabulous yellow earrings to Mary Ellen. She said she was so glad I came that day because she had something to show me & wanted to see if I could do anything with it.

She opened this small jewelry box & in it was the most stunning rhinestone-encrusted brooch with filigree in grey, cherry & ruby red swarovski stones that I had ever seen! I thought it was the most incredible piece I had seen in quite some time. The story goes that this brooch was worn by her mother to her wedding 46 years ago & it has sat ever since. Having seen alot of my work so far, she gave me the great honor of entrusting me to create a necklace for her so that she would start wearing this gem.

I assured her it was in good hands & that I had just the right crystals to enhance this beauty & I promised I would have it done in time for her to wear for Christmas. But of course when I got home I didn't have a large enough base for mounting - craziness! So I ordered from my favorite supplier, Cherry St. on Ebay & hoped I would receive it in time. And of course I did.

So, on Saturday I sat down & tightened all those stones, picked out the beautiful ruby & cherry red 1950's swarovski I would pair with this treasure & I was ready to get to work on removing the pinback so that I could mount it on the stamped metal base. I gasped when I saw that it was a signed Made In Austria piece. I really do not like to alter signed beauties, but I knew that Mary Ellen really wanted a necklace & I know this will become a piece that will be passed down for generations in her family, so I did what I had to do.

When I was finished with all the hand-wrapping and assembling, I realized I had utilized more crystal than chain... well, the end result was nothing less than something that looked like it could of been worn by one of Henry VIII's wives. It looked like gems and jewels, not rhinestones & crystals. I put it on, because of course I have to try everything on that I make, I was so thrilled & envious.

That's the best part of what I do... designing something that I know I would wear in a red hot second & knowing all the time that I'm bringing joy to someone else.

So, I had the opportunity to visit with Mary Ellen yesterday, and I warned her in a phone call that it was quite a formidable piece. But Mary Ellen is a tall statured lady that could pull this off - I know she is! During that call she told me that maybe someday she would be able to wear it as well to her son's wedding (gave me goosebumps) just as her mother had worn it to hers. I had such fun visiting with her as she reminisced about her family, Christmas traditions & we talked about some of the antiques & collectibles that surrounded her lovely home. I could have stayed all day, but the reality check was that my phone kept ringing & my husband was calling about a dental emergency with our youngest child, so I had to cut our visit short.

Almost at the end of the visit I slipped my hand into my purse & brought out the little bag holding her treasure. As I was removing it from the bag, I could already see the delight in Mary Ellen's eyes. As she put it around her neck, I knew it was the perfect design for her & that she will wear it now. She was thrilled & told me she would be wearing it to all her Christmas festivities. I was so happy & honored to spend a little time with her & to do something for her with a piece so important that would give her joy for years to come. We made our own little memory together!

Oh, and she had the sweetest gift for me! I collect vintage and unique Christmas & my friends will say it is no easy feat to find something for me that I do not already have. But she did it! She gave me a strand of reindeer bells on a strap that I can hang on the door! I love it! And even better, I know that it will annoy my family every time they come in/out of the door, so woo hoo!

Wow, this was a story, eh? I guess I'm making up for these few weeks that I haven't been online much. I will return after the first of the year with more on the family and more of who has a part of & how I got to where I am today.

Wishing everyone much joy during the holiday season...

It's been a while...

Tis the season to be busy & not have time to blog! I am having my last event this weekend... an in-studio holiday open house. This will be the first time I'm opening the studio to a broad public audience. I just finished setting up - it looks so fabulous (except for my actual work area - which looks like a bomb went off on it) & I promise to take pictures & post after the event is done.

Then we'll get back to our regularly scheduled program...I haven't written about Funkymom & the Family in a while. And I want to do the first installation of the People Who Have Touched My Life...Touched My Art Series.

More soon....PROMISE