Published Earrings In Belle Armoire Magazine.

Two years ago I received a convo from someone on etsy that was saying that:

 I am the assistant editor of Belle Armoire Jewelry, a publication that showcases handmade wearable art, accessories and artisan jewelry. I am contacting you on behalf of the managing editor, who has been perusing your Etsy site and absolutely loves your work. We both think your work could be a great fit in our magazine. We particularly like your Midnight Lake Earrings.  If you are unfamiliar with the publication, Etc...

Well, luckily I kew this particular magazine because I was just came back from New York and one of our " must do" thing in NYC with kids, is to go to Barnes and Noble in Union Square because we all like books but also the atmosphere in this particular book shop.
I was very excited to browse Belle Armoire and other jewelries magazine and I even saw one of my favorite jewelry designer Maire Dodd published work in it.
Oh yes I was a little familiar with Belle Armoire and I was very, exicted, touched and honoured that their loved my work. and even considering to publish my creation.
After the enthusiasm came the doubt and questions when I read their rules.

                    Hold a true friend with both hands. ~ African proverb

What if I am not , what if...??? but my dear friends Linda and Leah were there to support me. They stand at my side from the beginning to now.
Linda is always very positive and will always tell me with her smooth voice. You will be selected, don't worry,  it is normal you got stress, etc..., things a true friends say to each other :)

 I finally sent 3 pairs of earrings and a few week later, I received another email to let me know that all 3 pairs were selected to be published.

                                                                          Yay!!!

Then life goes on, I closed my shop for a year and half and I even forgot about those earrings and Belle Armoire till recently during one of my insomnia nights, It came across my mind.
What is good about insomnia is that you have thousand things that abound in your mind.

 “When you do things from your soul, you feel a river moving in you, a joy.”  
 Rumi

Today I am very proud and honored to tell you that I have been published, among some very talented jewelry designers in this prestigious jewelry magazine.
 
Thank so much to my dear friends Linda and Leah for your constant support and for your help. Your are the best friends I ever had. :)
Love and Hugs to both of you. :)
Thank you to Belle Armoire Editor Cynthia Levine and her team.
  

                                                                                  ThE BeAuTy of MiNds

No doubt among the traits that separate man from the animal mask is one of the most prominent. Cover his face to hide the view of others acting towards each other is one of the many paradoxes that organize the need of the mask and complex concepts that underlie them.
The mask is thus justified by its dissimilarity, and there by his strength of appearance and disappearance. Before a face or face composite, mask is first reported to the invisible, supernatural.
Extract masterpieces of the Museum of Quai Branly.  MASKS

"The African mask is not the establishment of a human expression. It is an appearance ... The Artist don’t sculpt a ghost that he doesn’t know, it raises it by its geometry, his mask have  effect on look likes him in which he doesn’t look likes him; the animals are not animals: antelope mask is not an antelope, but the mind-antelope, and it is his style that makes it sense .
André Malraux, quoted by Jean Laude, The Arts of Black Africa.

"Everything you see has its roots in the unseen world. The forms may change, yet the essence remains the same"

                     Rumi

          MidNight LaKe

Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far. ~ West African proverb

 

 

 

 

  FuLaNi MuSSo II

“Only from the heart can you touch the sky.”  

                                                                                   Rumi

Caribbean Inspired. A tribute To L'Ile aux Belles Eaux!!!. Karukera

I have been making a few earrings and necklaces recently, inspired by my life in the caribbean.
Back there I was a commercial traveler for one of the dictionary publishers.  Everyday, after I drove my daughter to kindergarten at 7am (yes we used to start very early because of the traffic and also because of the very hot weather in the afternoon), I would drive around my favorite part of the island.  Sometimes when I didn't have any particular appointment with: school directors, the museum, or library, I would go off the main roads and most of the time I found a very dreamy place to sit and contemplate, or just soak up the beautiful scenery.  
One of my lovely customers, which later became my friend, had a house on the coast of the caribbean sea.  When sitting on her porch, you could see the other islands, Les Saintes and Marie Galante.  Sometimes when I was on this part of the island, I would visit her.  We would sit there on her porch and drink our iced cold lemonade and water.  It was so beautiful and relaxing.  
Another scenic imagery that I draw inspiration from was along one of the main tourist road called "La Route de la Traversée" on which I would often see the volcano of Montserrat ( A British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean)  erupt and spew its volcanic ash high into the air.   
We had a great time there but we needed to move on and move forward.  

                                                                             The BaHaMaS

 

                                 Of course, like most island blue, emerald, green and flowers were part of our life

                                                                           The PurPle Garden.

 

 

 VinTaGe CheVroN

 

                               Rainbow blue Mystic Titanium AB Quartz, Seed Beads and Handmade Ceramics.

 

 Everyday wear Earrings. Vintage Roman glass, Amazonite, African Turquoise gemstones, Handmade African lost wax brass and Handmade lampwork headpins and Criffles- crusty rustic lampwork discs with riffles.

 

A tribute to my Land, Africa!

                                                         To get lost is to learn the way. ~ African proverb


I heard the call of these beads like an echo in the starry, peaceful, dark night of Sahara to serve as physical reminder for someone to relate their spirit as strong medecine of our mother Earth and people who live in it.
Very long exotic, with a tribal vibe, bohemian flare necklace is  composed of fourteen different materials and can be worn simple or double.

                                                                  On The Road To FouTa DjaLon

       BaLaDe A Tombouctou, Timbuktu

The color of this stone remind me of the sand dunes.

 Tribal style vibe with bohomian flare earrings composed of gold, earthy Brown Cacoxenite Quartz, dancing at the bottoms are Old Telsum metal Ethiopian drops and handmade pure copper rustic ball end twist charms.

Cacoxenite is one of those rare ingredients that make something good even better

Cacoxenite forms within crystal or amethyst as an inclusion. It is a rather rare occurance, and can create a visually spectacular stone.

Its presence expands the properties already emanating from the host stone, and adds its own remarkable dimension of spiritual evolution and connection.

Cacoxenite is also a major mineral in the Super Seven crystal, also known as Melody Stone or Sacred Seven

Known as a Stone of Ascension, Cacoxenite is believed to raise the spiritual awareness of the human race and to provide a loving and ethereal connection between all of the universe.  Its vibration assists in aligning the Third Chakra with the spiritual.
Source:  Crystal vaults.com


                     Wisdom is like a baobab tree; no one individual can embrace it. ~ Akan proverb

  Tombouctou is a city in the western  of Mali, historically important as a trading post on the trans-Saharan caravan route and as a centre of Islamic culture (c. 1400–1600). It is located on the southern edge of the Sahara, about 8 miles (13 km) north of the Niger River. The city was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1988.

It is Official, I have a new name!!!!

The idea of changing my shop name is something that germinated many years ago. I'll tell you guys, it is not so easy to find a name you like that is not already taken.

                                                YeeLen SpiRiT

YeeLen means bright light in Bambara language. It was a movie made by a famous West African movie maker, Souleymane Cissé from Mali.
Is based on a legend told by the bambara people, a heroic quest narrative featuring magic and precognition. Niankoro, a young African man who possesses magical powers.

The beauty of the theme of movie and the landscapes are imprinted in my mind forever. It reminds me of my childhood in Africa.

During my childhood in my Grandma's village, the internet did not yet exist.   It was just the beginning of when there was a TV in every house.  Just like how people read books to their children before bedtime, my great Aunt would tell us stories every night.  She would tell us magical and mystic stories. Of course, as a child we were always afraid of the tales, but on the other hand we were fascinated to hear them again and again, night by night.. She was a very good storyteller.   I miss her so much.
So when it came to choosing a business name, what could be better than digging deep into my roots to find a name that really meant something to me? YeeLen, to make the light bright - this touches my soul.

 

Therefore after many years of cultivating this idea, I'm changing my shop name to YeeLen SpiRiT and make the light bright!

 

« Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.
We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?
Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God.
Your playing small does not serve the world.
There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you.
We are all meant to shine, as children do.
We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.
It's not just in some of us ; it's in everyone.
And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.
As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others. »

 Nelson Mandela in his 1994 inaugural speech, attribute to Maryanne Williamson.

« Notre peur la plus profonde n'est pas que nous ne soyons pas à la hauteur,
Notre peur la plus profonde est que nous sommes puissants au-delà de toutes limites.
C'est notre propre lumière et non notre obscurité qui nous effraie le plus.
Nous nous posons la question... Qui suis-je, moi, pour être brillant, radieux, talentueux et merveilleux ?
En fait, qui êtes-vous pour ne pas l'être ? Vous êtes un enfant de Dieu.
Vous restreindre, vivre petit, ne rend pas service au monde.
L'illumination n'est pas de vous rétrécir pour éviter d'insécuriser les autres.
Nous sommes nés pour rendre manifeste la gloire de Dieu qui est en nous.
Elle ne se trouve pas seulement chez quelques élus, elle est en chacun de nous,
Et, au fur et à mesure que nous laissons briller notre propre lumière, nous donnons inconsciemment aux autres la permission de faire de même.
En nous libérant de notre propre peur, notre puissance libère automatiquement les autres. »

 

 

 

 

“Being happy doesn't mean that everything is perfect. It means that you've decided to look beyond the imperfections.”