Escapade!

I made a bunch of earrings, since my last post.
Beautiful evocative pieces, full of character and little details.
In a certain way, my  jewelry is  connected to my memories.  An item of jewelry, where every pieces has its own story.
Today's designs take us to Morocco, where you will find yourself stroll the souk and the medina, enjoy beautiful landscapes, between the warm mediterranean blue sea and mountains, through magical green valleys of scenic geoligical spectacle and fertile plains, desert plateaus and oasis; or simply ride a camel in the hot sand dunes.
This marvelous land will not reveal its secrets until you are confident, but for that, you have to take the time to meet the wonderful local people, who have a great sense of welcome !
Let these beauties be yours, and be the star of your own story.  You will not have to tell much, for your beautiful earrings will become the subject of the conversation. They will continue to speak the rich story behind them and you will be amazed how we are all connected to each other.

Beautiful vintage old  individually hand made in Morocco in  old fashioned  methods as the well as the tools  used to make these beads. As you can see, they are not perfect, so  expect some imperfection that contributes to their uniqueness which separates them from factory made items, modern handmade lampwork fossilized canyon trail headpins, and beads with  pretty browns and ivory, moss green and a hint of terracotta on a transparent base.

Hollow bicone shaped Moroccan Berber rustic silver beads made individually, by hand, with old tools and techniques that show some wear such as knicks on the metal. There are some imperfections which make them more unique and add  mystery to their story, such as  where they have travelled to, who wore them, before me, etc... Combined with the new handmade fossilized sand headpins that have a rough texture but also are partially etched and have a very little bit of shine.

Soldered Phantom quartz and oxydized by me. Vintage Moroccan Resin Beads, light topaz

Czech glass with a sbtule rose pink glow shines from within these captivating faceted beads.

Very elegant and awesome combination of color!  Handmade lampwork beads and  hammered metal ethnic silver from Turkey.

Please visit my shop as I have a lot of new designs that I am trying to list everyday.  I have distanced myself from Instagram for the moment because I find it very distracting, keeping me from doing all the things I need to accomplish. But I promise I will be back very soon. So check in on my shop often as there will be new listings daily.  Thank you.

As always, thank you so much for stopping by.  

Merci beaucoup.

Life of memories!

I took a little break from making earrings.

I made quite a few necklaces that I will share with you soon.
This post is a tribute to the woman in my life who inspired me so much in my jewelry journey and who has taught me the basic things of life.
Thanks to her, I grew up surrounded by nature and she taught me how to live in harmony with  nature.
Thanks to her,  I ate organic and fresh foods everyday while growing up. I spent some of my most fabulous summer vacations with her in her plantation.
She was the most wonderful story teller and comedian I ever knew. She was so funny and always made us laugh.
I remember how after a hard day, working on the plantation and cooking dinner, she used to thread beads for our waist.
I liked to help her, because I knew  that  she would tell another one of her fabulous stories.
She explained the meaning of the beads and of course, the name for them.  Unfortunately, I don't remember anything of what she told me.
She passed away, but my grandma is still with us.  We are very lucky because even at 92 years old, she still has her brain which works very well !

Thanks to her, I never felt like an orphan.

This important and inspiring woman of my life was my great grand aunt, my grandma's little sister.  She was more country, while my grandma was more urban.
Today, while making these necklaces, I was thinking of her.
How beautiful she looked with all the strands she wore on her waist and how colorful the beads were.
Women mostly used red cotton fabric to wear with the beads, and this was their underwear.
Someone once told me that "thong underwear or panties" is the modern style of our grand parents underwear.  I am in love with these simply beaded red necklaces, which also take me back to this period and time of year, when you got plenty of ripe delicious fruits and when we would climb the trees to collect these fruits.  Sometimes we would eat so many that we would get sick ! 😊

Odiche

Odiche means the one who is special.
The pendant is made with an extinct fossilized squid specimen called "straight horn" found in Morocco in grayish and black tones and handmade lampwork beads which I wrapped with recycled silk fabric.
I strung with red jasper, vintage black and white terracotta beads from Mali, 10 mm round red agate surround the pendant and the other beads are mixed vintage beads that were  from my Grandma's, and then some are reused from a broken Tibetan necklace that I had.

Obioma

Obiama means kindness.

Beautifully strung with red jasper, red agate, vintage African beads, Ashanti brass and vintage Tibetan beads along with handmade ceramic beads.

It always takes sometime, between the moment I share my new work here, and listing them on etsy.

So, if you see something you like, please let me know and I will be happy to list them for you.
My pain always increases when I work on computer. So, I need to go to my physiotherapist and acupuncturist in order to be able to use the computer again.
My pain is hindering me from running a good business !
Well, slowly I will try to use my phone or tablet, which is a little better for my back and my shoulder. But old folk like me, we prefer the computer. Lol.

As always, thank you so much for stopping by.  

Merci beaucoup. :)

Solange,Stop buying beads!!!

On this beautiful sunny cold day, I couldn't help but to walk a little further than usual.

I don't often go to this side of the city.  I don't know why because it is on the same street as the bakery in which I buy my daily baguette.  The name of this side of  the sreet is different though ^^.

For some reason,  I decided to change my habit and I went further than the covered market which is also in the same street  "Rue des quatres églises". I always ask myself , why is there no church in a street called "Rue des quatres églises" (Four Churches street )?

So I googled it and this what it said: "The street owes its denomination to the presence of four places of prayers on its course in 1728, they changed this name to "Rue de la revolution" in 1791 and in 1814, they changed it again to its actuel name".

Well, after the small historical interruption concerning "La rue des Quatre-Eglises, let us return to what brought us here!
Last summer, I came across a Tibetan shop and I was kind of reluctant  to go inside but I entered it anyway.. And I am glad I did because the owner is a nice and sympathetic man.

So, since I had some spare time before the next thing on my busy "to do list" (I am always have  a million thing to do, I know I should slow down a little bit)  I decided to  take a moment to go inside this shop  to see everything it had to offer .  I couldn't help myself  not to hoard all the marvelous treasures it had. The truth is that, the prices were very appealing because it is winter sales time here! :)
I really enjoyed the store. Going out of my usual area was a good thing.
However,  I have discovered another place to buy beads. I must stop buying beads.

Solange, stop buying beads! Lol.

I am already working with these treasures and I can't wait to share it with you! 

Aren't these Tibetan beads gorgeous and worth the visit?

Tibetan Repoussee Pendant Prayer Box, Brass Repoussee Pendant and  Dorje Brass hollow pendant

"Repoussee is a method of embossing a metal sheet (silver, copper, brass) by punching and hammering a design from the back, then polishing it up in front with a chasing hammer, producing a three-dimensional bas-relief surface."

"The dorje or thunderbolt is a symbol of divine power and the wisdom of the Buddha".

Red. Red is amongst my favorite colours. Seriously, look at these!

Aren't they the prettiest with the murrini!

They are definitely worth the detour!

Naga conch shell beads inlaid with crushed coral and turquoise

They are so smooth beads!!!

I have always wanted these naga conch beads but they are so expensive so I could never afford it until today. They are still expensive but this was my only chance to have them for my own. :)

When I visited Ghana, I was on a mission to find a variety of Krobo beads that I had invisioned in my head.  We searched and searched but I could not find the variety that I wanted.  I was told we could find what I wanted but we would need to travel to another city which meant we would have to drive 9 to 10 hours to get them.  Unfortunately, I wasn't in the mood and I needed to go back to Côte D'ivoire to catch my return flight, so instead I ordered these online.  So while it was worth the visit and definitely worth the detour, it was so much easier to order these Krobo beads online.  

Fish Vertebrae Bone Beads made in Senegal and recycled Krobo beads made in Ghana.

The reverse side of the repousse pendant is Ohm symbol.

I like to use handmade beads, recycled, upcycled and unique materials from around the globe to make my jewelry!

As always, thank you so much for stopping by!

SanKoFa

I can't remember how often I heard or used this word "SanKoFa". It is just one among others in my native language but I always liked the rhythm of the sound when Grandma used it. 

Then I googled it and wow... I learned a lot about it. How it has become a symbol in traditional Akan Art, in African American and African Diaspora.

SanKoFa mean to reach back and get it.

It comes to this moment in my life that I need to return to my roots!

When I first started my jewelry journey I wanted to make plenty of tribal jewelry, but with a comtempory influence.

I made some of them which were sold very quickly to people like me, who like the jewelry they wear to be noticed. ( In my case, it was not the sole purpose but I feel more comfortable this way!)

Then, we moved to this city where I currently live and I lost my interest in making tribal necklaces.  I was selling more earrings than my tribal necklaces.

Recently however, I felt the huge need to make the necklaces again and the inspiration came to me naturally.

Africa, Africa, Africa...

My beautiful land,

Land of proud warrior,

in our ancestral Savannah.

Don't tell me you are a myth,

because that's the way, I see you.

Beautiful land,

You have so much to give,

So much to forgive,

Africa, my land, Africa the broken heart. I see and feel your pain, but through this pain still I see your beautiful smile. I hear your Heart of a broken land crying. This is my Land and I won't deny it because I love you more than ever before... Africa

I see your hidden beauty, I see you like a very timid beautiful woman.

I see your potential and I love you ever more.

My land, My broken land,

I love you more than ever before,

Forgive us, Africa!

Forgive your children,

Because they didn't teach us, how to show you this love!

I love you more than ever before!

I never really left you Africa, because I carry you in my heart wherever I go!

You made me the strong woman, I am today!
I am so thankful for that!

I know like everywhere else in the world, you are changing. You are making a transition in your own style. Unfortunately these changes are not for the best!

We are losing our culture.
We are losing our native languages.
but still

Africa, I love you evermore

Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika

God Bless Africa

In this project, I used handmade vintage recycled vinyl beads from Mali, vintage Bauxite, African trade beads given to me by my Grandma,Yoruba Bell spiral charms, brass from Nigeria, brass cast metal from Ivory Coast, recycled krobo beads I bought in Ghana during my last trip there. The pendant mask was specially made for me at my request a few years ago by a Senegalese Artisan in the Ivory Coast, using the technique of lost wax,
and of course: gemstones, bone, handmade ceramics and polymer clay beads  made by my friend Leah Curtis.
I also, repurposed a Tibetan necklace my sister gave me which her friend bought in Nepal a very long time ago!

What you may think is just a long string of beads, is in fact a lot of: work, research, assemblage and disassembling to make the most perfectly imperfect tribal necklace from recycled objects that I have collected from all over the world over a period of several years.

As always thank you so much / Me daa si  :)