The Perimenopause Blahs

Wow. Early menopause sure sucks. Well, certain parts of it anyway. Like the random headaches and nausea and worsening PMS symptoms... I did manage to make most of a necklace today. Ran out of light and then started getting a headache - which, apparently along with night sweats, dry eyes and nose, tenderness, nausea and achy joints - is something I'm just about getting used to getting. 

When this all started a year or so ago, I thought I was just getting intermittent fevers and chills and flu. Put it all together with a monthly cycle, month after month after month though, and it's pre-menopause. Which is fine. The night sweats aren't really bothering me that much any more - though, it is winter and if I don't keep covered I wind up getting chills; with night sweats. But the whole idea of getting to menopause early is great. Seriously, I've been looking forward to it for years now. And, since I don't have and don't want children, that whole getting old and barren depression aspect of it isn't an issue for me either.

 

I'm actually looking forward to post menopause now. This pre-menopause headache and random nausea, dry eyes and nose thing... Well, I guess I'm one of the lucky ones - only a small percent of women get ALL the symptoms and it looks like I'm pretty darned close. I don't have the mood swings and, well, and that's about it. I've got all the rest. So this part is like being sick all the time. That sucks. Oh, and all of a sudden, my younger than 40 year appearance is not so younger than. My skin is really getting the rough end of this. But, eh, character.

 

Maybe that's why I'm so obsessed with using old jewelry parts these days. Well, that and the fact that the quality and design is often so much better than modern costume jewelry parts. Which is probably why a lot of people are finding them and using them AND/OR making copies of the originals. And it's a great way to recycle.

 

Reuse doesn't really apply to most of the vintage I use since it never was used in the first place. There are a few people who have hoards of vintage beads and parts that were (or still are) part of original stashes of unused stock that've been hiding away in a warehouse for a few decades. There's actually a lot of it out there too. It makes more sense to use good condition parts from these supplies before contributing to the production of future unused stock. Though, it is necessary to get new supplies for some things, I still prefer to use as much old as I can. Old, like me... older!

Speaking of old... I just finished three Lucky Charms necklaces using mostly 60+ year old parts. There's a few (thank you all the vintage supply people on Etsy) copper and brass I got that are FRom the 60's, and 70's, but most of it (including the MOP pendants with the REAL four leaf clovers) date back to the 40's. Have a look:

Brass

Copper

Silver, Steel, and Rhodium Plated Brass (mostly)

Look for them in my Etsy shop next week. I'm off to enjoy some more night sweats - wheeeeeeeeee!

They Say It's Spring, The Birds Are Light As a Feather...

Hmmm... not sure that's how it actually goes, but I'm in the mood for a little Blossom Dearie. Took my mother to see her play when she was out here visiting a couple years back. She's still a pistol that Blossom!

 

It's been snowing a little here today, but I sure feel the Spring coming on. You know that feeling you get when the season is getting ready to change? A little antsy and rarin to go... I think that's what gets some people "Spring Cleaning"... it's like a Pre-Spring thing. The "Spring is Here" feeling is different. Once it's here, there's no staying inside! No concentrating on the work at hand. I think that's why I'm itching to make so much stuff right now.

 

As I type, there's a mostly finished necklace waiting for me to come back to it. Brass and green stones and beads with some of it OLD vintage and some of it newer. Charms and beads and lopsidedly balanced.

 

I'm a big fan of the lopsided. Always been an asymmetrical person. My face is lopsided. My hair is usually longer on one side. I have more earrings in one ear than the other. I even like to dress crooked when I feel I can get away with it.

 

Back in the day I even had my own look. No, Shabby chic was never my style, the way I put it together I used to call Hobo Chic:

 

Rayon traditional Chinese style shirt or dress and a skinny 20' or 30's silk tie around the collar or my neck; worn on top of well worn jeans or immaculate 60's pinstripe slacks, always with a huge buckle belt; and a 40's vintage semi bowler hat and High Tops just to make the look complete.

 

I still prefer mens clothes to women's. Loose fit to tight. Though, I do wear more of both of the latter these days. I seem to be wearing a lot less jewelry these days too - as I get older, I just don't put any on before I go anywhere. Ironic for someone who makes jewelry, noh? 

Well, when I was a master control operator for local TV, I didn't have a television... though, I did listen to a lot of music at home when I was a radio DJ... hmmm... and I did go out dancing a lot when I was choreographing and teaching fellow companymates technique... Ok. doesn't always follow. I almost never listen to music at home or go out dancing now... Maybe I'm just getting old?

AHHHHHHHH! I'm old!

Ok. Not really.  I'm actually what the kids call middle aged. No, wait. The kids call me old. Drat those kids!

So, I took some time to finish the necklace. Elegantly complicated. Convolute in it's simplicity. I'll get a picture or two in the next couple days and put it up for all to see next week. It's full of lucky charms. It's a March themed month. Everything I've been working on this month includes these gorgeous MOP pendants from the early to late 1940's that have real Four Leaf Clovers on them. I've got some imbedded in resin and mounted in Silver frames I plan to use for bracelets too. Right now, I'm mixing them with Copper and Brass, vintage and modern. There are leaves and horseshoes and coins; all wireworked into a dangling mess of beauty.

 

Let me know if you want one for your very own; I am now taking custom orders. I can even do some earrings if you want. I did some for the physical shop with the smaller MOP charms. Quite nice. Waiting for the replacement bulbs so I can get the pictures of the new stuff, but here's a look at the earrings and one necklace I did for the store:

 

Sterling Silver w/vintage Swarovski
Gold Fill with New Jade
Gold Fill w/vintage Japanese glass

I've got another Gold Fill necklace waiting to get photoed and Silver necklaces on the way... I better get busy! 

Ok. Off I go. Until next week...

The Birthdays are ENDLESS!

Been a long day. 

Long week. 

Been making more jewelry than I've had time for in a while. Two I just wanted to make (pictures to come, still have to find time to set up the camera and do them justice) and two I just HAD to make (see one of the pictures on the side). Two 40th birthdays, one I have to miss. 

Unfortunately, it's my sister's. The distance and expense to fly out and the lack of help at the shop conspire to prevent attendance on my part. Very sad. The other was Saturday and the birthday girl looked fabulous. Even more so once she put on the present I made her! I know, but it did look good. 

I had a head full of thoughts last night as I fell asleep. I was looking forward to the writing of the day ahead. Then, after the 4 hours it took to get my sister's necklace just right, it seems that my creative energy flowed completely into the jewelry; effectively erasing every trace of desire to expend more on writing. I can't remember a single thing that floated into my mind last night. So, I'll just leave it on a thought:

It's not a question of aging gracefully; most people just seem more inclined toward graceless aging. Kick, scream and run around. As long as you don't whine about being old and enjoy your life as if you will always have one, people will whisper about your grace until you don't.