A Symbolic Piece for Solstice

RESERVED

On this the shortest day of the year

We celebrate the going inward that winter brings

And surely some among us mourn the summer as long gone,

the year as a time of grief or joy.

We wipe our collective brow that we are here to see this sun, this moon

and meditate on the coming year and our wishes for it

for us

and our loved ones.

As for me, a lover of warmth and long days,

this time of year is hard. I find myself flowing in and out of what feels like despair

and countering the emotions with pep talks

and long walks around the neighborhood to process.

Today I baked my mother's bread for two new mamas

and will spend the afternoon delivering them, seeing the new boys that have come to earth this

late autumn

Today I put the finishing touches on this clutch, a symbol of Holy inward thought

as much as it is a blithe homage to flight and sky.

Every detail finely wrought and carefully finished

every moment making it full of attention and love.

Mookaite in Lavender with dendrites

Luna Moth wings for flight

Moon Mandala for meditation

Scalloped edges for sweetness

Hand stitched for gentleness

Made for the one who claims it

HERE.

May your solstice be full of meaning

and

warmth.

xoxox,

Allison

Allowing

When I was singing at the wedding a few weeks back up in Mill Valley,

I had the pleasure of rooming with a student of Transpersonal Psychology.

We were supposed to stay with the blushing bride, but she felt so comfy at her Pa's house that she left the whole gorgeous suite to us in Napa: what a gift!!

That night the two of us girls sat up late talking with increased

animation and wonder:

there was so much in common, so much to say!!!

Could anything be more wonderful than those instant understanding connections?

I chalk it up to being of the same tribe.

The one thing among many that stuck out in my memory of the evening was the discussion we had about perception - that it must be ok to let people perceive you

just as they decide to without trying to influence them into more positivity than they naturally feel.

That's a tough thing to process:

the grace of allowing others to have their own sense of you,

to write you as either hero or villain in the movie of their life should it serve them...

no pleading your case

not needing to be right or accepted

(or even liked) no matter how 'good' you know yourself to be

no matter the outcome

content to let life happen around you without the need to be understood...

Can you imagine the freshness of doing the best you can in every way without wondering

how it's taken?

The crisp cleanliness of a day well-lived in which neither detraction nor praise affected your

opinion that it was good to be breathing?

I think that may be one of the cornerstones of a solid, powerful and purposeful life,

especially in this day and age where everyone has the freedom to voice their opinion

publicly and without name:

perception is key here on these interwebs we've woven.

I am collecting these tidbits of wisdom I glean from good conversation

not just for myself,

but to give to a young boy when he begins to form a relationship with the greater world:

I want to give him a sense of allowing the world its own stage

so that he can focus on bigger things than being liked or seen as he sees himself:

I want to help him find keys to purpose and plenty.

xo,

A

Finit.

xoxo,

Allison

The Love of Color and Cake

I have it, this love of color. Always have, always will.

At the tender age of nine I discovered cross-stitching, and when my mother would take me to the fabric store I would moon over the tiny skeins of stitching thread,

wanting to take home a rainbow of them .

Barely content with the indulgent amount she would let me buy,

I would shut myself in my bedroom with my bounty and arrange them by colors:

rainbow

monochrome fade

perfect pairings

trinities

etc.

Now that I work with water-based acrylic paints, it's so much easier and infinitely more satisfying to make that rainbow from a few simple bottles of paint

.

Today I played around with increasing the water content of my paints and discovered

a richness of tone that seems counterintuitive:

more water, more richness?

Who knew!!!

I am working on the clutch from a few weeks back, which has been

claimed by a lovely lass here in California:

I cannot wait to see how it looks lined and bejeweled!

Also on the agenda is the search for perfect

Christmas deserts:

this year it will be just Anthony and I hosting his sister, Beth.

I know we'll make sugar cookies

and I think I might need to bake some homemade whoopie pies

as it feels quite like tradition

but

there needs to be a cake in there somewhere,

and this cookbook will likely hold the key

but I have to ask your opinion on this gorgeous matter:

Gingerbread

Hot Milk (love that name!)

or

Chocolate??

Head scratchers have never been so delicious!

xo,

Allisunny

Tropical Paradise

RESERVED

I love when a piece perfectly captures a feeling I've been aiming for - it can be a difficult thing to accomplish as it requires the cooperation of all materials, time and inspiration.

Hawaii is not a place that leaves my blood easily - it has been (both times) a struggle

to not spend hours remembering the feel of the places and people

instead of living in the present.

When I was working on this necklace I thought mainly of driving on desolate, verdant and overgrown Old Mamalahoa Highway, first by accident and then on purpose just to explore

the sounds and sights of the dim forest.

Even in low light there was a generosity of colors and form, a panorama of

beautiful things to sink into.

We were reluctant to drive back to Pahoa after that day's journey!

This necklace fits as would a 16.5 inch necklace and the pendant of Australian variscite, wing and Arizona turquoise

hangs five whole glorious inches to rest right above your heart.

I really want to see this piece go to someone who reads here

often

as it feels so personal:

CONVO

me

to reserve it in the

Metal Shop.

I hope to send a bit of The Big Island to you, wherever you call home.

xoxo,

Allison

Kamehameha Butterfly

Hawaii is still light on my mind...

whenever I think of The Big Island I catch my shoulders creeping away from my ears,

my breath deepening.

Even from far away I feel the land there giving me gifts.

I tooled a Kamehameha butterfly wing

and plan on pairing it with a stunning piece of variscite

in a necklace that will be sure to turn heads.

I cannot wait to finish

and at the same time, I totally can:

time spent thinking of those balmy days

is a gorgeous thing

and not to be rushed.

xo,

A

The Return of the Scarflette!!!!

Oh Scarflette, dear Elkskin Scarflette, how I've missed you so!

Upon whose golden lacy hide a tiny bean sprout grows

A veggie ivory button in the richest amber red

"Lady"s up the roughness of the rugged Elken edge.

Ahem.

Please pardon the terrible rhyme above

I've just been so excited to bring back a favorite from last winter!

Against the throat and chest, nothing could compare to the toasty warmth of golden veggie-tanned Elk hide.

This particular scarflette celebrates growth with the three stages of a golden bean.

It fits as would a 20 inch necklace with a long edge reaching down the chest some distance.

You can find her

HERE

xoxo,

A

Just Around Midnight

It started sometime in the middle of the night:

a nagging sadness that felt like a scoop of vitality taken out of the center of my chest

a crankiness that made me want to pull the covers over my head and skip

the next twenty four hours of life, stay in bed and aim for distraction.

From waking

to shower

Farmer's Market to

home

here she is: the blue day in all her glory.

Isn't it kind of amazing how frequently these grey soul days come after great accomplishment?

We nearly stripped the entire bathroom of its awful maroon paint yesterday

in preparation for a warm deerskin color we'll apply in a week or so

and Friday night I had my first Ladies' Night in years, the first time since Los Angeles

that I've known enough local lady friends to sit around a comfy living room

and talk about everything under the sun...

and then under a full moon the mantle of dim descends

like a mini-hibernation for the soul

starkly beautiful and beneficial all the same as those peaks we know.

Just as I've made a mental picture of Munson, my grouchy inner critic,

I think I know what my Lady of Infinite Sorrows looks like:

she is lovely in drapes of grey fabric

carrying a wilted bouquet

in walking meditation

bearing the weight of the world's woes in an oversized wicker basket.

Her face is lined with compassion, her hair silver as snow.

I never realized before writing her description how much she means to me,

this part of the whole that brings pause and rest

to bustling days.

I never knew I felt tender towards that kind of quiet...

I think I will bake a pear cake today

work on finishing the pieces that need finishing

and take a long walk in the dim evening light

with my husband

and my babe.

I might even introduce the Gray Lady to a little Tom Jones on vinyl

and perhaps she will find it as delightful as I find her silent company...

I hope that when your patron saint of sadness

sends an invitation this season or any other

you allow yourself to let them in

and know the gifts they have to give:

they are many

and meaningful.

xo,

S

Fruits of Winter

I am sitting here growing by the minute, appreciating ripeness

in a way that feels so revolutionary to my heart and head.

There is a kindred feeling toward things that blossom, nature that bears fruit.

Today, for the first time Orion actually woke me at 7:11 (the equivalent time to place where we bought the final pregnancy test --- delightful!)

with some fabulous moves

and I felt (for the first time) actual limbs when I placed my palm over my womb.

If I could have seen under the dark covers, surely this dance would have translated to my sight-

magic!

Three days ago my very favorite yoga teacher came over for tea

and catch-up, bringing with her the first of the Meyer lemons from her tree.

I proceeded to make edible sunshine with those gorgeous perfumed fruits:

Meyer Lemon Curd

Organic butter and eggs from Petaluma,

lemons from an angel.

You can find the recipe

HERE

and enjoy it just as we have.

Outie for the First Time

POP!

xoxo,

Allison

Last Chance Sale

HERE

Gone in one week!

xo,

S

Ear Gems

RESERVED

Beach Feather earrings with operculum shells and chrysoprase

RESERVED

Perfect Carnelian Earrings with Operculum Shells

Hawaiian Peacock Fern Earrings in Sterling

Microfaceted smoky quartz with operculum shells

Long and Dangly

Short and Elegant

Thinking of listing these tomorrow

but will happily take reserves

if the feeling moves you:

CONVO

and it shall be!!

xoxo,

Allison

Hammer Engraved Koi Necklace with Lavender and Orange Agua Nueva

RESERVED

Millimeter by tiny millimeter the graver cuts through the sterling silver

creating the picture of something beloved:

koi.

This piece was inspired by the tiny babbling koi pond that sat right outside the window of our farm stay on the Hamakua Coast on the Big Island:

the weather was chilly, and the fish huddled under a lily pad

tails undulating with the tiny wind-blown currents of their home.

Engraving little pieces of Hawaii is my way of

sharing the energy of the island with those who take home the pieces I craft.

Just as delightful as the finned friend

is the cut of Agua Nueva Agate partnered in this necklace:

orange and yellow as a sunset (so difficult to capture in the chilly light of winter)

with lavender banding and a hint of parallax in the lower right hand corner.

You can reserve this piece if you wish with a simple

CONVO

in the Metal Shop

And if no one claims her, I will list sometime this evening

or tomorrow morning.

With love from California,

Sunny

N.C. Black, Pie and Weddings

This morning I am having pie for breakfast:

the last piece of an open-top rustic apple pie that I made for the dear

duo of Andrea and Les of N.C. Black

as they swung through San Jose last night after a demo in Cupertino.

For those of you who don't know (perk up your ears, smiths!)

Andrea and Les are the ambassadors and educators for their company that makes stellar hammers, forming blocks and stakes.

I took an engraving class with them last November in Long Beach

and it completely revolutionized my work.

Their instruction was tremendous

and always above and beyond the basics - students walked away

filled with the kind of understanding that fuels passion:

that's good teaching!!

Les showed me a bit more about forming in my studio

and I look forward to showing the excellence of their tools through my work

as it becomes more three dimensional.

When I hold an N.C. Black hammer in my hand I am always amazed at the grace and ease with which it swings and makes contact: their work is sublime

Balanced

Elegant

Anthony has been instructed to get me a big vise (ho ho ho!!)

and I will be acquiring a small table to use as my forming station.

I will be writing a bit about each hammer I use

after I get the feel for them.

After a break in January, this dynamic duo will be heading back out on the road for what may be the last year of intensive workshop touring:

I sincerely recommend you check out their schedule and see about

getting some higher education

to take your metalsmithing to a whole new level.

I am happy to report that the wedding I sang at on Saturday night was a smashing success

complete with blushing bride and a fully choreographed high school- bff-dance to N'Sync's "Bye Bye Bye" -

I was amazed!!!

I have some really heartfelt work to share with you this week -

stay tuned!!

xoxo,

Allison

Hand and Heart

I have had my heart broken many times

through romances and friendships that lived out their full life-span

before I was ready to let them go

We have all been cut off in traffic, cursed at by someone we don't even know,

given the cold shoulder, cried on a bus full of people with nary a compassionate glance

And yet the bravest among us still hold out our hand to the world

and offer the gem of our best self

as a gift with nothing expected in return.

Expectations shatter joy

in a sad and noisy way - I've had my share for people I've loved

places I've wanted to go

things I've set out to accomplish

but the times of great surprise and open-mouth smiling

have normally come to pass when I didn't develop a notion about what was to come -

joy crept in when I simply gave of my time or my heart

without banking on what I would see, think or feel.

The wonder and passion of living seem to be the results of a generous,

adventurous soul who ventures into the dark cave of that next moment

with a beacon and a full lunchbox

knowing when to nourish and when to rest

expecting nothing

and giving everything they can to life.

Every day I rise I pray that God helps me

open

grow

and learn from both the slings and arrows

as well as the bountiful harvest

and I trust that in giving the best I have in me

there is a bright spot left where darkness once fell completely.

This design is one of a kind, paired with a gem quality Coober Pedy opal

from Australia.

The fire in the opal is a rich grasshopper green with hints of yellow, perfect for the heart chakra over which it rests.

It is roughly 19 inches long with a double chain

and the hand itself was hammer engraved, which is an ancient and time-consuming art that I cherish.

In the Metal Shop today.

xo,

A