Handcrafted Jewelry

Dropping the Ball

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 05:48:00 +0000

Jeez, long time no talk to, huh? Or write, or add to the site, or fix the site, or...

You may have noticed the index page has changed, and all the linky goodness has been removed. That's because I am finally getting around to redesigning the new site and working on the new product lines, and while I've been doing that, I haven't had time to fill orders. Of course, the time when you can't fill them is when they start to pour in, so I had to take down the "real" page. On top of the redesign, I'm also filing taxes and getting a LOT of stuff taken care of that has been sitting since I left for Paris way back in the good ol' days of 2006.

Holy smokes, does time fly.

I haven't had a day job in quite some time, so it seems a great time to put in the work I've let sit for the last 3 years. As I posted a while back, Dragonfly Design is becoming Bijoux Bisous, a more fun, kicky sort of place. When I started Dragonfly, I wanted to offer jewelry in sterling silver and semi-precious stone. I would not allow myself to work with pewter, copper, base metals, or clay, glass, or any other "cheaper" materials, because I wanted to focus on more "upscale" (for lack of a better word) goods. I never really got to realize that vision in the way that I wanted, because I kept getting sidetracked. And I felt stifled. I wanted to do more creative stuff, but I kept getting pulled in the same old, "beaded jewelry" direction, even though that kind of crafty style was not what I really wanted to do. Part of that was my own doubts, a self-stifling of my creative impulses, trying to appeal to a wide variety of people at once, and a rigid set of standards that did not allow me to grow beyond the box I'd somehow set up for myself.

I have since come to learn that my talents do not lie in costume jewelry design. I know too many talented people who put me to shame in that regard. They design and create beautiful, graceful works of art you just happen to wear on your person, while I tend to make simple, very straightforward designs that are more functional than beautiful. Try as I might, I just don't come up with beautiful, gracefully chic, trend-setting designs. I'm more about the whimsy. The quirk. I like simple things that sometimes go together in ways most people might not think to pair them. And I hate mass-production. Oh, man, do I hate it. Once I make something, I find I don't ever want to make it again. The fun is in making one thing and then moving on. I just have to stop playing it safe and accept that sometimes what I make will appeal to someone else, and sometimes it won't, and I'll have to cut it apart, call it a loss, and turn the parts into something else. That's life. Hopefully, I won't have to do it very often. Hopefully, what I like will appeal to other people, too. Because if I feel lukewarm about something - or I don't really like it at all - odds are, no one else will be all that excited about it, either. That's how life is.

So anyway, that's what's going on. I'm still dealing with my dad's death, trying to take care of all the stuff I've been putting off for the last 3 years, and basically working at wiping the slate clean, to start all over again. The new site will have all kinds of stuff on it that Dragonfly never really had room for. Quirky stuff like girly computer accessories, travel pillows, sachets, lotions, lip balms, perfumes, notecards, window hangings, bags, etc. Nearly all of it one-of-a-kind and never to be repeated again. Because life is like that, too. :)

Life Is What Happens...

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 22:40:00 +0000

In the midst of redesign, my father passed away. I live in another state, so it's been very difficult logistically, as well as dealing with my loss. In addition to his memorial service, there was the interment of his ashes on the family farm and the sale of his herd of beef cattle to handle. Now there's probate and his estate to administer, which involves travel back and forth from California to Texas. I've lost some of my momentum with my grief and all the confusion that goes with it, but I hope to be able to pick up the reins and continue soon. Thank you for staying "tuned."

Rebranding

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 11:02:00 +0000

I have really grown beyond jewelry in the last few years, so a site with jewelry in the url isn't working for me. Hence, in 2009, I will be rebranding Dragonfly Design to Bijoux Bisous, Jewelry & Other Kisses. You will still be able to get there from here (at least until the domain expires sometime in I think 2010), but I really think the new site offers greater flexibility. So much has changed since I started Dragonfly 5 years ago, that it's time for a redesign, and starting from scratch seemed a lot easier than trying to rearrange the furniture here.

I've given it quite a bit of thought, and my heart just hasn't been in Dragonfly since I came back from Paris. If I'm going to spend my time building something, I want it to be something I really enjoy spending time on, and I just wasn't connecting with Dragonfly any longer. It had gotten too far away from what I really wanted to do and the jewelry I really wanted to make, and I was spending most of my time making jewelry for other people, not for me. Which sounds odd, but if jewelry is my creative outlet, I want to make stuff *I* like, and if others like it too, so much the better. Besides, I believe that if I'm excited about something, that excitement rubs off on others and attracts like minds. If I'm not excited...well, the last 2 years at Dragonfly is what you get. I think the new site will be a lot more fun, a lot more positive, and way more relaxed, and frankly, I crave more of all of that in my life these days.

So I hope those of you who have been my faithful fans will follow me to Bijoux and enjoy it as much as I plan to. :) And of course, you can still order from Dragonfly. Just shoot me an email with your order.

See you there!

Jenie

Busy Busy Busy

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 19:39:00 +0000

It's crazy here at Chez Dragonfly these days!

We have a new puppy in the house, and he's a bit of a terror. Imagine Attila the Hun as a 10-week-old Shepherd-Rottweiler puppy, and you have our little Napoleon. I adore him, but I swear to you, I have already written several different versions of Buffy the Vampire Slayer scripts in my head where Buffy gets this adorable little puppy who turns out to be a demon in disguise, merrily working his way through systematically destroying her life in the most destructive way possible. Of course, he's an adorable little puppy, so there would have to be a crossover episode into Angel, and I've written that in my head, too. Mainly because I think it would be absolutely hysterical watching Angel deal with the mayhem of a furry little demon puppy. Fear not for the little guy, however - his very cuteness demands he live on at the end of the episodes. :) Our pet names for him are The Monster and Piranha, if that tells you anything at all. He was a shelter puppy and demands a lot of attention, so I really only get things done during his naps. I don't know how those of you with human kids do it, because if I had years of this to look forward to, I think my head would explode...

Of course, we also have a 7 month shepherd mix named Razzle, who seems to have reverted back to his hyper puppy days, so I've really had my hands full. I love my boys, but they do make it hard to get things done, I have to say!

In addition to running Dragonfly, I also work in television, which can be rewarding and fun, but is also a little irregular and crazy, as it tends to run toward the feast-or-famine type of employment. Right now, I'm in a famine stage, which necessitates job hunting, one of my least favorite things in the entire world. As you can imagine, that's taking a lot of energy, so the redesign of the site and choosing a new payment gateway and the like are taking longer than I'd like, but they'll come together in time for late Fall. Please continue to order via email, and I'll take your credit card or Paypal cash payments.

I'm pleased to report my mosquito repellent worked quite well during the summer months at the dog park, so when the site's up again, I'll be running with that, as well as facial toner and bath scrubs added to the skin care line. I hope you'll like them as much as I do!

I'm revamping packaging as well, going with more glass and aluminum and scaling back on shipping packaging (going with more paper and recycled or corn starch peanuts, as opposed to polyester bags and new styrofoam). I have never liked plastic. It seems cheap and is not good for the environment. It also emits gasses and can react with the product inside it. Glass does not do that and is easier to recycle. I'm considering giving discounts to people who return their jars and bottles for refill, too. A recycled glass jar is a happy, happy jar!

And now Napoleon is up from his nap, so duty calls!

Take care,
Jenie

Temporarily taking orders via email

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 08:42:00 +0000

For the time being, I have discontinued credit card service and am accepting payment via check or Paypal.com - I disabled my payment gateway today, due to lack of satisfaction with the service since Paypal took it over. Since I'm in the middle of revamping my entire business anyway, it's not the worst thing in the world, but I'm less than thrilled. If you'd like to place an order, please contact me via email. You shouldn't see any extra delay in accepting or processing your order.

My mosquito spray seems to be working quite well so far. That makes me happy.

Aside from that, some reorganization and trying to get taxes done, life is pretty uneventful.

How's YOUR summer?

Mosquitos?

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 09:29:00 +0000

I take my dog to the bark park pretty often, and there's a creek running behind it, so the mosquitos come out as soon as the sun sinks below the horizon every day. I've been using a lot of repellent to ward them off, and as someone else there pointed out, your skin is your largest organ, and what you put on it gets sucked right into your body. So who wants to spray DEET on themselves every single day? Not me...yick. So I'm currently testing herbal mosquito repellent on myself - and any takers I get at the bark park. I'll let you know how it works out.

I also got a new camera recently, so as I wrap testing on the newest body stuffs, I'll take pictures at long last, and you'll be able to buy them on the site. It's been a while worth of testing, but I'm getting good results and finding out some products do more than I thought they would, which is pretty nifty. I'm leaning more towards body products than jewelry, these days. The skin care stuff is just more fun and rewarding. Probably more difficult, too, but oh well. :)

ttyl!
Jenie

Surly-Ramics

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 06:31:00 +0000

Hey, ceramic jewelry lovers!

There's a really great place here in LA (and on the web) where you can get really fantastic, truly unique and one-of-a-kind pieces. Check out Surly-Ramics, where Johnny Skaare and Amy Roth (who are now engaged!) are turning out everything from the spiritual to the punk and all stops in between in the form of some awesomely creative pendants, focal pieces, and jewelry. They're gettin' bigger and bigger, so get thee hence and order, because soon the only way you may be able to get their stuff is to pay high prices in places like the Nieman of the Marcus. I'm not kiddin'. You want something special and tailored to you, Surly-Ramics is a great way to express your individuality and/or make a personal statement. It really is art you can wear. Check 'em out. :)

Happy Independence Day!

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 06:08:00 +0000

So if you've been posting and not getting replies, I'm sorry. I'm really disenchanted with Blogger since Google made me register for a stupid google account to use it. I do not need yet another service requiring yet another user ID and password combination, and I'm looking for a better blogging service. Wordpress is looking better and better.

I've been noodling around with skin care products from time to time, only making jewelry for special orders, as I've also been working nights in television, and that messed my body clock up something fierce. I got a new puppy a few months ago (rescue from the pound), and he's also time-consuming, but also very rewarding. I take him to a nearby dog park, and today, I spent my time chatting about jewelry with another woman there, and that's actually gotten me thinking about making jewelry again and putting in the work to get new stuff made and revamp the site, which I've been meaning to do for 2 years, now, since I got back from Paris...which I miss something fierce!

So that's what's going on, and those of you who have emailed me too, please forgive the tardiness of my replies. There was a bit of a hiccup with my mail program, and I didn't get all my messages all the time.

I think I may also be changing my payment gateway soon, as I've not had good luck with Verisign since Paypal acquired it. :( I'm casting about for options, now.

Happy 4th of July, everybody! I hope to see more of you, soon.

Jenie

China, Jewelry & Lead

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Sun, 05 Aug 2007 07:43:00 +0000

If you are purchasing jewelry made in China, you need to be aware of the risk it poses to your children. China refuses to acknowledge United States standards for lead content, as it finds the .06% by weight limit imposed by the US Consumer Product Safety Commission as unreasonable. The Chinese government feels the level of lead which can seep from items such as charms and painted trinkets harmless to small children, despite the cumulative damage of lead poisoning. So far this year, over 6 million pieces of jewelry manufactured in China have had to be recalled on 17 different occasions, and at least one child has died from swallowing a charm containing high concentrations of lead.

In addition, you should be aware that jewelry containing lead crystal - such as that made by Swarovski* - should not be purchased for wear by children or for mothers with babies, as babies will often put necklaces in their mouths as they are being held. Even tiny amounts of lead can be poisonous to babies and small children, and the effects of lead poisoning are cumulative, which means the amount of lead one's body absorbs can build up with each additional exposure.

Products made in China account for the vast majority of recalls issued by the CPSC each year, so please check the label for country of manufacture before you buy anything that will come into contact with your children, be it the jewelry you wear or toys your children play with. As well, it is prudent to ask before you buy from jewelry artists in this country where they get their materials and whether or not the components contain lead. It's a big world out there. Let's all try to be safe.

* it should be noted the Swarovski company in no way suggests its product is safe for small children; I only use it as an example because most people are familiar with it.

Hello Again!

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Tue, 24 Apr 2007 06:00:00 +0000

Hello, Everyone!

It's been a while since I've been very chatty, huh? 2007 has been keeping me on my toes, I have to say. It was pretty busy for a while there, but things have slown down, and I've had the chance to put some much-needed time in on Dragonfly. I'm really excited about the new line of skin care products. Beta testing is going really well, and I hope to have scrubs and "talcs" (talcum-free body powder) on the site very soon. :) The scrubs and talcs are scent-coordinated, so you can use both without one covering up the other. My first entry is a citrussy floral blend utilizing bergamot, lemongrass and ylang ylang. I hope to follow that up with a cool summer peppermint blend, and then something woodsy, for my friends who don't really care for florals. (Hope, that would be you!) Once that's all done, I'm really thinking of a nice clary sage blend of some sort for those of us who do like to smell flowery-herbal clean. :)

Beta testing begins soon on cleansers and toners, as well. I use everything for a while first myself, to work most of the kinks out, but beta testing helps me make sure other people approve of them as much as I do. :) Testing on other additions to the line has completed, but I can't find packaging I really like - packaging and labelling are proving problematic and the most challenging part of the deal, frankly. So much care has to go into that once you start making things for others to use, it's amazing. The stuff you take for granted when it's just you using the product pretty much flies right out the window the second someone else decides to use it!

Once a full line of skin care product has launched, I want to revamp the jewelry side of things, but right now, I'm really focussed on my skin, and that is carrying over into Dragonfly. Who knew turning 40 would have such an impact on things?! I'm also working on a children's book and a career change, so things have been pretty busy for the last year and a half. Priorities are changing in a way I really feel is for the better, as far as my life goes, and I hope that will be reflected in the changes I make in Dragonfly.

I'd love to know how you're all doing, so please feel free to drop me a line. Some of you have written to let me know about different jewelry care facts and trivia you've discovered, while others have just wanted to chat and say hi. It's been really great hearing from all of you, so I hope you'll all have a wonderful, safe, and happy remainder of the year. All you moms out there have a wonderful Mother's Day - it's just around the corner, you know. :) I already got my mom her present, so it might actually arrive on time this year. Hopefully that won't send the earth flying out of orbit, or anything too traumatic. ;)

Best, as always,
Jenie

Hmmm...

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Thu, 04 Jan 2007 04:21:00 +0000

That didn't go so well. The new and improved site and products, I mean. After my last post, I got hit with jury duty, which really puts a damper on stuff like site design, new product roll-out, and job hunting. So none of my dreams were implemented, which makes me sad. That being said, now I can go ahead and fully realize stuff the way I wanted to and would have had I not been in France an extra 45 days. As it is, I didn't even get a newsletter off this year.

So I hope everyone had a safe and happy holiday season, and that 2007 finds you in good health and spirits. I hope your dreams take flight and bring you freedom and joy, and that every good thing finds you while the bad pass you by in the coming year. Happy New Year, everybody. Happy new year.

Best regards,
Jenie

Let the Shopping Begin!

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Fri, 24 Nov 2006 05:14:00 +0000

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving Day. :) Are you ready to start shopping? :)

Use the coupon code XVD-1006 at check-out for 10% off nearly everything in the shop. Join the Dragonfly mailing list and get an additional 15% (25% total) on a wide range of selected items. :)

Happy holiday shopping!

Jenie

Au revoir Paris, Bonjour Tristesse

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Tue, 21 Nov 2006 18:49:00 +0000

Home from Paris and slowly recovering from the flights back, which were fairly awful, from multiple delays to inedible food, severe dehydration, and row companions who took up way more than their fair share of seating. I was never so happy to get off of a plane in my entire life than I was to touch down in L.A.

So now I'm working at getting Dragonfly back in order for the holidays. Keep an eye out - I'll post a 25% off coupon code here soon. You can start shopping probably Thursday and definitely Friday. :)

Jenie

There's No Place Like Home...

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Tue, 07 Nov 2006 03:29:00 +0000

I'm wrapping up and winding down here in the City of Lights, and I so can't wait to get home again. I'm sure about 2 minutes after hitting LA traffic, I'll be rethinking the whole returning home thing, but right now, I have to say I'm really looking forward to it. It's been a great trip, and I saw lots of cool jewelry and architecture and took tons of photos, but boy howdy, I am ready for home. I miss my space, my bed, and my significant other...not necessarily in that order! ;)

By the time I post again, I'll probably be home. I look forward to making new jewelry, and the ideas have been flowing, so hopefully by the day after Thanksgiving, I'll be able to get new stuff made and photos up. Look for that big sale, too. :) Everything will probably be on sale 25-30% off, and there's only one of most of each item on hand, so when it's gone, it's gone.

A bientot!
Jenie

50,000 Words in 30 Days

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Wed, 25 Oct 2006 14:43:00 +0000

I've gone and done something wacky and signed up to participate in NaNoWriMo 2006. Coz I'm nutty that way. I don't know how much writing I'll get to do between November 19 - 24, so it's really 50,000 words in 26 days...23, actually, since the 19th is a travel day, I have to get Dragonfly ready for the holidays, and I'm busy the last two Sundays in November, but I work better under pressure anyway, so what the heck. :)

NaNoWriMo. Condensed insanity and a license to freak out. What's not to like?

Update from Paris

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Mon, 23 Oct 2006 22:34:00 +0000

Hello, all -

I hope everyone is having beautiful fall weather and gearing up for a Happy Halloween. :)

I'm still working on the book in Paris and looking forward to getting back home and instituting all the changes I've had time to contemplate. I've decide to have a big sale as soon as I get back, so check in the day after Thanksgiving to save 20-25% or more on almost everything on the site, as well as the unveiling of new facial products and possibly some body stuff, but that depends on whether or not I can get packaging delivered in time...

I will also be starting a new site soon, called Waterlily Studios, from which you can purchase high-quality digital photographic prints and notecards and download wallpaper and send e-cards, and possibly paintings based on my photographs...I have to negotiate that with the artist I know, if she's interested. :) And following that, a kids' site featuring reading lists, kid-friendly links, and games for young kids, as well as wallpapers for the little ones.

So a lot of changes are afoot, and I hope you'll be here for them. Life is more fun when you get to share. :)

Best,
Jenie

Fall Reopening Scheduled for Thanksgiving

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Sat, 23 Sep 2006 02:29:00 +0000

Due to extended time in France, I won't be reopening the site until November 24, 2006, the day after Thanksgiving, when I'll be offering sales on most of the items on the site to make room for new designs.

I just won't have time to get it together until then, and even that is going to be tight. I won't be able to ship toner until after the New Year, due to lack of product testing time, but mask will be available, as well as two new dry products and herbal facial spritzers. Also, I'm upgrading the spritzers to glass bottles, but I'm not sure I'll be able to get those in time for the holidays. They're more of a summer product, anyway.

I look forward to returning home and getting the site redesigned and new products up. As I mentioned, I'll be phasing out most of the more assembly line designs and will be offering more one of a kind designs and fewer of them. It just makes more sense at this point in time.

I hope everyone had a pleasant summer and is looking forward to a pleasant fall.

A bientot,
Jenie

Long Time, No Post

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Thu, 14 Sep 2006 23:43:00 +0000

Hi, All -

Nesting with Style has moved to typepad. I'll update my template when I get time, but for now, Lauren's homey, comfortable blog is at http://nestingwithstyle.typepad.com/. You can also get there via link at the old blog, which is the one listed there on the right. My laptop is not cooperating with Blogger just at the moment, and I was getting frustrated trying to change the link, so I'll do it later.

I understand why she changed...any time you want to make a change to your template here at Blogger, it's a miserable hassle. CSS is just not my friend. Nor, I suspect, is it most people's, outside of the realm of those happy few who webdesign for a living. I have another blog at Diaryland, and though writing posts is a bit of an html hassle, I have to say that changing my blogskin is a dreams, compared to blogger. I can't beat blogger in terms of simple to add posts, though. And free comments. Still, I wish it was easier to design a new template that more adequately reflects who I am.

Thanks to Lauren, btw, I have a new Tuesday Treasure to add, so I'm looking to reinstitute that on Tuesday next. I'm really busy with photography here, so it's sometimes hard to fit in anything else. I'm getting some very nice shots, though, and seeing a lot of great jewelry. It will be fun to get home and start working on new designs. I'm going to do more one of a kind designs and stuff in short runs of 5 or 6. Maybe 10 for some things, but never more than that. I wish I had more money to load up on Murano-style silver and gold leaf beads here. They cose a third or less here than they do in the States. I got some gorgeous pendants the other day for about 1/6 of what they'd cost me at home. I think I'm going to pair them with copper leather, which will go just beautifully with their orange-pink color. I'm making one for me and will have 2 others available. I think with gold-fill findings. That's the other thing. I'm going to start doing more chunky things and gold designs. Gold is making a major comeback.

And on a sidenote, I have discovered the searchlight outside my window is from the Eiffel Tower. How cool is that? :)

Jenie

Eclat de Mode & Wendy Mink

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Wed, 06 Sep 2006 13:45:00 +0000

I went to the big fashion expo in Paris this last weekend, Eclat de mode, and the best jewelry there was Wendy Mink's.

It's gorgeous. Photographs and images just do not do it justice. I know that's the case with most jewelry, but the colors Ms. Mink uses are just delightful. Everything glimmers, shines, or sparkles, and the colors in each piece compliment each other beautifully.

I was also really impressed with Ms. Mink's staff, who were very friendly and courteous, but more, they are obviously proud of the company they're involved in and happy in their jobs. It was a great experience, and I would have liked to have been able to spend more time at their booth.

Aside from Ms. Mink's, there was one other booth with jewelry I liked, but the show was mostly disappointing. The big styles for winter - and I suppose next year - are mostly more of what's on now and a rehash of 80's styles - big, gothic crosses and chunky, kitschy jewelry in black, white, red, and gold. Baroque and gothic styles are totally on their way back in. And if you make beaded peyote or embroidered cuff bracelets, I am sad to tell you that those are being mass-produced in China now, and will probably be all over US department stores by mid-year or next fall, if not this spring.

So there you have it: rehashed 80s styles, bad. Wendy Mink, good. :) Live from the heart of Paris, this is Jenie Clark, signing off. Back to you, Bob. ;)

Pete, the Awesome Battle Bear

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Tue, 29 Aug 2006 02:03:00 +0000

I've had a little stuffed bear for 21 years named Pete. It's actually Pete, the Awesome Battle Bear, but that's rather a silly story and kind of long to type out, so let's just go with Pete, shall we? He's my security blanket, and I take him with me wherever I travel, because he never lets the car breakdown or the plane crash. :)

When I brought him with me to Paris in 2003, my friend Marie-Pierre had the wonderful idea of taking pictures of him in front of Paris landmarks. She probably would have thought twice of the suggestion if she'd known how fully I throw myself into such things, but suggest it she did, and I've had great fun taking pictures of Pete everywhere from dinner at Le Procope to the battlements of the medieval fortress city of Carcassonne. Let's just say Pete is a very well-travelled bear.

When we don't travel, every so often I take a picture of him anyway, watching the sun set or stopping to smell the roses. He even has a weblog, on Diaryland, where he actually has fans. After a round of photographs on Friday, I started thinking maybe I should do a book about Pete. When someone who reads his weblog suggested it today, that sort of cemented the idea for me. Call it serendipity, fortuosity, or just plain old coincidence, I'm a big fan of signs, so I'm taking this as one and putting a book together of Pete's adventures here in Paris. To that end, he has a new, booky blog at http://battlebear.blogspot.com. I hope you'll stop by and say hi. He's a good little bear. :)

A bientot,
Jenie

What's the Buzz?

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Mon, 28 Aug 2006 13:26:00 +0000

Pretty, pretty bee. :)

Les fleurs sont tres belles

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Sat, 26 Aug 2006 21:04:00 +0000

Spent the day on Friday at Denfert-Rechereau, taking flower pictures in the little park there. Unfortunately, my exposure was bad, so most images are not good. Oh well; guess I have to go back. Bummer, ay? :)

Trying to figure out whether or not I can stay until mid-November.

Jenie

Talking Craft

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Wed, 09 Aug 2006 23:33:00 +0000

I had tea today with a fellow jewelry artist here in Paris (and wow, what a great sentence that is to be able to say) and had a great time just talking craft. She's really far more the artist than I am. I just string stuff. She really makes gorgeous stuff I envy. We sat in the garden of an 18th or 19th century townhouse and sipped tea under the trees in a perfectly lovely, charming setting. It really doesn't get any nicer than that, I have to say. I took some pictures of the garden, and I think I finally figured out this blogger image thing and how to get around it, so I'll update this post with links and images later, but for now, I'm fighting off a bug that's determined to kick my butt, so I have to get to bed.

Peace,
Jenie

Photography

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Wed, 09 Aug 2006 00:40:00 +0000

I like to take pictures of odd things or at odd angles. I don't know why. I'm just fascinated by it. I blame National Geographic World.

For those of you who don't know or don't remember, National Geographic used to put out a magazine for kids, called NG World*. My gramma was a big one for the learning, so she got us a subscription to this for several years running when I was a kid (and my mom continued it from there). In the back of every issue, there were these close up photographs of stuff, and you were supposed to guess what it was a picture of. It was my favorite part of every issue.

Clearly, it deeply affected my appreciation of photography during my formative years.

I went to Palais Garnier today, because the sun spent most of the day hiding behind clouds, so it wasn't a good Pere Lachaise day. I missed the tour, so as a result, I found myself kicking around the Opera house with no plan and not a lot to see.

Except, apparently, the floor grates. Which I subsequently spent the next 2.5 hours photographing. I shot over 100 images of the brass grates over the heating ducts in the floor of the Paris Opera house.

Because apparently, I am easily fascinated.

What Is It? indeed.

* National Geographic World, btw, once featured a 12 year old Ally Sheedy, who had just written a book for kids about Queen Elizabeth called "She Was Nice to Mice." I still remember that all these years later and can see the picture of little Ally in my head. That's how I first "met" Ally Sheedy; imagine my surprise to see her in War Games years later. :)

Notre Dame

noreply@blogger.com (Jenie) — Mon, 07 Aug 2006 14:59:00 +0000

I spent yesterday wandering around Notre Dame, shooting the cathedral and surrounding areas. Here I am, cleverly disguised as a tourist. Don't you envy me the sly and daring use of a floppy hat and glasses to amp up my dorkiness? I'm a darer.

I'm not happy with how most of my shots came out, actually. Here's one of the best. For some reason, that's a hard building to capture. It's so huge that either the building looks crooked or the horizon does when you try to fit it in the viewfinder. Also, the sun was horrible and I had trouble seeing the LCD screen. So several times, I just guessed. Which you can tell. Also, I was trying to keep the millions of tourists out of my photos, which is really hard, because you wait forever for a clear shot, and just as you finally get one, someone walks literally right in front of you just as you squeeze the shutter. Like, right in front of you. Two feet in front of you. I know they're tourists, but HELLO. I'm right here, with a camera up against my face. Walk behind me or give me a second, for crying out loud. Paris is not the place to go if you lack patience or don't like people.

I went into this little medieval neighborhood next to Notre Dame which Baron Hausmann managed not to bulldoze in his zeal for widening the streets and creating space in Paris. The streets there are just about wide enough for a small car. I don't think my 1990 Honda Civic would fit. It's funny watching drivers try to get their car around the corners. The house on the right side of this photo is where Heloise and Abelard carried out their ill-fated affair. It's grey in real life and located at 10, rue Chanoinesse.

This is Notre Dame from quai de la Tournelle, shot over the Pont au Double. This is one of my few shots that came out well. Too bad you can't really see Notre Dame...

I had one more image, of the rear of the cathedral, but Blogger must have like a 4 image limit per day, because it keeps cutting me off from using the image function, even just to link to more. It's frustrating, but if you want to see Notre Dame from behind, talk to freaking Blogger. My emails go totally unanswered except for form letters that assume I didn't read the FAQ and don't address my problem.

Au revoir,
Jenie