Storyteller Story #5: I Talk to the Spirits

This may be the last time,

This may be the last time,

This may be the last time. It may be the last time, I don’t know…

Ohhhhh, I remember when I was a little girl in church in the middle pew. Smack dab in the middle. Hair in pig tails. “All rise.” Fellowship time. Sister Washington bangin’ away on that old piano. Time to sing: This May Be The Last Time. My favorite. Our voices come together as one. Mostly off key but still one. The Lord hears our cry. Better when we raise our voices together. The Lord hears my prayers. Oh I know what people say about me. The Lord hears me and I hear him right back. I got the gift. Just like my mama and her mama before her. “Those Francois women…witches all of em…” Kids would tell the teacher I was giving them the evil eye in school. That’s all it took for the teacher to give me the strap. But the nasty stuff folks say don’t change nothin’: the dead talk and they talk to me. There’s nothin’ wrong with bein’ dead jus’ like there’s nothin’ wrong with bein’ alive. Both sides want to be heard. I’m just one of the ones that can hear ev’rybody. Even if what they sayin’ ain’t worth half a penny.

Storyteller Story #4: Red Is My Power Color

If you want something you’ve got to get it yourself. Just take it. You can’t sit around waiting on someone to give it to you. I keep telling Jenny: “Stop waiting on Bob. He’s a selfish asshole. A loser.” I keep telling her he’s not worth her time, but she won’t listen. Not my problem. I’ve got my own problems to deal with. Plus I’m busy. Work. Gym. More work. Repeat. Work. Gym. More work. Repeat. Then I’m always having to clean up someone else’s mess. I learned how to take care of myself early. That’s the problem with most people they don’t take responsibility. They make stupid mistakes and want other people to clean it up. You’ve got to take control of the situation or you’ll drown. I tell Jenny all of the time: “Bob will drag you down. He’s dead weight.” But she won’t let go. She just won’t let go.

Storyteller Story #3: Wind & Leaves

“I like long walks on the beach, horseback riding, and deep conversation…” No. Scratch that. “Stimulating conversation.” Crap. I hate writing these stupid things. You can’t sound too smart you’ll scare someone off. You can sound like an idiot and you might get a date. Then they are disappointed when they find out you are smart. If you are physically attractive and smart, well…then their head might just explode. Ok. Let’s try this: “Multi-faceted individual. Looking for someone to grow with…” That sounds like a resume. Ok. “Must love nature. Must love hiking or at least walking. I love seeing the emerald green of my surroundings and feeling a cool breeze on my skin after working up a good sweat…” Hmmm. No. Too cheesy. Well…wait. I don’t want to sound all ‘hippy dippy’ but that’s kind of who I am. Right? I’ll leave it. Oh, who am I kidding? “I love horseback riding and long walks on the beach. Looking for someone to be my ‘plus one’…”

Storyteller - An Art Show

One of the most well known images of the storyteller hails from West Africa. There, griots are honored for their talent in maintaining the cultural traditions of poetry, music and storytelling. But storytellers have been around since the beginning sharing the stories of how we began. From the time we spent our nights telling stories around the fire and drawing the lives of ancestors on cave walls, storytelling has been integral to our human existence. The most important part of our stories is that they are all connected.

How we clothe and adorn ourselves is one of the most fundamental ways that we tell our stories. Do you have one tattoo, none, or ten? Do you wear a suit to work everyday or shorts? Do you have a diamond necklace around your neck or cowrie shells? Though these choices might seem benign, they tell others a little bit about your background, income, interests, and passions. We adorn ourselves to impress, frighten, and seduce on a daily basis.

The newest collection from Urban Temple Jewelry (The Urban Atelier) is Storyteller. This collection explores the stories we tell others and the stories we tell ourselves. Fancy yourself a beach goddess? Are you a king or a ladies’ man? A teacher? A leader? Storyteller poses the question: What do you want to say to the rest of the world?

The collection will make its debut at Violet Ray Vintage in Neptune Beach, August 21st 2014 during the North Beaches ArtWalk.

To celebrate the collection every week leading up to the show I’ll be sharing great human stories real and imagined from history, tv, books, and everywhere.

If you have a great story or know a great story feel free to share!

Bike Chain. ReIncarnated.

At the beginning of next month I am going to be sharing my newest collection of bike chain jewelry, Sunset and Lotus. I freely admit that recycling bike parts or even more specifically bike chain into the stuff fashion forward dreams are made of wasn't my idea. 

When I lived in Philadelphia I worked with some folks who knew some folks that worked at this great and amazing place called The Bike Church. Run by this super organization called Neighborhood Bike Works. I participated in a fundraiser where I made art from busted bike parts.

Here's one of my pieces I did for the show: 

I also helped this ( I believe now defunct) organization Spokespeople assemble their bike chain jewelry. Soooo much fun and I was hooked.

It was a while after being introduced to the idea of recycling bike parts that I decided to do my own thing. I had a different vision for the jewelry though. I wanted to combine the feminine and masculine characteristics of the chain. I didn't want it to just be seen as a 'guy thing' or a 'girl thing'. I Feel like the new collection Sunset and Lotus does this pretty well. Hopefully, I have something for the guys and the chicks.

To celebrate the new collection I'll be posting fun facts about bicycles and bike related topics. Silly facts, serious facts, facts concerning me and my fear of running over people on a bike...

Also, newsletter subscribers will get 10% off items in the new collection, so be sure to sign up before November 16th to get your coupon. This is a great opportunity to get started on your holiday shopping! You will also get a sneak peek at a few of the pieces. Those who attend ArtWalk November 6th (the first Wednesday of the month) will get a full preview of the new line.  

If you have any interesting facts about bicycles, bike chain, and the like feel free to post them here in the comments section. I'd love to hear them :) 

The Reality of Being Fashionable.

The Not So 'Real' Reality.

Fashion week is upon us/finishing up/finished, and recently I was looking at an article by a very popular 'fashion blog/site that shan't be named'. I won't name it because it doesn’t matter. Quite a few of the fashion blogs are the same: no everyday people wearing affordable clothing and accessories.

There’s nothing wrong with having a wish list of really expensive items that you want. But when you have to save up for these items like you would when buying a house it is just sad. Why not have a list of items that are within your reach right now?

Often, during New York Fashion week, there are plenty o’ slideshows of those fashionable fashionistas in attendance. When they show pics of the 'everyday person on the street' these people are wearing ridiculously priced pieces of clothing that are usually over the top avant garde (or just bootay ooglelay,--that’s ugly--for those of you not fluent in Tracie speak…),everyone seems to come from the planet Size 2, and all of the ‘everyday folks’…they all have names like Martinashala, Furlina and Apricot and are the interns from some chic chic fashion house. Also, how do these chicks afford a $200 tee shirt working as an intern? Your guess is as good as mine, but I am here to tell you that looking great doesn't mean you won't be able to buy groceries this month or that you have to have access to the wardrobe room at a fashion magazine.

How Does This Work?

So how can you be super adorable and super fashionable without breaking the bank? First things first: stop buying crap and wasting your money, most importantly expensive crap. This is the #1 rule that you must abide by. Can’t get around it. How do you determine if something is crap? Well you look at it of course.

• Are the inside seams of the clothing finished or raw? You want finished.
• Look at where two pieces of the garment are sewn together, gently pull both sides away from each other. Is the seam coming apart? It shouldn’t.
• Are there numerous (serious) online complaints from store customers where you are buying your items concerning quality?
• Have you bought several pieces from a particular store where the clothing or accessories only last a couple months?
• Is a necklace falling apart before you even leave the store? Are all links and rings closed?
• Look for quality fabrics and ones that will maintain their shape. My favorites are natural ones that usually don’t melt when you attempt to iron them. This means no pleather allowed.
• Check straps and soles of shoes and make sure everything is secure.

The second step is to invest money in quality items that can be used for more than one type of event or activity:

• Separates that can move from brunch to business to partaaaay! This isn’t always possible but do please try. You will get more mileage out of the items you buy if they are versatile.
• Find jewelry that is distinctive and well made that can be worn with lots of different outfits. You don’t have to go to a major fashion house and spend $1000 to get great jewelry. A great artist might be right down the street. Even better, a smaller artisan operation may be willing to work with you on the price. Check out sites like Artfire, Etsy, and Luulla. Urban Temple Jewelry (my little jewelry machine) produces museum style, culturally influenced pieces that can be worn everyday with just about anything. I would totally rock a layaway style payment plan if someone really wants a piece that I have made. Though I do work for money, I work for the love of art and I want all of my pieces to have a good home. I’m sure that a lot of artists (not all of them) would feel the same way. You never know until you ask.

One necklace three ways:

Third, try being thrifty. There are a couple of ways to do this:

• Go to the thrift store. There are still great finds to be had in the thrift stores, Goodwill, and Salvation Army. They haven’t all been found. People donate more stuff everyday. Try stores that are off the beaten path where there might not be as much traffic. You are sure to find something that not everyone else has.
• Check out the racks at your local discount store trinity. What is the ‘trinity’ you ask? Marshall’s, TJ Maxx, and Ross. In recent years the pickings aren’t as good as they used to be but still worth a look. Approach sales and clearance racks with the knowledge that things in these discount stores are discounted for a reason. Even if you can’t see it or predict it you will always find out the reason why things are in one of the stores in the trinity. Maybe it is just about colors or the season but there may be another issue.

And fourth, and most important, if you do buy super duper cheap pieces take care of them; actually even if they aren’t super cheap take care of your items and make them last. In this way, your clothing and accessories become more than a simple closet of clothes, shoes, hats etc., but an actual collection. So if shoes are looking a little ratty—shine em’. Something’s got a hole or the seam is coming apart—sew it. In this way when you do make an investment, even a $10 one off the clearance rack of some discount store, it will be a good one.