Creatures in My Garden

This picture includes some of the creatures inhabiting my garden lately. The Turtle I loved. He arrived one morning and seemed very determined to enter our garage. I’m not quite sure why, but perhaps he likes mess. The Hummingbird Moth was strange at first, but now I love him, too. I took photos of him and then went on Google to discover exactly what kind of Hummingbird he was. Oddly enough, he is a moth that behaves much the same as a hummingbird. He probably suffers from an identity complex or at least, low self esteem.

The birds nesting in our grill wasn’t what I would have chosen for them. After all, I happen to love grilling in the summer. Mama Bird must have found this to be the only available home and so we let her and her chicks stay. We also bought a new grill for Father’s Day. Hopefully, the cousins won’t arrive to nest next year.

Finally, the Japanese Beetles…. I despise it! It has wreaked havoc on the majority of my plants. All I can do is pick them off, one by one, three times a day and hope that I can contain the damage until they leave. I’m not quite sure when that will be, but it can’t be soon enough. I have done some research and discovered they give off some sort of hormone that encourages others to join them. If you have four munching away on a rose bloom, you will find more in an hour. It’s kind of like a party hormone. Put out some chips and dip out and you’ll end up with six people chatting by the bowls. I can’t wait until they leave!!

Making and Selling Necklaces, The First Step

Making jewelry is only a part of having a jewelry store. There is so much more involved in putting a necklace like one of the above in my stores. It begins with stones, findings, chain, tools, etc. I cull listings of my favorite suppliers and then do a Google search for anything I particularly want like faceted Pink Topaz, the perfect Coin Pearl, a small Sterling Saint Anne medal or a tool for filing soldered metal.

When my packages arrive, it's like a birthday present. I can't wait to see what I've gotten and I'm rarely disappointed. I've only had three sellers pack their wares so poorly pieces were delivered broken. I can tell you exactly what items they were and who shipped them, but there's no point in that.

I usually have a design in my head. Most times I have a dozen designs in my head. I try to write them down when they pop up, but they come at odd moments and who has a pen and pad ready while reclining in a dental chair saying "Yes, I can feel that!"

Once the design is there and the stones are on my table, I search for the most appropriate findings: the Sterling Bail, the Textured Three Ring Connector, the Large Forged Circles, or the Thai Karen Heart that looks so pretty with pearls. They all wait patiently for me to pull one from the group. When the pendant style and pieces are selected, I choose my wiring and view the gauges. Most times, I prefer the larger gauges of 24 or 26, which are among the thinner wires and perfect for briolettes. The lower the gauge number, the thicker the wire.

I decide on the chain or cord, once the stones are wrapped in wire. I love the heavy wrapping, or what some people call the messy wrapping to the flatter, precise wiring, because I think it gives the briolettes a richer look and feel. Still, I do a variety of them to appeal to as many people as possible.

Most of my necklaces are 16 inches extending to 18 inches, but I’ve had so many requests for shorter and longer necklaces I try to accommodate everyone. Layered necklaces are still huge and I've made some as short as 13 inches. They are meant to be the first tier in set or are what I consider "your statement necklace." This is often the piece you never remove, unless you're swimming or doing something that could break it.

I've made a ton with Crosses or Crucifixes. I do a lot with pearls and a lot with a combination of Sterling Silver and Gold so that you can layer it with either metal.

I've also made necklaces with leather, silk, or waxed cotton. I have a customer who often asks for a long, beaded leather necklace which she wraps around her neck three times. I have another regular customer who loves my leather necklaces, but requests the cord be changed to Sterling Silver Figure 8 chain.

Whatever the style, the customer has her preference and I do my best to oblige her … or him. After all, I love jewelry. I think each piece is like music and has the ability to speak to others or simply, to direct your mood. It's what you want to say and what you want to feel, so you should have you want. And what you want should feel great!

My Hummingbird Hemaris Thysbe

Today in my garden, I spotted what I thought was a hummingbird. I was thrilled that it hung around long enough for me to run inside to get my camera. I was even more excited that it waited while I deleted old photos. Yes, it was at that very moment, while this little creature flitted from flower to flower, that I discovered I needed to delete my old photos in order to take new ones. I succeeded in doing that, all the while watching this bizarre little creature.

I caught it, though, with my camera. As I cropped my photos, I couldn’t help but marvel at its strange appearance. I knew I had to discover exactly what kind of hummingbird this was.

Lo and behold, I learned that it is not a hummingbird at all! It’s a moth. Yes, that’s right. It’s called Hemaris Thysbe and it drinks nectar like butterflies and hummingbirds. It hops from flower to flower just like a hummingbird and lives mostly within the Eastern United States.

I was a little disappointed. Okay, a lot disappointed when I first realized my prized hummingbird was no hummingbird at all. Then I thought about all the amazing things I had encountered that were very different from what I originally thought they were. Make sense? It’s like wanting a purebred dog, but getting a mutt instead … a mutt who in turn becomes the greatest pet you’ve ever loved. It’s like having to take a flight instead of a cruise, only to discover that Hurricane Denise is barreling through the Bahamas.

It’s like all the answered prayers you weren’t hoping for--or expecting, but they turned out to be the best for you and yours. This … Hemaris Thysbe or Hummingbird Moth isn’t my Hummingbird. He’s not especially beautiful, nor is he gracefully built, but he was the coolest thing to see and he impressed my kids. He gave me a memory and a good one.