Woman Up //

 And just when you feel yourself settle into comfort,

just as your muscles are able to relax, 

just as your soul feels settled.... 

Reach strongly for something beyond your fingertips.

Desire the challenge.

Seek it out.

Grab it confidently with both hands.

Don't drag it behind you or carry it haphazardly. 

No, pull the weight of that sucker square onto your shoulders.

Strive to make the new discomfort manageable and then eventually make it look effortless.

Because woman, you are the most beautiful when you bravely and vulnerably tumbling forward in pursuit of life. 

When you are answering the question, what am I capable of? 

I want to know the strength of this body... and this soul.

I want to know I can wo-man up to any challenge.

I want to feel uncomfortable in contentment, and twitchy when I'm still.

I want to see the vastness myself and therefore also my boundaries.

And most of all I want to break them.

---

Guys I've been pushing myself hard lately. Stretching and reaching for more in almost every aspect of my life. It's super exciting, but it also feels incredibly overwhelming.

I keep wondering if I'm capable to rise to the challenges I've laid out for myself.
I keep asking if I'm really capable of what I hope for.

And I keep trying to remind myself that this is who I am. That I am a strong capable woman, and I've rose to every challenge before this. That I've built this business up with just these 2 hands.
I keep trying to remember I've taught myself these skills before, and I'll keep trying to do it again and again and again.

No matter what.

Available here until sold.

♥  Carin

When Life Gives You a Mini Cake, Eat the Whole Damn Thing //

On days like these, I make sure I'm ready. I know the day will be blissful, and so I make sure I have everything in order. 

My coffee and pickle are equally hot. 

My favorite Pandora station is on. 

The studio is clean and organized. 

What awaited me was all the hard work from a late night the evening before. 

All the leaves were ready, the sawing and texturing done. 

This morning was going to be epic. and I couldn't wait to complete this ring that I had been dreaming about for the past few days. 

Magic was going to happen.

Although the first few attempts at soldering could have gone more to plan, I failed to see any red flags. I kept pushing, adjusting, making it right. 

Finally as all the the elements came together. 

Just as all the elements were soldered on, I took a step back to looked at what I had created.

It was then that I realized I had made a god damn mini wedding cake.

Progress shot.

The first tier so perfectly round. 

Topped with lovely fondant leaves and gum paste flowers. 

I can almost taste the sugary sweet buttercream now. 

At first I was a little frustrated. The hours I spent on this thing were too numerous and too sad to count now. 

In the past, I would have let this thing eat me alive. I would have pouted for days at my design choices. I would have questioned my ability as an artist. I would have sunk into a serious slump.

 But I didn't, and I'm glad I didn't.

Instead I posted it, for sale. I was ready to move on to the next thing, not dwell in the past.

I also allowed myself the freedom to joke about my little cake ring, imagining it sitting beautifully on the table as Barbie & Ken exchange vows. 

What surprised me about it all was the response I got. 

Messages, emails and texts came pouring in:

I was too hard on myself.

It was still gloriously beautiful.

They didn't see it as a cake.

----

First off, let me say, it is absolutely a mini cake. I mean seriously, this isn't even an argument.

Secondly, I never said it wasn't beautiful.

In fact it IS beautiful because of so many reasons.

Sterling and Turquoise...

YUM.

Oxidized and slightly polished...

YUM. 

Heavily textured and detailed...

YUM.

Mini cake...

YUM.

Thirdly, it's ok that it's a freaking cake. 

Because what I have learned over the years is that it's all ok. 

Not to take it all so seriously. 

To live lightly and freely and less dramatic. 

No matter what is happening in your life, it's all ok.

It'll all work out.

Mini cakes.

Mini dramas.

Big dramas.

They all work out.

Tomorrow I'll be a better designer because of this. Plus I secretly love it now for what it reminded me of. 

That it's ok for things to go wrong.

That I don't have to be perfect.

That sometimes I'm going to make stuff that doesn't go as planned.

And when this inevitably happens again, that I make something that frustrates the hell out of me, I'm going to eat that cake too, and the next one and the next one.

Because when life gives you a mini cake, I highly suggest you eat the whole damn thing.

♥  Carin 

P.S. The mini cake ring has found a home. With a wonderful lovely supporter who will cherish it for all it's mini-cake qualities and more. 

Totems

Traditionally totems are thought of in terms of their spirit.
Guiding us with their unique personalities through this life.

A raven's slyness.
An orca's wisdom.
A bison's strength.

But the biologist in me wonders about their physical form.
Why and how they came to be.

This Earth, the ultimate sculpturist, carving these animals.
Shaping their bodies.
Making each species unique and special allowing them to find a small space in which for them to belong.
Forming them to fit just perfectly within a small niche.
A crack of space on this crowded planet.

The pressure, uncomfortable, but necessary.
Pushing and pulling them until their forms are just right, and as soon as the niche changes or moves, reshaping them.
Never tiring of perfecting their bodies.

The ocean waves undulating over the whale.
Smoothing it's skin.
The current stretching and elongating it's body and forming fins powerful enough to resist it.

The strong winds, blowing through the bones of the raven.
Hollowing them and allowing the bird to take flight.
Creating space for itself amongst the clouds.

I imagine the plains where the bison roams carving a body strong and robust.
Built for endurance and survival.
Shaping a head harder than the limestone grounds in which it travels.

I think about our journey through this life.
The uncomfortable, but also necessary pressures that we experience.

No longer subject to evolution, our bodies are precise yet clumsy.
Instead these pressures, if we are open to receiving them, shape our heart and mind.
The parts of us that are still malleable.
Soft like putty.
Changing daily.

Instead of the land shaping us it's our experiences, our perception and our reactions.

I've come to be a unique being because of these experiences. Similar to my peers, yet different enough to be myself.
Just like Darwin's finches, I fit a particular niche, a place in this world just for me.

I don't know about you, but that my friends in comforting.

So I will sit in my space that is meant for no one else,
and I will be.

♥ Carin

Pieces available here on Wednesday at 11:30 am Pacific Time until sold here.

Stack It Up

I'd love to stay and chat today. I have so much on my mind. 

But unfortunately, I have more on my plate. 

Christmas crazy has taken over the studio. Tis the season for stacks of orders, coffee soaked bellies, and sleepy eyes. 

I'll have to wait to share more with you. 

_____

For now, I couldn't help but post this amazing necklace I just listed. 

A thick slice of elk antler was topped off with a stunning Peacock Mine turquoise cabochon. 

I love how the 2 layer together and play off each other. 

These two pieces were made for each other. The exact shape and size to compliment one another, but not overwhelm. 

I hung 2 sterling silver feathers which have been pressed with an actual feather impression. 

The back is adorned with a howling wolf silhouette. 

Available here. 

And So It Goes

Just as I'm feeling down.

Just as I feel as though I have nothing left to give. 

Just as I'm ready to give up.

My eyes shoot open. Acutely aware of my surroundings. 

My senses grow keener. 

My ideas snap into focus and are no longer clouded by the haze of self doubt. 

And once again, I find myself stumbling out of bed in the middle of the night. 

Drowsy, but too excited to sleep. 

Again, I pull on warm clothes while half running down our dark hallway. 

I have to create. The urge is here. 

I have to take advantage of it. 

As the house sleeps, I work. 

Saw

Bend

Solder

Polish

Set

Finish

And she is born.

This one of a kind piece can be found in my here.

________________________

On a side note, I've been working diligently for the past few months on my photography. 

You  may have noticed my product photography change.

New skills bring new inspiration.

I have lots of plans for this other wonderful work in the future, but for now, I've created a way to share it with you! 

I've created a Flickr page where you'll find some sick shots I've taken here and there, and I've sprinkled in a few bits of my metal work too. 

I've also created easier ways to get there in that column over there ---->>>>

You'll now find a Flickr button AND a button to my YouTube stop action video. 

Enjoy! 

♥  Carin

From The Bench

The bench has been keeping me so busy these days. 

My inspiration cup is overflowing and it seems that all the coffee in the world wouldn't be enough right now. I'd love to stay and chat with you, but at times like this, I have to keep moving, keep working in hopes that I get it all out before I lose focus. 

Here's a few things I've posted over the last few days. Stay tuned because there is more to come! 

Shop here. 

♥ Carin