23 April 2011

FIN - ending #1





Those of you who have stumbled upon this blog by chance:
I only hope you will find evidence of a story, a little bit of jewelry I call my own collection,  the things I have seen or have loved: inspiration which I hope will lead one to new ideas, and some of the most talented people who I have called...or still are... my friends. Take from it what you will. It started with THIS.


Because receiving an education is a lot like being a snake that swallowed a chicken egg: It's in you, but it's going to take a while to digest it. I had come to Sarah Lawrence after 12 years of Catholic girls school. I had thought it was the most ludicrous, antiquated, sentimental secondary education in the history of education. We were taught modesty, humility, and how to make a good white sauce. The white sauce I could have done without, but I'll tell you something: Modesty and humility go a long way when you are down on your luck. 

I had studied writing at the Iowa Writers workshop, I had studied writing at Sarah Lawrence College with Allan Gurganis and Grace Paley and Russell Banks. It wasn't  until I got to Fridays and I had to work the dish wash station because the police came and too the regular dish washer away- that I finally learned how to stare. And at the end, it was the staring that got me that novelists job that I had wanted. Because as I scrubbed out the soup pots and the margarita pitchers, I figured out that for me, "what now?" -- always going to be a work in progress. "What now" is never what you think it's going to be, and that is the thing that every writer, every person- has to learn.

 I came to come to understand that fiction writing was like duck hunting. You go to the right place at the right time with the right dog. You get into the water before it's light outside, wearing a little protective gear, stand behind some reeds,  and you wait for the story to present itself. This is not to say you were passive; you chose the place and the day, you picked the gun and the dog. You have the desire to blow that duck apart for reasons that are entirely your own. But you have to be willing to accept not what you wanted to have happen, but what happens. You have to write the story that you find in the circumstances that you've created. Because more often than not, the ducks don't ever show up. The hunters in the next blind begin to argue and you realize that they're in love. You see a snake swimming towards you and your dog begins to shiver and whine... and you think of this gun in your hands that belonged to your father.... And in the end, you will have written a novel so completely devoid of ducks, it will startle you.

 It took me a long time of standing still and being quiet to figure out what in retrospect appears to be a pretty simple lesson: that writing a novel and living a life are very much the same thing, and the secret is finding the balance between going out and getting what you want and accepting the thing that actually comes your way. If you're trying to figure out what what comes next, I urge you to turn off everything that has an off switch and listen. Make up some big plans and be willing to change them on a dime. Identify your heart's truest desire and don't change that for anything. Be proud of yourself for the work you have done; Be grateful for the people who helped you do it. Write to us, and let us know how you are. You are- every one of you- someone's favorite unfolding story. We cannot wait to hear what happens next. 

Ann Patchett's Commencement Address to my Class of 2006, Sarah Lawrence College

spencer bell


yesterday, spencer would have turned 25.

Though I wasn't one of his closest of friends, some of my good friends at  Sarah Lawrence College lived with him...  and so while I was there, I spent quite a bit of time around Spencer.  Nobody could deny Spencer's talent, and when I heard the news of what had happened, my heart sunk in my chest.

rest in peace

 














18 April 2011

not knowing is the point


tom stoppard's arcadia

swings in january

friends academy school
locust valley, ny

17 April 2011

i'm going back to italy - the blue grotto, capri


so i'm renting a studio apartment in capri for a week



the blue grotto





white oleander/girl interrupted scenes from sarah lawrence


sarah lawrence 2006:

lindsey doleshal and meghan farrell





16 April 2011

nieces

maggie

caroline







 baby lizzie

our hell



11 April 2011

beat



a wrinkle in time






"But you see, Meg, 
just because we don't understand 
doesn't mean that the explanation doesn't exist" 

Madeline L'Engle


08 April 2011

collection

THE BRAIN

OBR-1 Brain Ring 
Brass
Silver
 OCR-2 Cross Ring


Silver Polished
Silver Satin
Vermeil Polished
Brass Satin

 

Protection Ring

Silver Satin
Silver Polished
Vermeil Satin










Double Neurology Pendant
Silver/Silver

Also available in: 
14K Gold
14K Gold and Sterling Silver Contrast




Triple Neurology Pendant

2 14K Gold Front / 1 Sterling Silver Backing (Top)


2 Sterling Silver Front / Brass Backing (Bottom)





Held Together Pendant


Sterling Silver Chain/Wheel and Nickel Pin

Also available in:
White Brass







Safety Pin Ring/Chain



THE SKY

City Star Ring

Silver Satin
Vermeil Satin
Silver Polished





photos: christelle de castro and dan
model: kate foley

more yosemite



06 April 2011

05 April 2011

03 April 2011

the places i'm happiest





 





 








I want to explore and venture;

I want to close my eyes and be at peace.

I want to trust with all my heart;

And courage to be alone asleep.



Everything is displaced here in New York;

I only am pushed away.


Please take me back to these places.