Betsy & Iya Jewelry

(this was written yesterday after work…)

I’m home now.

Today was a really good day.  We had one big reorder from an awesome store in Buffalo, NY and a new order from a longtime favorite designer who recently opened up a flagship shop in Ashland, OR (I cannot even tell you how excited I am by this).  Brand new designs are well underway, lots of new spring-inspired pieces to sell at the big Crafty Wonderland sale on Saturday, really really editing the current shop to make way for new designs, and the day-to-day customers who make our days.  PLUS…a few new top secret things that I can’t tell you yet, but that (if they happen) will be stupid good and ridiculous cool.

But still…I found myself in the studio at the end of the day, staring at website after website, stores, designers, etc…wondering why I couldn’t be that good.

pitiful. nasty.  NASTY.

I don’t even know how I got there.  I was so excited about the new account in Ashland, so how did I get there?  And why was I looking at this amazing stuff wondering why I’m not that good?  Why can’t I look at it and think—simply—-that is so inspiringly amazing.   It was a wormhole of self demise, while it could have been a wormhole of burgeoning inspiration, blossoming ideas, colors bursting, celebrating others, YAH! POW! BANG!  So, in an effort to alleviate myself of this ridiculous waste of energy and time, I’m spending this post looking for things that I simply find—unstoppable.  It’s an exercise in kindness.  to you and to myself.

Here is what I found.  Please click the pictures to see more of their beautiful work:

Anja Verdugo for Collette Patterns (all awesome Portland folks).

Alyson Fox

Anna Joyce.

Lauren Manoogian (I mean, with a name like that...)

Shipping Container Box Office ....just, wow.

Sulu Design's amazing Original Intent Project.

...and the earrings she designed from the photo she took.

Gretchen Jones. New collection. (I'm such a sucker for jumpsuits.)

Jen LaMastra. genius.

Just a tiny glimpse into the things and people and moments that inspire me.  There is so much more where that came from.

Let’s take Thursday and be good to ourselves, no?

xo~betsy

***Song of the Moment:  To Be Still, by Alela Diane***