OnaBead&aWhim.....listen to all your whims and wonders

onabeadandawhim's Shop Announcement

I opened this shop as a place to sell my jewelry and art pieces.

AUGUST HALF OFF ON ALMOST EVERYTHING...School starts in a month and I need to stock up on supplies for my afterschool program so I'm going in and marking most items 1/2 off. Convo if you think I missed something.

I've been a costume/jewelry maker for years.
See my other shop for vintage goodies and destash bead and art supplies http://ladylisten.etsy.com
My daughter and I have a Vintage shop http://msmichiganroux.etsy.com
I teach art/jewelry making with teens. I always end up with lots of "Samples"... They are pieces I've made while in class or they are examples of how you can use found objects in art etc.

These are well made pieces. Most of them are fun and inexpensive. Some will be more expensive because they include valuable and rare vintage items. I'll always tell you everything I know about the components of my jewelry.
Most of the time I don't know what the metals might be. I'm using what I have.

This year I started a "Create and Relate" afterschool "found" art class at my Middle School. I am a Restorative Justice/Conflict Resolution Specialist. Basically I teach problem solving to at risk youth.I Love it. I use art as a way to learn to work something through to resolution. Most importantly I use art as a way of teaching youth to recognize their own personal wisdom. They all have something to say, they've often never been given a chance..no wonder they struggle to stay in school.
So you will see lots of pieces that have been influenced by my students. This year I have a "the ladies have it" line. This line came from a girls group that met to identify the ways girls can be mean to each other. The girls came to celebrate the roles of women in their lives. The image of the Madonna was very powerful to these girls.

We talked about the images of women in our lives positive and negative. I learned that Grandmothers and Aunts Rule!

So Women out there, continue to share your lives with our younger women. I can't tell you how many times I hear a story about a woman who spent some time with a teen just when that teen needed it most. These kids inspire me everyday.