Give It Away
There haven’t been a whole lot of new additions to the store lately, but there’s still been a lot of work going on in the There Was Eden studio. I’ve been making Mother’s Day and birthday gifts, and taking some time to work up pieces for my own use, including one of my new favorites, a necklace inspired by my birthstone and Chinese zodiac sign: an opal strand with a jade dragon pendant.
I’ve found that it’s a little hard for me to be inspired by pure commerce and that I get a lot more enjoyment out of the work when I have a specific person in mind. Last night’s studio time gave me the opportunity to make a commissioned piece for a Memphis friend (can’t say who or what, it’s still a surprise!) and to complete the project I promised to the winner of the first There Was Eden Facebook Giveaway. I asked contestants to submit the name of their favorite stone, and then used a magical computer randomizer to pick a lucky commenter who’d receive a pair of earrings inspired by their chosen stone. The big winner was Sundee Kuechle (say it with me: SUN-dee KEE-klee), who picked amber as her favorite.
One of the reasons I love Facebook is that it has brought me back in contact with people like Sundee, who was one of the first friends I made in Mrs. Malmberg’s class when my family moved back to Minnesota in 1986. We spent hours and hours in each other’s homes, playing, singing, reading, talking, dancing, and dressing up. Time and adolescence sent our paths on alternately diverging and bisecting routes, and even though we weren’t in constant contact, I always felt our friendship’s roots. Since being reconnected on Facebook, it’s been a pleasure to catch up on her life now and see that we still have so much in common.
So when I had a chance, after all this time and history, to make something on Sundee’s behalf, I was almost overwhelmed. Luckily, she gave me the best possible starting point. Amber is a perfect way to represent Sundee: warm, bubbly, sunny, natural. It’s not a stone I work with often, but her personality gave me a lot of inspiration. I’m very happy with the result and I was going to make a second pair to put in the Etsy store, but ultimately, I decided that a one-of-a-kind like Sundee should have a truly one-of-a-kind piece.   Â
Thanks for entering the contest, Sundee, and giving me the chance to call up so many happy memories. And happy 25th anniversary to our friendship!