the problem with Proust....

...to begin with, i was always a reader. mostly before college, of course.
actually, between elementary school and the time i dropped out of high school. and then, while i dragged myself through 10 colleges over the next several years, these beautiful books were a thread, leading back to my real self. and still....

in elementary school, i read all of the Greek myths. obsessively. and, of course, fairy tales, Grimms brothers, Arabian Nights, anything that had a weight to it, a big binding and the smell of old paper. I often stumbled upon paper backs at the thrift shop and read them, only later realizing that they were classics. before i reached middle school, i read Atlas Shrugged, Siddartha, Trout Fishing in America, Notes from the Underground, the Tao Te Ching, the Tropic of Cancer...basically anything that came my way.

college, work, kids, life....somehow so many natural passions get rubbed out along the way through. maybe it's just the those things that are so dear. the part of one's soul that can be taken for granted, the easy self that gives way quickly to demands of daily chores....?

anyway, what i'm actually writing about is Proust, and my current lack of...well...words.

BlankVerse. we named our company after a poetry term because Jane and i are both crazy about poetry. originally, we spent many nights curled up in Jane's cozy bed, reading each other's poems out loud. we haven't done that since we became such serious business gals ( hmmmmm), but we do still spend time reading out loud in the studio when ever we come upon a piece of writing that we are inspired by.
lately, for me ( when we're not listening to Twighlight on cd ) it is Proust.
and....
the problem with Proust is....well, the problem is that there's nothing else to add.
and....there's nothing i would rather do than sit in my bed and read Swann's Way all day. ( well, unless someone wants to read it to me...in french...)

i find so much inspiration in these rich, tangled, run-on pages, so full of every thing human, that when i sit down to write, i feel just dull. not self effacing, but rather, spent. and also a little bit loopy with admiration and love for this long dead guy that summed up all of life with intense, brilliant insight, from inside his solitary room.

Ceremonies...

Ceremonies...

" i don't mind going to weddings ...as long as they're not my own.." Tom Waits

our latest assignment: to create a collection inspired by weddings.
hmmmmmm..a wedding collection. weddings.....
we love white. yep. we love traditions. yep. weddings are cool....
but.... how can we take a word like that and make it into a piece of art? what are weddings? what's the deeper meaning? why do people get married? people everywhere, for all times have had weddings...

after some thought, Jane got to the bottom of it. weddings are ceremonies. weddings are ceremonies.....and ceremonies are universal. and there is an innate connection between people and ceremonies and culture. and the objects and adornments of these ceremonies belong to a very special category of things....things that hold substantial significance because of a deeper, intrinsic, historical, cultural and personal symbolism.

stepping back....viewing ( as we did )many pictures of ceremonial jewelry, de-contextualized by our distance, both in geography and in understanding, it became clear to me that no matter what the occasion, people bring out their rockin'est shit for ceremonies.

there is so much beauty in the wonderful, archaic, reverential treatment of symbols.
and, for me, there is equal beauty in the ornaments themselves, which, without even understanding their intent, can still be seen to carry the burden of meaning. maybe the weight of extravagance itself can imply meaning..?

a long, elaborate white dress? 100's of colorful strands of beads? body paint? veils and flowers?

we are inspired.

saturday made sunday feel like it would never come...

jane, bryn & henry

...to be...

after a break. after eating 100 popsicles and drinking a case of light beer with my sibs, i'm home. ready to plan something for BlankVerse.
just not sure what.
dear friends have been asking. "what are you up to now?" and "what's next for your business?"
and loquacious me, anecdotal me, the talker even when there's nothing to say-me, stammers and i blush. um, i'm not sure. and then some unclear mumbling...

Jane and i had a meeting last Tuesday. we sat down with all of our summer stories stored up and all of our unknowns and ideas...

Jane's clarity never ceases to amaze me.
she offers such space and elegance for us to move about in.
to our mutual question: "what are we up to, and what's next?" Jane suggested that we get back to what we are, and why we started BV in the first place.

she says "we will walk on the railroad tracks at twilight with antique champagne glasses, spilling prosecco on our shoes...we will look for inspiration in our friendship, in elaborate dinners, in museums, in proust, in teen-age vampire
stories,( more on that later..),in playing dress-up, in the beauty of our peers and our ancestors.."

we will take time to breathe. to embrace life's wonders. we will cull inspiration from our desires and dreams.
and we will continue to work. we will continue to put our heart into our job.
we will savor the art of making what we love, and loving what we make.... and remembering why we do it.

ever since the moment that i saw an array of male stars, posing for oscar pics; open shirts, gorgeous, chunky necklaces adorning their bare chests, i have been mentally accessorizing every man that i see....

leather, silver, chain, emblems, totems, charms.....
necklaces can be personal talismans for the unadorned sex.
a tattoo, a love letter, a symbol.....for luck, for love, for identity...

..hanging with Mx2 in the b-y.....

Line Quality....

i have been wanting to write a post about lines for a while now. i always find so much inspiration in the natural beauty around my house, and i was recently struck by the variety of shapes and lines as i jogged on the dirt road that leads to my house.

the grasses are long and dry now, supporting variegated, tear-drop shaped seeds that turn purple and brown as they age & there are thistles that flowered last year, crippled and black & twisted. thick, old redwood trees with inches of rough bark & madrone trees that look almost slippery beneath their delicately peeling skin. sickly berry vines crawl along underneath...tiny splinters covering their lanky strands. it is so tangled and wild in some places, that a heart shaped leaf or a dandelion puff offer a visual respite, like a full moon in a chinese painting.

i want our jewelry to reflect this variety. i want to draw with strands and wire and dandelion-round pearls. wispy antique rosary beads, next to shiny blue glass, tiny charms and wild strips of deep brown leather...

Thank You!

Dear Friends of BlankVerse,

our anniversary-trunk sale was a happy success!
thanks to all of our adorable and loving friends that came to see us!
thank you all so much for really making a point of supporting our business in such a sweet way!

we nearly sold out! this was one of our fantasy goals ( please say a loud wooo hooo for BV! )

Sara, thank you so much for hosting another girlfriend sale at your beautiful home!

Alice, thank you for the beautiful, handmade clock!

Missy and Jill, thank you for always showing up, splurging and looking so beautiful in everything we make!

Jane and i are always in a state of gratitude that our amazing, talented, beautiful
friends are also so incredibly supportive and enthusiastic about our endeavours! thank you all or being so inspiring!

a big squeeze and swak to everyone!

with love and admiration,
laamie

girlfriend anniversary sale:

129 John St.
Santa Cruz

4:30-8pm
call laamie: 831-345-6144 or,
jane: 831-247-0750 for directions or more info.

BV girl friend sale!

BlankVerse is 1yr old! please join us for a girlfriend sale to celebrate!

a grand day out...and planning a for a fashion show with Made by Lex...

yesterday...after a conference call and a few hours of making stuff,
the BV girls headed out in Jane's Subaru, in another rain storm...

at 1:30 we arrived at the home of Alexis M. , of Made by Lex,
to work on styling for the upcoming fashion show ( tba )

by 1:35 we all had our original outfits off and were busy accessorizing an array of lovely, half finished gowns that Alexis has made from scratch and by re-arranging several thrift store finds.

amidst the billowing 1950's nighties and linen boy shorts, we adjusted and rummaged and tried on outfits. we rifled through our trunk of jewelry. we mixed lace with chains, bare shoulders with leather, and deep necklines with high collars ala 16th century via 1980's - Prince.

in Alexis's tidy, artistic studio....we plotted. we laughed. we pinned. we spent an exhilarating afternoon talking about Valentino, MC Queen, and Ricci. we discussed fabric and color, our obsessions and inventions.....

all the while Alexis's three, beautiful girls sat quietly and read to eachother or napped.

we left feeling so lucky. and so happy to be a part of an ever growing circle of talented, wonderful friends.

stay tuned as the adventures continue.......

in the works....

Pretty Little Liars....wearing BLANKVERSE and some righteous mud...