New Year's Eve

Lots of plans and hopes for the new year, looking forward to what 2011 brings...

Thanks to Alica  for putting up my "Friday Spotlight" for the Team BPAL group!

hope everyone has a great start to the year of the rabbit!

William Morris Brother Rabbit

new bed

new bed
Originally uploaded by parrish relics

Rearranging my studio during the busiest time of the year!
Galatea is enjoying her new cozy bed for the winter...

Fragments of Time

So excited to finally unveil this collection I have been working on with a friend for more than a year!

Medieval Incunabula Jewels

Wanted to do this amazing project justice, and as you can imagine the first test was an intense one! I am really happy with what I have created with the beautiful fragment supplied by Michael Laird Rare Books, and hope you enjoy the first four of hopefully more to come!

Museums, Saints & Relics!

Busy days in the PR studio!

 Dropped off jewelry for the Museum School Art Sale beginning next week,

 getting ready for the Snow Mall show the first weekend in December, 

and spending evenings researching and sketching designs for the upcoming

British Museum's Treasures of Heaven Saints, relics and devotion in Medieval Europe

I couldn't be more excited about working with the gift shop again, 

and this is quite the dream project for me! Really hope to visit this time.

A little inspiration...

And of course, will be updating the Etsy pages, both Lyra Parrish and PR many times up until the holidays, so check in on our facebook page for what's new!

100th pictorial necklace listing!

Two Hounds Tapestry Pictorial Necklace             

 my 100th Pictorial Necklace has now been listed on Etsy!
in celebration, 50% of the price of the necklace will be donated to the dog/pet charity of your choice!
(Paypal donation capable charities preferred)
feel free to contact  me with any questions!

also to celebrate the arrival of the newest Parrish Relics household member, Charlotte Oktober!

Etsy Offerings...

four new pictorials for the shop!

a manuscript, a poisonous rival, an ill fated Queen and a medieval hare

Maker Faire Bound

Frantically jewelry-making, organizing and packing

 for the Bust Craftacular at the Maker Faire on Saturday!

Hope to see some of you NYC folks there!

Directions to the Maker Faire

New Books to inspire...

I used to come home from LA with a suitcase full of new clothes & boots. These days, it's books!

Bosch & Van Eyck books came from the incredible TASCHEN store in Beverly Hills. What a temptation that place was. There were a few limited edition David Bowie &  Ellen von Unwerth books that had us wishing for lottery wins, still fun to browse. If you visit, say hi to Nick for us!

Book Soup is where I found the Medieval Jewellery V&A book, what a collection of beauty!

We also purchased books on Punk photography ~ Ask The Angels & Made in the UK for youthful memories :) So much fun.

vacation inspirations

Still settling back after a wonderful vacation in Los Angeles & points North. Relaxed and energized to get back to work tomorrow, so much inspiration...here are a few.

Figueroa Hotel

Carmel-By-The-Sea

The Madonna Inn

Los Angeles Arboretum & Botanical Gardens

Made With Love by Hannah

Point Lobos 

The Trunk show at La Belle Epoque was so much fun! 

too busy to get good photos but luckily Pamela's friends took some great shots here

looking forward to posting new designs on Etsy & new exciting projects to unveil~

very soon. xxJen

one week from today!

hope to see some of you there!

Little Queen Anne

Little Queen Anne by Walter Crane

Hope all of my Faerieworlds friends have a wonderful weekend! 
Wish I could be there...

Plum Island

Took a day to prepare for my next branch of Parrish Relics, a project to be revealed in late August...
Still making jewelry for the Etsy shop, that will not be ending. This will be in addition to~ and I can't wait to unveil it.

Visited beautiful Newburyport and Plum Island, couldn't be more beautiful. Memories of Scotland in the grassy plains, the wildlife refuge offers so much beauty and peace.

Took some images for the new project, but also took time with friends to enjoy the very clean beach and visiting birds.

pr gulf donation

pr gulfdonation
Originally uploaded by parrish relics

Team BPAL on Etsy have teamed up to donate creations from many of our members to the Sea Turtle Restoration Project!

please check out the wonderful offerings for a good cause!


more about Team BPAL

train tracks & treehouses

This past weekend was so much fun! I had a long planned photo shoot with the very talented Shannon Grant at a gorgeous defunct railroad station, surrounded by trees and a lovely lake.  Just from peeking at the images on her camera, there are going to be some very golden moments captured. I am so excited to have been a part of this amazing team: photographer, models, hair and makeup artists and lots of help styling. It may be a while before I can share, but will do so here when I can!

Here are a few camera phone captures of the serene location, it felt a bit like a ghost town that I would like to inhabit. We had a pizza delivered to us and ate it out front on the very same benches that were once bustling with Victorian travelers and waited out the passing thundershowers under the generous eaves. Magic.

Designed by H.H. Richardson, the very same architect who built my beloved Trinity Church in Boston! Hidden dragons and lions can be found in this deceptively simple building. There are a few other buildings by H.H. in the area that I would love to go back to view up close and get to know a little better.

On Sunday,  came across this wonderful abandoned treehouse while visiting a cat who's people were in Florence~ I wanted to climb up and decorate! Lots of dreaming could be done up there...

So many things to do before vacation in Los Angeles & points North in a few weeks...

must get back to studio time! Looking forward to making jewelry & hopefully listing more on Etsy.

Hope everyone has a wonderful week! 

photography

For anyone looking to improve their skills at small object photography, I highly recommend Steve Meltzer's  Photographing Arts, Crafts & Collectibles . I just purchased it the other day, and haven't delved very deep into it, but have already seen an improvement thanks to his explanation of how to best light a piece of jewelry with reflective surfaces.

Here is an example: the Lumina Window Necklace from my Etsy shop. I was never quite happy with how my photo captured the beauty of the stained glass and patina of this necklace.

now, with Steve's lighting suggestions and a more textural background

Here's to learning and improving! I'm sure to do both with further reading of this in depth book.

The Danaides

The Danaides
Originally uploaded by parrish relics

Listed on Etsy this afternoon after testing out some newly learned photography techniques...hope to keep improving!

treasures found

Had a lovely exploration of the Sister Thrift shop in Burlington, found a few treasures and will definitely go back. Brought three bags of donations, and all things purchased go to a no kill cat shelter. Win win!

first found, a small Nouveau frame, perfect for my favorite Galatea photo.

two matching prints that are perfect in our Greco-Roman themed hallway

Galatea has found a new place to sleep in my studio, under the draped display table. She is a stowaway in the bag that I store all my show supplies in. Do not disturb!

Tomorrow I am heading to the post office to mail out long overdue custom orders, and will drop off a necklace for the Stone Zoo's A Wild Affair auction. 

detail of "Two Leopards Playing in the Exeter Change Menagerie"

by Jacques-Laurent Agasse (1767-1849)

natural acai seed beads from the Amazon

Tapestry Cat

Medieval Tapestry ~ "The Noble Lady Spinning Wool" 

Lots of cats on my mind today. Sending healing thoughts to Queen Mab, exited to meet my mother's new foster cat, and finally a visit to Sister Thrift this afternoon to donate and hopefully shop benefitting MetroWest Humane Society.