Come Play (Inside) with Me!

{Brenda Schweder}

{My Book}

{ A rare shot of me out-of-doors!}

This week, I took the opportunity to slow down a bit and summertime memories from my life as a five-year-old bubbled to the surface. Even though Mom tried to send us outside to play as often as she could (when did the poor dear have any time to herself with six kids underfoot?), she soon realized that she could count on me to remain quietly indoors if she set me up with some blank paper and a box of crayons—the big box of 64 with the sharpener in the back. 

From early on, I was interested in creating. And making things.

And my love of the time-worn has led to a passion for found objects—for taking things that may normally be discarded and breathing new life into them. (I turn scruffy into scrumptious.) Enter the up-cycling and green movements and you’ve got the start to what’s been a fabulous journey with my new travel partner, rebar tie wire, at the wheel.

A bit of a stretch? I’ll catch you up. Girl colors with crayons. Crayons (eventually) lead to a fashion degree. Fashion degree leads to co-authoring Fashion Forecast column in a leading beading magazine . . . which leads to jewelry designs in same said magazine . . . to a book about turning junk into jewelry . . . and a second about turning old junk jewelry into new and fabulous old-new jewelry. 

Here’s where you say, “(I’m dizzy) and, what about wire?” And, I say . . . “what’s the natural progression to a flame-o-phobe who has little training in metalsmithing but wants to artistically harness all types of found objects into art you can hang on or about your body?” 

The liberal use of cheap and easy-to-work steel wire, of course! Dark, annealed, carbon-coated, flexible, and forgiving steel wire is a hoot to turn and form and hammer and (cold) connect into jewelry (and a belt)—and, of course, another book with all the projects designed, written, and illustrated by me.

This is why the five-year-old red-haired girl wasn’t jumping up and down at the chance to run around outside, or jump in puddles, or catch fireflies. Her then too-little-for-steel fingers were strengthening and her too-naïve-to-know mind couldn’t predict, nor her voice sputter: “Mom, when I grow up I want to author a book about creating steel wire jewelry.” 

Instead, she managed—encoded, I’m sure— “I want to be a cheerleader.” 

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Come play inside with me and wrangle some steel wire at

THE CREATIVE CONNECTION.

Through my workshops:

Cage Contender

and

Wrangled Bangles

 We’ll play with found treasure, form and hammer wire normally used to reinforce rebar rod inside concrete structures, and learn about what led our five-year-old selves to where we are today, and to where we’ll go tomorrow . . . and the day after that . . . and the day after that . . .

. . . ‘til we’re all grown up. 

 

Gosh, I can’t wait!

oxox!

-b.

www.BrendaSchweder.com

www.Facebook.com/brenda.schweder

www.Facebook.com/brendaschwederjewelry

www.Twitter.com/#1/brendaschweder

 

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Now what would a great blog entry be without a great blog giveaway by Brenda Schweder herself?

Simply post a few words about your own five-year-old summertime creation recollection and consider yourself “entered to win” (in a super random way):

1) an autographed copy of Steel Wire Jewelry and 

2) a Cage Contender necklace containing a picked-just-for-you found treasure!!

 

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Additional entries:

*Follow WWC and TCC on Twitter

@WHEREWOMENCREAT @TCCEVENT (1 Entry)

*Tweet about this contest (1 entry)

*Blog about this contest and mention THE CREATIVE CONNECTION (1 Entry)

*Have a WWC button or link on your blog (1 Entry)

*Post a Comment on THE CREATIVE CONNECTION BLOG (1 Entry) 

Remember to post separately for each additional entry and please only post the amount of entries allowed. Also, make sure we have a way to contact you. This contest ends on Tuesday, June 28th at Midnight (MST), so make sure to get your comments in by then. 

 

One more thing … Facebook rules are ever changing, so we never involve them in any contest we have. However, we would appreciate a "Like" on our THE CREATIVE CONNECTION EVENT Facebook page.

Creative Karma will be bestowed on you!

 

~THANK YOU~

 

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