What is Wonky?

No....it's not a pet name for a famous chocolate confectioner or a Star Wars creature!  Wonky is one of those words that is often used by beaders.  Just last Saturday in class, my new student Marie let fly the adjective.  Oh, the things my students will say!  Wonky means wibbly-wobbly or better yet, skew-whiff.  Plain English?  Bent, crooked, uneven.  But....I embrace wonky.  To me, it means something is very interesting to look at and requires further examination.  Ah, but you say, "it doesn't look right".  And maybe you're right.  But it's all really semantics.  You know....I say potatoes, you say patahtows.  Sometimes wonky definitely isn't good.  Like when you need your wire to definitely go in the other direction.  Sometimes wonky is great.  Like when you didn't mean for the wire to do what it did, but now it looks so much more interesting and possibly sends you on a different path of creativity.  That's when wonky is truly great.  Okay, so what am I really talking about here?  I'm saying think outside the box.  When working with wire, be forgiving of yourself and your skills, especially if they are newly acquired.  Repeat my classroom mantra, "This is Art....not Science", take a deep breath and ask yourself, "do I really need to re-work this"?  If I'm there, we can work through it.  If not, you can always call me (just don't be hysterical or call me at 3 a.m.), or you can send me an SOS email with a pic.  Step away from the project and take a break.  A solution is literally at hand.  As evidenced in the above image.  I had a nice cuff armature that I had begun to bead.  The beading started going in a direction that I didn't like and I kept thinking, "do I really want to do ANOTHER cuff like this"?  I didn't, so I literally cut the cuff in half and then had two very interesting shapes to play with that were partially beaded.  Thus, the concept for Free Form Wire Pendants was hatched.  I taught the class at the Pasadena show in January, and it was a huge success.  Keep your eyes peeled for a class offering soon.  Keep up the great work and keep me posted!  I love to hear from you.     

Kat-isms

Today's blog is all about what it is that makes you step back, laugh, ponder or mentally wax poetic about life in general.  For some, a good mantra works wonders.  I don't have a mantra, but in class you've heard me say many times, "This is art....not science".  Everyone usually giggles when I say it, but it is really how I view the learning process when it comes to jewelry making.  It's really an axiom and is meant to serve as a way to remind you to be forgiving of yourself.  Everyone wants to be a pro, even if it's your first class.  Anyone who has ever moved wire knows that learning to control it is a very humbling experience.  But remember the first time you got it to do what you wanted?  Hallelujah!  You felt really good and probably thought for the first time, "I can do this"!  And you can.  I promise you.  "Practice makes perfect" is another axiom or adage that is so true when it comes to wire working.  One great way to learn how to work wire is to do a simple line drawing.  Put the point of your pencil or pen on a piece of paper, look away, make a simple doodle, and then lift your pen.  Look at what you've drawn and then with your tools, try to turn a piece of wire into that doodle.  Knowing what your tools will do is half the battle.  "Practice on copper, perfect on silver" is a prescient piece of advice, especially in times like these.  Some students try to start a design with silver thinking that they may want to do it only once, especially if it's a lot of work.  I say, bah hum bug!  "Any great design worth doing once, deserves a repeat performance"!  Hopefully I've given you some food for thought, and as always, let me know what you think.  Oh yeah, that's Jax and Lola at the top, pondering the meaning of life.  It's important to appear indifferent when you're a cat!