Coming Full Circle

I’ve been on a Buffy kick lately. Started with the middle of Season 6, then 7, then 5. Tonight I felt compelled to watch the Season 2 Finale when Buffy invites Spike into her home. It made me feel very nostalgic and contemplating the stark differences between who I was then vs who I am now.

From a jewelry perspective, I was still dabbling here and there with sterling silver chain and Swarovski crystal. But not as much for some reason until the summer before college. My sister bought a bunch of stretchy string bracelets with 3mm crystals, so my oldest sister and I made a trip to Bead District in Downtown LA in search of tiny crystals to make our own bracelets. Then college got in the way until a few years later during an organized bonding day of making crystal dolls with the Cal Poly Pomona student chapter of Society of Women Engineers. That got me back into my beads again and never really stopped since then, save for a short period of time when all I wanted to do was knit.

Chainmaille didn’t happen until late 2006. By then I was done with school with the hope of changing the world one traffic signal at a time. Oh, how I miss that naivety. I admit that ideal fell out of place real quick. I knew I was bored with my jewelry skills but I kept chugging away anyway, like any dedicated artist would. Even the difference between who I am now vs who I was when I started chainmaille is huge. Personality-wise, dreams, goals, skills. It’s all very strange. I have a husband. I have a baby. I’m a bellydancer. I’m a chainmaille master. I equate bellydance with chainmaille skills… In order to make anything your own, artistically, you need to have not only strong skills, but soul to go along with it. Between Aislyn’s philosophy about jewelry design and Sashi’s Spirit of the Dance, I fully understand what it all means. You need both sides to create the whole. A yin yang, sun moon, light dark, right brain left brain, etc. That is how you become the best artist you can be. By taking your skills and applying yourself to those skills and BAM! you have your own unique personal style.

I don’t know what the future holds and it would be silly to try and figure out what it will be. All we can do is sit back and enjoy the ride, even if it means calloused feet, sore breasts full of milk, random sleeping hours, too much Buffy, and dented thumbnails from chaining beads to make linked necklaces.

Ooo, Cute Clothes!

I am no fashionista by any means, but I do know how to dress and shop for clothes that properly fit.  While it’s a challenge to shop when I’m wandering the mall with my dad, I’ve mastered the art of trying things on and purchasing them within 10 to 15 minutes.  I do this mostly at Nordstrom’s and Lucky.  For Talbots, my mom orders a bunch of stuff online and I know my sizing well enough to avoid returning anything to the store.  I only wear jeans when I have to (i.e. during the winter) because I prefer the freedom of cotton sweats and skirts.  Come on, I’m a bellydancer for crying out loud.  Jeans are too restrictive for my free spirit.

XCVI is a brand I discovered at my sisters’ favorite boutique in Maui.  Perfect poplin cotton capris that are oh so comfy to wear on the island and in Southern California.  I think shopping for XCVI is what I miss the most about Hawaii.  I’ve been fortunate enough to find them scarcely at Nordstrom, Bloomingdales, and a local boutique called Ear Abstracts.  Shopping at EA also led me to start falling in love with Karen Kane.  I recognized the brand before, because my mother has bought several pieces from KK and I happened to swipe a gorgeous black skirt with embroidered red roses outlined in gold from her (it sings to my gothy heart).  Two of my KK dresses are great pregnancy dresses and before I discovered just how comfortable maternity skirts can be, I was wearing two KK skirts over my little bump over and over and over.  They both perfectly match my favorite spring/summer XCVI tunic.  Jesse calls that tunic my ridiculous outfit because of all the fringe.  Here’s a picture of me wearing it at a friend’s bridal shower with my signature mix of Hui Hui Designs jewelry and fine jewelry.  This flower set has been my pregnancy staple for some reason…

I don’t look like I’m 5 months pregnant, do I?  Hehehe.  Hui.1 just barely started to really show.  Even while we were in Georgia, my bump wasn’t very big (we left about 2 weeks after this photo was taken).  Not until lately, but even then some people can’t tell that I’m pregnant.  No, I don’t get it either…

I’m sidetracking too much… here are pictures of my latest shopping loot.  Pretty top and skirt from XCVI that were on sale and an adorable Karen Kane dress I scored for $29.  You seriously can’t beat that!

Since we’re on the subject of clothes, I bought this caplet and returned it because Jesse is right; Southern California simply does not have the weather to wear something as luxe as this.  I was a sad panda, but the money back in my wallet was happier.  Jesse made fun of me and asked if I was a mail-order-bride from Russia.  Eh, I’m sure the faux fur trim would have started bothering me, but it would have been so chic with the baby on one arm.  Grrr.

After my epic online shopping spree, I decided to poke around the XCVI website, and look what I found!!!  Oh geez, I’m glad I’ll be able to fit into all my pre-pregnancy clothes once Hui.1 is out.  Assuming I don’t gain any weight from all the food I miss eating!  I’ll need to pace myself for sure, but I’ll also be breastfeeding and hiding for the first month.  So all should be well and I can start getting ready for fall and winter.  But, can you imagine me wearing these?  I thought so too.  They are supposed to be released to retailers in September or October.  I already asked EA to tell me if they get any of these pieces in, but I really want the tunic and the skirt.  Not to wear together, but it’s my favorite berry burgundy. ♥ ♥ ♥  The beige skirt would be nice, simply because of the cute lace trim.  I’m such a sucker for lace and frilly things.

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Finding My Roots

Before I started chainmaille, I used to make a lot of bead and chain necklaces.  This started when my sister and I discovered a new bead store around the time I was probably 12 or 13.  That was my introduction to jump rings, sterling silver wire, and chain.  Those designs eventually trickled down over the years, ninja-ing their way into newer designs, with little chainmaille bits here and there.  I suppose I still have it in me… it just comes out differently than I expect.

Sometimes I wonder if I need to be more cohesive with my designs and style, but I kinda think all of my creations have my signature style somewhere embedded in them.  So maybe that is enough.  Eh, I can at least be consistent with the photos that are posted on Etsy.  Need to do another shoot with the chainmaille soon.  But, I can say that I’m living up to my own motto…

“If art is a window into the soul, then my jewelry says I am strong, beautiful, and sometimes whimsical.”

Lessons

I’ve been working with my Swarovski crystal on this trip. I guess I needed a nice burst of color. I’m remotely concerned with this only because my favorite jewelry designer, whom I aspire to, fell off the face of the earth when the economy tanked. I’ve watched her products and designs for years, starting in the 90′s all the way up to post-college. This was when Y-necklaces were all the rage. At the end of her reign, she ventured into semi-precious stones to supplement her crystal collection. But POOF! and she’s gone, her website redone and more vintage than anything else.

How do I avoid this serious tanking? How do I avoid a plateau in the market and stay alive? Maybe she grew her empire too big and once she pulled out of Nordstrom, that’s where the difficulties caved her in. This is why I don’t want to rely on fashion, but timeless, heirloom style. Like how a Chanel or Louis Vuitton never truly goes out of style. I would love some Louis Vuitton travel bags but then people would know I either have money or a rich husband. I guess I’ll just stick to my seatbelt bags instead.

This is why I’ve been mostly avoiding crystal necklaces on chains. But maybe I don’t have to be so afraid of it as long as I make sure my designs aren’t dated and overly trendy. And I need to believe in myself and my vision. Only then will I find the right market. Wow, I really feel like Goldilocks right now.

Vacationing

Jesse, Jesse.1, and I are in Georgia visiting Jesse’s mom.  It’s been pretty nice out here relaxing and eating.  Hui.1 decided he likes hanging out by my obliques today.  Sheesh, it hurts whenever I twist around or move funny.  Lucky me.  He really doesn’t like it when I attempt a washerwoman shimmy, an ami (small ones are okay), and a pelvic tilt back.  Just anything that involves shortening of my torso or twisting of it.  Surprisingly enough, I can still do chest slides… but that’s more chest than the rest of my torso.  Hmm.

Been toying with new jewelry designs here and there.  Really just idle tinkering as I stare into the greenery surrounding the house.  I’ll post scenery pictures once I remember to post them to Photobucket.  Hehehe.  It’s been more of taking old designs I’ve already perfected and adding more chainmaille bits to it.  Need another day to sit on it though.  Overall it’s been a pretty relaxing few days, bumming around the yard of forest, eating enough to keep baby happy, and spending time with my in-laws.  One real observation has been how much the siblings play board games.  The games I really want are Dominion and Munchkin.  The sets we bought are staying here so we have something to do when we come back to visit.  Puerto Rico is really fun too, but longer than the other 2.  I guess it depends how much time we have post baby, but if my cousin can host a party for the baby’s 1-month, then I’m sure Jesse and I can figure something out.

As much as I wonder if I should bust out some fashion magazines to figure out what the latest trends are, I shrug off the idea and remember that style is more important than fashion.  The empire I’m trying to create is based on timeless, classic style, not ever changing horrid fashion.  So yeah.  I can sleep easier at night and wake up refreshed.  Now to get my butt moving a little bit…

Here Comes Trouble

I changed my mind and decided to go with 2 display tables.  Might as well go all out for this because I have room.  Part of me really wants to setup the tables in such a way that I create a lounge with chairs.  Random… crap, I need camping chairs!

So my order from Target.com arrived yesterday and I have to say that 2 out of 3 things worked really well.  I have to say I hate ordering clothes blindly online and hoping they fit.  These 2 dresses actually fit really well and I’m just taking back the poorly fitting top.  Yay for in-store returns!  I’m glad I ordered a blue striped dress… wearing all this black gets a bit dull, even though I have been doing my best to “zazzy” it up with accessories.  Oddly enough, I’m learning a lot about fashion during this pregnancy.  For instance, wearing dainty jewelry with skinny jeans… it’s all about proportions.  I hate skinny jeans, but I’m sure that can be applied to a pencil skirt and tights.  Heck, I hate all jeans in general because I don’t like being confined so much.  But I occasionally wear jeans in the winter, simply because I’m tired of wearing my Lucky sweats day in and day out.

I went to the dr today and we tried to take a peek to determine the sex of the baby… um no.  It rolled over, crossed its legs, and then punched me.  I didn’t feel it, but sheesh, feeling the attitude already.  I already know this one is going to be trouble, simply because the combination of genetics between Jesse and I is a full spectrum of intelligence and awesomeness.

And I will leave you with Zazzles and the origin of the word “Zazzy!”

Eternal Hui Hui Style

My love for rose gold transcended over the Easter weekend.  The weather was perfect to don a cute little tank top dress that has a matching lace overlay over the skirt (hello, I love lace!).  So cute and disguised my Hui.1 bump oh so well!  Eh, not much is showing at 16 weeks.  Still the debate of “is she fat or pregnant?” and I can fit in normal clothes.  Hehehe.

I’ve been reading “Bump It Up” about being able to stay stylish and pregnant at the same time and a key trick is to accessorize, accessorize, accessorize.  And find clothes that flatter you, maternity wear or not.  So I put on my dress, finished my rose gold and sterling silver lariat, and decided I needed something more since it was Easter and Jesse and I were headed to meet the family for Dim Sum in Irvine.  Chainmaille bracelet in rose gold and sterling silver?  Check.  Chainmaille earrings?  Check.  Wedding rings?  Check.  I think I have to blame that book because I layered my jewelry for the first time ever and wore the little Na Hoku palm tree my dad bought for me during one of our trips to Hawaii.  Dad made one of his classic cute faces when I showed him I was wearing it.  Epic win.

Dad’s fabulous taste in fashion has definitely rubbed off on me, even if I’m not willing to pay for designer labels.  Give me Talbots and Lucky Brand over Valentino and Miu Miu any day.  All those Fridays wandering around South Coast Plaza for a good 5 years or more has paid off in more ways than one.  He has an eye for design that I haven’t quite mastered yet.  Hopefully someday.  He loves modern and contemporary design, as well as little bits of Country French here and there.  But all and all, smooth, clean lines.  Like a Star Pine Tree.  I think when Jesse and I finally own our own home, Dad will be most comfortable there.  I’ll be sure to stock his favorite green tea, a hot water pot, and the 2nd biggest mug in the house for him (Jesse gets the biggest one, but they might just be the same size).

Musings…

My friend got me thinking about business names this week, but “Hui Hui Designs” is still the best one.  It’s who I am.  It’s my jewelry identity.  It’s unique because of the name and even though very few people will be able to pronounce it correctly, it’s not like I’m going to be selling anything in high end department stores.  There are other avenues for that.  Apparently Nordstrom charges you up the wahzoo if you make mistakes on your inventory when you ship them your merchandise.  Sounds too tedious to me, even if I had shipping staff. 

I may not make it to be up to par with great fashion names like Dior, Chanel, or Tiffany’s, but at least my customers will know that they are getting the very best product for their hard earned money.  Then the day will come when I will be successful enough to start making chainmaille in 18kt gold.