What's Mine ought to be Mine, the Grim Truth

I quick snapped this on the way out of the house this morning - it's grim here.
No sunshine whatsoever, yet somehow today was very beautiful, all grimly gray and gloomy.

I guess there's a little emo girl lurking in me today.

Someone I quite admire asked me today if they could copy some of my beads - and for the first time ever - I said "no." I don't know what possessed me - generally I am pretty "whatever" about it all. Selfish? Perhaps. Unrealistic? Definitely.

Copying is such a tender topic in the bead world that I really hesitate to say word one here on the subject. This past show was a real eye opener for me, more than a few of the beads and jewelry pieces looked like they could have been mine. I was stuck feeling something between flattered and pissed.

Who doesn't like being emulated? It's flattering.
Who likes being copied and undersold? No one.

It's times like these that I remember, very vividly, that as a child I wanted to grow up and be a hermit. I had huge, detailed plans for my semi-underground compound in the woods, living the life of the 'Boxcar Children' - but just me - no troublesome siblings in my fantasy. When puberty hit and suddenly sex needed to be included in my life plan I abandoned the whole hermit ideal - but sometimes I really do still yearn for it.


Pod Earrings.

The glass pods are Double Helix psyche on medium red.

In a perfect world I would love for my beads to be inspirational - stepping stones to your own new and different designs. That friends, students and strangers would take my techniques and be inspired to use them in great new ways - to add their own soul. To learn from and then expand upon my experiments, and shared discoveries - not to try to replicate them.

Trust me, there is nothing more satisfying than finding your own way and writing your own song.