Thursday, July 30, 2009

new necklace designs...


it's been a very slow week for me physically. i caught some kind of cold or flu but it went in and out. meanwhile, earlier this week, i was commissioned to design some sample pieces similar to my "elite" series and some other pieces...

the photos below are the 9 new designs out of the 12 designs i end up showing to the potential customer. i didn't want to show an entire line of something i already had. it was also to give myself a reason to feel alive...i can't really put it in words...but i'm glad i did it. many of these are one of a kind, there are a few designs which i may put in my esty shops since i already have them photographed but they will really be a piece of so up for grabs!

i will update with names soon. enjoy what i came up with in about 48 hours!




"optimus"






"guns and the rose"

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

feature of the week: tatteredrags



"ooak creepy gothic halloween folk
art witch rag doll by jodi chain"


i was thinking about my first halloween, 1986, what i dressed up as. i think i was a witch, i only remembered my black witch hat! so i thought of searching for something in that category for this week's feature!

"this tattered Witch rag doll is completely hand stitched, stands 22 inches tall, has vintage button eyes, and black choppy hair.

she's wearing a black dress covered in sequins, a matching pointy hat, black panties, and black leather boots.

her accessories consist of a leather choker with a pewter bat, two leather studded wrist cuffs, several black jelly bracelets, lip & eyebrow rings,and a silver chain belt with two pewter spiders..

she has a small black spider hanging from the tip of her hat & she carries a cauldron and a hand stitched black kitty"~tatteredrags

be sure to check out tatteredrags's other amazing pieces in her etsy store, here or her gallery, here.

as a member of etsy dark team, i decided to feature an item every wednesday from one of our members! this wasn't my idea, i borrowed it from one of our team member, todoteordream! be sure to check out our site or search for etsydarkteam when you are on etsy!

be back next wednesday for feature of the week!

Monday, July 27, 2009

black and white invitation




black & white
final invite

my girl cristy's birthday was last friday! so she's threw a PARTY!!! last week, i designed the above invitation in less than a few hours! since the event is called black & white, it only made sense to design it in black and white!

using actual photos of them in low resolutions, i managed to enhance their faces. i was happy with the way it turned out, considering the amount of time i spent...i provided her with 1 design and 2 type deesign layouts. the above is what she chose and the below was the other one. i like both but i prefer the one below :)

i think i might offer this type of service in my grigio shop...soon!


comp no. 2

Sunday, July 26, 2009

kick 'em kids vs starburst


july 20 , 2009
7pm



discussing their game plan...


c repeats his game plan with logan...


about to start...




get ready...


i don't remember the score, i think no team scored. i remember it was my least favorite game...maybe because neither team scored?...but c tried, he had a few "almost"...




there he is...



still trying...






half time...mateo, c, nyla, and logan
c put his arms around them without being told...cute





my super stars!




good game!!!


Thursday, July 23, 2009

etsy's halloween front page!!!





"flying with crosses no. 1"


last night, after coming home from c's soccer game, i received a message from creeplings, she had informed me that my "flying with crosses no. 1" was on etsy's front page! i guess this happened while i was at the game! the 2nd one since the last one last month, here!

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

feature of the week: natashablue



"dia de los muertos - skeleton love print"

"this is a print of an original painting for my dia de los muertos exhibit. the print measures 15 x 12 1/2. printed to the edges, no white borders! printed on achival, smooth, heavy stock paper. the print is signed and dated by the artist (me) within a series of 20 prints available." ~
natashablue

be sure to check out her other amazing pieces in her etsy store, here or her website, here. she also has a blog, here, and she's on myspace, here.

as a member of etsy dark team, i decided to feature an item every wednesday from one of our members! this wasn't my idea, i borrowed it from one of our team member, todoteordream! be sure to check out our site or search for etsydarkteam when you are on etsy!

be back next wednesday for feature of the week!

akon featuring michael jackson: wanna be startin' somethin 2008





I met her on the walk way
Staring as she walked pass
She looked back at me side ways and said
I cant help but to ask
I Said You Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'
You Got To Be Startin' Somethin'
I Said You Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'
You Got To Be Startin' Something

We end up going back to her place
Wish I could tell you what I saw
The sexiest women in a neclace shade
We hit off until the mornning
Until you hear her say

ADLIB

(AKON)
Ama ma se,
Ma ma sa, ma ma coo sa
Ma ma se, ma ma sa,
Ma ma coo sa (10)X

VERSE 1

(AKON)
Billie Jean Is Always Talkin'
When Nobody Else Is Talkin'
Tellin' Lies And Rubbin' Shoulders
So They Called Her Mouth A Motor
Someone's Always Tryin' To Start My Baby Cryin'
Talkin', Squealin', lyin'
Sayin' You Just Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'

CHORUS

(AKON)
I said you wanna be startin' somethin',
You got to be startin' somethin'.
I said you wanna be startin' somethin',
You got to be startin' somethin'

It's too high to get over,(YEA YEA)
Too low to get under.(YEA YEA)
You're stuck in the middle(YEA YEA)
And the pain is thunder.(YEA YEA)
It's too high to get over,(YEA YEA)
Too low to get under.(YEA YEA)
You're stuck in the middle(YEA YEA)
And the pain is thunder(YEA YEA)

VERSE 2

(MJ)
You love to pretend that you're good
When you're always up to no good
You really can't make him hate her
So your tongue became a razor
Someone's always tryin' to start my baby crying
Talkin', Squealin', lyin you got my baby crying

CHORUS

(AKON)
I said you wanna be startin' somethin',
You got to be startin' somethin'.
I said you wanna be startin' somethin',
You got to be startin' somethin'

It's too high to get over,(YEA YEA)
Too low to get under.(YEA YEA)
You're stuck in the middle (YEA YEA)
And the pain is thunder.(YEA YEA)
It's too high to get over, (YEA YEA)
Too low to get under.(YEA YEA)
You're stuck in the middle (YEA YEA)
And the pain is thunder(YEA YEA)

ADLIB

(AKON)
Ama ma se,
Ma ma sa, ma ma coo sa
Ma ma se, ma ma sa,
Ma ma coo sa(x10)
What did I make her say

VERSE 3

(AKON)
Is getting lil crazy (is getting crazy)
Always messing with my baby(messing with my baby)
And thats the reason she crys
When I am not by her side
At the lonleyst night (without my baby)
But I lo ave you
Always pompin when I think about you
I wanna bring my tonight and share that look on your face
When you say

ADLIB

(AKON)
Ama ma se,
Ma ma sa, ma ma coo sa
Ma ma se, ma ma sa,
Ma ma coo sa(x10)
I wwant to make her say

CHORUS

(AKON)
It's too high to get over,(YEA YEA)
Too low to get under.(YEA YEA)
You're stuck in the middle(YEA YEA)
And the pain is thunder.(YEA YEA)
It's too high to get over,(YEA YEA)
Too low to get under.(YEA YEA)
You're stuck in the middle(YEA YEA)
And the pain is thunder(YEA YEA) (2)x

Monday, July 20, 2009

pure freedom



since my babies are on their summer breaks, i've never imagined to have such a fast paste summer! to me, it's half way through! ronni is taking chinese classes at the high school she will be attending in september. little c has only soccer and we've been invited to birthday parties every other weekend since june! there's one this weekend and there are at least 2 more in august!

besides that, i have to start preparing for the l.a. county fair in pomona which begins in september. then there's my daily etsy and my local customers! and now i found some time to update my new creations :)

the last 2 weeks, i managed to come up with a new series of earrings which i named "pure freedom". i guess it derived from my current life condition and after designing and making the different lines of the necklaces, i missed making earrings. i also had to bring new inventory to olverita's village and casita de pueblo last week. this time, i had new designs for the shops and i only have a couple up in my grigiodesign right now...

although i practice buddhsim, as i've mentioned countless times, i am intrigued with the idea of devils and fascinated with the idea of angels. i love the western perspective of how angels have wings. this came early when i did "invinsible", i gave wings to "quan yin" bodhisattva. i have the same views that angels are pure and when you have wings, it's absolute pure freedom! i believe that angels and devils are both as beautiful, the many ways they are portrayed by humans. frankly, each one of us have our own devil and angel which exist inside of us.

yes, i wish i have wings but it's all in my head. i guess the many things we go through in life, we encounter the evil and the horrors, but the moment you let go and find peace within yourself, is the moment when you have nothing but purity and when that happens, to me, it's absolute freedom.

as i mentioned before, here, " in nichiren daishonin's buddhism, it is called "ichinen sanzen" is the wish-granting gem. there are as many sides to this gem as there are living beings. each side reflects its own reality.

our life is a wish-granting gem.

when we peer into our lives we can barely see our own reflection. but when we polish our lives through chanting and making efforts to improve ourselves, we can see ourselves reflected clearly. when our gem is polished in this way we can see beyond our own reflection and see inside the gem that is the ultimate reality of all life.

a determination (ichi) at the core of your being makes real (nen) that self-pledge in all the realms (sanzen) of your life." the above can be found here.

thus, it only takes one nerve, one second for you to make that determination of whatever it may be!

there are also events, things, situations that we may not do anything about, good or bad. i feel that humans generally suppress them which is not healthy. i believe in dealing with those situations or feelings...when you deal with your fundamental darkness, triumph arises which makes you victorious...then pureness comes...human revolution.

our own human revolution: "human revolution is the work of transforming our lives at the very core. it involves identifying and challenging those things which inhibit the full expression of our positive potential and humanity. nichiren buddhism is based on belief in a pure, positive and enlightened condition of life which exists equally within all people. this life state of "buddhahood" is characterized by the qualities of compassion, wisdom and courage which enable us to create something of value from any situation. nichiren realized that the deepest process of change and purification takes place when we bring forth this state, and he taught the practice of chanting "nam-myoho-renge-kyo" as the direct and immediate means for accessing and experiencing it." ~ more here.





"pure freedom"
no. 6


with all that said, in all the pieces i've designed so far, each piece have the element of wings/feathers in them. there are non skull ones in my grigio shop. i used mother of pearls on a lot of them and they are rare! the swords and the axes are representations of the idea of fight. fight for your rights...fight for your dreams...fight for your being...i will always design around the ideas of peace, love, and purity!

i'm gonna need to cut down on my 17 hour day and get some sleep so enjoy!