Object Project: Quoth the Raven

Submitted by Elise Banks of Black Ant Beads

When I first was an undergraduate at a local community college, I took a lot of classes online. This was partly because I did not like to drive and partly because I loved being my own teacher. One of the first classes I took online was American Literature 1. I was lucky enough to have taken the class in the fall semester because we started out reading Washington Irving’s Sleepy Hollow and then moved on to Edgar Allen Poe right about Halloween.

I am not sure what it is about Poe that I love, but something just clicked for me. The melancholy stories that make you want to cry. The tales of the horrors that lay within our own hearts. Oh! I just love it!

As a part of the class, the teacher assigned us a response assignment. This assignment was totally open for all kinds of interpretation. Students could do a power point presentation, write a song or short story, or, in my case, design a piece of jewelry. Whatever the student did they had to do it as a response to what they had read. As I read Edgar Allen Poe’s fantastic poem The Raven I began to feel the darkness of the story. The pain of remembrance, the glitter of hope that sparkled for a moment and was then dashed away by the raven. I had to do a necklace.

I started by selecting beads. Black seed beads were first because they were so obviously needed. The plain darkness set the stage for the other elements of the poem. I then mixed in some labradorite chips and some dark crystals. These added the element of sparkling hope that was dark even as it was light. A Hope clouded by the knowledge that it was a useless hope. Then I added the black chains as though they were the very chains around the young man’s heart that bound him as he longed for his dead love. To finish the piece off I created a pendant in the image of that evil prophet come to bring ill tidings – the raven. I also added a couple of charms that say ‘Quoth the raven, “Nevermore.”’

If you have never read The Raven--and I never did prior to receiving this story!--you can check out the full text here: http://www.eapoe.org/works/poems/ravenj.htm

Happy almost Halloween!

Object Project: The Queen's Jewels

Submitted by Jo of Seese the Day

Necklace courtesy of VintageTreasures4U

I was scanning items once and saw a vintage necklace just like one my mother had when I was growing up.  It wasn't her style at all, since she was a conservative woman.  This was a necklace fit for a queen and it has earrings and a bracelet to match.  I have gotten rid of many of her jewlery items since she died but somehow I couldn't bear to part with this set.

I had memories of it, my mother let me play dress up with it and my favorite game was playing queen. I was convinced at age 3 or 4 that I was not really a member of my family because I didn't look like them at all.  Everyone had dark hair and eyes (actually Daddy had blue eyes and a red beard if he let it grow).  So in my young mind I was practicing for the day I was rightfully restored to my royal family. I think this fantasy was fertilized by the coronation of Queen Eliz. II on my 3 or 4th birthday.  My sweet mother never dashed my dreams. She let me revel in the royal fantasy and generously let me play with her precious jewlery.  I wish I knew where she got a piece so out of her style, a special occsion piece? A gift?

When I saw the similar item at a vintage site I convoed the shop owner telling my story.  She was sweet and reponded with a kind response.  (Now I think why would she want to know, if I had one I wouldn't be buying hers,) but that was not her attitude at all. Next I created a treasury just around this piece of hers.

When something is an important part of our past it carries the energy of the times that were important.  If there were a fire and I lost it I would be fine.  I have the memories and that is what is important. However I hung the set from my french bulletin board and glance at it occassionally and smile.  I have been known to walk over and put the set on while i sit in my craft room and work.  I look at them like they are the crown jewels.

Now at 64, I realize I am not a princess in waiting but I have discovered the real jewels my family has given me. Imagination, and self-worth, the purple necklace reminds me of that truth and I love that little red-haired girl who was allowed to dream.

Object Project: Virgin and Child Key Chain

Submitted by Kelsey Fox Bennett of Inner Art Creations

As I rummaged around my drawers there were many trinkets and keepsakes that caught my eye... the matching earrings and ring I bought in Paris, the necklace given to me by my first boyfriend, and the handful of lonely earrings that I love so much I keep them even though they are missing their partner.  Yet there was one thing that had a story I really wanted to share and that was this Virgin Mary & Baby Jesus key chain. What makes this an interesting keepsake is that I'm not a religious person and yet this specific key chain is connected to and represents many of the things I value and hold dear to my heart.

I received this key chain from an Africanizing Arch Bishop I met in Ghana. I was in Ghana with my African singing and dance professor and friend, Nii Armah. There was a small group of us and we stayed for two months with Nii Armah's family in La, a suburb of Accra. Nii Armah seemed to know everyone and anyone he didn't know he would soon make friends with. It was no different when we traveled to Northern Ghana and went to dine with this Africanizing Arch Bishop.

When I say Africanizing, I mean that although he is an Arch Bishop and stands firmly by the holy trinity, he also supports and values traditional Ghanaian culture and finds it is merely another form of worshiping God. We spent the evening with him as he sat at the head of the table and spoke with us about his beliefs. Following dinner we were taken to his courtyard where we proceeded to watch and partake in traditional singing and dancing late into the night. To say the least it was a magical evening.

There are many things I will never forget from that trip and one of them is that night and the realization that we are all the same, with varying viewpoints and approaches, but ultimately, living, breathing, and celebrating the gifts we are given, whether they be by God or the Universe, they are bountiful and we should celebrate any way we know how.

Thanks so much to Kelsey for her beautiful object contribution. Do you have a story hiding in a drawer somewhere? Submit it here!

What treasures do you have buried in your closet?

Photo courtesy of Creekside Diner

While there are many things that are important to our existence--cell phones, computers, shoes, toothbrushes, etc.--very few objects are elevated beyond their utilitarian functions.  When they are, it often has little to do with the object itself, but with what it represents.  This is why objects can become so meaningful, and are such a great way to remember a significant time in our life, our family, or history.

But when do you stop to think about these important objects?  How often do you dust off the trinkets on your bookcase or the forgotten treasure buried in the back of your closet, or even find a discarded piece of furniture by the side of the road and think about its story, what it has seen, who has owned it and loved it?

Thinking about these stories helps us appreciate what we have, or even what we are getting rid of.  In these objects we can discover the beauty of everyday life, relive old memories, or pass on histories that may otherwise go untold or be forgotten.

I want to share these stories here on Bric & Brac.  So go searching on your shelves, in drawers, and under your bed for hidden treasures, and contribute your object and story to the Object Project.  What objects are important to you?  What interesting, strange and beautiful things can you dig up?  Share them!