For what it’s worth, I’m basing much of my booth design/branding for the foreseeable future on this picture, with just a touch of the A Clockwork Orange‘s Korova Milk Bar and its matte/glossy texture.

Speaking of ACO, I’m also adding in some “record covers inspired by Joseph Cornell shadowboxes”:

Pawtucket begrudgingly represent!

And the simple harmony of maybe one of my favorite images, ever:

where from, image? probably Dull Tool, Dim Bulb…?

What’s been up? Well, I spent a few weeks working my little fingers down to their little bones. I vended at a poorly attended craft fair and sold very little (7 things!) The bright side is that I have monumentally less to make for Renegade Brooklyn. I also have had some of my fears allayed that I do not have nearly enough to sell. Probably quite the opposite. Being able to see everything together, displayed in yet another iteration of how I try to communicate MY world the REST of the world… it felt good. It felt solid and strong. I know some of my friends roll their eyes at all the arrow stuff that I have been almost exclusively putting out but, uh, cohesion. It really looks nice together. And it feels good to get it all out of my system. And then- on to the next one. (And maybe I will thematically depart from tiny items of small destruction (guns. arrows… frying pans.) but… maybe not. There are a lot of grim, smug, strange, ugly, and unsellable ideas lounging around in my old dome.

Also, post earrings. Bangle bracelets. Another tie clip.

Would you like to give me a hand? I’m trying to decide which of my belove-ed badges to take a mold from next. Pick two!

Help a sister out.

Long, long times in busy maker mode, these past few weeks/days. However, only one instance of crying. Wonderful progress, Elizabeth.

Turns out that I still have a physical form that occupies a space and, sometimes, when I’m feeling “fancy”, I do dress it up for some kind of pleasing-ish effect. It might seem counter-intuitive but, most of my nicer clothes come to me secondhand while the brand new stuff works to make me look like a scrubby, all-black-everything, schlub. Funny, that. After this era of hard work is over, I desperately need some new underwear. It’s where I draw the line when it comes to second hand.

This dress is a lovely little Leslie Fay number that used to be a big, huge Leslie Fay number. I bought it at the East Providence Saver’s for a few bucks, took it up, and took it in. Perfect proportion on that drop waist, if I do say so myself. Also, you can’t see them in this hazy, middle-of-the-work-day shot but, I have some pretty great Faryl Robin wedges, as well.

Those were a super-mega deal that found over the winter at my OG thrift shop land in Toms River, NJ. $5, friends. Three cheers for the folks who donate unworn, $120 dollar shoes to charity!

In line with charity, I will be in Cambridge, MA (that’s Boston, to all you, not-from-here folks) this Saturday, peddling goods at “The Art of Craft” at the Fayerweather  St. School. I have literally no idea what this will be like but, it’s helping to get me even more excited about Renegade Brooklyn next month. Woo!

Wow. It took a while for this to work out (mold making problems, amirite?) but I am both pleased and chuffed to trumpet the availability of this lil golden devil pin. You can nab your newest bad influence here, for a sum that I think is quite fair, considering how much time and cursing goes into the making of each piece.

Also, do you have any photos of you or your crew wearing your With Care jewels? I’d love to see them and/or post them up with your permission! Send them (or love letters. or photo copies of your butt. or whatever.) to elizabethnovak@gmail.com!

It went fast.

The Good News Number One is that I just sent off a big old box of stuff to Kat von D’s Wonderland Gallery, all the way out in La La Land!

I am mucho, mondo excited to be under the same commercial roof as some of my favorite independent jewelry designers. Not only has this been a heartening experience for me, ego-wise, it really also helped me understand where my strengths and weaknesses are regarding wholesale. Not only that but, once the process began, the Wonderland staff were on top of their game. I hope that you like me, Hollywood. I’d love to send more stuff over to you and travel vicariously through my craft.

Speaking of travel, I took a short, short, so, so quick trip down to Jersey City, NJ for a day or two of mental clarity with some of my good friends from college.

We went to yard sales and sunned ourselves and ate burgers. We walked a lot and hung out in the living room and drank beers. Lots of smiling and talking and giggling. I so deeply appreciate having people in my life who will, theoretically, hold out their hands so that I may just curl up in them and be carried around. I like my friendships that are currently based in place/proximity but, I love and respect the ones that now take place in time- creating days that can stretch over years. A year long absence that feels like it never existed and immediately goes unnoticed.

Also of news, Rhode Island voted “pro” on the issue of marriage equality and, tomorrow, Dave and I are going to Sparks play in New York. I can sum up both of those points with one picture:

*I haven’t watched her TED Talk video but, my friends claim that, in an example of her “devoted fans”,  she Power Points her way past of photograph of them, taken the day that opened a show for her and were mysteriously denied the $500 they were to be paid. Insert a giant, sad face here.

A great big thanks to my friend, Jasmine! She’s kindly donated her body and her style to by blundering photographic eye for a little model-time! Allow her to be your trusted reference when perusing the With Care stacks. Hooray!

I’m not sure if this is a big deal or not but, considering some of the frustrations and set backs of the past few months, it feels a bit like simultaneously finishing a marathon and winning an eating contest. Like most humans, I am subject to periods of incredible sadness, frustration, hopelessness, self-loathing, frustration, self-doubt, and frustration. I know that I should be able to pick myself up and all that but, sometimes it helps to have a force that is larger and more prestigious than you step in a validate your efforts.

Or, as my friend’s boss once wrote to her, “YOU have what it takes… Insane persistence in the pursit of perfection.” Hilarious [sic] included. I’m going to steal that notion and hold onto it tightly for the days when blind persistence seems like just that.

So, thank you, craft leviathan, for helping me prop myself up. Here are some things that you can expect to see on June 22nd and 23rd. Also, expect to hear me declare, “Remember when this was the ditch that we used to get drunk and piss in?!” in reference to the now-fancy Brooklyn waterfront. Full damn circle.

Monkey earrings with crystal eyes!

Two-Headed Boy collar pins

Positively new Golden Quiver necklace with a wonderfully unisex length chain.

Leaden Crossed Arrows necklace. Don’t worry. It’s not actually lead. Go ahead. Put it in your mouth.

My favorite “Jr. Stewardess” necklace.

More arrows on necklaces. These ones are black!

Bronze Marksman necklaces, too. It is going to be a good time for your neck.

You may even be able to snag one of my new boxes! Love of my life! Hand-drawn letters and gems from my friend, Ian. Maybe I will write more about this process later on. Hopefully, there will be more WC/SD (that’s “Secret Door” to you!) brand collaboration in the future. Until then, you can read Ian’s account of his work here.

I’m not going to lie, March has been a real crap month.