A Little About Who I Am
I have always known that I am an artist from the time that I drew a pig at age three and my parents put it up on the fridge. I was extremely fortunate to have an art mentor from the second grade until junior college. I went on to graduate from CCA, the California College of the Arts, in Oakland, California, with a Master of Fine Arts in Painting. In one way or another, from oil painting, to fabric arts when my two children were small, to oil pastel drawing, and to constructing cat habitats in wood, I have been making art all of my life.
I am almost 60 years old (I can’t believe it). I live in Northern California with my beloved husband, Royal, my mother, two glorious Alaskan Malamutes, and one very independent Maine Coon. I am also a Psychologist, as well as an artist and purse designer/creator. Royal, who is a Psychologist as well, and I maintain a private psychotherapy practice, the Humanistic Transpersonal Psychotherapy Center, in our home in Arcata, California.
Beaujolais Bags – The Story of a Creative Process
Beaujolais Bags actually began its growth into existence during Christmas vacation in 2006, when I decided to sew a purse. I was just having fun. I had been suffering through a very extended fallow time in my career as an artist and painter, of not being able to paint. The creative process sometimes involves periods of no visible production, of not being able to create anything at all. These are profound creative blocks and barren states that can be very frustrating and disheartening. They can last a very long time; and for me it lasted seven years!
Waiting for my “dark night of the soul” to lift was getting annoying. I told myself to just wait, that my creativity was gestating and when it began to manifest again, it would be something wonderful.
Finally, a few months after that first Christmas purse, the urge to create something beautiful began to rise and I knew it would have to be something easy and fun to make. I could not face a stark white empty canvas, which was just too inhibiting and scary. So I decided to sew more purses and thus began my delightful journey to Beaujolais Bags.
I am a “Scanner” according to Barbara Sher, author of Refuse to Choose. I have a million interests and I like to challenge myself by making just one of any new idea or project. After I make the first one, I get bored. To my delight, designing and creating one-of-a-kind purses has been so exciting. Purse making does not bore me because each one is a brand new experience.
I make the purses without a pattern, as an exercise in aesthetic problem solving within the limitations of the varying sizes of fabric remnants that I use. These limitations create a very fertile ground for creativity. Contrary to a natural assumption that creativity comes out of being as free as possible, I have learned that limitations and boundaries bring forth many new and unexpected solutions to the inevitable problems that develop out of the making of a piece of art. Designing and creating the purses are definitely art processes that celebrate the markings of beauty in an everyday object.
Elegant fabrics such as dupioni silk, brocades, high quality upholstery fabrics and faux fur make up my palette. Some of the purses are decorated with beads, upcycled jewelry, handmade ribbon flowers and leaves, or other found baubles and objects. I often create basic purse structures from recycled materials like plastic and jute. The insides of the purses are as beautiful as the outsides, inviting you to enjoy a feast of colors, patterns and textures. I want to provide a sweet whisper of joy as you open and use your purse.
Beaujolais is a term of love and endearment that I have always used for my pets, my kids, and even my husband. It just feels good to say it as it “rolls off my tongue” and it is a beautiful word that makes me happy. Beaujolais Bags is a fitting name for my new business because I offer elegant and distinctive one-of-a-kind purses infused with love as I create them and with the heartfelt intention to make the users of my purses very happy.