The 100 Day Project

So, I’ve been sorta missing jewelry making lately.  Bear Chick Originals, the handmade jewelry company I started in 2001, is long defunct but I still have drawers and boxes of beads and findings and other sparkly things.  They’ve been calling to me, like the square-wheeled train on the Island of Unwanted Toys.  They want to become things of beauty, useful and loved.

Jewelry making, whether stringing beads, bending and shaping wire or creating patterns with jump rings, always made me feel like an artist.  I especially loved combining colors and working with wire.  But since I retired, writing has dominated my creative hours and the jewelry bug just never got a reboot.  (Although, I have been thinking about making themed jewelry as contest giveaways for marketing my books when they’re published…)

But then, along came The 100 Day Project, a creative challenge I found in the newsletter I subscribe to from Suzi Banks Baum, who I discovered through my friend since elementary school, Gay.  Thanks, Gay!

In The 100 Day Project, you choose a creative endeavor you can commit to for 100 days.  It can be writing, visual art or anything else that fills your creative goals.  There don’t seem to be any hard and fast rules—you can skip days and basically make it work for you.

I’ve decided my project will be earrings.  Some days, I can keep it simple and on days when I have more time or motivation, I can go a bit more elaborate.  That’s the fun of making earrings—they can be quick little bursts of sparkle or complicated works of art.  I’m really looking forward to seeing what comes out of this and hoping I get a little jewelry mojo back.

If you’re interested in participating, I’m adding some links below.  And you can go on Instagram and search #the100dayproject to see past work and maybe get some inspiration.

So, look for my #100daysofearringsbymare posts on Instagram starting February 22.  And let us know your #100day tags in the comments, so we can all follow along!  Happy creating!

https://www.the100dayproject.org/   For more info

https://the100dayproject.substack.com/  Sign up for their newsletter

https://www.suzibanksbaum.com/offerings/100-day-project-community-discussions Sign up for the Suzi Banks Baum zoom discussion on February 18