Busy in the studio this month and loaded with new ideas inspired by my recent visit with a fabulous jewelry designer that specializes in wire wrapping.
Here is a sneek peek at some of the free form sterling wire wrapped rings I am working on. I absolutely love the freedom the wire allows me and the excitement of not knowing exactly how each project will turn out.
These will be on the Charly Blair website soon
Since writing my first blog post several months back, a million blog topics have passed through my mind and I found myself wishing there was some magical way of hooking up my keyboard to my brain so I could just think things but didn’t have to actually type and poof! A fab blog post would appear…No such luck and it is probably a good thing, could you imagine how much more pressure we would put on ourselves to do even more stuff if computer mind reading were possible and yes I realize it is probably already being done but my point is, it’s not mainstream yet, thank-goodness!
Where to begin…hmm. A quick rundown on the busy life of a stay at home Jewelry/Collar Designing Mom to 4 skin (one newly acquired through marriage ) kids and 3 fur (one newly acquired through a kijii ad ) kids.
I’m married, whew!
Right up until the ceremony was scheduled to begin at 4:30 fri afternoon, I wasn’t sure if a wedding was actually going to take place… That Murphy’s law thing kicked in for us BIG TIME this last week, when everything possible that could go wrong did indeed go wrong. But interestingly enough everything that could go right seemed to well, go right… It’s like we had two warring factions of fate, one side trying desperately to interrupt our process and one side miraculously moving heaven and earth to make it happen for us….The good side won, YEAH!!
I am officially Charlene Blair, or Char Blair, Charly Blair, Mrs. Robin Blair. (OK may be not so much this one … it’s a little too antiquated for me)
In the midst of everything going wrong my thoughts were, maybe this is what happens when you have an unplanned last minute wedding… Maybe that’s why people spend all those months planning and stressing so that there will be no last min scramble and all details will be taken care of???? Am I right??
I was almost ready to give into this school of thought and then Robin reminded me that even though they spent over a year planning his first wedding there was still tons of last min scrambling and things going right and wrong. It’s the nature of the beast … planned or unplanned thing just go right or wrong for a number of reasons. Some are in your control, others aren’t.
The trick is to realize it and to not stress over the things you can’t control….Let go of that worry, trust the universal law of attraction and all will be well. This is what got me through Fri. … the belief that all would work out.
And my gawd, how it did! My imperfect day became one of the most perfect and glorious days of my life! All the stuff that went wrong are now memorable stories that help remind us of our journey. Everything going right would have been just toooo boring!! lol ….
Our biggest hurdle, roadblock, deal breaker, the buck stops here, do not pass go or collect $200.00 dollars issue turned out to be in the Marriage Certificate or should I say lack thereof.
In order to get a Marraige Certificate, Robin and I both needed certified copies of our Divorce decrees…Not a problem for Robin, down to the local court registry, in out, done!
Obtaining mine on the other hand turned out to be an exercise in the everything that could go wrong, would go wrong thing. My call to the Campbell River Court house went kinda like this…
” Hi, I would like to find out about obtaining a certified copy of my divorce certificate…You see I am getting remarried in a couple weeks and I am phoning from another Province, what do I need to do to make this happen ASAP?”
Oh, OK it will cost me $31.00, not a problem, can I give you my visa # I really am in a hurry for this…Really, I can’t pay with Visa? “”How about paypal, that’s quick and easy, I just need an e-mail addy…No, you don’t even know what paypal is?”Hmmmmm…”OK how about I just wire the money directly from my account, that’s fast and simple, I do it all the time, just need an e-mail addy”
“Your kidding right, you mean you will only accept a cheque that’s it and I have to snail mail it to you all the way from Ontario?”
Gaaaahhhh….”OK fine, I am going to Express Post it out today, I will also include an Express Post envelope so that you can get it right back to me. Everything should be fine, Express Post is Guaranteed two day delivery and comes with tracking and we have almost two weeks, so plenty of time”
Thursday Jan. 14th, the day before our supposed wedding, I anxiously run to the mailbox to see if my Canada Post Express two day guaranteed envelope had arrived after 10 business days…There was still time to get our marriage certificate, I would have liked to have had this all taken care of but whatever, so there was a glitch and the envelope went letter mail instead of express, it happens, not to worry, it WILL be here today, it HAS to be here today…..
It never showed…SHOULD I PANIC??
Turns out my precious cargo letter got returned to sender and was still at the CR Court House the night before my wedding
That was last Thursday evening…And these were the facts.
A.I had no official certified copy of a divorce cetif in my hand only a faxed certif from the CR courthouse to the Ottawa courthouse.
B.I had no guarantee that the Ottawa courthouse would accept a faxed copy in order to issue us a Marriage License.
C.I now had nowhere to get married…With only 2 early morning slots left at the courthouse…I mean how could I get married at 9:30 am when my hair appointment wasn’t even till 11:30 hahahaha…. I put two and two together and realized we had to come up with plan B
Plan B
Google search “quicky weddings in Ottawa” click on first link
send somewhat desperate sounding e-mail to Rev Dave and wait…
E-mails back right away with the best news…. Not a problem, we can fit you in, what time would you like the ceremony to start? Ahhhhhhh, tomorrow is going to be a good day!!!
Now all we need is that last little detail acquiring the marraige license and we are good to go!
Fri. Jan 15th – Am I getting married today???
At the Ottawa courthouse by the 9: 00 my scheduled 4:30 wedding in the hands of the lady behind the counter, will she won’t she, will she won’t she, tap, tap, tap….. After going through a few higher ups, the word came down, YES they would issue us the wedding certificate using a fax as proof of my divorce YEAH!!!….whew, time to breath! Just need to produce two pieces of ID and we’re outta here.
HMMMMM My drivers licence is ALWAYS right here, what the??
While Robin raced home to find my Drivers Licence then back to court house to start the process all over again (bless his heart and patience) I raced off to get my hair done.
Now here where it gets good….After not being able to contact my regular stylist earlier this week, I was resigned to the fact I would be doing my own hair for the wedding but then miraculously I get a call from Paul of http://www.artistic-hair-tanning.com/ we had talked before Christmas about having Charly Blair jewels in Paul’s salon and he was calling to talk business….I took advantageof Paul’s perfectly timed call and pleaded my case….Not only was he able to fit me in on Fri. but he seemed genuinely thrilled and honored to create my wedding hair style…Wow what a pampering I got at Paul’s salon, not only did i absolutely LOVE the gorgeous hair created to compliment my hair and Jewels but I also received a complimentary paraffin wax treatment from my hands AND had my nails polished to perfection. Finally time to relax and enjoy the day.
Then the salon phone rang and from my chair I heard….Char, yes but she is not finished yet, silence, yes, just a min…..
Someone on the phone is looking for Char and says it’s URGENT….They need her signature on some document or she CAN’T get married, and uh, she is supposed to turn her phone on!
OH CRAP! Robin you must really love me if you still want to marry me after putting you through this I was thinking as i turned my phone on and his saw 10 missed calls.
Shortly there after Robin arrived at the salon to get my signature.I was blanketed behind a salon cape so Robin wouldn’t get a peek at his bride.,I was thankful as I figured his patience may have been running a little thin by then.
Finally with gorgeous fabulous hair and nails, and a call from Robin saying we were good to go, I was off to the hotel to relax, primp and dress for the wedding with the help of my Best friend Karen
For the remainder of my wedding day story I am going to let Karen take over…..Here is her account of what happened on our way to the Chapel
“Goin’ to the chapel and we’re gonna get married
Goin’ to the chapel and we’re gonna get married
Gee, I really love you and we’re gonna get married
Goin’ to the chapel of love”
What else could we do but sing? … The wedding was scheduled for 4:30 at a quaint little chapel in North Gower. At exactly that moment, Char and I were driving down the 416 with no known address. We only knew that Robin was waiting somewhere, with his family and best friends and a reverend, for his bride to appear … but we didn’t know where. The name and address of the chapel lay on the seat of Char’s car back at the hotel and the cell phones of all members of the wedding party were turned off. So I ask again, what more could we do but sing? “Sing with me”, I say. And sure enough, my oh-so-beautiful and non-conventional friend does just that.
Charlene is brilliantly creative and fun and talented and so filled with an energy that inspires and raises the level of excitement in everything we do!! But she is also a woman who patiently listens before sharing her wisdom, often so eloquently spoken. She loves and trusts so deeply. Through her words and actions and even simply through her essence, she truly has contributed so enormously to my life! THAT is who Char is to me … And I love her very much!
And then there’s Robin. The man who speaks so little but when he does I listen so very carefully. To me he is a man so black and white, so good versus bad. He is a man that I am so proud to call my ‘brother’. He laughs with abandon. He lives with purity and goodness in his soul. And he loves. Char would be the first to agree that it is through his patience and certainty, that two of my very best friends in the world made it through the journey that brought us all together on this day. I love you Robin.
Thank you Char and Robin for all of the treasured moments that you allowed me to share on this day. I am truly blessed.
Karen xox
Finally we decided to set a date and JUST DO IT!
In the past, the where, what, when, why and hows of JUST DOING IT overwhelmed to the point of Just NOT Doing It!
I am not a fuss over every little detail kinda gal (except for collars and jewels of course) so just the thought of planning a wedding made me almost feel nauseous…Bleck was all I could think.
I am not against a big, beautiful, invite everybody you have ever known type of wedding, in fact my daughter is getting married next year in what appears to be an ever expanding and full of a gajillion details type of wedding and I’m all for it…I’m just glad I don’t have to do it, or plan it.
I just have to listen and support her decisions (we talk on the phone almost everyday) and commiserate or celebrate the the ups and downs of planning a big beautiful wedding….I remember last October when she called, almost breathless with excitement ” MOM, I found it…I can’t believe it! Its too gorgeous for words and well, I just know it’s the one!!!” ” What did you did you find Em?” I replied with increasing excitement sensing this was something big. Emery responded, her voice cracking with emotion “THE DRESS!!” then ” you have to see it, I’ll send you pics my friend Asher took of me in it, hold on” And then through the marvel of technology the images popped up on my screen through her e-mail message and I got to share this beautiful moment with my daughter even though we live at opposite ends of the country (her on the West Coast of Canada, and us in the East) Too Cool.
And it was THE DRESS!
It was perfect, gorgeous, simple, elegant, stunning and sooooo Emery…And then in a flash I saw, my little girl, my little blonde curly haired baby girl on the beach picking up shells, her hair in a bandanna and wearing her favorite purple and white knit sweater and all of a sudden POOF, here she is all grown up and looking more beautiful than ever in a dress that was just made for her, for her wedding day. I got chills then felt a lump in my throat and finally tears. It was a great moment…We put a deposit on the dress that day and although she is not getting married till next year, she now owns official visitation rights to THE DRESS.
No this isn't THE DRESS but this is Em in a paper wedding dress several years ago at her cousins wedding
I am so happy for both Emery and Jesse and I know they will have the most beautiful wedding possible. It is allot of planning and preparation and yes, stress but it will be worth it and it is what they want and I am really excited to be a part of it in any way I can.
Gosh how your idea of things change as you get older….Well maybe not exactly, if I have to be honest, even when I was younger I never really saw myself in a big all out pomp and circumstance type of wedding, nope…In fact my first wedding was an excursion to Reno Nevada in a hokey wedding chapel wearing a red crushed velvet mini dress..I guess maybe I just like the non traditional route, hmmmm
In two days from today I will ge married for the second time, 11 years post divorce and two years from when I asked Robin to marry me…Yeah, I did the askin (that non traditional thing again) and interestingly, Robin just pointed out to me that the wedding date that we seemed to randomly choose is also the exact date we got engaged two years ago…Too cool the way things sometimes work out when you’re not trying to hard to plan but just let things happen as they should….I also call it getting out of my own way, consciously removing any mental roadblocks, excuses or detrimental thinking…And, well, JUST DO IT already!
Picking the Wedding date that just happened to be the same day we got engaged is not the only cool little detail that just happened. Here is the evolution of my unplanned, no muss no fuss Wedding/Honeymoon…
We didn’t want a traditional reception so initially thought we would just go to the courthouse and get married then leave for a fab Honeymoon somewhere warm, lay on the beach and ahhhh…The only thing wrong with this picture is our sadness at not being able to celebrate our marriage with friends and family. What to do?
I didn’t want the thought of disappointing friends and family to stop us from going forward so we went to the courthouse to fill out forms for the marriage certificate and then found out we needed two witnesses to attend the service…It’s funny now but my initial thoughts were, can’t we just hire two people?…We were still trying to keep it on the down low. My next thought and obvious choice was to ask my BF Karen, who enthusiastically said YEEEESSSS!!!
Robin asked his two best bud’s Mark and Jamie (OK, we have 2 witnesses and a spare) All of a sudden our getting married somehow instantly got a little more special (thank-you courthouse) by having 3 people attend that mean so much to us…..Oh yes I have to mention that my BF Karen also doubles as an Event Planner Extraordinaire or maybe more aptly titled ’Social Engineering Expert’ tee hee!
Our dialogue from Sunday night as follows:
Karen ” Char how about just a little party, you know, just friends…After the ceremony we can all gather, you know, just a little, let’s have fun come celebrate with Robin and Char thing ”
Char,” Not sure if Robin will go for that K, he just wants to keep it low key, doesn’t like to be the center of attention, but I kinda like the idea, hmmm, no time to plan anything though and you know how I hate planning so maybe when we get back from vaca”
Karen,” But won’t it be more fun if you have a party the day of your wedding, you know, the exact day, so much more fun and exciting than after the fact”
Char” yeah, you are right, I’m really starting to like this idea, but where would we ever be able to find somewhere soooooo last minute, hmmmm remember the last party you planned for Robin, 2 yrs ago, where I got up on stage and over the microphone in front of all our friends asked Robin to marry me, hahahahahaha, that was sooo much fun, what was the name of that place again?”
Karen, ” The NEWFIE PUB”
Char, ” OMG wouldn’t that be so cool, we could ask people to meet us there after the ceremony, no big official thing or anything just friends gathering right..Please no big details ”
Karen,” SHUT UP, I’m so on it, done! Love ya”
Through the magic of FB event planing has never been so easy or instantaneous…After meeting with Karen Sunday night by Monday of this week we had a pseudo reception planned and invites sent and responses flowing in….I felt the first butterflies in my stomach, I’m getting married this week
Then Karen asked me what I was wearing…My response, I really hadn’t thought about it, not sure, then I had a flash back and thought…Ok that is really not true. Let me back up a bit, 1 year ago we had decided to get married in Florida, but after a month of being overwhelmed by the details of planning a destination wedding, I gave up and said, arrrggghhh, not ready, let just go for the vacation and do the wedding later. Robin somehow understood so we put everything on hold till now. Oh and during that month or two I spent planning the Florida Wedding I had bought not one but two wedding dresses
I think subconsciously I thought since we were getting married at the courthouse, I could wear just any old thing I pulled out of my closet, so wasn’t particularly worried but after Karen asked about what I was going to wear….That little light came on, didn’t I already have a wedding dress or two in my closet somewhere? I’m chuckling right now as I type because I realize how lame that sounds…How could I forget about the not one but TWO gowns I bought on EBAY (i couldn’t decide so bought both) I purchased a year ago (you know the Florida thing) and then when we postponed the wedding, I zipped them up in a garment bag and poof forgot about them.
I pulled them out the other day, tried on my favorite of the two and magically, I fell in love all over again with my dress, THE DRESS. It is perfect, simple, elegant stunning and sooooo me. I laid down on my bed with the gown on and felt the tears coming, I was having a huge moment then it hit me all at once.
My reluctance to plan a wedding is in no way a reflection of how I feel about getting married for a second time, in fact it is just the opposite, the meaning of marriage resonates with me more deeply than ever and I understand maybe for the first time why people want to get married and commit to each other forever and a day…
Robin you are the one. I know now that you recognized it way before me and I count my blessings that you hung in there as long as you did with me.
Tonight I am putting the finishing touches on the wedding bands I am making…I am so excited and can hardly wait to show pics (coming soon) This is my first attempt at designing and making wedding rings and I can honestly say there was a little bit of blood,sweat and tears and a whole lot of love put into them.
Wish us Luck, see ya at the Newfie Pub!!!
Wedding Fri. next week the Mayan Riviera Honeymoon…To be continued!
Here is a little photo collage’s of our crazy two years together…..Hmmm, I think I should get an award for the most hair color changes in two years hahahaha, can you tell I embrace change.
To blog or not to blog that has been my dilemma for quite some time….Well I guess the answer is obvious, I’m gonna blog so here I go. Wish me luck, yikes, gah!
Why such a dilemma? Hmmmm, so many reasons, starting with…
Do I really need one more thing in my busy, crazy life that requires me to spend even more time on the computer? I already have, 1 Hotmail account, two G-mail accounts, 2 websites to maintain, 2 Twitter accounts (ok I kinda gave up on this one) a Linked In account and then of course there is Facebook, the great eater of time ( i may have a problem here) but that is another blog post I’m sure…But really, yeash, can you see my dilemma. Why do I need this? OK I’m going to ask myself again (since I’m not to sure if anyone will actually read this blog), WHY DO I NEED THIS??
Well here is what I have come up with, bear with me please….Because I LOVE doing what I do, I LOVE to create stuff, not just stuff, BEAUTIFUL stuff and lots of it and of course I love to share it with everyone. In fact, my little design brain just doesn’t seem to shut off, nope, nada, never…And a blog is a way for me to get more personal about the process of design, share and possibly explain my creative process, hopefully get some feedback from y’all (i really hope there is a y’all out there) and maybe just maybe, inspire and encourage anyone wanting to follow their own passion and do what they LOVE! Oh and I’m also thinkin, this blog is a way for me to spend LESS time on FB, cause I’ll just post everything that’s going on with Charly Blair Designs and Around the Hounds here ….Yah right! Anyhoo, here’s to good intentions.
My 2 adopted greyhound Isabelle & Chester and I
When I was younger I thought I had a problem. I was forever being told my head was in the clouds, or I just wasn’t paying attention, I was forgetful, distracted, dozy, etc…But in truth, I was always dreaming, imagining, creating, escaping any boring or uncomfortable situation by drifting away to a better place..I imagined beautiful worlds with beautiful people all elegantly dressed in gorgeous bold brilliant colors (i have a thing for color) I imagined the most amazing houses, all beautifully decorated and painted in my favorite color palette of the moment in fact I could get lost in a color palette for days and when I wasn’t daydreaming, I was drawing, sketching, painting, reading, playing with my dogs or riding my horse. It was all so endlessly inspiring to me, a great way to escape the boring or mundane aspects of life.
YEP, my creative brain is what got me into heaps of trouble.
Parents – Why did I always lose or misplace stuff and why couldn’t I clean my bedroom or finish the dishes? What was wrong with me?
Teachers – She is such a wonderfully creative child but she needs to pay more attention to spelling and punctuation and we are not sure why she feels she is above doing homework? P.S. I love you spell check, but why weren’t you there for me in grade 5
Friends – I lost track of time and I’m soooo sorry I am late yet again. BTW what is your name again?
Me to Kids & Hubby – Where did I put my purse, car keys, glasses???
Kids & Hubby to Me – Mom…NOT again!!!! BTW your glasses are on your head.
It took me till my fortieth year to figure out that my creative brain wasn’t so much a curse but a gift, I just needed to find way to harness all that creative energy then get the right support team around me to help with my weaker areas.
SIMPLE DIMPLE….HA! If only it was that simple but at least learning to recognize and focus on my strengths instead of beating myself up for my weaknesses led me to believe I could achieve some of the dreams swirling around in my head.
In 2002 I launched Around the Hounds a company that specializes in making custom designer dog collars and 8 years later with an incredible support team around me (it took a while but find them I did) we continue to grow and thrive…Dog collars, who knew!! UH, er, if you do the math, I think I also just gave away my age….
Due to the success of ATH and amazing love and support of my business/life partner Robin, I was able to recently launch a new creative venture www.charlyblair.com which specializes in One of a Kind Jewelry Design.
I think I have finally given my design brain the challenge it has been craving all these years as I have never felt so utterly, joyously, deliriously, blissfully happy and at home.
For me 2010 is not about making resolutions but it is about recognizing with deep knowing that I am doing what I am supposed to do, living the life I am supposed to live, being with the people I am supposed to be with.
It is also about being grateful for everything and everyone in my life. I have been blessed with incredible kids who I adore and who seem to understand me and forgive all my human imperfections (my lack of cooking talent is an endless source of entertainment ) and with a wonderfully supportive partner who seems to love me to the end of the earth in spite of my crazy brain and also believes in my dreams and helps make them happen…I’m such a lucky gal
2010 is going to be a great year
Char
Here is a little preview of some of the stuff I have been working on…It is a little nerve wracking to go beyond the dog world with my jewelry designs but there is a diva in me that wants to creatively express herself
Vintage Glam Collection - Crystal Palace
Vintage Glam Collection - Vienna
Vintage Glam Collection - Titanic
Vintage Glam Collection – Silver Flower
Vintage Glam Collection - Baroque