Merry-Go-Round

Jump on and join a group of artists/crafts-women as they link around the world and tell you a little about their lives in art and craft.

This month's question: How do the seasons and weather affect your art and craft?

Well, I'll start with my 2 favourite seasons in Turkey: Spring and Autumn. They are both very similar in that they bring breathing relief thanks to cooler temperatures; Spring brings new life, new colours, new beginnings and new inspirations. The outdoor lifestyle is once again ours, as well as BBQ nights and lovely walks in the warm sun. Spring here is fabulous! It makes me look at stones with vibrant colours, crystals that have unbelievable shine and sparkle in the sun. I sit outside, look at my sketch books, watch the sea from our balcony and play. It's great! Colour combinations become more daring, designs get chunkier... Autumn is really like an Indian summer somewhere else, with temperatures of 25 degrees Celsius right until 3 weeks ago, but days are shorter, night falls earlier, so colours are more subtle. Autumn is when I like copper most. I'm drawn to long necklaces and lariats, darker stones like labradorite and onyx, and big hoop earring too, so OTT normally but that are only a hint when I finally can let my hair down, weather permitting.

Now Summer here is something else: It's HOT, I mean blistering, I mean I burn the tip of my nose whenever I go check the mail, my long hair is permanently up, or I risk heating up even more and become a new mutant version of the tasmanian devil, I'm sticky, I'm unconfortable, my lovely stones naturally so cool to touch become slippery and hot and difficult to handle under my sausage-like fingers, a project that doesn't run smoothly becomes a major harrassssssssment as my energy plummets and my temper rises as high as the temperature gauge... So, I think stupidly, let's go out and get inspired? Not in Bodrum, darling! The city centre's gorgeous and sweet narrow paved streets parrallel to the shore are littered with smelly tourists rubbing armpits to unlucky noses with debonnaire carelessness, killing inspiration as well as assaulting everyone's olfactory senses. The beach's no better. So big stones are out, coz they stick to my skin at weird angles, short necklaces are out coz I get strangled when it tangles up with my hair, in fact everything's out! I long for light and airy jewellery, thin cool clean-lined silver and natural small stones and crystals which will roll around and let my skin breathe. I hardly wear any jewellery in summer.

Now Winter's just about started here, and I regenerate, I've got my big stones back through Autumn and I'm happy. I read a lot, I want to try something new, I spend hours on the internet reading blogs, recording whatever inspires me in my sketch books, creating is faster, I feel I'm moving forward, I find new inspirations. But Sweet Shredded Coconut, I really do HATE the cold, so I can't WAIT for our looooooong 60 days of winter to be over... :)

Check out The Merry-Go-Rounders replies: direct links can be found on your right.
Thanks for reading, and happy Winter everyone!