turtle

Peace, LOVE, and Turtles!

artisan jewelry, etching, handmade jewelry, Love, Peace, sterling silver, turtle

It’s been a bit of a rough start to 2024, including the “atmospheric river” here in California, and I’ve been away from my studio. But you can’t have a rainbow without a little rainfall. I’m very much looking forward to better times ahead! I hope all is well with you. Stay safe!

It is crazy that it’s already February and Valentine’s Day is fast approaching. If you are in the San Francisco Bay area check out Made Local Marketplace in Santa Rosa for great gifts and Meeshka Jewelry designs. These pieces are still available, as well as many others.

 

Can’t get to Made Local Marketplace? Check out these designs and others online at meeshka.net. FREE shipping in the USA, and a velvet gift bag is included.

Peridot, sterling silver, and keum-boo 24k gold earrings

swimming turtles cuff

Etched sterling silver swimming turtle bracelet

Etched sterling silver and Sleeping Beauty turquoise necklace.

 

Another gorgeous winter walk in Sonoma Valley.

Peace & Love from Sonoma Mountain,
~meeshka

The Small Works Exhibit 2023

artisan jewelry, Coral Reef, Cuff, etching, gemstone, gold, gold fill, handmade jewelry, mermaid, moonstone, ocean, sterling silver, turtle, Under The Sea

I am once again very proud and delighted to be included in the juried Small Works Exhibit 2023 at Art Works Downtown in San Rafael! I participated in this show in 2013 and I’m excited to be among the talented artists again this year.

“Art Works Downtown invites artists to share their gift of creativity in The Small Works Exhibit, an annual offering of quality fine-art to holiday shoppers and the art-loving public. This dynamic showcase will feature over 80 unique artworks in the award winning Gallery 1337.”  ~from the Art Works Downtown website

 

Mermaid Pendant Necklace: sterling silver, amethyst and pearl
Hand drawn, etched, oxidized sterling silver mermaid pendant with amethyst cabochon. Strung on amethyst/gold fill and pearl/sterling silver chains.

 

Swimming Turtle Cuff: sterling silver
Hand drawn, etched, rolled, oxidized sterling silver swimming turtles cuff.

 

Coral Reef Earrings: sterling silver, 22k gold and moonstones
Coral Reef Earrings are inspired by the record-breaking hot ocean temperatures in the Florida Keys (100°) this summer related to climate change leading to bleaching and a massive die-off of the coral reef. Marine scientists are preserving samples of rare coral species before they’re gone forever.

 

Small Works Exhibit 2023
November 18, 2023 through January 20, 2024
2 Receptions: Friday December 8, 2023 and January 12, 2024 from 5 to 8pm

At downtown San Rafael’s 2nd Friday Art Walks
ArtWorks Downtown Gallery • 1337 Fourth Street • San Rafael

Carole Peace

Save The Planet. Save Ourselves.

artisan jewelry, Coral Reef, Custom, Dead & Company, gemstone, gold, Grateful Dead, handmade jewelry, honu, sterling silver, sugar skull, sun, Tell Me A Story, turtle

Once upon a time… there was an anti-nuke rally at San Onofre around 1979 with about 15,000 people in attendance. We sang and danced as we hoped for a better future. Fast forward to now. We had no idea what lay ahead, and we still don’t know, but it is becoming abundantly clear that we have to do something to save the planet if we are to save ourselves.

Coral Reef Necklace with AmethystA few months ago I created these “Coral Reef Necklaces” never imagining I’d be reading this headline. “Record breaking hot ocean temperatures in the Florida Keys (100°) related to climate change have led to bleaching and a massive die-off of the coral reef.”  Marine scientists are scrambling to preserve samples of rare species of coral before, possibly, they’re gone forever.
Coral Reef Necklace

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On another note… July 16 was my birthday and I celebrated with  dear friends and family. The highlight of the week was the last Dead and Company tour concert at Oracle Park that night. (Check out the drone show in the link!) Laur and I have seen so many shows together and this one brought many memories rushing in. Once again we danced, sang and felt hopeful (yes, Laur was with me at San Onofre) being surrounded by the loving people of our “tribe” as we were transformed by the music. Ahhh, the power of music.

To honor the birthday concert celebration I made us necklaces. Turtle backHand drawn and etched sterling silver turtles with keum-boo 24k gold lightening bolts.

Turtle front

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Grateful Dead Inspired Jewelry

Sterling silver skull and citrine with fishies necklaceSterling silver skull and citrine with fishies necklace

 

Sterling silver turtle and peridot necklaceSterling silver turtle with peridot necklace


Sterling silver sun and labradoriteSterling silver sun and labradorite necklace

 

Sterling silver heart necklaceSterling silver heart necklace

 

Birthday

Happy birthday to ME!

Save the planet. Save ourselves. And please, be kind.
Peace and Love,
meeshka

The Back Story

artisan jewelry, Dead & Company, Grateful Dead, handmade jewelry, Michelle Vidro Graphic Design, On The Bench, Tell Me A Story, turtle

Once upon a time in Brooklyn, New York…
… a baby was born.
I thought you might like to learn a few things about me. I was chatting with a new jeweler friend the other day and telling her the story about how I got “here”. I realized you may like to know these things, too.

  • As a young child, I learned to draw by sketching cartoons while watching TV. I had a thing for The Flintstones.
  • When I was around 7 years old I sent in the Draw Winky drawing from the TV Guide. They accepted me into their art school. My parents were shocked! No, I didn’t go.
  • Was VERY fortunate to go to a high school with a big art department. I practically lived there. That is where I learned metalsmithing, but I practically lived in the ceramics studio.
  • Attended my first Grateful Dead concert at the Hollywood Bowl in 1974. #mindblown Maria Muldaur opened the show.
  • Went to Art Center College of Design in Pasadena to study graphic design and illustration.
  • Lived in Manhattan on the Upper West Side. Started and grew my art career on Madison Avenue; ad agencies, publishing companies, New York Times.
  • Moved to San Francisco (I’m a California girl at heart). I moved around a lot in my lifetime, actually. Lived on a kibbutz in Israel, Eugene Oregon, and Kauai, to name a few.
  • Learned Desktop Publishing (among the first) on a Mac and worked for MacWorld, PC World, and Publish magazines (IDG) in San Francisco.
  • Made a baby!
  • News Artist on the Marin Independent Journal in San Rafael, CA.
  • Rediscovered my passion for making jewelry in 2000. Took a few refresher courses and built out my home studio. Made a website, did retail and wholesale shows. Landed in museum gift shops and galleries.
  • Co-owned the Marin Jewelers Guild in San Rafael, CA for around 12 years.
  • Covid. Changed everything. Need I say more?
  • Currently I’m the webmaster and on the Board of Directors at the  Metal Arts Guild of San Francisco.
  • Still selling online at meeshka.net and various retail locations.
  • Now I continue learning, playing, and exploring the edges of my creativity. See below.
  • Constantly looking for joy.
  • Still dancing to Dead & Company.

Sterling silver and amethyst pendant. Coral reef.

Following my creative heart, these remind me of a coral reef. Sterling silver and Amethyst pendants in progress.

Etchings from drawings and an agate pendant

Experimenting with etching some of my drawings to turn into jewelry. Also a sterling silver  Agate pendant in the works.

 

Gift Cards Now Available Online

Gift Cards Available
You asked, we delivered. Any denomination available.

Looking Back ~ Looking Forward

artisan jewelry, Custom, gemstone, handmade jewelry, Love, painting, Peace, sterling silver, sun, turtle, UFO, watercolor

January is always a time of hibernation for me. In the midst of all the rain we are having, it’s a good time to get cozy and reflect.

2022 brought another year of dealing with Covid, and the way people and our government, deal or not deal, with it. As an artist working from home I don’t mind the isolation all that much and it’s been a long time since I’ve felt FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out). But I’m so tired of constantly thinking about what activities are worth the risk of infection and how to navigate them, if at all. I am grateful I always have my art to keep me amused.

I sure hope 2023 finally brings Covid to the real endemic stage that we have all been waiting for. In the meantime I will continue to make art, take lovely walks, bake and cook, read and nap, and dance around my house and studio. I will probably mask forever to keep others safe, as well as myself.

Happy New Year from my studio in Sonoma, California! and thank you for being on this journey with me. I appreciate you!

Note: The above photo is not my studio. Just a groovy barn on the road to and from my studio.

January/February 2022
This year I focused on Pinterest, growing my following and traffic there, as well as on my website. SUCCESS! It worked! I also became a Verified Merchant on Pinterest.

2022 monthly visits to meeshka.net

2022 annual Pinterest activity

 


March/April 2022
With Spring in the air along with longer days, there is plenty of time for brainstorming, sketching ideas and purchasing new gemstones for future creations.

This is a custom sterling silver piece I created for a clients’ daughter. Cows and obsidian are meaningful to her and we worked together to create this pendant.

 

May/June 2022
In May I lost a dear lifelong sister-friend, Carole, who will forever be in my heart and by my side. I have a wonderful group of lifelong friends, including my Mom, and we chat daily in “LoveFest”. Together we try to keep each other sane and laughing. Carole was part of that group and is missed every day.

 

Below is the pendant-necklace I created for my dear MamaLuv. Sterling silver and carnelian with a peek-a-boo heart on the back the allows the stone to glow, like my Mama. We are so so so fortunate to live close and be able to spend time together. This is the sweetness of life.

July/August 2022
We sure had some hot days this past summer, but no fires here and that was fantastic! These creations reflect my longing for the tradewinds and ocean swimming on Kauai. Sterling silver with faceted labradorite and peridot.

                         

September/October 2022
Ahhh cooler weather and a rainbow outside my studio… what could be more delicious? Oh wait! A Swiss roll!

Below is a small plein air watercolor painting of “The Cherry Tree” juice stand, long closed but still standing. I love seeing it every time I drive along the country road I use to go visit my MamaLuv.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

November/December 2022
The holidays can be challenging. Life has changed so much. I don’t go in for the madness of holiday shopping and it’s supposed to be a busy time for jewelers to market and sell. That is always awkward for me as I don’t like to be pushy so I try to keep it mellow. At the same time I start to feel the pull of hibernation and slowing down, which usually wins. I love that!

Here are two more 2022 creations. On the left a UFO pendant-necklace of sterling silver with tiny shells and beach glass collected on Kauai, encased in a vintage watch crystal. The other is a sterling silver heart strung on vintage “white hearts” (glass beads with white porcelain center) from Africa and Hill Tribe Thai silver.

 

 

2023
Looking ahead at what I imagine for this year is the work of every January’s hibernation. As I become more clear I plan on sharing that journey with you. Once again, thank you for coming along for the ride. I hope I can bring a little beauty to your world, some light, and always a lot of laughter.

 

Happy New Year!
With Love, Grace & Gratitude,
meeshka

 

New Designs Sneak Peek

artisan jewelry, Dead & Company, gemstone, Grateful Dead, handmade jewelry, honu, ocean, On The Bench, PITS, Playin' In The Sand, sterling silver, sugar skull, sun, turtle, Under The Sea, water

I’ve been working on some new pieces that aren’t up in the Shop yet and I wanted to share them with you! I’m super excited about this new direction.

They are available so let me know if you are interested. These beauties are perfect for your favorite Deadhead friend or for yourself if you are going to PITS* in Mexico next year. Or just because you love this look!

Also, as always, I would love to hear your thoughts!

Much Love,
~meeshka

 

Sterling silver sun with a faceted labradorite gemstone in the center. Pendant is approximately a 1.125″ diameter circle. Strung on a sterling silver beaded “ball” chain.

This labradorite has a beautiful blue flash!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sterling silver turtle (honu, terrapin) with a faceted peridot gemstone on the turtle’s back. Pendant is approximately 1.5″ x 1.5″ at it’s widest points. Strung on a sterling silver beaded “ball” chain.

Notice how the shell pattern shows through the peridot!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sterling silver sugar skull (Stealie) with two jumping fishies and a faceted citrine gemstone. Pendant is approximately 1.75″ x 1.” at it’s widest points. Strung on a sterling silver faceted beaded “ball” chain.

All pieces are handmade and one-of-a-kind.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

*PITS is Playin’ In The Sand: Dead & Company at Riviera Cancun, Mexico; January 14-17, 2023

Mini Masterpieces

Crow, Doodle, honu, mermaid, Mini Masterpiece, ocean, Raven, sterling silver, turtle, watercolor

Sometimes it’s good to revisit the old friends I’ve created along the way. These “mini masterpieces” are watercolors I did and framed in sterling silver, topped with a vintage glass watch crystal. Most of these have been sold but there are a few remaining in the Shop. Not sure I’ll be making these again but you never know!

 

 

 

 

    

    

    

    

    

    

    

It’s Still Summer!

bronze, gemstone, gold fill, mermaid, ocean, On The Bench, Tell Me A Story, turtle, water

Clay mermaids from Peru, Aventurine cabachon gemstone, sterling silver bezel, gold fill findings

 

It’s still summertime, on the bench… and off.

A turtle mermaid birthday cake from Drakes in Bodega Bay reminds us of an important message.

Go to the beach.
Dance on the shore.
Make beautiful artwork.
Love, live, laugh… out loud.
Life is short. Eat the cake.

Jeff’s Mom’s Chocolate Cake

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Enchanted By The Sea

bronze, honu, ocean, On The Bench, sterling silver, turtle, Under The Sea, water

Continuing my work with bronze and sterling silver, the Honu
medallion is on the bench today. I am forever enchanted by the sea.
The ocean cleanses my soul, eases my mind, and sparks my creativity.

 

Finished necklace

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