I have eclectic tastes so I love borrowing from here and there and sometimes I feel that reflects in my designs. I enjoy creating mixed media because I can work with a variety of material. Sometimes I’ll borrow from each medium and technique for just one design. I may even use a technique learned in one medium on another. Sometimes I opt for using bright colors, yet other times I may go more neutral.
The crafty DIY in me is because of my dad’s genes so I happily joined an after school crochet class taught by my 1st grade teacher, Mrs. Alzugaray. Although it is not something I do often because of the tropical climate I live in, I still have those skills and use them at times. In junior high, I was introduced to sewing in Home Ec and in high school I took a fashion class as an elective. Once I graduated high school I went to a post-secondary institution and earned my diploma in “Fashion Creation and Modification”. After sewing for myself a couple of years, I took up jewelry-making.
First I worked with craft wire, which was popular in my area, then beading. As time passed I kept looking for new methods and techniques until I found myself playing with polymer clay among other medium. Once I had my son, I took up mixed media painting because it was something he could participate in. Now that he’s older, he doesn’t only participate in the mixed media art, but also the jewelry I create.
The dried flower seen on the sidewalk, the oily puddle my king and I ran through, the colored glass embedded in the cement walls of the train station. My surroundings inspire me to create.
– Jacqueline
When I’m creating a jewelry collection, I start with the inspiration I’ve felt and think of elements that evoke this theme such as lines, colors, and shapes. I then use these to sketch the pieces in the collection. After some adjusting, some pieces make the final line and some don’t. Other pieces are created out of the inspiration that emerged while creating the ones that began with a sketch. But not all of my creations are made this way.
Creating (be it with polymer clay, wire, resin, fabric, or whatever else I can get my hands on) is very relaxing for me, so even though I’ll design things that have some symbolism to them, sometimes I’ll just let my hands do the work without much thinking. If I am not lost alone in my own little world of making (the only one able to pull me back into reality being my toddler king) then I am joined by him creating with me. It is such a great feeling to get your end result and say “I made this” but an even better one when I get to say “WE made this.” (You’ll find HIS signature in those we creations collaborated on).