Multi-month update brought to you by the letter J

The letter "J" for Jaidra and for Job: as in, Jaidra's full time Job takes up all of the time that was once spent on taking and editing photos, updating websites, networking, etc.

I am still making art and dancing! It just occurs at odd times, and is in no way consistent. So, for brevity, here's the bullet point update.

• Uniq by Jaidra silk art is available at Artizan Gallery in Columbia, SC. They have been fabulous to me, so if you're in the area, go by and check them out!

• Uniq by Jaidra silk art and jewelry is available at Raspberry Moon Skin Care studio in Greenville, SC. Nicole is amazing and will help make your skin Fabulous, so definitely check her out!

• The Uniq by Jaidra Etsy store is closed temporarily. It just takes too much time to maintain. But, I still take custom orders and I always have pieces for sale. Just contact me at jaidra_art@yahoo.com

• I am a featured artist at Dharma Trading company this month! I get all of my silk painting supplies through Dharma, and LOVE them! 

• I am available for private henna body art appointments. Due to time constraints, I am limiting in house and travel appointments to a minimum of 50$ (a pretty large or detailed piece). Longer and larger appointments still run 75$ per hour. I do have a two hour minimum for parties, corporate events, and weddings.

• Dance classes continue. I always wish that I could dance more, but there's only so much time in a week. Stay tuned. I will try to be more consistent with the updates!

Joy, art, shimmies!
Jaidra

Some Pics from the Past Few Months

Uniq by Jaidra: Art Fair Booth

Uniq by Jaidra: Art Fair Booth

Uniq by Jaidra: Art Fair Booth

Custom Belly Henna

Turkish Fusion Performance

Irises Silk Painting

Taking a life break: Hiking is my relaxation

I just love this picture: Mushrooms above a mountain stream.

Inspiration Evolves

Henna Lace Hands by Jaidra

I draw inspiration from a million places, and rarely is it a linear process. Sometimes, I see something, and it sparks an idea. Other times, I have a dream, read a book, listen to a piece of music, or feel an emotion that just has to be expressed on silk. I write this blog for others to view my creative process, but also as a spur for myself. Writing about my process allows me to analyze it, and draw a better understanding of why I do the things that I do.

In this instance, amazingly enough, there is a clear progression of inspiration that I managed to get photographs of. It began with a henna client sending me a photograph of a henna design that they wanted. I used that photograph as inspiration in creating a design for their henna piece.

Henna Leg by Jaidra

Some of my favorite aspects of the design were the spirals with "leaves" that I think look like fern fiddle heads.

I decided to use the fiddle heads in a larger henna piece that I did on my own leg this past Sunday.

A good friend of mine saw a photo of my leg piece on facebook and suggested that I use the design in my silks. My silk process uses water based resists that block movement of the dye on the fabric, but doesn't protect the silk. I would like to get some batik materials and try out some of my intricate designs on silk, but right now, I can't afford it. So, instead, I painted a small 11x11 silk with blue washes, went over it with stop flow, and then painted my fiddle head design on using black dye.

Fiddle Head Inspired Silk Pocket Square

I followed my small silk up with a larger 21x21 piece. The fiddle heads became less intricate, and I filled the space with these and leaves and chose a fall motif to celebrate the fact that summer is coming to an end.
I was really happy with the final piece, and even though the silks bear little in common with the original henna design, all of them evolved from the same design element. I don't think I'm done with this one yet, either - who knows where the fiddle head may take me next!

Fiddle Head Inspired Fall Silk Painting

Some days are more colorful than others.

Jaidra applying Henna Belly Sea Turtle with Sun

My mind has been a wandering, a wondering...around and back again to the same points that it reached before, and no conclusions have been drawn except that I keep on going, putting one foot in front of the other, try to smile, dance as much as possible, create what comes to me and hope. Eventually, all of it will come clear, or work out...but in the meantime, I can't crawl into a hole and hide because no good would come of it, for me or anyone else.

Finished Sea Turtle Henna Baby Belly

So, especially on the bad days, I reach for my henna or my resist and silk dye, or I throw some music on and get lost in drills. The past few days have been rough on my mental state, so I've thrown my mind into the creative. Usually, the pieces that I force aren't as beautiful as the ones that come naturally, but I truly believe in the whole "fake it until you make it" philosophy - at least as it applies to moods and my personal well-being. So, even though the art I make on these days aren't my best pieces, they serve the broader purpose of occupying my mind with positive things and refocusing my energy so that eventually, the funk lifts and I feel the joy that creating brings.

Finished Sea Turtle Henna Baby Belly

I had a the opportunity on Sunday to do a henna baby belly for a beautiful momma to be in Spartanburg, SC. I worked up a custom design for her with a super cute sea turtle swimming across her baby bump. The turtle had a sun on his shell, since they are having a son, and I used some simple swirls and dots to give the impression that the turtle is swimming. We had a wonderful time hanging out, and I hope that she loves her henna.

"Standing Together" Silk Painting

Once home on Sunday, I started the resist lines for a new silk painting. I wanted this one to be extremely colorful, using both styles of bubbles that I like to employ with the figures of the couples standing in the center of the piece. I kept the figures very simple, using black for the male and red for the female mixed with water to spread and shade the dyes. I was especially pleased with the background for this piece. I used a variety of washes in green for the base and blue for the sky - dotting the colors on the dry silk next to one another and allowing the dye to spread naturally.

Small Silk Painting

But I still wasn't out of my funk. So, this morning I started on a new set of projects - working on small pieces. The first of these is a female figure kneeling with her arms upraised and a floral lotus like explosion behind her head. This piece is meant to evoke joy and peace. I used salt on the top of the background to create more texture...and as I look at this one, I smile and feel the sadness lifting.

Hopefully others will feel the same...and my next piece will come from a place of joy.

Henna from the first Henna Day at Raspberry Moon Salon

I had a wonderful time at Raspberry Moon yesterday. If you're looking to improve your complexion or have a relaxing facial, get a wax, or a manicure, you couldn't find a better place!

I was amazingly lucky - the clients that came in for henna were all super fun women, and I had a blast getting to work on some of my original designs, some traditional pieces, and some based on my mentor's (Elizebeth of Crimson Art Henna) work. I didn't get pictures of everything, but I did remember to take some photos. All in all, I had a spectacular day, and I hope to get to do it again sometime soon!

Floral Shoulder/back piece based on Elizebeth's design

Peacock/Phoenix abstract arm piece

"Lace" hands henna

Side view - "Lace" hand henna

Floral feet by Jaidra

Butterfly and Floral simple henna by Jaidra

Doe and Fawn - stylized henna - design by Jaidra