Thai Pearl Pendant and Earrings Commission Finished

Recently sent off my commissioned Thai Pearl piece down to my client in DC. This piece was requested from a dear friend for her sister's 40th birthday. The Thai pearls were given to her in Thailand and are very dear to her heart. This pendant and earrings came out of a collaborative design process between myself and my client. So glad she is enjoying the piece.

The Thai pearls were quite a fun challenge for me. No holes and too tiny for standard bezel cups. The pearls nest inside the etched pendant. Played with copper, brass and sterling silver. Very happy.....

Ripple Effect Continues

So....I haven't had a chance to photograph the latest ring classes due to weather and forgetfulness. Needless to say, each week has been extremely entertaining. Two weeks ago, POD CYAC (Cool Young Adults Club) endured a very wet Friday ring making class. Water was actually dripping from the ceiling onto the metalsmithing station I set up in the window sill between rooms to assure for the best light. Good thing I brought my head lamps from home. Thanks to Chris for letting me borrow his! Every little bit helped! Not a single complaint from our POD CYAC group. Their lead guide, Ashley, played this great ring game while we diligently soldered our talisman rings and waiting for the acid to do its job.

Last Friday, POD SURREAL, rocked the metalsmithing studio. Our 7 girls led by Lily were very talented, patient and creative with their rings. Although we did have a few sizing issues, I think it was a successful class for sure. When we talked about the best part of their week, a few girls talked about the ring class being it! Yeah!

Ripple Effect-week 2- Pod Rasta

Week 2 at Cow Island. On my own for the first time and figuring out all the ins and outs of working in the old island bunker as our metalsmithing studio. Brought the tank on the boat in the morning and set up shop.

POD RASTA showed up around 9:30 raring to go! Quite a lively group and lots of fun. They made some excellent rings which they are sporting in the photo above. After class, they were gracious enough to help me find my way to the the killer solar power kitchen on the other side of the island and asked me to eat with them. It was a great way to start my solo teaching.

Ripple Effect- Week 1 - Pod Fire

My dear friend Susan Bickford started a wonderful ring making class on Cow Island with the Ripple Effect Youth Summer Programs. She has been heading over to Cow Island every Friday morning to teach teens the art of ring making as the final piece to their week long journey on the island. The teens need to come up with a word for the outside of their ring that will represent their "pod" and remind them of the team they created all week long. Inside, everyone gets to put a personal word to remind them of a challenge they faced or something that will remind them about their unique self.

This summer, Susan called me up and asked if I would like to become the next ring teacher with Ripple Effect. She has moved over the past year and has a busy life getting ready for a performance/ installation art piece she is creating. This program is very dear to her and I am so very grateful that she has asked me to carry on the tradition!

I started two weeks ago on July 3rd with POD FIRE!!! They rocked! We braved some pretty heavy rains that day and they hadn't seen the sun over the entire week. But not one person complained about the conditions. It was smiled all around. What a great way to start my new Ripple Effect adventure!

Chris, one of the senior guides and boat captains, was gracious enough to get me back to the shore by 11:30am so that I could get to my noontime Nia class at the Bay Club. The rain gave us a break while we coasted back home, only to start back up again through the rest of the afternoon. Brave souls on that island. So glad to be one of them!

Summer Visits with Family

Our niece, Lauren, graduated from Clarksburg High School on Monday. We were so proud to be able to be present at her ceremony and celebrate this momentous occasion with the Bokor family. We took Lauren kayaking on Sunday for her graduation gift. Tried to kayak on the Potomac with no luck. The heavy rains have caused closed to flooding conditions down in DC, so we headed back to Boyds to paddle around Black Hill Lake. Lots to explore. Great day!

After our whirlwind trip driving down to Maryland on Saturday with an early return Tuesday morning, we were surprised to find out that my aunt Mary Jo was coming to the east coast this week. A very rare experience not to be missed. It's been nearly 20 years since I have connected to Mary Jo. So there was no way we were going to miss the occasion.

So Greg and I took the trip down to Massachusetts yesterday afternoon to make dinner with Mary Jo and friends. We had a wonderful time and only wish we could have visited longer. Looks like we will have to find ourselves in Indiana one of these days, so that we can connect again with my brilliant, inspiring aunt.

Mother of Pearl Summer Collection

Check out some of my new work! I am playing with Mother of Pearl and fine sterling findings. You can see my work at Artascope Studios and Healthy Body, Fit Mind locations in South Portland.

Reiki Testimonials for Maggie Bokor's Treatments

"I wish I could have a Reiki treatment everyday from Maggie. She creates a welcoming and sacred space during each session. Her touch is gentle and warm as she intuitively scans the body for blockages, sweeping over the sore spots and clearing away all the debris. At the end of my first session with Maggie, I felt a wonderful tingling at the top of my head; afterwards, I felt balanced, cleansed, and energized. I whole-heartedly recommend her work to anyone lucky enough to live near her."
-Teri Gullickson, Iowa City, Iowa

"I have benefited from Maggie's reiki treatments before and after major back surgery. Reiki helped bring me a sense of harmony and balance, allowing my body to heal faster and more easily. Maggie's expertise allowed her to treat me from a distance and to gear her treatment to my specific condition and circumstances."
-Deborah Amylon, Providence, RI

"When I was going in for a biopsy, Maggie sent energetic healing to me long-distance. She used a proxy (in my case a little stuffed lamb, which still brings me a sense of peace) - and visualized the area of my body that was to be operated on. I experienced the palpable healing energy of Maggie's caring and compassionate heart and felt carried by the breath of universe. Through Maggie, Reiki is a powerful instrument of connection and healing."
-Kathy Hickman, Attleboro, MA

What is Reiki Healing?

Reiki (pronounced RAY-key) means universal life energy in Japanese. The art of Reiki is a system of gentle vibrational healing that was established by Dr. Usui from Japan in the late 19th century.

Reiki can greatly improve health and well-being by working on the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual level at the same time. This healing modality treats the whole person, revitalizing the body's own healing potential by restoring greater balance and allowing the natural life force to flow more freely. Reiki is practiced with gentle hands-on, or by simply working the energy above the body, while lying on the massage table wearing loose, comfortable clothing. As the energy flows through the practitioner’s hands to the client, the client may perceive a pulsing or tingling sensation, a feeling of warmth and comfort, or a sense of releasing previously-blocked emotions. Reiki can be used to reduce physical and emotional pain, to calm the mind and experience deep relaxation on all levels as well as improve immune and nervous system functioning. Reiki is widely used in hospitals and birthing centers to aid in the healing process and provide relaxation to the recipients.

Reiki

I am now seeing Reiki clients in my home in Cape Elizabeth. It has been a real pleasure to start my practice back up full time and I am so grateful for the interest in my work.

Some of you may know that I am a Reiki Master. I have been practicing Reiki for 6 years, specializing in treatments for relaxation and whole body healing. I have had great success with long distance pre-op treatments for major surgeries and was blessed to give Reiki to a dear friend during the birth of her first son. I am looking forward to finding new ways to help people balance, heal and harmonize their bodies, minds and spirits. Feel free to call me at 207-899-5939 to learn more or email me at info@maggiebokor.com

A Moment in Time....Jewelry Event

A Moment in Time for Yourself

Join us for an afternoon of indulgence

Shop, snack, sip and socialize

Saturday May 9th
3pm-7pm
326 Spurwink Ave
Cape Elizabeth, ME 04107

featuring my glass and pearl jewelry. Should be a wonderful afternoon event. Please feel free to call me at 207-899-5939 for more information.

Earth Day April 22, 2009

Happy Earth Day to everyone! Hope you take a little time to give back to your planet today. Whether you plant a tree, clean up your city or get involved with the green movement...every little bit counts. Take a moment and meditate about the wonders of this world and send out some love!

North Carolina-Here I come!

As I listen to the weather report for the upcoming week, I can breath a sigh of relief. For I will be leaving the snowy shores of Maine for a few days to take care of my niece and nephews in beautiful Charlotte, NC. I don't care if it's 50 and overcast, I will be soaking in the warm soil and celebrating spring. Should be an adventure for sure. Can't wait to see my family!

Sucess vs Perfection

I ran into a quote today that I thought was worth sharing:

"Aim for success not perfection.Remember that fear always lurks behind perfectionism. Confronting your fears and allowing yourself the right to be human can, paradoxically, make you a far happier and more productive person."

I find the challenge of being an artist is to figure out how to stay true to myself while I find ways to market a business that reflect my talents and offers something wonderful to the world. I used to spend days walking the streets of Providence while I was at RISD trying to figure out what I should be "making" that would be something that everyone needed and desired. It's been 14 years since I graduated and my path has been blessed with many adventures and lots of lessons about what is really important to about making art and sharing my work.

The passion lies within me and I can always see how people respond to work where my heart is really present and the goal for selling is not existent. So I shall aim for success in myself and share myself through my work. Perfection will have to wait.

New Bridal Jewelry

The Maggie Style Wedding Line

Maggie Bokor is inspired to create beautiful things. She has designed a fabulous line of bridal jewelry made especially for you.Create custom wedding jewelry that you and your bridal party can wear for years to come as a tribute to your special day.

Each piece is hand crafted with the finest Sterling Silver, Fresh Water Pearls, Tumbled Glass Beads and Lucite Flowers. Each original design is either one of a kind or a limited edition.

Consult with Maggie about your wedding day desires. Create a special line for you and your bridal party including the mother of the bride to the flower girl. Colors coordinate jewelry for your entire Bridal Party or design unique pieces for everyone.

Maggie offers a free 30 minute consultation at her home studio. Discounts offered to everyone purchasing multiple pieces. Make your appointment today.

info@maggiebokor.com

207-899-5939

Savvy Women Wedding Expo-This Sunday!

One stop shopping for all your wedding day desires!

I am showcasing my bridal line of jewelry at the SWWS Bridal Expo this Sunday! Come check out my new work!

Date: Sunday January 11th 2009
Time: Join us from 1pm-5pm
Where: Make Thyme for Dinner
Fabulous Benefit Raffle:items and services from all of our Savvy Women! (all proceeds go to The Family Crisis Center of Maine)

check out http://www.savvywomenweddingsource.blogspot.com/ for info

Artascope Studios Annual Holiday Show and Sale

'Tis the Season for holiday shopping and this show will definitely not disappoint! This is my third year participating in the Artascope Holiday Show and Sale. It holds special significance for me as I step down from my stewarding duties at Artascope to pursue my business full time in conjunction with working with my husband, Greg, on our design-build company, Matrix Construction. I am looking at staying on as a teacher at Artascope, but will miss my weekly blogging and other interactions at this fantastic art center. Now back to the show....

Our opening is this Friday night, Dec 12th, from 4-8pm. There will be wine and goodies to share as you peruse the goods and start making your list of items to purchase. I am a big believer in buying local and very grateful to be a part of another great local artist event. The show is up from this Friday through Dec 23rd. We are open daily from 9am-7pm. Christmas Eve, you can shop from 10-2pm for any last minute treasures. So come join the fun, share a drink and say hello! I will be there all night Friday! Cheers everyone!

MECA/SEA Show this Weekend-New Work

It's finally here! The MECA/SEA Holiday Art Show starts this Friday from 6-9pm....an evening of shopping not to be missed. Liz and I will be in the cafeteria along the window, so we'll have a very pretty view. Please stop by and check out all our wares. The show continues for a full day on Saturday from 10am-6pm and we will be there again on Sunday from 11am-4pm. I hope to see you all there celebrating the season and seeing what the creative community of Portland has been up to....

I am excited to be showing some of my new fresh water pearl jewelry. I am preparing for the Savvy Women Wedding Source Wedding Expo that will be happening on Sunday Jan 11th, 2009, but that just feels too far away! I have been really enjoying playing with pearls. Here is one of my new designs.....just to entice you a bit.

Upcoming Shows and Jewelry Events

MECA/SEA SHOW!
I am so excited to announce that I will be participating in this year's MECA/SEA Holiday Show the weekend on Dec 2-4th! I will be sharing a space with a great artist, Liz Prescott. I am looking forward to having some new items to share with the shoppers of Portland! The MECA/SEA Holiday Show is held at the East End School and to say it gets busy in there would be an understatement! So excited to get a chance to share my work!

PRIVATE PARTY!
Bonnie, a good friend of mine, has been kind enough to host a Maggie Style Jewelry Party at her home for her colleagues in mid November. Should be a great time for sure. As I begin to write about all these events, I realize that I have a lot of work to do!!!

WEDDING LINE!
I am one of the organizers for a local Maine Women's Wedding Expo that will be held in January. I have been asked to create bridal party gems for an upcoming wedding, so I have decided to expand my line to include some new fantastic tumbled glass and fresh water pearls jewelry perfect for any wedding day.

The LocalMotion Show was a great way to get me motivated to start finding venues for my work. I showed two paintings at the Meg Perry Center in Portland for the event. There were performances all night. I wasn't able to make it through the whole night because of an oncoming cold that seems to be running rampant around these parts.

The piece shown above is called "Eye on the Prize". It's another in the series of home ownership in these tumultuous economic times. So often do we block out the ugly side of owning a home to keep our vision clear on the possession of something we can call ours.....or the bank's....if you really think about it long enough!

So my next deadline is October 31rst for the RISD New England Biennial. I am excited to get to work on some new pieces for the show!

www.maggiebokor.com

The website is up and running. You can check out my latest paintings and jewelry creations. I am still working on the bio and links for Nia...so stay tuned! This has definitely been a labor of love and I am so excited about the look of the new website. I designed the tree myself. Thanks for the inspiration from my friend, Catherine. I love the idea of roots to define where I started, the trunk of the tree swaying as if dancing through life and the limbs all bearing the fruit of my ideas. A little hoaky for sure, but it works!
www.maggiebokor.com

It's all coming together nicely. The website will be up within the next week. I have an opening this Friday, so I have to get back to the studio to finish my work for the show. There's an opening at Magnolia's Cafe where I have some of my glass jewelry, so I owe Catie a visit to stock up before her event.

It's been a busy time. The sun is up and the possibilities are endless! Think I am finally starting to embrace fall!

Maggie Bokor Website update!

The final layout is coming together nicely for my website. Thank you Angela Smith! She is doing a killer job and I am so grateful to be working with her. You can check out her other work at http://www.angelskill.com/ . Very cool indeed!

A song with Sean Mencher and the Rythm Kings

Saturday night, I had the honor to sing a Patsy Cline tune called " Gotta lot of Rhythm in my Soul" with my friend Sean Mencher and his Rhythm Kings at the Bramhall Pub in Portland Maine.

If you have never been to the Bramhall Pub, it's a treat. It's located on Congress under the Roma restaurant. The shows always start at 10pm after the restaurant ends their dinner service. There's a great bar, pool table and pub atmosphere down at the pub. Sean Mencher and his Rhythm Kings are absolutely fabulous and I was honored to share the stage for my song. Check out this great rockabilly band at www.myspace.com/seanmencher.

A day of photographing work

I have to admit that I have been avoiding photographing my work, but as the reality of my website draws near....I know it's time to get to work. I have been looking for some lighting solutions at home and finally found a system that works.

Last weekend I participated in the End of Summer Sale at Artascope Studios in South Portland. It was great. I shared a table with Sue Drown Trout which worked out fabulously. She was able to man our booth in the morning while I taught Nia and I came in for the afternoon. It was a very successful day. You can check out the blog I wrote about the event at http://www.artnightout.blogspot.com/

In any case, I designed a new display to show off my wares using lots of beach sand and a little imagination. After the show, I wasn't sure how I wanted to store the display. So it's in my studio and I decided to try it out as the background for my jewelry and val la! Pure magic! So glad I am able to be self sufficient and get my jewelry on the web and finally into my etsy store. Patience is definitely a virtue I am still reaching for. Thank goodness for resourcefulness!

Localmotion Art Opening: October 3rd

I will be a part of the LocalMotion Art Show: Performance during First Friday Art Walk in Portland this October.

"LocalMotion is a ‘mosaic’ of Maine artisans exploring the social, political, cultural and personal aspects of everyday life in the 21st Century as influenced by the interweaving of global and local issues. It will feature sculpture, craft, apparel design, painting, prints and photo. We will be raffling off artwork. Performance starting at 8pm will feature Port Veritas Poets, lots of local writers and musicians, an Add Verb Skit about gender awareness, dancing, drag, and more. This show is in conjunction with the Tina Smith Beacon for Change Campaign. Tina is a Green candidate for City Council At-Large."

Sounds pretty interesting and I am glad to be a part of it. I am submitting a few paintings. I have already decided on "Stilts" as one of my pieces and I am deciding on using an older painting that would work well with the theme of this event called "Neighbors". My goal is to get into the studio over the next week or so and start the second painting in the home series.

Friday, October 3, 2008
5:00pm - 10:00pm

The Meg Perry Center
644 Congress St Portland, ME

www.maggiebokor.com website update

It's all coming together nicely. With the wonderful assistance from graphic designer, Angela Smith, I am finally getting ready to launch http://www.maggiebokor.com/. My next step is to get my etsy store up and running. With upcoming shows and submissions, I am staying busy. This has been a labor of love and I will be so grateful to see it come to life! For now, you can check me out at http://www.maggiestyle.com/.

Color revisited

Playing with color and clouds these days. Fascinated by creating movement with paint and capturing a vision from my mind's eye. There is a real freedom in working with the sky because of the steady change in nature. Unlike copying a photograph or imagining a single moment in time, the constant tiny shifts work like my brush stroke across the canvas.

September-Studio redesigned!

Summer has been extremely busy up here and we are finally starting to see things slow down a bit with visitors to our home. Over the past few weeks, Greg and I have been redesigning the rooms to create a better home office and completely empty my studio of anything not pertaining to paint or metals. It feels absolutely wonderful.

My dear friend Celia was able to visit twice in the past two weeks and witness the transformation. I owe my new found energy to finish each room to Celia and to mother nature. A flood in the basement a few weeks ago allowed us to reorganize. It's ready for clay when I say go.

Been working on a new series of paintings depicting my relationship with home. This one has gone through a few major shifts and I feel good about the end result. I call it Stilts. I will be putting this into my next gallery opening in October in Portland. It talks to me about the precarious nature of home ownership. There is a tricky balance between what we desire, how much it may cost you in time, money and resources and the real need of shelter.

Silk Tie Necklace Line is ready!

I was so inspired by the lavender silk tie necklace I made for Sheila in the last posting, I immediately starting playing with color combinations and adding large fresh water pearls to a few versions. It's a blast looking for the right cast glass piece to stack. Each tumbled glass bead has irregular edges, so it's like putting a delicate puzzle together as I line up my glass. I finished these necklaces off with a jump ring so that the silk tie can be replaced with another chain. The ties are versatile and can be worn as a choker, a longer pendant necklace or even a bracelet wrapped around your wrist a few times. I spent time finding the right tie-dyed silk tie for each necklace that would reflect the strength of its color and create a finished piece. Now I will need to photograph them for my etsy page.....it's all coming together.

Silk Ties

Silk Ties:
Sometimes it takes an event to help you become inspired again with your work. I made this stacked glass necklace for my friend Sheila's birthday....which is today! I was excited to start working with an alternative material to the silver chain and experiment with color. These hand dye silk ties come from a vendor in California. Their ties are beautiful. I have already made another 10 stacked necklaces to match up with more ties. I designed the glass pendants with a closed ring so they can slide off the silk tie for cleaning or for sharing with other necklace options. I am excited to add this to my line. Thank you, Sheila..and Happy Birthday!

3 Pears ready to be framed

I have fallen behind with my blog and decided it was time to commit a little time to my life at the studio and share where I am. I posted a picture of the 3 pears a while back while they were still in process. Some good friends of mine asked to purchase the piece for their anniversary. I was able to hand deliver the final rendition last month during a visit down the coast. It was wonderful to see how much they liked the image and I have already received reports about the framing decisions. Can't wait to see it framed!

I have been working on painting daily. My current studio doesn't have the best light and also home to my computer which can act as a big distraction, so I am working on another temporary solution while we design and build the final studio in the garage. Learning lots about patients through my paints and my dreams of the garage studio. It will happen soon. I would love to be able to open it up for studio visits and studio shows. All in good time.

Tumbled Glass Jewelry Line Expanded

My "Maggie Style Jewelry" line of tumbled glass is growing. I have continued to refine the look while having some fun with color combinations and playing with pearls and matte silver beads as accents with the beautiful glass. Summer is upon us and it's time to get outside and celebrate by wearing some great color and soaking up some sun. Although the sky is overcast while I write, the weather is always changing and warming up each day.

So I wanted to introduce some new bracelet and earring ideas I have been working on. I started with the nugget series shown plus my teardrops and loops, but I have recently expanded my earring collection to add the stacked pearl drop series. I am having a ball playing with the colors and shapes of these organic cut glass beads. There is an interplay with the free handed geometry of the glass with the delicate pearl. They are the smallest and lightest of all the earrings and have a delicate feel to them. I like having a variety of colors to choose from on a daily basis and now with the four designs, I feel confident to start marketing a more complete line.

Toggle bracelets are another great addition to my collection. I love the weight of the bracelets with all the lovely tumbled glass beads interwoven with freshwater pearls. They are fun, funky and versatile. There is something very satisfying about sensing what you are wearing. I feel very snazzy some days when I have on a new necklace or bracelet. Looking forward to getting my new work to the shops. I call this one the "Fire & Water" bracelet.

Birds and Pear Paintings in progress

Working with pears over the past few weeks. Lots of play with color and form. The canvas I chose is 8" x 16". I like working on the elongated rectangular form. Still working on building up volume while capturing the characteristics of each pear. This piece was create on the last day of my acrylics class over at Artascope Studios in South Portland with Liz Prescott. She is a fantastic teacher and I have learned so much in such a small amount of time. I look forward to the weekly critiques and dialogue about the work. I am looking forward to building my studio where I will have space to work on a few pieces at a time and go bigger!

The birds painting started as a still life of the same pears painting shown above. Pears with stacked books. My still life was edging on realism and not very interesting, so I let go and started painting from the gut and there you have it.

Tumbled Glass Necklace

I have tumbled sea glass on my mind. Working on my new line of sea glass jewelry over the past few months. Working on the final details to streamline my pieces and get ready for shows. I am investigating local galleries that may be a good fit with my work. I am interested in finding out information about the right shops down the East Coast. My full line of necklaces, earrings and bracelets would work well in any coastal area. The glass is gorgeous on and works well for dressy occasions or a fun day on the beach. I love the translucent quality of the tumbled glass. I have been wearing my work every day to get a feel for it and start to sense a response. This piece above was especially made for a good friend. Can't wait to see it on!


The tumbled glass comes in all different shapes. I carefully choose each piece to respond with the adjoining glass. The silver spacer beads are cast sterling silver. Each one is individual cast and adds to the unique nature of the necklace. My chunk chain is a alternating 8mm and 11mm hammered diamond link and the square toggle at the top adds to the playfulness while keeping the necklace feeling sophisticated and sensual. I love the weight of the glass and the lightness of the chain. I love its overall versatility.