Reaching out to our community!

As you may know I am a member of the goldsmith community at Jewel Envy in Toronto.

One of our members is a very talented artist who is originally from Afghanistan, and who’s family has been in grave danger since the US pulled out of the country.

Fortunately, they have been able to get out of the country to a refugee camp in Pakistan, but they are stuck there until we can get them the support they need to start their new lives in Canada.

To that end, the Jewel Envy community is running a fundraiser for them to be able to come to Canada and finally get some of the stability and security they so desperately need.

Jewel Envy is running an online auction of pieces donated by the jewellers in the studio, including myself, and the proceeds will go to the fundraiser, you can also donate directly if you would prefer.

In times like these we all need to reach out and help those nearest to us, and this is a very direct way to make some lives better. Please have a look at the fundraiser page and donate or participate in the auction if you are able! You can also view the pieces in person if you head into the store at 151 Marion street, off Roncesvalles.

I am honoured to be able to help them in my small way and I hope we can spread the word to make their transition to Canada as painless as possible after the years of hardship they have endured.

A selection of the auction items available.

Why Patreon? An explanation

You may know that last year I started a Patreon. This was an effort to offer more to my clients, and community in an ongoing way, and expanding on the content I was already offering for free on social media in a way that was more sustainable for me.

Before I go further I have to tell you that I am running a giveaway for this silver, clasped hands heart brooch a the end of this week, for all of my subscribers, so this is a great time to join!

If you have explored my Patreon already, you will know that I offer several tiers, the first offers perks such as, behind the scenes footage, a monthly Ask me Anything stream, access to regular giveaways and an ongoing 10 percent off discount. Then there is a tier for people who want to offer general support and learn some medieval sewing, along with all the perks available in the first tier AND a special gift every 7 months. The upper two are for folks who would like to save up over time for a larger project, so if you have something special you’ve been wanting but need some external support to save up for it, that is a great option for you.

I’d be delighted if you went over there and have a look at my offerings. I am always looking to expand what I have and I love getting feedback from my subscribers as to what sort of additional content and rewards they might like.

Patreon is very helpful for artists such as myself who are trying to stabilize the erratic nature of our income while engaging directly with our community, so it means the world when people subscribe.

Thanks for reading!

Aurora

Fun with Medieval Marginalia

If you follow any of my social media accounts you’ll know that a lot of my time is spent reproducing items from the medieval period. Usually I am making things for others but from time to time I get to tackle a project just for me.

I began this hood in 2020 during the first lockdown and it became quite the endeavour as I decided to fill the whole border with images from original manuscripts.

It took me two years to complete and it has not been 1 year since I finished it. Below are some images of the finished embroidery. I used crewel wool, and had to basically free hand everything since the wool of the hood wouldn’t really take any pencil markings. This was definitely a more creative project but I can say that the art is all original too the period.

You can see some videos of it on my tiktok, @captainswordface but for now, here are some pictures.

If sewing medieval clothes is something you’d like to get into, you can subscribe to my Patreon to access a number of in depth garment construction videos for the 14th century, or, just to show your support!