It's a Wonderful Mystery: Birgit Moenig's Silk Scarves

Birgit Moenig has been sharing her love of painting on silk for over 25 years. What she loves even more than painting on silk is meeting women who feel happier because they are wearing one of her scarves. And that's what it all comes down to: bringing as much happiness as possible, through the beauty a silk scarf can bring to a person and her world.

A happy customer, wearing her
new Birgit scarf

Hailing from Germany originally, Birgit was exposed to silk painting very early. Many German housewives know how to paint on silk, so it was a common, everyday thing to do. Initially, she just picked up some silk, opened some dye, and put it on the silk as she had seen so many others do so effortlessly. She applied her artist eye to it as well, and got inspiration from other artist friends also applying dye to silk. “It's an on-going learning process even today,” she exclaims. “I still talk to my artist friends, and we are always trying new things to see what works best.”

Before painting on silk, Birgit had tried watercolor on paper, “but it didn't take,” she says. Acrylic on canvas was better, and in fact she painted and sold miniature folk paintings at the Pike Place Market when she and her husband first arrived in the States in 1980. But dyeing silk was what she really loved to do. “Designing something and staying inside the lines isn't very fun,” she says. “So I developed my silk dyeing to avoid that. It's a more abstract approach with colors overlapping and flowing together.”

Using a brush to "paint" the dye
onto the white silk

People are drawn to the beautiful colors Birgit uses on her scarves. At Manya Vee Selects, we love to watch people have their eye drawn to our scarf rack and its colorful array of her scarves. They can't resist walking over and touching them! Birgit finds the color choices and blending to be a constant challenge. “It's a wonderful mystery. When it's all done, that's when you know whether it worked or not.”    

Multi-colored scarf by Birgit

The technique is what causes the challenge. A non-toxic, water-based liquid dye is applied to dry, white silk. Colors are always more intense when they are wet, so controlling the strength of each hue is difficult. In addition, not as many colors are available as before, so that means more blending is required to achieve a full palette with lots of variety. In the end, Birgit confesses that her color choices are very intuitive. Of course, I have a feeling her 25 years of experience helps guide the intuition to get her beautiful results.

Birgit's scarf rack at Manya Vee Selects

Birgit works with her husband, Dieter, closely these days. This teamwork began when he lost all contracts for his own business after 9/11. He had been making high-tech satellites for ships. That left him with a lot of time on his hands. One piece of equipment he used in his business is a water-jet, which can cut cleanly through metals. He designed some 3-D ornaments made out of Boeing surplus aluminum, each one cut with that water jet. They were very successful. More designs followed based on customer requests.

Next, customers began asking for 3-D earrings. This required much smaller pieces, and thus more precision in cutting. His huge machine wasn't made for such detail. Upon discovering it would cost $28,000 to re-tool it, he gave up for a while. But the requests kept coming, so he figured out a way to re-tool it himself, costing only $2,000. He graduated the metal to titanium since aluminum has such a low perceived value, and grew his own customer base with this new product.

Three notKnot styles

A scarf woven into a
notKnot

The next product he invented ties Dieter's and Birgit's respective products together very closely – the notKnot! Based on a concept floating around in Birgit's head, each notKnot is cut out with the water jet using thick stainless steel. It allows a person a great deal of flexibility in how to wear the scarves, by weaving them in and out of the openings, making the scarf a bit more like a piece of jewelry.

Now, in addition to showing her scarves at Manya Vee Selects in Edmonds, they tour the country together doing art fairs and selling their wares together, finding new fans at each new show they do. Birgit loves returning to a place and meeting customers for a second, third and fourth time. It gives her great joy to hear how much the women enjoy wearing her scarves. It is an extra special day when someone sends her a card or email letting her know how much they love wearing her scarves.

Birgit and Dieter at an art show

We're in our 12^th year now at Manya Vee Selects, and Birgit is one of just a few artists whose work we've carried since the beginning.  Her scarves find passionate new wearers almost daily. We love passing along those stories to Birgit from our own customers, who simply can't resist that scarf rack and end up buying one, then two, then another for a gift, and so on. Go ahead and write your story here in the comments about your Birgit scarves, so we can share it with her too.

And of course, make your own pilgrimage to The Scarf Rack, and see for yourself how happy and beautiful a new Birgit scarf can make you feel!

See you soon,

Manya

P.S.  Here are links to previous blogs that show some scarf-tying methods.

http://manyaveeselects.blogspot.com/2011/11/3-scarf-ideas-to-spiff-up-your-wardrobe.html

http://manyaveeselects.blogspot.com/2010/07/from-neophyte-to-expert-in-2-hours.html

April 16, 2012

3 Scarf Ideas to Spiff Up Your Wardrobe

I bet each and every woman reading this post has several scarves stuck way back in a drawer somewhere that she never wears.  We seem particularly challenged in figuring out how to wear the darned things!

Learn this tying
technique by watching the
video below

If any of you have visited Paris, you know that every neck is adorned with a lovely scarf - no outfit is complete without one.


Let's try a few easy tricks with long narrow scarves in particular, and you'll be getting compliments on your new look in a jiffy!


First - stop wearing scarves like everyone else in the Northwest - doubled in half, then put around your neck and both ends through the loop.  It's ubiquitous.  That can translate to "boring."




Instead, try this nifty trick for an entirely new look that starts the same basic way.

Next, here are some simple and inexpensive tools to maximize your scarf potential.

The Grip

THE GRIP is the invention of Everett artist Dieter Moenig.  A simple plastic ring that looks suspiciously like a life saver, this $4 item comes in an array of colors, and totally transforms your scarf.

Wrap the scarf around your shoulders like a shawl.  Grab a little piece from each inside edge, at solar plexus level.  Make little pointy-dudes with the edges (yes, that's the technical jargon), and put them through the center of the grip.  Pull until it's nice and snug.


Wear it right in front, or pull it off to the side for an assymetrical look.

Scarf with Grip

Three notKnots

THE NOT-KNOT is another invention of Deiter's.  These stainless steel pieces are cut with a water jet, leaving the inside super smooth, thus avoiding any edges to catch and tear your scarf.  Available in two sizes and lots of shapes.  Small is $24, large is $28.  The small size works on light-weight, delicate scarves while the larger can handle thicker scarves.

Simply weave the scarf in and then out, and presto!  Your scarf is more like a piece of jewelry!

Those three notKnots in use

So get those scarves out of the drawer and start wearing them!  It's cheaper than a new outfit, and will have compliments coming your way all day long!  They are also an excellent gift idea for your pals who wear scarves frequently.  What a nice surprise for them.

Manya Vee

www.ManyaVeeSelects.com

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Manya Vee Selects

409 Main St

Edmonds, WA  98020

425-776-3778

Hours: Daily 11 - 6, Sunday & Tuesday noon - 4

The Almost Lost Art of Plique A Jour

Egyptian enameled jewelry

Enameled jewelry has been around a long time, going as far back as the ancient Egyptians.  But what is it exactly? It is taking powdered glass and heating it up until it melts and fuses onto a metal backing.  The powder melts, then flows, and finally hardens when the heat is reduced.  It is a wonderful way to add color to metal without using stones.

Ricky Frank
Pendant

Some contemporary American jewelers have brought new innovations and mastery to this technique, layering and layering various colors to achieve amazingly beautiful results that are so full of life.  One of my favorites is Ricky Frank.  He says "I create miniature worlds of light and color in enamel".

The traditional method of enameling has a metal backing behind the enamel, or powdered glass.  Another style is less common nowadays, but quite beautiful, resulting in a magical interaction with the metal and the glass.  There are very few artists working with enamel this way because it is quite technically challenging.  The technique is called Plique-a-Jour, which means "letting in daylight."  This goblet was made that way in about 1890 in Russia.

Russian Plique-a-Jour Goblet, ca 1890

Lalique Brooch

The plique-a-jour method still uses powdered glass, but instead of applying it on TOP of metal, the artist cuts out shapes within the metal, and puts the powdered glass in those open spaces.  Now when it's fired, and melts, and gets hard again, the glass doesn't have anything behind it.  The light can shine through, creating a sort of stained glass effect.  Famous art nouveau glass and jewelry designer Rene Lalique used this technique delicately and beautifully.

Dorner "Wave" earrings

A local artist, Diane Dorner, has enjoyed making earrings with this technique, resulting in some very fun and unusual earrings.  She uses fine silver (pure silver with no other components added) because it interacts more gracefully with the enamel.  She cuts out the outer shape using a jeweler's saw.  Then, she drills a tiny hole into the shape to create an open space inside it.  She inserts her tiny jeweler's saw to then create the shape she wants.  She repeats this technique numerous times to get the final look.

Then she chooses the color or colors of enamel she wants to use, and lays it out carefully.  It usually takes multiple firings and applications of the enamel to get a thick enough piece of glass that will be strong and stand the test of time.  It gets fired in a kiln that heats up to 1380 - 1560 degrees Fahrenheit.

Dorner "window" earrings

It might seem like the extensive labor involved would make these quite expensive, but they are not as crazy as you might think.  Diane's earrings sell for $90 - $140.  The more expensive ones have gemstones set into them as well.

Dorner "Lime Bubbles" earrings

Wearing a pair of these earrings is sure to elicit comments of wonder, as the light glows beautifully through the glass.  It has a sort of stained glass window effect.  It is so unusual that people will really want to know what it is!  So enjoy sharing a moment of beauty with complete strangers as you wear them.  What a respite from the depressing news we encounter every day!

I'm sure you know, dear readers, that this is my reason for being - to share a moment of beauty with you, as well as with all the people around us - friends and strangers alike.  I invite you to share your story of shared beauty with all of us right here in the comments!

Manya Vee
ManyaVeeSelects.com

A Magic Moment - customer, gallery, and artist connect!

It happened last Saturday.  A semi-regular customer came into the gallery.  M.R. was checking out the latest wearable art offerings rather leisurely when her hand rested upon a chrome and black peluche wrap by Laura Lawrence.  M.R. has the most amazing head of silver, straight, thick, wonderful hair.  The wrap would look amazing on her.

Laura's wraps come to life when worn on the body.  The hanger just doesn't cut it.  So, I took it off the hanger and wrapped it around my own body to show M.R. the variety of ways it can be worn, and to show her how beautifully it moves on the body.  She was intrigued and mesmerized by its beauty.


Off comes her coat.  Her purse gets absent-mindedly placed on the floor.  And she wraps herself in the soft and gentle beauty and takes a look in the mirror.  Yep.  It looked like it had been made especially with her in mind.  She has fun playing with all the ways it can be worn.  Open in the front with lapels.  One side draped across the front.  Both ends captured across the shoulders.  And so on.


As you can now imagine, it went home with her.  She was so very pleased with it that a thank you needed to be delivered to the artist.  Here's a bit of what she said: "Yesterday I purchased one of your beautiful Double Peluche Capes in Edmonds, WA from Manya Vee Selects.  The moment I saw it I "bonded" and knew that I had created an intention at some previous moment in time to have a "made for me" work of wearable art. My cape is chrome and black and compliments and enhances my long silver [chrome?] hair- a big consideration when buying clothing! The other part of this story is that I had JUST picked up a custom ring which I had spent weeks/months designing and refining with the jewelers. Some how this all fits together- maybe a sign about how very important our creative contributions are to the world. Thank you so very much for your generous, lovely art. I LOVE my new cape and will think of the love that helped create it as I wear it with the memories already created!"


Laura was totally blown away by receiving such heart-felt gratitude about something she had created with her own hands.  She responded thusly:  "What a lovely surprise to receive your email--thank you so much for writing! As someone who has gone "natural" with my hair color, I certainly can relate to what you said regarding the silver [chrome]. I must say how pleased I have been with the silver with black accents. I hope you enjoy many hours of feeling hugged in it.  Thank you again for taking the time to write me."


And now, the shared moments of beauty will happen with M.R. as she wears her lovely wearable art!  She will be one of those bringing a smile and a sense of awe about the amazing beauty of creativity and excellent craftsmanship each time she wears it.  How cool is that?!?!?!?


Manya
manyaveeselects.com

Choreography too?

Many of you know me as a jewelry designer and gallery owner.  Well, in the immortal words of MVS artist Pat Brier, "Sometimes one form of creativity leads to another."  So yes.  You can now add choreographer to the list as well!

In Jeff's latest play, Teacup Tipsy (opening April 17 at Driftwood Players in Edmonds), there is a dance sequence in which our heroine, Lyla, dances her sorrow.  (Yes, this IS a comedy I assure you.)  Never one to shy from something new, I leapt at the chance to try my hand at it.  After all, I had studied dance for many years as a youngster, and for a few years in college as well.  And you all know that was just a few years ago, right?

But how to capture a mood, her emotions, in movement?  That was my challenge.  I spent quite a few hours boning up on my familiarity with dance steps, listening to the music to which Lyla dances, and dreaming about which movements would work best.  I tried series after series, and didn't like any of them.

So I let it sit for a day or two and tried not to think about it (which was sort of hard, given the number of times I had listened to the tune, and it was now refusing to leave my brain).  Finally, after picking it up again, I worked on it for several more hours when it all came together!  Lovely, graceful movements that reflect Lyla's mood and her chosen song.

But now comes the hard part.  I actually have to SHOW it to the director and the actor playing the role of Lyla.  Yikes!  What if they don't like it?  What if they think it's silly?  I've had many years to get used to the idea of putting my jewelry out for others to see.  Doesn't faze me at all anymore.  I know some people are going to like and others not, and I don't really care.  But this?  This is an entirely different animal.  An entirely new art form.  So, breathing through my anxiety, and forgetting the next move only once, I showed them.

You can imagine my great relief when I saw smiles of appreciation on their faces as they watched.  Wow, they actually liked it!  Whew!  I just passed my first test as a choreographer!  And Catherine, our Lyla, captures it beautifully.  How fun to watch someone else work with what I imagined!  An amazing feeling to be sure.

Manya

And So It Begins!

The one, the only, Manya Vee Selects blog!  We invite you to post comments and thoughts on our posts as often as possible!  We'd love to have a conversation with you in this way.  We can talk about art, creativity, beauty, and how those things affect our daily lives.

I'm sure you all know by now that for me, incorporating art into every aspect of your life is a very powerful thing.  Eating your breakfast out of a hand-painted Fiala bowl instead of Corelle gets you ready for the day like nothing else.  Especially if you use a beaded spoon as a vehicle!

Wear it. Dine on it. Burn it. Burn things in it.  Put flowers in it.  Look at it.  Look at yourself in it. Eat it. Smell it.  And that's just the beginning.  For some reason, so many of us struggle with feeling like we somehow don't deserve to use special things.  Maybe that Puritan streak hasn't gone out of our systems yet.  But just let your mind wander a bit to consider how much more alive you'd feel if you actually allowed those things.  Surrounding yourself with joyfully created art that you can use makes that joy come alive in you as well, and may even ignite your own fires of creativity if you're not careful!

Let's hear how you incorporate art into your everyday life!

--Manya