Where Are My Keys?
The mundane things of life, things like key chains made from pewter or other materials, lap top computers, sunglasses and so forth aren’t necessarily things of beauty. This is one of the beefs I have with this modern world. If you could go back in a time machine, I believe even key rings would be lovely heirloom pieces. Actually, I don’t know if key rings existed during those deco times of the 1920s through the 1940s- my favorite aesthetic years.
But I have decided that every thing I use in my life is something I should enjoy looking at and touching. That’s why I’ve gone to a lovely pewter dolphin key chain instead of the fake dollar bill miniaturized (timely, eh) and encased in a hard clear plastic. I love dolphins, and now every time I unlock my front door I get to hold a representative of one in my hand!
I think it’s more important than ever to support our country’s artists and local businesses, and that’s another reason why I’ve decided to replace some of my every day things. So many of them were made overseas, and cheaply bought. This is just my thing, but I’m having fun with it.
As a child, I remember going to my grandmother’s home and marveling over all the lovely items she had. I’d hold an everyday item like a mirror in my hand, and feel a connection to the past, specifically my family’s past. Some people may think of me as overly sentimental, but this has given a richness to my life that I wouldn’t have had otherwise.
I’d encourage you to examine those everyday things in your life, and see if you can replace them with something that actually makes you feel good. Beauty is important in our environment, and even something as mundane as unlocking your door with a beautiful key ring might be cause for a little burst of happiness.
Of course, not everyone has the time or money to do this sort of thing, but you can at least watch out for objects that inspire, even in a small way. Of course, the best inspiration of all is to make things yourself.
But even I had not a clue on how to make a key chain that would hold up to regular use. So I opted for some online shopping. Every once in a while I just have to buy something, although I’m known as “Julie the Junk Collector”. This is a reference to my penchant for finding free and discarded things, turning them into objets d’ art, and sometimes giving them away as gifts.
These days, I think I’ll be doing even more of this. Maybe I’ll set a new trend, and have the last laugh after all.