Monday, August 27, 2012

It has been a very hot summer here in NYC!  On those days where the heat was just too unbearable I stayed close to home and reacquainted myself with my bead collection.  The hot summers reminded me of growing up in the city.

As a youth and a teen I attended camp at the Lenox Hill Neighborhood Association on the upper east side in Manhattan.  I always looked forward to every summer at Lenox Hill because kids from all over went to camp there.  Each summer you would meet kids from all the 5 boroughs. 

When I was a youth, and the heat would be too much for the camp counselors to take us out, we would be presented with several activities which we could participate in right inside our camp building.  I usually took all the crafty ones and enjoyed making things for my mom and to hang in my room. 

One craft I remember vividly was called "Ojo de Dios" or God's Eye. 
It wasn't until this summer that I learned the history of this craft project. 
According to several websites "Ojo de Dios" is an ancient symbol made by the Huichol Indians of Mexico and the Aymara Indians of Bolivia. 

They would start by making the center eye when a child was born and then every year a little more thread was added until it was completed when the child turned age 5. 

I always loved the look of these and would use brightly colored yarn to create them.  They looked wonderful hung from the ceiling in my bedroom as a child.   If you would like to make these with your kids you can find directions at http://www.allfreecrafts.com/nature/ojo-de-dios.shtml
So this summer when I was indoors during our hottest days I decided I would make some earrings which resembled "Ojo de Dios."

I mostly used a brickstitch to create these earrings and I am pleased with the results.




 
These Ojo earrings bought back so many happy childhood memories! 
To see the entire collections please visit my etsy shop at http://www.etsy.com/shop/feithhodgecreations




No comments:

Post a Comment