february cabinet.

(taken sometime between 1900-1920)

*lately* (or at least, last month)

reading:

* much like the last time i shared a cabinet of my currents, i unfortunately don't have time for reading. this sad truth is wholly in my control & so i have been trying to be more mindful (as reading truly is my first love) & take small bites from books of short stories. i just got in a hefty box from cake train  and have been nibbling on their 11th issue. it is filled with clipped dark gems, precisely the kind of writing that most attracts me. 

*i've also been slowly devouring lou beach's book '420.' it is a jewel box of tiny writings, all about 420 characters long, based on the amount of characters facebook allows for status updates. some are strange, others carry quite a profound weight for their miniature statures. i found him via my lovely customer service gal friday kim / wildthorne. 

* loved this post on the living apex blog on reasons to read more ( i agree with his theory of how we veg out on visual media) and its subsequent follow up with tips on how to read more ( i agree with his theory on keeping books in proximity, my/our homes are littered with books everywhere. i even sleep with them when i am in my loft. perfect bedfellows to fill the empty space.)

viewing/listening:

* we recently watched the gorgeous yet almost story-less 'only lovers left alive,'  a few of you mentioned on IG about this one when i posted on my previous film entry & rightly so. it featured a kind of trifecta of attraction for me; strange surrealist lady bird tilda swinton has never looked better in a role (seriously, when she is "packing" for her trip and fondles each book before she tucks it in her suitcase, i was breathless with pure visual pleasure and had an immediate, deep relation to her character), mia wasikowska has a small (albeit bratty role, you almost clap when she exits,)  & its a guiltypleasurevampirefilm that's somehow not nearly as cliche or predictable as one would expect from a supernatural romance. mostly what caught me was the morose melancholy meditations on life and the act of living, as well as the brilliant soundtrack, which was laden with jim jarmusch's band, sqürl, and has haunted me these past few weeks since. detroit also never looked so magical.

* les revenants is a french program that features the 'returned' dead, just as they were when they were alive ( an equally unsettling and complicatedly delightful notion.) they are neither zombies or ghosts (or at least at the point i'm at in the season anyway.) it is slow paced and creepy and has a beautifully haunting soundtrack as well by mogwai. i haven't finished watching it so won't say more, for now . . .

cocoon life:

* dreaming of building new/olde bookshelves and other moods for melancholy/new rooms over on my pinterest. 


fixed:

*i've written on here before about my strange attraction to icebergs/ glaciers. lately i've slowly been writing again and these primordial giants are seeping into my thoughts . . .

bloodmilk news:

* this is a bit belated but so many thanks for all the support and patience over the past holiday season. i am slowly working on streamlining things and building a tiny team as i navigate my growing pains while remaining as independent and community based as possible. <3 p="">
* i just listed high polish finish versions of a few of my most popular rings in the shop. 

* as i mentioned recently on IG, i am working on creating wedding bands for both of the 'belonging' rings as well as a third sister version. i hope to have more news on these soon, but for now, they are being designed to specifically 'lock' around each ring but will also look equally as nice work alone. 

october cabinet: thinning veil.

*lately*

reading:

* lapham's quarterly is an amazingly beautiful printed journal that comes out seasonally, each based around a general theme of the human experience on earth, such as death (current issue), nature, animals, the sea etc. what i love about this publication aside from its attention to detail in the printed quality and chosen imagery, is how the past and present are represented in the writers they choose. since i only caught on to this publication a few issues back, i'm currently saving to purchase their beautifully packaged back issue box sets. even their social media sites are inspiring, their tumblr is beautiful and they also have a blog i've been keen on. 

  

* waiting for 'heavenly bodies: cult treasures & spectacular saints from the catacombs' by paul koudounaris to come in the mail. this is a beautiful follow up to 'the empire of death', which was released in 2011 to much acclaim. aside from the beautifully macabre images, paul also has a phd in art history and writes wonderfully.  

listening:

* king dude, who put on a really terrific live show. mostly enamored with the dark romantic nature of some of the songs. 

* erras, whom i was introduced to by way of this IG post.  (please add there or here if you have anymore recommendations.) 

* broadcast's soundtrack for berberian sound stage. this was the last project trish keenan worked on & is stunningly spooky.

cocoon life:

* still settling into my loft a year and a half later & recently had the chance to hang all of my ellen rogers prints over a new victorian settee i picked up from jinxed. treasures abound in their shops, if you are local i can't speak highly enough about their picks or prices. 

community:

*my friends over at peg & awl are hosting a kickstarter for margaux's new photography book, 'take your time loving me.' the video for the campaign is wonderful and i truly hope they reach their goal. if you're so inclined, please help them here. 

*from the black lodge is on tour in the US, if they are coming to your town, i encourage you to go and see all the handmade wears the troupe has collected. 

*ovate's new line of clothing is amazing, as usual. 

*naomi nowak & darby from @old_hag of IG have collaborated on a small collection of t-shirts and tote bags with one of darby's signature witchy images. 

*light witch / courtney brooke (pictured) is currently working on a portion of my upcoming lookbook. 

#communityiseverything

bloodmilk news:

*i am starting the process of opening my own webshop in tandem to etsy. all new pieces will only be found here from now on. please bookmark this as my shop. in efforts to remain as independent as possible, this has been a long time coming & though i will keep my etsy shop open, i do hope you'll support me on the new site. i will also be able to accept credit cards on this site too, which is something i've been unable to do in the past. 

2 of swords, forever.

the lovely artist & internet darling charmaine olivia wearing the sterling 2 of swords tarot earrings. 

these are currently on sale (more info on this found here, including a coupon code for an extra 5% off.) i feel so lucky to have people whose work i admire wearing my work, the community i have been a part of here on the internet and in person in my home city of philly, has been filled with incredibly mutual support people who also care about handmade items and art.

as my way of saying thank you, i hold bi-annual sales; the first of the year is going on now in my shop. take a peek or help spread the word. 

also, i was recently interviewed by a special lady named ashley for her beautiful site hollywood noir makeup. you can read my intense ramblings about the afterlife, being gloomy and upcoming projects here. 

moonstone my love.

moonstone has been a favorite stone for some time now, i was given my first piece of it as a gift to soothe my tendency to absorb other people's emotional landscapes, empath symptoms i still exhibit. moonstone as a talisman and as a healing stone has many more properties than this however, it is considered to be used as a divination tool & has been used and worn in jewelry since ancient times for both its outstanding otherworld beauty ( these are natural, amazing earth made stones !) as well as for its deeply magical qualities. in some cultures it is thought to be the tears of the moon made solid.

it took me a long time to find the size and quality i was searching for to fit the 'belonging to the darkness' ring series. this ring is particularly special, it is a tribute to persephone, the goddess who was captured by the king of the underworld to be his bride. i imagine that while being "captured" isn't really a romantic prospect (unless you are north of that wall that is ;) ) that over time persephone fell in love with her dark lover and thusly possesses both the ability to move between light & dark. 

moonstone is also thought to protect its wearer while traveling in dark nights, or dark times, as well as being thought to strengthen the bonds of love & passion between to lovers when one gifts it to the other, all ideas which fit in as perfect illustrations to my intent with this ring, that it can be a statement of belonging or commitment between lovers, friends, or even a statement that you belong to yourself. with the inclusion of the moonstone, it becomes a potent talisman that can protect your love, heal your grief or give you clarity. 

take a peek at more details & images of it here.

(& many thanks to all of you who have chosen to be engaged with this ring !)

dark mother moons.

favorite ethereal creatures, sisters of the black moon, have been both an inspiration & support for my own work. aside from maintaining a webshop full of amazing vintage finds, they have begun to venture out into designing their own pieces and have recently released a new collection 'disir.' filled with high priestess -esque clothing that has an expressive amount of movement that cloaks the body beautifully. this last piece is personal pick, i love suspenders and when worn backwards, would be perfect for my personal style. i'm also super honored that they used the blood milk snake rib cross in the lookbook.  

a merry gloom cloud.

currently:

buried under bloodmilk

reading during breaks : compulsive beauty by hal foster

&

excited for jeremy hush's upcoming show in denver. peek 

xo

season of blood.

working hard on getting things done so that so many of you will be surprised this holiday ! 

xo

tears like fangs.

limited edition of 30 in black.

limited edition of 10 in grey. 

limited edition of 10 in white.

designed & printed by artist paul romano, this limited edition screen print features a convergence of themes and images from my recent lookbook 'the conjurer.'

printed on black, white or grey french paper, the print measures 19 x 25. including a beautifully nuanced shimmer effect via fine mica powder, the prints appear luminous and intriguing in their well balanced design of hand drawn elements via Paul Romano, an image captured from the lookbook via Christina Brown and text directly lifted from the lookbook.

these are limited 30 in black and 10 each in white and grey and are ready to ship.

Hand signed and numbered.

Comes carefully rolled in a mailing tube, ready to be framed or carefully pinned to your wall.

also available are the original drawings that paul romano used in the lookbook design. take a peek at his site for more details.

splitting hairs.

 november has been the best month i've had all year & makes up for some of the grayness that happened earlier this year and this summer.  i went out to sf for the spirit board show. i turned 30 and celebrated with my incredible philly friends, who surprised and honored me with amazing gifts. i released my first lookbook and launched an official site. my home studio really started coming together. i prepared for bloodmilk's first gallery show (which opens on friday for philly folks) & i've sold more pieces of bloodmilk in this past month than ever, by far. 

because of this, i'm incredibly busy, trying to keep my head above the bloody, milky sea. 

currently, i won't be able to have any overseas orders ready for christmas due to shipping, and most things from my shop i won't be able to have in time for stateside friends. if you are looking to purchase a gift for a friend / love in time for the holidays, please email me before doing so to check if it's possible. some things are tricker than others.

to remedy some of this: west coast people: please contact the folks at loved to death who have a large selection of my line or east coast people: check out catbird's website. they have a nice collection of pieces including a few you can only get on their site. 

i wish you all a happy december and again, thank you so much for supporting me with kind words, purchases and well wishes this past november!

xo

*image l. filimonov

first friday

this first friday here in philly at 309 gallery in olde city located at 309 cherry street, photographer christina brown will be showing large scale images from the lookbook, 'the conjurer' along side curated cabinets of my jewels along side personal objects from my collection and objects from paul romano's & jeremy hush's home & studios. this will be the first time i've ever shown my personal collection of my jewelry in a gallery setting, meaning that some of the jewels will show the wear i've placed on them over time while others illuminate the ethereal elegance of the rose gold plating. if you live near philly i would love to see you at the opening this friday from 6-9. the show is open until january 15th of the new year.

xo.

fresh blood:

the crystal tomb ring. limited edition.

the oracle. rose gold vermeil.

the spirit guide. // lily dale.

still more supernatural jewels to come.

bloodmilk x soma magazine.

the 'as above so below' lorraine snake rib cross is featured in the current issue of soma!

 take a peek at the full editorial here.

xo

daily bleed:

beetlejuice leggings !

the first planchette ring ever made.

diy chalkboards at christina brown's house.

stack of kris chau paintings . . . ( i recently visited her studio for hi-fructose. see it here)

nearly always in zana leather.

late summer / fall reading list.

cocktails in jelly jars and notes in hot pink . . .

only a small peek at my mass of jewel molds. 

my daily stack of 'forget me not' snake rib bone cuffs. thinking about making it all joined into one piece.

i'm still obsessed with instagram. it's been fun documenting my daily goings on . . . as i technically don't have a "real" job, instead shuffling between cities and studios for either the magazine or jewels . . . no day is the same.  it's also been interesting to spy on other artists, so many of my favorites use it too and it's intriguing to see what their daily lives are like . . . if you're on there, find me: username: bloodmilk

fresh blood: the messenger has arrived.

the messenger: 4 crow talons grip a quartz crystal while one curls around your finger.

a slight bloodletting. more to come.

xo

jl.

seeing all.

queen elizabeth i would wear gowns emblazoned with disembodied eyes and ears, suggesting to her court / relam that she had the mystical power to "see & hear everything." while it was a sort of subtle politically terrorism, i always found it to be strange, not the sort of gown you'd expect a royal queen to be wearing, but rather shrouding a high priestess. . . . this tradition contiunes on in clothing designer duo teamo, who created the intriguing above pieces. hailing from mexico city, their intent may also have been derivative of mexican milagros, charms featuring abstracted body parts that were imbued with a kind of sympathetic, healing magic....

i've always been attracted to this idea, of abstracted eyes as an adornment, i have 9 tattooed on me for protection & luck & have started incorporating them into new bloodmilk. i've been filling my sketchbook with scratchy drawings & finding amazing antiques to collage into these ideas. there will even be a small line of handpainted eyes set behind glass . . .

xo

metamorphosis . . .

many metamorphic elements a-brew here at the house of bloodmilk. i'm working on re-branding bloodmilk, an official website, & a lookbook with photographer christina brown. 

as i mentioned in my previous book list post ( part ii: novels coming in a few days) i've been soaking in surrealism via 'max ernst & alchemy'. if you've been here since the very beginning, you'll know that his collage work is the foundation of all my inspiration as i feel bloodmilk is at its core, collage jewelry. ( & part of one of my favorite pieces of his appears as my icon in my etsy shoppe & appears in the above banner to the right) as i've lately been intoxicated with the principles of alchemy, to have a convergence of these two inspirations has been potent....

the above ring is a design i've been toying around with for a while now, & finally feel that i've got the right balance. this design will also be available in a necklace form and with different metal finishes & different stones. . . hopefully beginning next month. 

xo

blood flood.

phantom globe ring.

visions. conjoined eagle talon crescent necklace.

naja. owl talon crescent necklace.

as above, so below. lorraine cross snake rib necklace.

black blood planchette ring.

the long awaited new our darling funerary ring.

i've been bloodletting a lot this spring. even more to come this summer.

xo

dream catching.

lately tangled:

reading 'the witch must die' the hidden meaning of fairy tales by sheldon cashdan for research...

catching up on orders.... i promise i'm working long hours to make up for my time off as well as photographing the new pieces i've been working on for  months now....

working on a special engagement ring for a lucky lady overseas, my first time setting black diamonds !!! excited to share that here soon . . .

waiting for spring weather to actually arrive here in philly.

& dreaming 'epic' dreams.

i recently stumbled across these woven catchers by crystal gregory betwixt razor wire loops. 

snares & stitches . . .urban dreamcatchers (?)

lydia part ii.

the lydia ring part ii. snake rib bone & oval faceted snake scale silver stone

thoughts of alchemy, the neitherworld & the cradle of re-birth.

xo

fresh blood: alchemy:

neo-pendulum divination necklace.

the hanged man. tarot triangle necklace.

the dividing. masonic sword bracelet.

trinity. triangle hourglass necklace.

new pieces from my alchemy inspired line, new in the shoppe.  even more on the way!

xo