Hi everyone! I am EJP of EJPcreations. The items I make utilize design elements from a bygone time, to create modern, urban body ornaments. I am a mad scientist of a woman specializing in creating tiaras, necklaces, and fascinators, with a noir, and gothic flair. All adornments have a hint of vampire elegance, a dash of Steampunk bravado, and plenty of Neo-Victorian sensibilities. Here is my little blog to showcase some of my creations, the things that inspire me, as well as a scrapbook of curiosities that I have picked up in my wanderings across the web. ~ Please Enjoy …

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

My Love of Tiaras

A year ago the ladies of STEAMED! blog were kind enough to allow me to be a guest blogger. I wrote this article on my love for tiaras, and then got caught up in something else and completely forgot about it. For posterity sake I reprint it here so that I might never forget it again.

A love affair with tiaras

Today’s guest is Edanna of EJP Creations, makers of clockhand jewlery, including, my favorite, tiaras.  I own a bunch of her stuff.  (The gold tiara is mine.)
EJP Creations specializes in tiaras, chokers, earrings, necklaces, fascinators, and hair combs with a noir, and gothic flair. Creating body adornments with a hint of vampire elegance, a dash of Steampunk bravado, and plenty of Neo-Victorian sensibilities. Perfect for prowling the streets, haunting the clubs, or adding an aristocratic air to any outfit.

A little about my love affair with Tiaras…
by Edanna of EJP Creations
I still vividly remember the time I saw my very first tiara. It was love at first sight. I was probably 5 years old and flipping though a book of paper dolls of famous women through the centuries. I had looked at this book a thousand times before. Lady Murasaki always intrigued me in her flowing robes. Joan of Arc took my breath away in her gleaming armor. And then of course there was Queen Victoria the pinnacle of womanly grace dripping with elegance. But wait what was that… was something in her hair… and its making her regal features even more aristocratic! It looked like a necklace but was positioned like an angel’s halo. I pondered … What could this thing be?? I ran over to my mother hoping she would tell me what such a lovely and intriguing article was. The word poured from her lips into my ears … T-i-a-r-a. Such a captivating word. I quickly sat cross-legged in front of her eagerly waiting for her to tell me more. She then elaborated on this completely new world of ornamentation. There were Crowns, and bandeaus, diadems, and fascinators, combs, circlets, coronets, and headdresses. All sorts of hair adornments, it made my head spin! As she went on to explain it seemed to me that almost every time period through the centuries had a magical way of adorning the head in such a regal manner. It made me wonder why this wasn’t still in vogue for our time. The 1960′s gave us the last spattering of the tiara, but they were fashioned more like an elaborate headband. I was determined from that moment on. I had a new mission in life sparked by that little paper doll book. It would be my life’s work to pursue that mythical unicorn that is the tiara until its mysteries were mine.
The years passed, and I ended up going to college to study jewelry making, and metal smithing. Surely my questions about these magical circlets would be answered there. Unfortunately, they weren’t I was thwarted at every turn. One teacher even went so far as to laugh at my pursuit because… “no one wears those things anymore” my mind instantly snapped back with, “well maybe they don’t wear them because they aren’t available anymore, you ever thought of that!” It did cross my mind that the reason my teachers were so against them might just be because they couldn’t figure out how to construct one. Tiara’s might look easy to make, but it really does take some skill and engineering. Unlike a necklace they have to withstand much more wear and tear. Also comfort is key, and fitting everyone’s head is not easy. Lastly there is the issue of keeping it in place. Heads are round, floppy things and anchoring a piece of art work on it is not easy. Thus, I embarked on the lonely mission of teaching myself how to make one. There were oh so many late nights at my workbench. Drawing after drawing that were thrown into the trash can after spending hours making a paper mock-up only to have it fail. But then after a few months small successes started to emerge from my toils. And then finally the break though I had been waiting for. Shortly afterwards my first triumph! A finished tiara, victory at last!!! At that point I was so pleased with myself I decided to have a gallery show with nothing but tiaras made of sterling silver sheet and wire. It took me a full year, and a large proportion of my saving to make all of them. They were so well received that all the doubts about my mission melted away.
Graduation from school came soon after, and then the Steampunk movement wrapped me in it’s warm gear lined embrace. Whisking me away on countless adventures then placing me gently on Esty’s front door. After that the real work began. My two and a half year long odyssey of perfecting my neo-Victorian tiara line. Of course I make other pieces of jewelry, but the tiaras always have a special place in my heart. I still get the odd comment here and there such as, “where would you ever wear one?” I just smile and keep walking because I know once you have one there is an understanding that comes over you. Sure you might wear it out to a club or a formal occasion, but the real joy comes when your sitting at home on laundry day wearing your tiara in your jammies eating ice cream on the couch watching “Gaslight” or “My Fair Lady.” That is a joy those people will never know, and it makes me a little sad for them. Also, I must add that those same teachers who thought my passion was shear folly laugh at it no more.
~Edanna
http://www.ejpcreations.com/

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