A new Review Column/ O noua rubrica de recenzii

A lot of people ask me about certain materials I use. I decided I want to review different crafting products for those of you out there who would like to know more about a product before buying it. I wish I had before buying certain products that were a complete disappointment.

Multi ma intreaba despre materialele pe care le folosesc. Am decis sa fac o rubrica de review-uri despre diferite produse de artizanat pe care le folosesc. Mi-ar fi placut sa stiu mai multe despre unele produse pe care le-am folosit si s-au dovedit a fi o dezamagire totala.

Armenian Inspired Part 5 - Semiramis

Semiramis

Armenian tradition portrays her as a homewrecker and a harlot. These facts are partly to be explained by observing that, according to the legends, in her birth as well as in her disappearance from earth, Semiramis appears as a goddess, the daughter of the fish-goddess Atargatis, and herself connected with the doves ofIshtar or Astartë.

One of the most popular legends in Armenian tradition involves Semiramis and an Armenian king, Ara the Beautiful. In the 20th century, the poet Nairi Zarian retold the story of Ara the Beautiful and Shamiram, in a work considered to be a masterpiece of Armenian literary drama.

According to the legend, Semiramis had heard about the fame of the handsome Armenian king Ara, and she lusted after his image. She asked Ara to marry her, but he refused; upon hearing this, she gathered the armies of Assyria and marched against Armenia.

During the battle, which may have taken place in the Ararat valley, Ara was slain. To avoid continuous warfare with the Armenians, Semiramis, reputed to be a sorceress, took his body and prayed to the gods to raise Ara from the dead. When the Armenians advanced to avenge their leader, she disguised one of her lovers as Ara and spread the rumor that the gods had brought Ara back to life, ending the war.

Although many different versions of the legend exist, they agree that Ara never came back to life.

The association of the fish and dove is found at Hierapolis Bambyce (Mabbog), the great temple at which, according to one legend, was founded by Semiramis, where her statue was shown with a golden dove on her head.


Considerata de traditia Armeniana ca fiind o desfranata, ea apare ca o zeita, fiica zeitei peste Atargatis. Una ditnre cele mai populare legende Armeniene este despre Semiramis si regele armenian Ara cel Frumos. Aceasta legenda, a fost recreata de Nairi Zarian poet din secolul 20 si este considerata una dintre cele mai bune drame literare armeniene.

Conform legendei Semiramis aude despre faima printului si il doreste. Ea ii cere sa se casatoreasca dar el refuza.Cand aude asta, Semiramis ea isi strange armata si marsaluieste spre Armenia. Ara este ucis in lupta si ea incearca sa-l readuca la viata. Pentru a stopa razaboiul ea il deghizeaza pe unul dintre soldatii sai in Ara si declara ca l-a reinviat pe acesta. Razboiul se incheie.

Desi exista multe versiuni din poveste, in niciuna Ara nu reinvie. Ea este adesea reprezentata cu un porumbel auriu pe cap.

Armenian Inspiration Part 4/ Inspiratii Armeniene Partea 4

For the other Armenian blogposts see: Part1, Part 2 and Part 3.

Nourie Hadig Story

Pendant made with steel hook, polymer clay, organza and a lot of love.
Pandantiv facut cu inox, lut polimeric, snur organza si multa dragoste. 

This is the Armenian version of the Snow White. A rich man with a beautiful dark haired daughter named Nourie Hadig takes a beautiful wife to wed. Every month her step mother asks the new moon if she was the most beautiful but it’s always her daughter who is most beautiful. The step mother, enraged, tells her husband he needs to take away the daughter and kill her and bring her bloody shirt as proof. However, he abandons her in the woods where she finds a house. When she enters the house the door gets closed behind her and the rooms are full of treasures. There’s also a prince there and a voice tells her that she has to cook for him for seven years. Meanwhile her mother again asks the mirror who is the most beautiful and receives the same answer she always did. Her husband admits he couldn’t kill her so she starts looking for her.

After four years, gypsies come to Nouri Hadig house and she buys a girl from them and they both serve the prince. When the prince wakes up after 7 years he finds the gypsy girl next to him and thinks she was the one serving him. He decides to marry her and during the arrangements he tells Nourie Hadig that since she helped the girl cook for him he needs to repay her somehow. She asks for the Stone of Patience. This stone apparently swells when a person tells a story and if the story is sad it will burst. But if the person made much of a little, the person would swell and burst, and so he must watch and ensure that the servant who asked for it did not burst. He gave Nourie Hadig the stone, and she told it her story. It swelled and was about to burst when the prince broke in and insisted on marrying her rather than the gypsy.

The next new moon, the moon said that the princess of Adana was more beautiful, so the mother knew where her daughter was. She had a beautiful ring made that would make the wearer fall asleep and had a witch bring it to her daughter, pleading that she had been out of her mind when she ordered her death. The gypsy girl persuaded the daughter to wear the ring, and she fell down dead. The prince refused to bury his wife; he would tend her as she had tended him. Many doctors were unable to heal her, but one tried to steal the ring. She started to come awake; he slid it back on and got the prince to promise him rewards for healing his wife. Then he took the ring off, which restored Nourie Hadig to life.

While the ring was on Nourie Hadig's finger, the moon had told the wife that she was the most beautiful one. After the ring was removed, though, it said that Nourie Hadig was. The wife became so angry that she died.

Aceasta este versiunea armeniana a Albei ca Zapada. Un barbat bogat cu o fiica foarte frumoasa cu parul negru pe nume Nourie Hadig decide sa se casatoreasca cu o femeie frumoasa. Femeia, narcisista, in fiecare luna intreaba luna plina daca ea este cea mai frumoasa, insa mereu luna ii spune ca fiica ei este cea mai frumoasa. Suparata femeia isi trimite barbatul sa o ucida pe fata dar acesta nu poate asa ca o lasa in padure. Fata ajunge la o casa care isi inchide usile dupa ce aceasta intra inauntru. Inauntru sunt multe comori si un print dormind; fata aude o voce care ii spune ca trebuie sa ii gateasca printului timp de 7 ani.

Intre timp mama afla ca fata este in viata si porneste in cautarea sa. Dupa 4 ani, Nourie Hadig cumpara o servitoare de la tigani care sa o ajute sa ingrijeasca de print. Cand acesta se trezeste o vede pe cea din urma si crede ca ea a fost cea care a stat timp de 7 ani cu el. Acesta o roaga pe Nourie Hadig sa isi aleaga un cadou deoarece considera ca i se cuvine din moment ce ea a ajutat-o pe fata. Ea cere Piata Rabdarii, o piatra care se umfla atunci cand grija cuiva este mare si explodeaza. Insa daca cineva face din tantar armasar, persoana se umfla si explodeaza. Printul afla asta de la pietrar si o pandeste pe Nourie Hadig in timp ce aceasta vorbeste cu piatra de frica sa nu explodeze. Aceasta spune povestea pietrei iar acesta auzind-o se hotaraste sa se casatoreasca cu ea.

Intre timp, mama vitrega afla ca printesa Adana era cea mai frumoasa si astfel stie cine este si unde este fiica ei vitrega. Ea creaza un inel frumos care il face pe posesor sa adoarma si trimite o vrajitoare sa il dea lui Nourie. Cand Nourie il pune pe deget cade intr-un somn adanc. Printul refuza sa o inmormanteze si cheama multi doctori sa o vindece. Multi medici vin iar unul dintre ei incearca sa-i fure inelul; cand il scoate de pe deget, aceasta se trezeste. Acum luna iar spune ca cea mai frumoasa este Nourie iar mama vitrega moare de suparare.

Armenian Inspired Collection - Heart of Armenia/ Colectie inspirata de Armenia Part 2

This is the second part of the Armenian Inspired Collection, for the first part and a few words about this collection here is Part 1. 

Asta este partea a doua din colectia de inspiratie armeniana; pentru prima parte si cateva cuvinte despre aceasta colectie intrati pe Partea 1.

Polymer clay pendants/ Pandantive din lut polimeric:

Brooch:

Another Brooch

Painted pendants/ pandantive pictate: 

What I've been crafting lately.../ Ce-am mai lucrat in ultimul timp...

I know that I update my Facebook page a lot, well at least a lot more than I update my blog. I've been quite busy lately, I've been working for about 2 months for a collection that will start a series of collection I am planning to do. I have a lot of ideas but so little time to work and there are never enough hours in the day to make sure that I do everything I planned. I'm also a bit of a procrastinator, so there you go, that's the reason why I'm having a hard time updating things. So I've been doing these:

Stiu ca pe pagina de Facebook adaug mai mult continut decat aici dar am fost destul de ocupata in ultima vreme. Lucrez de cateva luni la o colectie ce va incepe o serie de colectii. De asemenea procrastinez foarte mult asa ca asta probabil e principalul motiv pentru care nu prea updatez. Sa va arat totusi ce-am mai lucrat: 

Simple Girl Brooch

This is one of my favorites and I'm planning on doing it with more colors. I love its simplicity.