Page 53 - San Angelo

sweetheart is in the Navy and when he is deployed, life becomes blurry and I struggle to stay positive. Our two little boys keep me laughing but playing with Mom just isn’t the same as superhero wrestling with Daddy. So, we get through each day remembering to always say our prayers at bedtime. Maybe tomorrow we’ll start planning a Welcome Home party for our Hero.” (The “Michelle” is an actual pendant and story featured on the blog section of www.babefables.com.) Then Dedra is ready to send “Michelle’s Story” to Carolyn, who lovingly contemplates a recipe that would speak to Michelle – perhaps a home-cooked casserole passed down through generations of Navy wives.

You can imagine how much Dedra and Carolyn have invested in their art. For this reason, they love to see the faces of the women who purchase the pendants. Unable to bear the thought of sending their treasures away in boxes to people with no name, Dedra and Carolyn have declined to sell Babe Fables in stores, opting instead to continue showing in the real homes of women, where they sit down with these real women to eat, drink, and listen. What happens next is natural – someone asks them to create a pendant using jewelry that belonged to their mother, grandmother, or husband. Dedra began taking custom orders and writing stories to honor these remarkable women and men; and in doing so, Babe Fables has expanded to serve customers in an even more personal way - custom pendant and wall cross design. What may happen to Michelle? Dedra and Carolyn show pendants at a home show, when a woman is especially drawn to the Michelle pendant. She can’t explain the connection, but it’s real. She purchases Michelle and brings her home, moving other jewelry aside to make a special space for this one-of-a-kind piece. She reads Michelle’s story and sets the recipe on the kitchen counter. This story has become a part of her home and a part of her life - every time she wears the pendant, every time she receives a compliment on it, when she makes the recipe for her family, when she shares it with another family. So the lives of women go – braided together, making each strand stronger, and so Babe Fables will continue to celebrate women – their hearts, their stories, their food, and their jewelry.  SAL

''When I pick up a pin, a necklace, or bracelet worn smooth on the edges, all I feel is energy;

the vibrations of a life lived separate from mine yet somehow connected.''

[Dedra says of describing the connection she feels with her work.]

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