Little Jewels
Last week I told you about a project I have started called Little Jewels and I thought perhaps that I should explain a little more about why it is called that.
Why Little Jewels?
Well firstly, its obviously a bit of a play on my name.
My name is Julie. There absolutely nothing wrong with it, but it has never really felt like me. My Mum wanted to call me Sarah. My Dad refused as it was his Mum’s name and he said she had had a hard life so he didn’t want it for me.
I am not sure where Julie came from. It may be that I am named after Julie Andrews I just don’t know.
What I do know is that it was a really common name for girls in the UK born in the late 60s and early 70s. It does seem to have finally gone out of fashion though and I haven’t heard of any children called that for years.
At school there were quite a few of us, along with a lot of Rachels, and Sarahs.
At the solicitors where I worked from my mid twenties to early thirties, I was one of about five Julies. I remember my Office Manager asking if I could be known as Julia, or something similar, just so she could tell us apart. Not my actual name. I politely refused.
At my previous job I had been known as Jewels, not that spelling, that came later.
And most importantly my Dad was one of the few people who called me Jewels, as well as Bubbles, because I apparently used to blow bubbles with my mouth at the end of my cot.
I can still hear him saying “Hello Jewels” now.
But for years I have been Julie, or Ju to a lot of my friends, and even Jubee by one friend whose sister was also called Julie. Honestly, it feels like everyone knows a Julie.
But for whatever reason Julie never felt like me.
After my Dad passed away, followed 18 months later by my Mum, I was absolutely lost for a while.
At some point I started thinking about my name and how it never really felt like me.
I thought back to my first job as a PA for an international engineering company (they made commercial ice cream machinery ) how much I had loved that job and how everyone had called me Jewels.
And how I had felt like me then.
I mentioned it to my husband but he just said “But that’s not your name”. He has always called me Ju. That was all he had know. But I felt like Jewels.
She was my artistic alter ego and she felt like the real me.
I had tried a few spellings of Jewels over the years when I thought about it, but again never felt comfortable with them.
Jools too masculine.
Jules which I used sometimes felt too awkward. I didn’t like the spelling. Nothing felt right.
But Jewels when coupled with my painting felt right. Even if I could probably be mistaken for an exotic dancer!
Anyway Jewels has come to represent my artistic and true self and I have now found that I have started introducing myself as Jewels.
Jewels is braver than Julie.
Jewels is more fun.
Jewels is me.
So that’s the first part of it. Which brings me to why Little Jewels for this project.
Basically it is another play on words. I started thinking about the phrase ‘little gems of wisdom’. And that’s when it came to me that women’s words, their answers to the question I wanted to ask are little gems. Little jewels. Words of wisdom, hopes and dreams and memories. They are our precious jewels.
So there we are Little Jewels was born and I am so looking forward to hearing your little jewels.
Jewels x
I’m collecting words in response to the question
I used to ______
I don’t know when I stopped
And women’s responses will form the background to a new painting called ‘I Used To’.
If you would like to add yours here’s the link Little Jewels – Julie Hogarth-Jones Art