During its decade-long run, Yo-Yo Ma’s Silk Road Project has become the kind of ambitious, multicultural ensemble and free-ranging idea that speaks to the master cellist’s searching intellect,shop for tiffany money clips, relentless curiosity and impatience with musical categories.

Inspired by the East-West exchange of culture, art and music that took place along ancient trading routes between Europe and Asia, Ma’s ensemble showcases newly composed and traditional music from Silk Road cultures and destinations, from China to Iran, Azerbaijan and Korea. Music from the Americas has also seeped into the concept, including new works by the Argentine-born Osvaldo Golijov. The ensemble employs a revolving cast of musicians and 15 players are scheduled to appear in Detroit on instruments that range from traditional violin and viola to the Chinese pipa, Galician bagpipe and all manner of percussion.

At the center of it all is Ma, the self-effacing ringleader, sharing the spotlight generously with his colleagues and teaching by example that music is about the communication of inspired emotions,shop for tiffany bracelets, the quest for new modes of expression and authoritative mastery over the fundamentals of the idiom. And with the Silk Road Project, he has found a vehicle that manages to celebrate equally our differences and our commonalities.

7 p.m. Sunday, Orchestra Hall, Max M. Fisher Music Center,tiffany bracelets sale, 3711 Woodward Ave., Detroit. 313-576-5111. detroitsympony.com. $25-$75.

JAZZ

Pianist and composer Herbie Hancock,rings, who turned 70 earlier this year, is one of the great jazz musicians on the planet. When he is in good company and in the mood to honor his straight-ahead roots,Beads necklace, the inspired brilliance of his improvisations can stop the world.

Of course, Hancock has always had a populist side to his personality too, and the Big-To-Do in his landmark 70th year is the recent release of "The Imagine Project," an earnest crossover CD with a global-peace theme and starry guest list including, among others, Dave Matthews, Anoushka Shankar, Jeff Beck, John Legend, Chaka Khan, Seal, Wayne Shorter and Juanes. As a jazz critic, I’m not the target audience for the album, and found it mostly mundane, lacking the sublime melodic expression, surprise and texture of "River: The Joni Letters," Hancock’s Grammy-winning marriage of jazz and adult-pop interpretations of Joni Mitchell’s music.

Hancock’s road band that arrives in Detroit next week is built to champion "The Imagine Project," with Hancock joined by guitarist Lionel Loueke, keyboardist Greg Phillinganes, bassist Pino Palladino, drummer Vinnie Colaiuta and vocalist Kristina Train. Hancock will surely mix in a few of his classic compositions; even in crossover mode, jazz and the spark of improvisation percolate through his conception. But don’t expect state-of-the-art post-bop from this group. (Some material calls the concert a tribute to Donald Byrd, the Detroit-bred trumpeter who gave Hancock his first big break in 1960, but at press time it remained unclear whether any specific tribute programming was planned.)

8 p.m. Wednesday, Chene Park Amphitheatre, 2600 E. Atwater, Detroit. 313-393-7128. cheneparkdetroit.com. $22-$55.

Contact MARK STRYKER: 313-222-6459 or stryker@freepress.com

MORE CLASSICAL PERFORMANCES

Jack Wright and Bob Marsh: With the Saturnian Chamber Ensemble, 8 p.m. Fri. Kerrytown Concert House, 415 N. Fourth, Ann Arbor. 734-769-2999. $5-$25.

The newest romantic drama from 88-year-old French filmmaker Alain Resnais is at times confounding, achingly beautiful, tedious and clever. "Wild Grass" is a great-looking, emotionally messy motion picture.

"Wild Grass" is all over the place, especially in matters of the heart. This is intended to be a controlled chaos as presented by Resnais, an old master whose romantic dramas "Hiroshima, Mon Amour" (1959) and "Last Year at Marienbad" (1961) were best foreign-language film Academy Award nominees in their day.

He’s still exploring those places that the human heart goes when it’s in disarray, in an adaptation of Christian Gailly’s novel that follows the entanglements that form when a woman’s wallet is stolen.

That a man finds the discarded wallet and turns it in to the police seems a simple enough story. For most of us, the story would be over at this point. But this is merely a jumping-off point for a gorgeously photographed,cheap tiffany key rings, existentialist tale of longing.

The overall arc of the script is certainly that of not only a missing wallet,necklaces, but of people who are all missing something valuable in their lives. But I could never quite tell where the story was heading.

The predictable is confounded repeatedly as Georges (AndA– e Dussollier of "Tell No One") desperately attempts to meet the woman whose wallet he found. Unpredictable is a good quality in films; unfocused is not.

Marguerite (Sabine Azema, Resnais’ real-life companion) has no such interest in meeting Georges

- until an act of vandalism, an odd phone call and her own yearnings compel this shoe-buying, airplane-flying dentist to seek an adventure.

These mysterious characters remain perplexing throughout — cold, detached and distant are equal descriptions — and I found I didn’t engage their stories more because they weren’t better defined. But Resnais’ camera makes the journey a colorful, playful trip through cinematic techniques.

There are fantasy moments. There are inner monologues (Marguerite berates herself for buying more shoes; we watch as Georges practices his phone-call voice like a teen calling for a date). Lighting colors change as people’s emotions alter.

These aren’t merely flights of filmmaking fancy, but veteran flourishes that frame a heady,tiffany watche, often distracting mix of melancholy, light comedy and moments both romantic and disturbing.

These curious avenues traveled by the film may induce those who dismiss French films out of hand to cite the picture as an example of why they do so. But for others, "Wild Grass" may slowly grow on you.

WILD GRASS

Stars: Andre Dussollier,discount tiffany Pendants, Sabine Azema,tiffany earrings sale, Anne Consigny, Emmanuelle Devos, Mathieu Amalric

Theater: Circle Cinema

Running time: 1 hour, 44 minutes

Rated: PG (some thematic material, language and brief smoking)

Quality: (on a scale of zero to four stars)

Note: in French with English subtitles

Michael Smith 581-8479

michael.smith@tulsaworld.com

Rare is the person who uses their pain to help others.,tiffany bangle

Photographer Terri Shaver, working out of her East Lansing studio, has done just that with the Oldham Project, which seeks to document women who are battling or who have survived breast cancer.

Shaver’s objectives include enlisting enough sponsors to place photo billboards around town during October, Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Shaver said the Oldham Project was created following the loss of her sister-in-law’s two sisters to breast cancer.

Her work with another non-profit that provides free portraits to the families of babies who have died,buy tiffany necklaces, added to her love of portraiture in general, further helped inspire the Oldham Project.

Shaver then connected with Susan G. Komen Mid-Michigan Affiliate executive director Chris Pearson, and that meeting proved instrumental.

"She and I sat down and started a conversation about how we might partner together, and she was 100 percent behind the Oldham Project, what we’re doing and what we provide for the community," Shaver recalled.

Continuing event?

Shaver initially considered carrying out the Oldham Project as a one-time event, but with 47 women now on board, she has a vision for something more lasting.

She’s made some poignant photographs, including one of two sisters – one with breast cancer and one battling ovarian cancer.

"Hopefully, this won’t just be a one-time thing. It will be an annual event that we do, and it will just get better each time," she said.

If Shaver is successful in establishing a long-term foundation for the Oldham Project,tiffany key rings clearance, it will be because she has improved the understanding of breast cancer in a different way than other organizations.

"There are lots of runs, the Relays and all the kind of things that happen in town to raise awareness about breast cancer," she said.

"I want to do it in a more visual way, and I’m hoping that women can see how beautiful they will be when they’re bald,buy tiffany money clips, that they will feel comfortable when they’re photographed, and that other women will see how comfortable they are with their baldness, and – in kind of a roundabout way – that they won’t be scared of the whole process."

Sea change

The "process" – essentially the sea change Shaver would like to see – is women getting regular mammograms and other preventative care.

"That if they did find a lump they wouldn’t be afraid and not go, because they are already thinking ahead about losing their hair. Women are like that – we’re all about our hair," she said.

Shaver’s not talking in a vacuum, having already had one breast biopsy and another recent health scare.

"It’s amazing – like a car, you can go from zero to 60 in a second," she said.

"You can do the same thing in your brain when you’re facing something like that, when you even hear the word "lump" or "suspicious" or anything like that – you are instantly already planning your funeral. We just do that – I think we do that as women."

Denise Acker

One of Shaver’s first subjects was Lansing resident Denise Acker, who died Aug. 13. Acker battled cancer for more than 10 years, with her last diagnosis in December 2009.

Shaver said Acker – who had heard about the Oldham Project through a friend – contacted her while she was still a patient in the hospital.

"She was the perfect person for our first, to be our … poster child for our project," Shaver said of Acker.

The next step is to enlist sponsors, both to put photos on billboards and for other purposes.

I would like to give (these women) something. I would like to honor them, to reward them. It’s an incentive to come and do this, not just for the free pictures," said Shaver, who has already had several professional labs express an interest in donating a 16 x 20 print to their portrait subjects.

She’d like to do more,Bead bracelet, though.

"I would like enough money to go to retailers in the area and put together some goodie bags, so when they walk out the door I could give them this goodie bag of fun, enjoyable things to treat themselves with, lotions and potions and things that women love," Shaver said.

Throw a party

She would also like to throw a party for her photo subjects, envisioning the evening as a fund-raising gala where the women would be the guests of honor.

"All of our supporters would be there, and all of the people who care about the organization would be there to honor them and cheer them on in their battles," Shaver said.

The Oldham Project has also gotten help from Douglas J, who have pledged free makeup applications for up to 120 women; studio space donated by the Gillespie Group; and a donation from Dean Transportation.

"A lot of those people are involved in the community, and they see it as a worthwhile project," Shaver said.

For more info…

The Oldham Project continues through Thursday, Sept. 30. For more information or to help, go online to www.theoldhamproject.org

Defenses in the Central Valley will be on high alert once again this season. Defensive coordinators can expect plenty of sleepless nights as they remain on the lookout for a cast of characters as scary as they are talented.

A group of running backs the Sun-Star has dubbed The Getaway Boys.

Merced County has always been fertile ground for star running backs through the years. The list of great backs in the history of Merced High alone reads longer than Eric DeAnda’s hair. The talent in the area hasn’t dried up. Last year 10 players eclipsed the 1,money clips,000-yard mark, including three from Buhach Colony.

The names shouldn’t surprise you. Dos Palos’ Kevin Schofield and Los Banos’ Darron Brown have been on the loose for three years, terrorizing defenses from Sacramento to Bakersfield.

However,pendants, this group is more than a dynamic duo. This band of game-breakers is growing quickly.

DeAnda broke into the starting lineup midway through the season and quickly became a household name after his record-setting 307-yard, four-touchdown performance in a 33-30 win over Buhach Colony. Dallon Muse made a name for himself as part of BC’s three-headed monster, and Golden Valley’s Tyler Arnsberg is the newest member of the group as he makes the move from quarterback to running back this year.

Together the quintet combined for 6,139 yards and 66 touchdowns. You can expect even bigger numbers this year. Opposing tacklers should approach with caution.

Darron Brown

"The Delivery Man"

What can Brown do for you?

The Delivery Man doesn’t need a signature to deliver a load. Brown comes into this season with something to prove after a lower back injury sidelined him for more than a month last year.

"I don’t even know how to explain it," Brown said. "I wanted to play so bad, but I couldn’t. There was nothing I could do.

"It hurt me so bad. It’s made me want to come back this year even stronger."

Brown broke on the scene with 835 yards and 10 touchdowns as a sophomore two years ago.

He was limited to just 685 yards and five touchdowns last season.

Brown missed his frequent trips to the end zone.

"Yeah,key rings, I missed it a lot," he said. "This year I plan to be in the end zone a lot. More than five or 10 times.

"It’s all up to my offensive line."

Kevin Schofield

"The Iron Horse"

One look at Schofield and you can tell he’s no stranger to the weight room.

Pumping iron is a necessity for the workload The Iron Horse is expected to shoulder this season.

Schofield set a school record with 51 carries in a 27-14 win over Yosemite last year.

His 305 carries were 130 more than any other player in the area.

"He’s a tough football player," Los Banos coach Dennis Stubbs said. "The guy can do it all. He’s so determined and has the drive, the right attitude.

"He plays full speed no matter what the situation. I’m just as impressed with him as a person, not only as a football player."

Schofield led the county with 1,926 yards.

It’s almost as if he can find another gear when he senses the defense is getting tired.

"You can kind of see it," Schofield said. "You see their hands on their knees. They’re walking back to the huddle.

"That’s when you try to break one."

Dallon Muse

"The Fuse"

This Fly Boy can definitely ignite an offense.

With Corey Chapman (1,546 yards and 19 touchdowns) out indefinitely for a school-related disciplinary issue, Muse and teammate Jarrell Davis will be an even bigger part of the offense early on.

"When we evaluated him last year we felt because of all his contributions to their team he was their best player," Merced coach Rob Scheidt said. "Not only because of him running the ball, but also his play on defense and the intangibles he brings to their team.

"He’s a great football player."

Muse has that combination of power and speed that makes him tough to bring down.

"I used to be more of a scat back,cuff Links," Muse said. "Now I’m more of a mix.

I learned that speed isn’t always enough."

Eric DeAnda

"D-Train"

The nickname says it all.

DeAnda is built like a locomotive and isn’t afraid of contact.

"I like it," DeAnda said. "It’s kind of like a challenge. Is he going to bring me down or am I going to overpower him?"

If you look at the numbers you’ll see DeAnda rose up to the challenges.

He’s the ideal combination of power and speed. One play he’s powering his way through the line picking up tough yardage. The next he may be streaking around the end, outrunning linebackers and defensive backs.

Despite not starting until midseason, he still racked up 1,bangles,152 yards with 14 touchdowns on 135 carries.

BC coach Kevin Swartwood got a good look at DeAnda during his record-setting performance.

"I immediately thought he was outstanding," Swartwood said. "He ran hard. He hit the hole fast. He didn’t tire out. He’s a very good back."

Tyler Arnsberg

"Kid Zoom"

One look at Arnsberg’s cleats and you’ll understand why the Sun-Star has dubbed him Kid Zoom.

The GV junior had the word "zoom" embroidered on his cleats.

New Golden Valley coach Jake Messina is building his offense around Arnsberg.

Messina quickly identified Kid Zoom as the player he wants to carry the ball 15 to 20 times a game.

Arnsberg tallied 1,140 yards and 16 touchdowns on the ground as a quarterback in Golden Valley’s option attack last year.

This year he moves to tailback in a Pro Style offense.

"We want to hand him the ball, let him run downhill and give him a chance to make a cut," Messina said.

Arnsberg welcomed the change.

"I was basically another running back in the Veer anyway," Arnsberg said. "I threw the ball a little. Now running the ball is all I do. I’m real excited about the change."

A pediatric urologist at UT Southwestern Medical Center has pioneered a successful surgical procedure for young girls who have absent or malformed vaginas, a condition that affects about one in 4,000 females (see also <http://www.newsrx.com/library/topics/UT-Southwestern-Medical-Center.html> UT Southwestern Medical Center).

Unknown causes and certain genetic disorders can cause girls to be born with these defects, along with other birth defects that can accompany the vaginal problems, including abnormal neck,watches, absent or malformed uterus and fallopian tubes,pendants, absent kidneys or abnormal external genitals.

"It was initially challenging to construct a treatment for something so rare," said Dr. Linda Baker, professor of urology at UT Southwestern and a surgeon at Children’s Medical Center Dallas. "My goal was to develop a treatment that would lead to a natural repair at the first operation, as well as a method to correct vaginal scarring in girls and women who’d had prior, unsuccessful vaginal surgeries."

Existing procedures for these conditions include using portions of a patient’s skin or lower intestine to build the vaginal walls and an external vaginal opening. Dr. Baker began studying other areas of the body for potential healthy tissue to use and discovered that interior cheek tissue, or buccal mucosa, had several similar physiological qualities to vaginal tissue in its thickness, elasticity, strength and visual similarities.

"There were many surgical methods for reconstructing the vagina,bracelets, but when I began seeing these patients, I thought the results were not natural-looking and inadequate in many cases," said Dr. Baker, director of the Sarah M. and Charles E. Seay Center for Pediatric Urology. "Too many suffered with complications from these types of vaginal reconstructions, often leading to painful intercourse in adulthood."

The surgery begins by removing a portion of the top layer of cheek tissue from inside a patient’s mouth. That tissue is then stretched and made into a graft that is perforated, much like a skin graft. Once complete, the graft is wrapped around a plastic mold and fitted inside the patient’s body.

"After a week or so, the mold is removed, and the graft is vascularized," Dr. Baker said. "The tissue cells fill in the gaps, and the new vagina becomes complete. The mouth heals quickly, and no one can see any scars from the surgery."

Because the tissue comes from the patient’s own body,Charm pendant, there is no risk of rejection, and the vagina functions similarly to a natural vagina. Another major advantage to the surgical procedure is that it can be done with minimal damage to surrounding tissue. Patients undergoing the older methods for vaginal reconstruction may require surgery that involves entering the abdomen, which means recovery is much longer. Those procedures carry a higher risk of postsurgical complications, something minimized for women who have the buccal mucosa graft.

In some women, the uterus and fallopian tubes are malformed or damaged from trapped menses behind a malformed or blocked vagina. In these cases, Dr. Baker teams up with Dr. Ellen Wilson, associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology at UT Southwestern and Children’s.

"In general, vaginal birth defects are something young women suffer from silently – it is so personal. It’s not something they want to talk about, which makes it harder to resolve. This isn’t a common problem, but it’s a serious one that doesn’t receive much attention," Dr. Baker said. "So far we’ve done 23 of these procedures with minimal complications, and we’re hopeful this becomes a more and more common way to treat these patients."

Keywords: Hospital, Pediatrics, Skin Graft,necklaces, Surgery, UT Southwestern Medical Center.

A Clay County jury has recommended the death penalty for a registered sex offender who was convicted of stabbing his father’s girlfriend to death during an attempted sexual assault.

Leo L. Kaczmar III, 26, was charged with killing Maria E. Ruiz,earrings, 49, on Dec. 13, 2008. He was found guilty Thursday of first-degree murder, arson and attempted sexual battery. Friday, the jury deliberated for about a half-hour before voting 11-1 to recommend the death penalty.

The sentencing decision ultimately is up to Circuit Judge William A. Wilkes. Typically, judges tend to respect the opinion of juries. A hearing is scheduled for Sept. 3.

Investigators said Ruiz fought to her death. Jurors were shown autopsy photos depicting dozens of stab wounds all over her body.

A witness said Kaczmar had been smoking crack cocaine, acting paranoid and describing his desire to have sex with Ruiz the night she was killed.

Ruiz’s body was recovered in the Green Cove Springs home where she lived with Kaczmar. In an effort to cover up the crime,watches, Kaczmar started the house on fire, investigators said.

A La Crosse man is accused of threatening his ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend by leaving a casket in his backyard.

The 26-year-old woman told police Daniel Geiwitz hauled the casket to her boyfriend’s house in the 1200 block of Green Bay Street Thursday evening,bangles, according to police reports. He then asked what the woman and her boyfriend wanted written on their headstones before driving away.

Police also found a smashed and severed snake that the woman said Geiwitz left on her car earlier this week, according to police reports.

Geiwitz, 28,Charm pendant, of 1120 S. Fourth St., No. 1, is facing charges of stalking, intimidation of a victim and disorderly conduct when he appears Monday in La Crosse County Circuit Court. He is jailed on a $2,500 cash bond.

May is National Museum Month, declared by those in the museum Tiffany Charm bracelet, and Stockton’s Haggin Museum is celebrating in ambitious style.

The venerable Haggin, in the middle of Victory Park, offers something old — from its own collection — brings in a new show and welcomes back one of its collections that has spent the past three years touring the country.

Saturday’s Haggin a la Carte, a wine and hors d’oeuvres affair from 6 to 9 p.m., celebrates “Bustles and Balustrades,” which explores the link between Victorian dress and architecture; “CaliforniaTiffany Cushion Drop earrings ,” a collection of 59 paintings on loan from The Irvine Museum; and J.C. Leyendecker, “America’s Other Illustrator.”

“California Impressionism” represents a real coup for the museum.

“I think that the fact these paintings are coming, in conjunction with the impressionist show that’s going to be in San Francisco (a collection of works at the de Young Museum from Paris’ Musee d’Orsay) is a real blessing for Stockton,” said Stockton artist Gil Dellinger. “This coming to Stockton is really, really a privilege.”

The California impressionists were artists whose work spanned from about 1895 to 1930. American impressionism began on the East Coast around 1890, after the debut of French impressionism in 1874. It spread to California five to 10 years after reaching Amer-ica’s shores. The form taken by

artists in the Golden State is distinguished by the way they Tiffany Cushion Hoop earringslight and color by painting outdoors.

“With Northern California artists, the climate dominates their paintings,” said Jean Stern, the co-founding executive director of The Irvine Museum. “There tends to be lot of overcast days. The colors are more muted because of that. In the south, there’s more sunlight throughout year, and you get a sense of that from the way the colors are. Artists are keen on capturing that sense of color.”

A selection of 59 paintings from The Irvine Museum’s collection of 2,500 makes up the traveling show.

“This is a small collection, but it represents some of the finest work,” Stern said.

Dellinger, whose own works reflect the California impressionist style, said there are a lot of quality artists from that period.

“These painters have had a major effect,” Dillinger said. “Granville Tiffany Cushion Two-row bracelet, William Wendt, Guy Rose, all of them, even the minor ones, had a tremendous effect. They were very, very fine painters.

“Their sense of light and color is particular to California,” Dillinger noted, echoing Stern’s observation. “The ones who painted in the north, near Monterey and that region, capture the essence of the color of the light and water there, which is very special.

“The ones who worked in the south, Laguna, those regions, were able to capture a very different kind of light. I think that that’s one of the things to look for when people are going in and appreciating the show.”

In addition to providing a complementary show to the French impressionist exhibit in San Francisco, “California Impressionism” is a contrast to some of The Haggin’s permanent paintings. Specifically, the works are in stark comparison to the landscapes of Yosemite by Albert Bierstadt.

“With Bierstadt and some of the Hudson River painters, most were studio paintings,” Dellinger said. “They have a formalness that the impressionists studied but were able, by working outdoors so much, to produce works that reflected more quickly the (transitory nature) of the light and the color.”

“California Impressionism” runs through Aug. 15, and Stern will speak about the exhibition at 7 p.m. July 1.

“Bustles and Balustrades” also is on display through Aug 15.

Jonathan Singer served as curator for the exhibit that combines The Tiffany Elsa Peretti Open Heart pendant‘s vast clothing collection with pieces from its fine arts, history, decorative art and archival collections.

“It’s incredible to look at,” said the museum’s webmaster, Eddie Hargreaves. ” ‘California Impressionism’ is paintings on the wall, but ‘Bustles and Balustrades’ is clothing and architecture and gowns and bits of architecture. It’s filled to the brim, in the Victorian style. There’s no empty space, and the upper west gallery is a big space. There’s so much going on. He’s really captured the feeling of the time period.”

Singer will talk about the exhibit at 7 p.m. June 17.

The Leyendecker show, in the area vacated by the removal last summer of the mummy that had been on longterm loan to the museum, will be semipermanent, with plans for it to remain until at least the end of 2010.

The materials in the exhibit, including sketches for magazine covers, advertisements of the day, and military enlistment and war bonds posters, were acquired in the 1950s by former museum director Earl Rowland. He had an interest in the work of Leyendecker, who died in 1951, more than 10 years after his popularity as an artist had waned. The exhibit Tiffany Key Heart key charmat The Haggin in 2006 when it celebrated its 75th anniversary, and it toured the country for the past three years.

The museum, at 1201 N. Pershing Ave., is open noon to 5 p.m. weekends and 1:30 to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Friday. It’s open until 9 p.m. on the first and third Thursday of each month. Admission is $5 for adults, and $2.50 for children 10 to 17 and seniors 65 and older.

Contact reporter Lori Gilbert at (209) 546-8284 or lgilbert@recordnet.com. Visit her blog at recordnet.com/ lensblog.

Michelle Obama is widely considered one of her husband’s biggest political discount tiffany. Like most first ladies, she has developed a strong following around the country, and 71 percent of Americans think she is doing a good job, according to a recent Associated Press poll. (Her husband’s approval rating is about 50 percent.) White House officials say it’s not yet clear how direct a role she will play on the campaign trail this year, but in 2008 she was constantly on the road promoting her husband. She emphasized the historic change her husband would bring as the first African-American president and the hope that he inspired in so many everyday people. She still prompts intense media attention and public interest in everything she does, and she is sure to lend her name and charisma to the administration’s agenda.

“Her role is where policy and people intersect,” says Katie McCormick-Lelyveld, the first lady’s press secretary. This is a contrast to Hillary Clinton, spouse of the last Democratic president, who was deeply involved in healthcare legislation and other issues. And it is closer to the example set by Laura Bush, who promoted reading as her special project but was mostly an appealing supporter of her husband, George W. Bush, a Republican and Barack Obama’s predecessor.

Obama considers herself first and foremost a mom to the first couple’s young daughters, Malia and Sasha. And to the surprise of her critics from the campaign, she is rather traditional in her choice of projects to take on as first lady. She is promoting such noncontroversial goals as federal assistance to military families, a Tiffany Bangles to public service, and, her project for 2010, leading the “Let’s Move” campaign to fight childhood obesity through “healthy eating and healthy families.”

She has started a highly publicized White House garden to underscore the importance of fresh vegetables and fruit as the cornerstones of good nutrition. The images of the first lady digging in the dirt behind the presidential mansion, harvesting sweet potatoes, lettuce, and other staples, not only sets an example for home gardeners but also has helped Michelle alter her image as a fashionista who might be a bit too interested in clothes.

There is a little-known personal side to her cause. A few years ago, a family doctor said that the Obama girls had a “body mass index issue,” a nice way of saying they were gaining too much weight. So Barack and Michelle Obama told Malia and Sasha they needed to exercise more frequently and be careful about junk foods. Michelle admits to a weakness for french fries, but has disciplined herself not to eat them too often. Barack limited his intake of cheeseburgers, one of his favorite foods. “Her philosophy is, if you want a cheeseburger, you Tiffany Bracelets have a cheeseburger,” says a family friend. “But don’t have it every day.”

Obama rarely talks directly about race, even though she is the first African-American to serve as first lady. But she clearly believes she can be a role model for young blacks. At Anacostia High School in one of Washington’s poorest neighborhoods, one of her many appearances at public schools in the majority-black capital, she told the students about her early life. “We didn’t have a lot of money,” the first lady said. “I lived in the same house my mother lives in now … I went to public schools. The fact is I had somebody around me who helped me understand hard work. I had parents who told me, ‘Don’t worry about what other people say about you.’ I worked really hard. I did focus on school. I wanted an ‘A.’ I wanted to be smart. Kids would say, ‘You talk funny. You talk like a white girl.’ I didn’t know what that meant.”

Her press secretary says Obama wants young African-Americans, especially girls, to realize that they can be achievers. “She wants people to see themselves in the White House, to see it as a place for all, where they can feel at home, where they belong,” says McCormick-Lelyveld. It could be that serving as an Tiffany Pendants is Michelle Obama’s most important mission.

In development for four years, the Victoria & Albert Museum’s Jewellery Gallery opened last month. It was a considerable challenge for the designers, but an innovative approach has resulted in a show-stopping space, says Henrietta Thompson

The sheer quantity of diamonds in this room is enough to make anyone woozy. The sponsors, William and Judith Bollinger of the champagne dynasty, are most likely used to having that effect on people, but you’ve got to feel for everyone else involved in the Victoria & Albert Museum’s new Jewellery Gallery. For the curator, the exhibition designer, the conservators, the museum staff and security, the task of displaying 3500 items of eye-wateringly important genuine bling – items that range from two to 2000 years old – in a very small space, where a very large number of people want to see them, must have been daunting.

Talking to those people, you get the impression the process has not been easy, but it has been worth it. The William and Judith Bollinger Jewellery Gallery, which opened at the V&A on 24 May, has been in development for the best part of four years and is, to use a rather obvious turn of phrase, a new jewel in the museum’s crown. Designed by Eva Jiricna Architects, the walls of the gallery tell the story of European jewellery over the past 800 years. For the refurbishment, EJA has connected what were previously three galleries to make one, with a central mezzanine floor, creating 30 per cent extra space. Glass cases line the walls and a series of curved glass cabinets wind through the centre.

EJA has previously worked on other galleries in the V&A’s FuturePlan developments, including the Dorothy and Michael Hintze Sculpture Galleries on the first floor and the main museum shop, which also contains a significant amount of jewellery to buy. The architect has also designed many a jewellery shop over the past ten years or so – from watch retailers on Bond Street to a jewellery market in Dubai. But while it is hard to imagine a better-suited designer for this show, it has been a challenge, nonetheless. Putting jewellery on display in a museum environment is very different to building a shop, explains Eva Jiricna.

‘There are fewer conservation issues for a start. And fewer security issues. In a shop the objects will be taken out of their cases in the evening and stored,’ she says. And, of course, people are navigating the space in an entirely different way. In a shop they can browse randomly, whereas this gallery has (at least) 3500 stories to tell. ‘Some people will treat the exhibition like a study book and check everything, while others just wander through for the visual experience.’

A more glorious space than you would usually find in a museum, you almost feel like donning a black tie to swan around the gallery, peering into the cases with your nose up against the glass like Audrey Hepburn in the opening scene of Breakfast at Tiffany’s. This has a lot to do with the sheer abundance of glittering diamonds, but is also a result of the dramatic dark lighting. This, says Jiricna, was one of the biggest challenges of the project. ‘I am extremely fussy about lighting; the subjects can only live under the right kind of light. You need different levels for different things – especially in these circumstances, where some objects can’t be exposed to very bright light, for conservation reasons. The light itself needs to be invisible, but diamonds need to be lit from the front. The object must sparkle, but the light must not then be blinding when you turn a fraction.’

Jiricna went to every single jewellery display she could think of, looking at the lighting, in a quest to find the best solution. Nothing would do. Eventually, the designers made it work using fibre optics outside the top of the case and directional LEDs on the ceilings of the case interiors. An almost imperceptible slant to the vertical mount angles the jewels towards the source so they remain lit – as much as is possible – from the front. ‘We made it work, step by step, mock-up by mock-up, discussion by discussion,’ explains Jiricna. ‘We were improving it constantly. In the end, I believe the result is better than anything that has ever been done before.’

Most of all, however, the designer is proud not so much of the final design – though she should be – but of the way in which the team of people working to make it happen pulled together. ‘Everybody had a different agenda. The sponsors were very generous but also very involved, and the conservators, the museum and the curator all had their own vision for the galleries. The architect often comes in and turns everything on its head – we wanted to put all these small objects in huge cases of a peculiar shape and, as simple as it sounds, in practice it was a continuous process to understand one another. Everyone was very nervous about losing sight of their dream. In the end it was our job to provide them with options and then help them to select the best one. We all learned how good people can be when they lose their egos and work together to find the best solutions.’

Erin Stelmach beamed as she recalled the moment she knew she had a knack for designing jewelry.

It was 1999, and the Buddy Dog Humane Society in Sudbury was holding an auction. Stelmach, then a volunteer at the society’s shelter, designed a small silver teardrop charm with a raised paw print. She wasn’t sure anyone would want it. As the bidding climbed to $100, she was stunned.

Afterward, Stelmach immediately called her husband, Michael, exclaiming, “It sold!”

“People came up and asked, `Can you make more?’” Stelmach recounted. “I said, `Sure.’”

At her home in the Jefferson section of Holden the other day, Stelmach held her dog, Lilly, a Maltese, on her lap as she explained how she creates her designs. From the outset, she knew she didn’t want to make “cute” jewelry.

“I started making designs I would wear myself,” Stelmach said. “I wanted something you can wear even around non-dog people.”

After the paw print, Stelmach created a dog bone. She uses the paw print and the bone in a variety of ways – for necklaces, pendants, earrings, bracelets, rings, key rings and identification tags. Some pieces are cast from molds and others are engraved on round, diamond and heart shaped tags. She uses sterling silver, brass, stainless steel and gold. Occasionally, she incorporates stones. Her casting, soldering and stone setting are done elsewhere. She does her own polishing and assembly work.

A new creation often evolves from the previous one.

“I tend to look at something after I make it and say, `This piece is done, but what if I try adding this or changing that?’” she said. “Sometimes, I’ll end up creating an entirely different piece, like starting with a pendant and ending up with a ring.”

Stelmach’s love of animals is reflected in all of her creations. Indeed, a much-loved dog inspired the name of her business, Sleeping Bear Company, which she formed in 2000.

Bear was a pug the Stelmachs adopted when they answered a “free to a good home” ad placed in a newspaper by a breeder in New Hampshire. Bear was in ill health and nearly blind. The Stelmachs had him for 10 years; he died in 2005.

“Every time I sketched out a design, Bear would always be sleeping at my feet,” Stelmach said. “Not one of them was created without Bear. He was my muse.”

Stelmach sells her jewelry at shelters and humane society fund-raisers, among other venues. She always donates a portion of the proceeds to the cause.

“I couldn’t just sell my stuff and keep the money,” she said. “It sounds corny to say it, but Bear gave me so much I really do want to give back.”

Indeed, Stelmach, 39, pretty much dedicates her life to improving the lot of dogs and cats.

A few years ago, she moved from volunteer to full-time employee at Buddy Dog. As an adoption counselor, Stelmach cares for the animals and helps each prospective owner find the right pet. She also is a receptionist at the Integrative Animal Health Center in Bolton.

Not surprisingly, Stelmach’s home is a refuge for former shelter inhabitants.

A year ago, she brought Lilly home. “Lilly wouldn’t let anyone else touch her,” Stelmach said, her blond hair spilling over her shoulder as she gave her tiny white dog a kiss. “She would bark and run away.”

Lilly goes to work with her owner every day. “She keeps me from talking to myself in the car,” Stelmach said with a chuckle.

Mugsy, a 16-year-old Pekingese-dachshund mix, now totters around the Stelmach residence. He had bad teeth and a serious heart murmur. He was sleeping on a hard floor, and no one wanted him. Kelsey, 9, a shepherd-Lab mix, was 10 months old and had been at the shelter her whole life. Stelmach couldn’t let that situation continue.

Three cats – Zelda, Tinker and Rosie – all shelter adoptees, round out the menagerie. Stelmach pointed out that her paw print design is as appropriate for cats and cat lovers as it is for those inclined toward canines.

Stelmach was a student at Lesley College studying management and art when she got hooked on jewelry design. She had a summer job next door to Joel Bagnal Goldsmith in Wellesley. The owners offered her a job during the holidays. She soaked up everything she could from their designer, who let her apprentice in his workshop in Rhode Island.

She went on to intern at Tiffany & Co. in Boston and ended up staying five years. She worked in sales and then customer service, handling repairs, special orders and engraving. Seeking more experience on the manufacturing side, she took a job with Ozcan Inc. She ordered stones, set prices and tracked inventory. Meanwhile, she studied at the Museum of Fine Arts and dabbled in jewelry design at every opportunity.

For the first five years, Sleeping Bear grew gradually. Then a year ago, the jewelry began to get wider exposure after Stelmach met Erny Isabelle at a Worcester Animal Rescue League fund-raiser. Isabelle, a manager for Especially for Pets, a retailer with six locations in Massachusetts, was immediately intrigued with Stelmach’s designs.

“I bought several pieces right then and there,” Isabelle said.

Isabelle invited Stelmach to set up a table from time to time at each of the stores. Isabelle was particularly enthusiastic, she said, because both her company and Stelmach are dedicated to animal welfare.

“I told her, `You’re the kind of person who fits with us,’ Isabelle said. “The stores love her jewelry and her. It’s simple and wears really well.”

Besides appearances at Especially for Pets stores and at animal events, Stelmach sells her jewelry online at www.sleepingbearcompany.com and www.etsy.com. It is also available at Buddy Dog and Integrative Animal Health Center. Her prices range from $10 to $225 for a gold teardrop paw print charm with a diamond; most of the pieces cost $35 to $55. Stelmach now spends about 10 hours a week on her jewelry. Her goal is to devote full time to Sleeping Bear and return to her volunteer status at Buddy Dog. The future looks bright. Always delighted to break even, she has started to turn a profit.

Stelmach laughed and recounted a recent incident she found exceedingly encouraging.

Her mother is a salesperson at Lord & Taylor. Not long ago, she was wearing a teardrop pendant, and a customer remarked that her husband had bought one for her. Stelmach’s mother exclaimed, “Oh, my daughter makes them!”