tamarandesigns

It's summer, finally

2011-05-14T04:38:00.000-07:00

So our weather is finally turning to the better, the leaves on our tree are opening and I haven't turned the heat back on in over a week. Yay! However it also means that I'm spending more time doing "other" things rather than working. There are 3 summer pieces in my studio that are so close to being finished, 2 very fun summer shrugs that need to be photographed and I've joined a fabulous new site that caters more to fasionistas than any of the others.

http://www.senseofashion.com/alicetoowilliger

I've posted in the past about my "accidental" summer hiatuses, which it seems likely will happen again. I don't do any shows in the summer so I think it sort of works like circadian rhythms with darkness, my brain just automatically goes into vacation mode. I wonder if there is a brain rhythm out there to define this? Ah well, it doesn't really matter, I can't force the work because if I'm not feeling it it certainly shows in the quality of the work and we can't have that. I guess I'll just create at my summer pace, yeah that's it, I just have a summer pace.
I will keep you posted with the new site though. It's a good looking site with some fabulous fashion, you should definitely check it out. And have a happy summer!

Learning to knit socks!

2011-01-12T08:48:00.000-08:00

Well let me begin with my thank you's. First a big thank you to Ravelry http://www.ravelry.com/ and all of the informative forum posters there. I was able to find resources and links to everything I needed without even having to post a question. And thank you to Lion Brand Yarn and their plethora of free patterns http://www.lionbrand.com/, YouTube http://www.youtube.com/, KnitPicks http://www.knitpicks.com/knitting.cfm, and especially Kelley Petkun of KnitPicks for her excellent sock knitting series with very plainly laid out instructions and descriptions http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHQkfkI9P7s&feature=related.
With all of that help at my fingertips I know how to knit socks! My very first project was a fairly seamless success which resulted in one almost perfect sock. Yes, only one and only "almost" perfect. I chose not too knit a partner sock to my first for several reasons. Not in any particular order I A: wouldn't have had enough yarn to make both socks the same height, B: Didn't particularly care for the color/stripe pattern this yarn produced, and C: Don't care for the stitch pattern of k3p1 for my socks. Since this was the first time I knitted socks I wasn't aware that k3p1 would produce this pattern,(although as a person who does knit I should have realized, oh well). So armed with a pattern that I found at the Lion Brand website and Kelley's videos on YouTube I began my project. At this point I was still afraid of the difficulties ahead and had cartoon like visions of me entangled in knotted wads of yarn with a tiny sock toe on a bent knitting needle, however Kelley's assurance that socks are easy along with her thorough demonstrations put me at ease early on in the process, (which is why it now surprises me that I stuck to that pesky k3p1 pattern). The tube section went very smoothly and I was able to move away from the computer and work in the comfort of my living room, for the heel flap and gusset however I had to watch the videos a few times before I got it right, and at one point had to rip out the whole heel section and start over. But no worries, I managed to get all of the stitches back on the needles and persevered. At this point I was able to see basically what my sock was going to look like and was very self confident in my ability to have a finished piece that not only resembled a sock but would work as one if put on a foot. So that evening as I read the pattern directions for shaping the toe, yes, I felt confident enough to undertake the toe shaping on my own since I knew from the gusset part why you k2tog on one side and ssk on the other, (right now I feel like such a knitty pro using those terms), so why not get comfortable in the living room and watch a movie with the guy. And it all went very smoothly, until it came time to close up the toe. At this point we were half way through the movie and I was not going to tell the beau, "Hey, could you pause the movie so I can go learn how to close a sock toe", (I'm sure he would have, but still), I had no idea what a "kitchner stitch was and I just knew that I was mere minutes away from having a whole, real sock! Oh the dilema. Well, the side table next to the chair I was in happens to be the table under which I keep a bunch of books, and luck be a lady my encyclopedia of stitch work happened to be amongst them. So I looked in the knitting section and saw only one technique that seemed fitting and it wasn't called the "kitchner" stitch, but it's a really old book so maybe they just didn't call it that back then. It was a basic explanation on knitting two pieces together, and as I was doing it I knew it wasn't the right way, but hey, it was only 8 stitches and by that time I was almost done, and I wasn't going to be wearing this sock anyway, so I did it. And just like that I had a sock! So many times I've heard so many people talk about how much more wonderful hand knit socks are to store bought ones and boy oh boy are they right. You can feel the love and happy energy that went into them, or it, as my situation was. For this I did actually make the guy pause the movie and he dutifully tried my hand knit sock on, he also sincerely agreed that it did feel better on his foot than another sock before it, and being the good guy that he is he continued to wear the sock for the rest of the evening telling me periodically just how great a sock it was.
Now I have to backtrack a little to explain the "almost" perfect result. While I was within the last few rows of the gusset section of my sock I ended up with an uneven number of stitches on either side of my heel. I thought that perhaps I accidentally decreased one stitch on the side that had 1 too few stitches in a row where you don't decrease on either side therefore I was off by one on that side. Rather than rip it all out again I figured it would be noticeably wonky if I just decreased by one in a non-decrease row on the other side. So that's what I did and it wasn't wonky at all, Phewww. However while the guy was wearing the sock I wanted to examine it closer on a foot and while doing so I noticed that I dropped a stitch at the beginning of the heel shaping section. If I had knit a pair this would have totally ruined my evening because once the socks were washed the dropped stitch would have ran, (sort of like a run in pantyhose only huger), and that would have made them not so wonderful. I found solace in the fact that there is only one and they won't be worn, I decided to put it in a shadow box and hang it on the wall in my studio, (after hand washing it of course.
So now I have one lovely sock with only minor flaws and I am ready to knit a pair!

Magic Loop Knitting

2011-01-05T05:48:00.000-08:00

Last week while looking around at my favorite fiber arts web site: http://www.ravelry.com/ for some info on double pointed needles I kept coming across a reference to magic loop knitting in lieu of using double pointed needles. I had no clue what this was and for the life of me couldn't understand from just the written description how it worked, then one poster referenced watching a particular video of the technique to figure it out. Following her link didn't get me to what I was looking for, then it occurred to me that just about anything is available at YouTube. So over I went and in my first search I came up with many options, yay! I chose this one for no particular reason: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-R51731ERA. I swear I heard a chorus of angels singing in the background as I watched this woman knit a tiny tube with 1 pair of circular needles! I ran to my stash to grab some yarn and a pair of needles that met the requirements. Let me interject here that I've always chosen circulars with the smallest length of cord so as to be able to knit smaller tubes without difficulty, (irony, you'll see if you watch the video, ha!). I sat down in front of my computer, played the video again and within minutes was working on a tube that consisted of 8 stitches on circular needles. "I love learning new things", I thought, and then a light bulb went off. It was just my beau turning the light on for me since it was a little dark in the room :), no not really, I had another great idea! If I found this wonderful bit of info on YouTube I bet I could find a plethora of information on sock knitting. You see this was my new years resolution for 2010, to learn how to knit socks, and I never did so I just re-purposed the resolution for 2011. And sure enough there are tons of generous knitters out there willing to share their expertise and talent with us in video form. I am going to knit one of everything over the next year! So, now I'm on to knit a sock, I'll let you know how it goes. Oh, and I'll be knitting it, (or hopefully them), with one pair of circular needles.

Keep it Simple

2010-12-27T08:36:00.000-08:00

TamaranDesigns has been around for about 4 years now and from the beginning I worried and toiled over making my business look "professional". This meant trying to have a cohesive brand while not spending a fortune on supplies, (bags, labels, cards, etc...). I found this very difficult since I am not a major retailer and don't have the buying power of say Macy's when it comes to having packing supplies look like mailing supplies look like, well you get it. So I inadvertently spent a small fortune on printer ink cartridges in an attempt to make my own matchy matchy brand identity. As I participated in more shows this season than any before I began to notice something from my fellow artisans and started to wonder why do all of my supplies have to look like I'm a major retailer, doesn't that sort of defeat the whole aesthetic of handmade small business? I saw so many wonderful talented artisans who's bags weren't all the same, using re-purposed tissue paper and worrying more about a high quality handmade item rather than looking like Bergdorf's. A heavy weight was suddenly lifted off of my soul, I no longer have to run around printing letter heads and mailer labels that match my business card, or search for the right shade of tissue paper to look like it was custom made for me. Yippeee, now all I will worry about are my creations, as it should be for artisans and craftspeople

How about the whole set?

2010-12-03T04:38:00.000-08:00

For the first few years of TamaranDesigns pretty much all of my work was "one of a kind" and definitely all "statement" pieces. The kind of things that you wouldn't want to have anything matching. Last year however I introduced a new line called Alice Toowilliger which are a more streamlined, basic set of pieces. This seemed to be what the customers out there wanted. So far it's been a great success, as a matter of fact I would say that the Alice Toowilliger line has become my "bread and butter". I find that most of the pieces that I've worked into my own wardrobe are from this line as well. I however am a maniac for color, even my favorite dishes are a multi colored set of fiesta ware so it just didn't occur to me to make sure that I had matching pieces on hand at the shows I've been doing this season. At the very first show I did though my customers started requesting them, (matching gloves for this cowl or a matching hat for those gloves). The color combinations that I did have on hand gave me a good bit of insight into my mind set while I was yarn shopping and then deciding what colors to use for what pieces. And even though I can make any AliceT item in any color of the provided swatch pallet, when at a show customers want to buy and take home the whole package then and there. So I got to work making sure I had enough of a variety of my Alice pieces to put together "sets". So how about a nice "set" of winter wear for that gift to your niece, or sister, or mom, or....

Two additions to my holiday schedule

2010-11-15T18:25:00.000-08:00

December 12
10am-5pm
The Emerging Leaders in the Arts Buffalo, (ELAB)
art sale to be held at the Pearl Street Bar and
Grill in downtown Buffalo.

SQUEAKY WHEEL'S ANNUAL DYSFUNCTIONAL HOLIDAY PARTY (v.10)
Saturday, December 18
8:00pm - 11:00pm
Squeaky Wheel
712 Main Street
Buffalo, NY

The Holidays!

2010-11-05T06:41:00.001-07:00

Hi all, here is a list of the events at which you can find me, TamaranDesigns, at selling my wares this holiday season. Check back for updates since there will be a few more for which I don't have dates yet.

Daeman Homecoming & Family Weekend Brunch
11:00 am - 1:00 pm - Wick Center: Wick Dining Room
4380 Main Street, Amherst, NY 14226
Enjoy this elegant buffet-style brunch featuring live musical
entertainment by BABIK (voted WNY's Best Jazz Band). Several of
Daemen's student organizations, artists, and hobbyists will also have
booths and displays set up in as a city-style marketplace for your
perusal and patronage. Pre-sale tickets for the brunch are only $7.00
presale ($7.95 at the door); Current resident students do not need to
buy a ticket; children under 5 years old are free.

14th Annual Buffalo Women's Gifts
Saturday, November 13, 2010
10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Asbury Hall at Babeville
341 Delaware Avenue at West Tupper

Trocaire Alumni Assoc. Artisan show
Saturday, November 20th, 2010
11a.m.—4 p.m.
Russell J. Salvatore School of Hospitality
6681 Transit Road
Lancaster, NY 14086

Holiday Arts and Crafts Show
Date: December 11, 2010
Time: 10:00 am - 5:00 pm
Unitarian Universalist Church of Buffalo
695 Elmwood Avenue
Buffalo, NY 14222

I'm back!

2010-10-21T11:34:00.000-07:00

Well it's been a great summer. I had fun, went places, lived adventures, and spent a lot of down time doing only what I wanted to. But the weather is turning and people are starting to look for those warm and snuggly items that keep us all warm, so I'm back and open for business.
I finally left etsy behind once and for all, I feel they never had my best interest at heart, but certainly had their hands out for my fees. I read on another blog where an artist closed her etsy shop, paid her bill, then promptly filed a chargback with her bank for "services not rendered" and she did get her money back. Although I am not ballsy enough to try that, (but big positive kudos to the person/people who did), I feel I've spent a lot of time and money for the same lack of services and have had enough. 1,000 Markets is no more so that's a bust, or a Bonanza as the case may be, which is a site that I truly didn't feel met my needs, (not a bad site however for what it's worth).
I'm selling at Zibbet and Artfire and just applied to Cargoh, (which is juried so it's not a given that I'll get in).
Early this year I joined a great group of women artisans, who's fan page can be found here:
http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Buffalo-Niagara-Falls-region/Women-Helping-Other-Artists-WHOA/323787254716
The connections I'm making there is upping my festival and show presence in the WNY area this holiday season and I couldn't be happier about that. So all in all I'm back and I truly do believe better than ever!

Finding myself, re-inventing myself, and taking the summer off to boot!

2010-07-15T09:41:00.000-07:00

Last fall I found myself getting the inspiration bug sometime in September, and started working again, (finally). I told everyone that I un-intentionally took the summer off, which wasn't a lie because I hadn't planned on not doing anything work related all summer. This spring I felt determined that I wasn't going to do the same thing but here it is almost mid july and I haven't much of anything. Well, I've thought a lot about things, things like my style, my design, my business acumen, and all sorts of other "junk" and here's what I've come up with so far...
Somehow in 1999-2000 I managed to lose my style, this is due to a two part situation. First I had cosmetic surgery that changed to overall shape of my body and second I moved from NY to Ga. The Georgia part impacted me in that I fell madly in love with southern food and couldn't stop eating it, so like "poof" I gained a bunch of weight, which further affected my not knowing how to dress my new body shape. Then there's that crazy heat down south, who the hell wants to put clothes of any kind on when it's 98 degrees with 89% humidity. Also I feel there's a whole different aesthetic and sensibility down there that I just never "meshed" with.
So finally this spring, after almost 3 years of being back up north I've found my style and remember how much I love the fun of fashion, the art of decorating ones self, and the burn I've always had to create my own decorations for this purpose!
With all of that being re-discovered I now plan on proceeding this fall with work that follows my passion, things that make me smile as opposed to things that I think will sell. In the past few years I've had these basic thoughts in my head when writing patterns or working on one-of-a kinds, "keep it simple so I can keep the price down" or "will it appeal to the masses?". I didn't worry about these things when I was creating without the intention of trying to earn a living and my work was so much better then.
Now I'm thinking about just how I'm going to retool my on-line shops to best highlight my new found self. Am I going to remove the items that I made with saleability in mind rather than my aesthetic? Will I keep all of my shops around, (I've been flirting with ditching some venues for other reasons anyway), or streamline back into one store? For now I'm in the very early stages of my re-invention and I know I have a ways to go, but every day I make a new decision and come closer to having a finalized vision. By then it should be late summer and I'll be ready to get back to work.
Oh yeah, about that summer hiatus thing. Seems it's just the way it's going to be for me, I do have some summer pieces up and will probably have some next summer too. But really, once that mercury starts it's climb I'm just out of inspiration so I'll consider myself on hiatus until fall.

Spring Teaser

2010-02-16T07:46:00.000-08:00

I had one of those fabulous bursts last night! You know how it goes, one idea hits you and then an aftershock of 12 more. Well here you have it, my teaser of at least one of the hopefully many things to come this spring/summer.

2010-02-15T08:52:00.000-08:00

Oh another Valentines day behind us and I still have the only 3 heartsy items that I've ever made in my shop. I was thinking about it last night and maybe it's because they're cutsie and not diamond encrusted or chocolate covered? Oh well, I do keep them in my shop, (well not the hat), year round. After all VDay isn't the only time people like hearts is it?

This one is cute but doesn't fit on my big head!
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=38589769

I may just keep this one, it is kind of nifty
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=19997416

I really am surprised this one hasn't sold yet.
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=19891176

The New Alice

2010-02-08T14:39:00.000-08:00

one of the biggest hurtles I've been facing with my two shops have been achieving the right "feeling" with my photo's. I think I"ve finally found it with AliceToowilliger! I am very excited to introduce the new Alice:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/alicetoowilliger

Hellooooo

2010-02-03T13:19:00.000-08:00

I'm feverishly working to make myself one of the Etsy Success Stories. I know I can do it! I have two great shops and I just don't want to be a graphic designer anymore, and I don't want to be penniless either. I found some good strategy advice and have been following it. Google Analytics is my new hero, and I'm patiently waiting for syndication of my shops at Etsy.
I know about a year ago or so I had the five a day project and after about a week I gave up, but this time I'm going to preserver! Hopefully soon I"ll be blogging tips about what worked for me, or someone will want to interview me as a fine example of a success story.

Hmmm....

2010-01-28T10:00:00.000-08:00

OK, so this didn't work out at all like I thought it might. But you know what; Alice was just featured in an article in the Etsy Finds about noobie shops. Soooo, I'm thinking that in a week maybe we'll try again.

OH! I forgot one detail.

2010-01-28T08:11:00.001-08:00

I will be tweeting when it's time to start e-mailing. And here's a hint: my lunchtime in noon. the discounts will be good from today until Friday Feb. 5th.

Contest Today!

2010-01-28T07:55:00.000-08:00

Hi all! So here's the deal, the first person to e-mail me at: tamarandesigns@gmail.com

with the subject line "Make Alice's Day"

will get 50% off any one item at: http://www.etsy.com/shop/alicetoowilliger

I've decided that the second e-mail sender will get 25% off any one item from Alice! And remember just about anything in Alicetoowilliger is available in any of the colors in the color chart in the listing.
Good luck to everyone!
Tamaran

going to try a contest with Twitter

2010-01-27T07:56:00.000-08:00

I would really like to get the ball rolling in my sistershop:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/alicetoowilliger
by having a sale, by that I don't mean a "20% off everything blowout!", I mean one item that was purchased by a potentially happy customer.
So I had a thought about how to utilize Twitter in order to help this along.

Tomorrow at lunchtime, (because GA says this is when my sites have the most traffic), I will tweet a link to my blog, (here), with the directions on how to get a 50% code for anything in Alice Toowilliger.
I'm just wondering now if I should post some teaser hints in the etsy forums at all today? You know what, that might not be such a bad idea.
See you all tomorrow,
Good Luck!

My secret criteria

2009-12-04T12:40:00.000-08:00

So I just started twittering about shops picked using a secret criteria. I'm not trying to be all clandestine or culty, I swear. I just don't want to offend any of the artists purposely excluded. Here I can explain better than in a tweet. Many of us know about the ridiculousness going on with the gift guides at 1000mkts, this is why I started this tweetstravaganza in the first place. And I do really believe the admin there have some sensible reasoning, (whether it works or not), for handling things the way they are. And hopefully if it works we will all benefit in the end. However, this is a very important time of year for the independant artist and many of us trying to sell our wares do this as our only fulltime business, (which makes it even more important!). So what we have are aprox. 2,500 artists at the site, 240ish being featured in the guides, with aprox. 12 being very heavily rotated. So I'm spotlighting artists not in the guides to give them a fair chance too!
Now also know that I truly am happy for the chosen few of the gift guides, and was really sorry to hear that thy're not really seeing any benefit from it. I also fear there may be a backlash towards them because of this, (technically what I'm doing is a backlash towards them), so I didn't want to blather it all over the message boards, or twitter, and I know no one really reads my blog.
If anyone at twitter is really, really curious about my first tweet regarding the secret criteria and happens upon this post, shhh....please keep it secret after all the artists of the gift guides are trying to earn a living too and I just don't want to seem like a jealous bitch. Thanks!

My Twittering Extravaganza!

2009-12-03T09:20:00.000-08:00

A Twitteraganza maybe. It started with my dissatisfaction at the lack of variety in certain "gift guides" and has turned into a wild ride of silly searches, serious searches, and just plain looking for something "really" different and unique in the handmade world.
Here is a link to my twitter, follow me down this path of hilarity and nifty stuff.

http://twitter.com/TamaranDesigns

New York Festival

2009-11-16T20:09:00.000-08:00

I joined a great new market at 1000 Markets last week. It's a regional market, I've been keeping an open for a regional market to join and somehow missed the most obvious one, (I'm from New York), for many months!

http://www.1000markets.com/groups/nyfestival

A special selection of casual gifts

2009-11-11T07:46:00.000-08:00

Office "Secret Santa", the babysitter, your kids school teachers, the list could go on. Well, I've decided to put together a special selection of gifts under $25! Scouring the malls, department stores, discount stores, any store where you think you might find something nice that won't break your bank for these people on your list could drain so many hours from your happy holiday season, (they certainly did from mine in the past). And I don't know about you but I've always thought about how much money goes to waste every year on gifts that although they're reasonably priced really aren't ever going to be used, just more stuff to ad to the pile in the back of the storage closet. Well now you can have a one stop place for all of those "casual" gifts that will be used, appreciated and not break your budget!

Upping my blogging anti

2009-11-03T08:37:00.000-08:00

I've been wracking my brain for two weeks now trying to come up with something clever, entertaining, or informational to blog about. I really want to blog on a regular basis, really I do. So I've asked for advice and got some, (really good advice too). And now I'm just going to jump in and start doing it. So check back regularly because there'll be no more posting once every now and then, (I hope).
Here are a few of the thing I've been working on for winter. I'll probably be talking about them and other things in my future, (and more frequently posted), blogs.

Summertime

2009-05-11T10:07:00.000-07:00

Summer is almost here and I've been busy working on my new summer line. Late in the winter while giving some thought to what I was going to do with my skills once the weather warmed up I seriously considered just taking the summer off. After all there didn't seem to be too much one could make that wouldn't swelter in the summer heat. Then my friend requested a crocheted skirt for a wedding and the lightbulb went off. Beach coverups, lacy light shawls and wraps, and of course my everyday hats! That would great summer fare to entice my cusotmers. Well, I'm just starting to photograph the first large batch of goods and here are some samples!
They can be purchased at the sites listed to the right or you could always contact me for special orders: tamarandesigns@gmail.com

Bohemian Spring

2009-03-12T11:55:00.001-07:00

One of my favorite fashion statements is bohemian, I love it's flowing ease. Fortunately it is in fashion about every 3rd year or so, not that I don't wear it in between, and this is an "in" year! This means that there will be a lot of smashing choices out there for me to refresh my wardrobe and the work I've been doing so far is quite boho so it will be popular too!

The new face of TamaranDesigns

2009-01-03T17:32:00.001-08:00

Introducing the lovely Denise, the newest face to represent TamaranDesigns. The dressmakers form was getting a little temperamental and we here at Tamaran felt we were at creative differences with it, so we began a search for a new face to represent TamaranDesigns. After an extensive family wide search we finally found someone whom we feel will be a perfect fit, the lovely Denise. Lets all give her a warm welcome!
And don't forget to check 1000Mkts. and Etsy, (links to right), in the next few days to see her debuts there!

Vive la Productivity!

2008-11-30T10:47:00.000-08:00

I have been having a spurt of the most amazing productivity for the past week or so. Even with the hectic holiday recently past I've still managed to create a nice bunch of collars, cowls, and scarves, which is great since I will be doing the Indie Market http://buffaloindie.blogspot.com/ on Dec. 14th. I think the collars, cowls, & turtles are going to be very popular.

I joined a new marketplace!

2008-11-01T08:27:00.000-07:00

Last week I joined 1000Markets! I read about it at a Yahoo group that I belong to and the moment the page loaded I had a good feeling about what I was looking at. So I joined immediately, well, it's juried so I applied immediately. It's still very new and "in the works" even, but it looks great, has a nice professional feel to it and I suspect it will be the on-line hand made "place to be" very soon!

http://www.1000markets.com/users/tamarandesigns

The 5 a day project

2008-10-25T09:52:00.000-07:00

Well, having your model also as a family member doesn't, (unfortunately), put them at your beck and call and mine,(the lovely Stacy), is a busy woman whom I've not been able to get together with for over two weeks now. So, I've come up with a stand in for her until we can set up a shoot. I will probably use this acceptable model for stand in use from here on in. I will however be photographing all of these things on the lovely Stacey as well as soon as possible.
That being said, I've decided to try to post about 5 things a day to see what it does for sales. I will probably stick with this plan for only 2 or 3 days however because it really is a lot of work. So we'll see how it goes, I'll keep you posted.

The New Face of TamaranDesigns

2008-10-04T10:10:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking for a very long time now about changing the look of TamaranDesigns, even before I decided to totally change my direction into fashion accessories, (of course once I decided to take this path a new look was even more desirous to me). Well, I believe I've finally come up with some concrete ideas, (now to actually implement all of them into one cohesive look). I've been using the services of the lovely Stacy for a few shoots now and have been very happy with her look. She has agreed to become the face of TamaranDesigns! Yay! She is also a member of my family so she's easy to get ahold of.

A new place to buy my work

2008-09-08T12:30:00.000-07:00

On November 22nd the beautiful new Burchfield Penny Art Gallery will be open.

http://www.yournewburchfieldpenney.com/

Some of my work will be available for sale in the gallery store. This is very exciting as well as validating for me because, well, it's the gift shop of an art gallery.

Above are some of the pieces that will be there.

Rag-A-Muffins

2008-09-07T11:25:00.000-07:00

I finally got some great pictures of my rag-a-muffins on a lovely model. Now everyone can see how versatile and fun they can be!

The Rag-A-Muffins

2008-08-26T08:06:00.000-07:00

I've been working feverishly on my new fall/winter work. I'm trying to move away from all jewelry and into more accessories. I still need to photograph my new creations on models, (you just can't get a good idea of how something is going to look on someone any other way), but I wanted to share something now. So I've taken some photo's without the benefit of models, and here they are. The TeenQueen tells me these will be popular with the youth population so I'm keeping them a little funky, (I recall thiving on funky when I was her age).
Well, I'm off to make more rag-a-muffins and so much more for this upcoming fall/winter season.

Rag-A-Muffin Tie Dye

2008-08-26T08:01:00.000-07:00

I am crazy about circles! It is by far my favorite shape, so it just seemed natural that I somehow incorporate circles into the rag-a-muffins. And what a better color scheme to use than a deep, saturated almost tie dye looking variegation.

Rag-A-Muffin Roses

2008-08-26T07:57:00.000-07:00

This one gets a little fancy for a rag-a-muffin but I just kept seeing roses as I was working on it, so roses it was. And I'm very happy with the whimsical outcome!

Rag-A-Muffin Faded

2008-08-26T07:42:00.000-07:00

This was the first rag-a-muffin, I love the pale, almost washed out color look, as if it's allready been a favorite of someones for a while.

Simple Earrings

2008-08-14T11:33:00.000-07:00

In an effort to A: Have some items that fall into the category of impulse buys and B: Just plain make more earring, (they seem to be a favorite with almost everyone) I recently made and put in my store a few pairs of simple semi-precious earrings that I hope will catch someones eye. I don't wear earrings much, although I used to all the time. Earrings and really high heels seem to be two fashion items that I just lost my taste for. Now don't get me wrong, I still love them, but on other people.

Skwiggazine

2008-08-08T04:49:00.000-07:00

I've belonged to this NING group for a while but really thought it was just another "etsy love" site and although I do like etsy, really I do, I belong to enough of those. However, I stopped by the other day just to do a check-in, (I like to do this with the many networking sites I belong to), and discovered that it is very much about all else that is out there too. Color me happy!
Here's the link and I will add it to my list of favorite blogs, well, maybe not because technically it's not a blog and I don't know if I can put it in that list. Hmmm.... I'll figure something out. But here's the link for now.
http://www.skwigglekreationz.com/

And the lucky winner chose...

2008-08-06T09:26:00.000-07:00

The contest featuring Tamarandesigns has ended and the lucky winner chose African Turquoise! This is one of my favorites too and I love the whole line that I call "fishing nets". I hope they are as happy with it as I was making it.

Congratulations!

No new pictures.

2008-07-27T06:46:00.000-07:00

I've been working on my fall line for a few weeks now. Artists block is plaguing me, but I'm sure it won't last. There are a few last minute summer goods that I have to get photographed, fortunately on the WWW it's always summer somewhere.

Exciting!

2008-07-21T05:01:00.000-07:00

I'm partaking in a giveaway contest at a sister blog "Handmade Showcase"

Above are some of my favorites that will be available to the contest winner.

Good luck to all who enter!

http://handmadeshowcase.blogspot.com/2008/07/giveaway-contes-tamarandesigns-jewelry.html

There's an interview with me and some lovely photos of my work. This is all very exciting.

Two of my Pretties

2008-07-18T08:30:00.000-07:00

These bracelets are a rarity in that they are exactly as I saw them in my head when they were a mere inspiration.

Hip Hip Hooray!

2008-07-18T08:26:00.000-07:00

I finally had a lightbulb moment, thanks to the help of some wonderful artisans at Etsy, and now I know how to work in my own blog. This means I will probably be posting on a more frequent basis. Zippity Doo Dah!

2008-07-18T04:29:00.000-07:00

This is one of my favorites, it's so feminine. I used a very old pattern, (mid 1940's) from a booklet my grandmother gave to me a long time ago. I also used vintage crochet cotton.

Oh it's been so long.

2008-07-18T04:24:00.000-07:00

I'm making a conscious effort to maintain this blog on a regular basis now.Here are some of the things I've been working on lately.

These are my crocheted collars: The one above reminds me of coral in the sea, (I don't know if it's actually ever purple, but hey...)

metal ages, just one more

2008-05-12T14:36:00.000-07:00

metal ages too

2008-05-12T14:11:00.000-07:00

It's sort of uncomfortable to crochet with wire but the results are so worth it.

More metal ages

2008-05-12T14:04:00.001-07:00

I didn't do any creating over the weekend but I have been working on taking pictures. I really let my stuff pile up before I photograph it.

more fishing nets

2008-05-09T06:41:00.000-07:00

I really love the look of these. I've kept several for myself and whenever I look at semi-precious chips I just can't help buying a bunch and making more.

Some more of my springtime inspirations

2008-05-06T05:07:00.000-07:00

Some of what I've been up to.

2008-05-06T04:59:00.000-07:00

I partook in the first "Buffalo Indie Market" at the Pearl Street Grill and Brewery. They will be held monthly every second sunday of the month with the next event on May, 11th. I will be a vendor again for the June event. It was a wonderful day full of lots of great things!

Here is the link to their website.

http://www.buffaloindiemarket.com/

So long since I've last posted

2008-05-06T04:53:00.001-07:00

These are some sweet little springtime bracelets.

my foray into felting

2008-01-17T10:35:00.001-08:00

I recently tried felting a scarf, and although that didn't turn out too well, (no photo available), I loved the whole trip so here are some of my other projects so far.

Empress

2007-11-19T04:47:00.000-08:00

Ming

2007-11-19T04:45:00.000-08:00

Pharoah

2007-11-19T04:38:00.000-08:00

Fall Foliage

2007-11-12T08:26:00.000-08:00

I'm really feeling the "fall in the air", and it's really been my inspiration in the studio.

Fuzzy Sweater Collection

2007-10-13T06:38:00.001-07:00

There's been a chill in the air, (after a long and wonderful Indian Summer), and that's put me in the mood for something soft, fuzzy, and warm!

opera

2007-08-25T17:40:00.000-07:00

champagne bubbles cont.

2007-08-25T17:27:00.000-07:00

Champagne bubbles

2007-08-25T08:58:00.001-07:00

the naturals

2006-11-07T20:18:00.000-08:00

braided cotton cord intertwined with natural stones of turquoise, jade, coral and copper.

metal ages

2006-11-06T09:38:00.000-08:00

crocheted metal mesh embellished with stones of carnelian, turquoise, and jade. sophisticated and funky at the same time.

beaded bracelets

2006-11-06T08:40:00.000-08:00

twigs and berries

2006-10-30T19:07:00.000-08:00

knotted leather cord with wire wrapped glass or pearl beads. can be wrapped around the neck or left to hang long or wrapped many times around the wrist.

fishing nets

2006-10-29T07:52:00.000-08:00

using fine crochet cotton or silk and various types of semi-precious stone chips I've created a line of necklaces and bracelets reminiscent of the fishing nets used in days gone by.

crocheted cuff bracelets

2006-10-28T20:31:00.000-07:00

Tigerseye chips

vintage seed beads

faux turquiose

seed beads

fiber optic beads

Welcome to my world

2006-09-25T13:50:00.000-07:00

Hello all,
I will be putting up posts of and about the jewelry I make. I recently left the world of graphic design and am comitting myself to living the life of an artisan. Thus far I love it, my bank account is empty but my soul feels nourished. Check back periodically for posts and pictures.
Tammelas