Love, Love, Love: Surprises in the Mail

Last spring, I was set up next to Karen and Steve of Little Birch Farm at Twist in Northampton, MA. They offer a great line of skin care products with unique birch bark packaging, and on top of that they were super friendly neighbors who were a joy to hang out with. When Karen noticed that I used thimbles in my thimbilism necklaces she mentioned that she had a box of sewing notions at home that she could pass on to me. Recently, when a mysterious package arrived in the mail, I ripped it open and jumped for joy. Here's what I saw when I opened the box:

Little Birch Farms sent a BIG surprise!

A sweet note on birch bark paper and a smiling straw kitty face greeted me. As I dug deeper into the box, more treasures revealed themselves: wooden spools of old thread, cloth tape measures, bobbins, a strand of decorative pearls, fasteners, needles, a beaded necklace, tiny plastic clothes pins, silver sequins, vintage buttons & buckles, and of course the coveted thimble! 

I've got the notion(s)!

One of the biggest questions I get as a person who upcycles is, "Where do you get all your materials?" The best way to answer that is "everywhere" and that's what makes the process so much fun. Whether I discover things on treasure hunts or pull items out of the recycling bin I can find ideas practically anywhere. Though I have to say, the most inspiring thing to me is the kindness and generosity of others. I can't wait to dig into my new materials!

You can visit Little Birch Farm and Twitch & Whiskers again at Twist this November. See below for info. More show dates to follow.

November 11 & 12 -  Twist 7 - Holiday Fair - Northampton, MA

November 19 - The Wellesley Marketplace - Holiday Craft Festival - Wellesley, MA

Fifteen Fun New Necklaces

Inspired by my new finds, I have been on a jewelry making spree. Small vintage tins, little button pins, large plastic buttons, and brassy findings have found their way into a fresh batch of necklaces.

Tonsils Out Club and The Moon Up Above

A Little Angel, A Little Deer, and Contributor

Wink Wink - with blinking doll eye

Presto! All Better!, Wig Out, and Outdoor Girl

inside

Hazel's Garden, Cameo Appearances, and Lady Esther's Shade

inside

A Man...A Mustache...A Frog, She's So Fly, and You've Got Some Gall

inside

These will be on display this weekend at the Greenway Open Market and SOWA in Boston. Here are four more chances to catch me in person this summer (fall/winter dates coming soon):

Saturday, August 6 - The Greenway Open Market - Boston, MA

Sunday, August 7 - SOWA Open Market - Boston, MA

Saturday, August 13 - The Greenway Open Market - Boston, MA

Sunday, August 14 - SOWA Open Market - Boston, MA

Love, Love, Love: Small Tin Boxes

In middle school, I thought I was pretty hot stuff walking around with my tiny tin container filled with watermelon flavored lip balm. Long after the balm was gone, I would keep the box. The small size, cute graphics, and slide cover were just too appealing to throw away. The same held true for candy tins, hinged Band-Aid boxes, and cookie tins. I just couldn't let them go. As I got older, I acquired a nice variety of old tin containers from my grandmother and found even more while on treasure hunts. Without even trying, I had built a collection over time.

Many of my tins came from my grandmother.

It's easy to justify accumulating tin containers. They're colorful, durable, and useful (even if you never actually refill them). They reveal a slice of the past and are living proof of how packaging has changed over time. I think that's why I couldn't resist buying an "IDEAL SPLIT SHOT" tin at the Elephants Trunk last year. Its compact size, happy colors, and hidden "Take a Boy Fishing" message on the back made it an irresistible purchase. I didn't even know what split shot was, but I took it home anyway. After bails were added to the back of the box, a complimenting buckle was found, and chains were coordinated, the piece evolved into one of my favorite multi-strand necklaces.

Ideal Split Shot

Since then I have been on the lookout for other small tins. Here is a piece called "A Fine Fineline." The tins once housed mechanical pencil erasers.

sliding tins

A Fine Fineline

Most recently, I've discovered sample-sized tins. Being so small, they lend themselves well to making jewelry and don't take up much space in my already crowded apartment.

a tin of tins

boxy beauties

Their graphics pack a lot of punch for their size. Sometimes the back is as interesting as the front.

on the flip side

One of the interesting challenges of working with tins is finding the ancient contents inside (with accompanying mysterious odors). 

goo yet to be gone

Once all ointments, salves, and undefinable residues are removed, you can use the boxes like a locket to house pictures, collages, mini-dioramas and all sorts of treasures.

Ray's Salve-ation, Miles of Style, and My Lips Are Sealed

A work in progress and the inside of "My Lips Are Sealed"

Good things really do come in small packages but it's the small packages themselves that I like the most!

Intrigued? Want to see more? Come visit me at these upcoming shows or visit my Etsy shop.

Saturday, July 9 - The Greenway Open Market - PREMIERE DAY! - Boston, MA

Sunday, July 10 - SOWA Open Market - Boston, MA

Saturday, August 6 - The Greenway Open Market - Boston, MA

Sunday, August 7 - SOWA Open Market - Boston, MA

Saturday, August 13 - The Greenway Open Market - Boston, MA

Sunday, August 14 - SOWA Open Market - Boston, MA

Love, Love, Love : Cafeteria Trays

Back in the days of Western Elementary School, I can vividly remember waiting in line for lunch. For an impatient, hungry kid, the line leading to the cafeteria seemed to stretch on for days. You would be welcomed into the cafeteria by the "clack clack" of  trays being pulled off a tall pile by the lunch ladies. Our school had an endless supply of plastic, colorful lunch trays with confetti-like specks and swirls melded into them. Though I'm sure my mind was mostly set on scarfing down my food and chatting with my friends during our short lunch period, the patterned trays left a strong impression on my early memories.



linole-yum

 I recall most of them being a muted pea-green or pale pink-orange color. The flecks of yellows, blues, pinks, tans, and greens danced around the trays in a carnival-like display when not obscured by the Friday pizza or sloppy Joe spillage. Perhaps the colors were there to add a little life to our tan palette of food.

eat your greens

I hadn't thought about cafeteria trays in years until I started making jewelry. I had one pale green tray that I would pull out on occasion to sort out small mixed supplies or plan out materials for a necklace. As the tray got used more and more, I started looking for more at tag sales and thrift stores. As my collection grew, I branched out onto Ebay for more of a selection. When I did a search for cafeteria trays online, familiar images from my childhood flashed on the screen. Vintage speckled trays came up under searches for Fire King, Prolon, Melmac, Spatterware, and confetti. I found the identical trays I once used in elementary school plus a whole other world of color combinations. 

bling buffet

wild game for dinner

work lunch

Many auctions later, I have a happy collection of 7 confetti trays (and counting) that have been elevated to my "special occasion ware." I pull them out every once in a while for inspiration and when I need a little burst of color in my life. Lately, I have found myself drawn to confetti beads and using food charms in my thimblism necklaces. I can't help but think of lunch lady hairnets, half pints of milk, and my early "culinary experiences" when creating these pieces.  

a feast for the eyes

made from 100% recycled clown (or so I've heard)

Spring Carnival - with vintage Japanese confetti beads

thimbilism necklace from my very own craft-ateria

Though my prized confetti tray collection will not be used to sort materials like my other trays, their fanciful flecks will have a lasting impact on my design. You just never know what will serve up inspiration!

You can find me at these upcoming shows:

Sunday, May 29th - The Brooklyn Flea - Williamsburg - Brooklyn, NY

Sunday, June 26th - Smith Street Sunday Fun Day - Brooklyn, NY

Saturday, July 9, August 6, August 13 - Greenway Open Markets - Boston, MA

Love, Love, Love : Vintage Game Pieces

Everyone has a junk drawer, box, or (ehem) entire home filled with all the odds & ends that they just can’t get rid of. Ever since I was little, I would save anything and everything small and colorful in special place. For years, I have been gathering loose game pieces. My collecting started years ago with Bakelite and vintage plastic dice. Each happy die and dot was a mini piece of art to me. I finally capped off my collection when I found the perfect gumball machine to display them in and filled it to the top.

It took a lot of quarters to fill this machine!

I also love pawns – plastic, metal, and wood in every shape size and color. They remind me of being sprawled across the floor with my friend Kim after school and engaged in a friendly game of Parcheesi, Monopoly, or Boggle. At the end of every school year, I have the students in my 2nd grade class pull out the loose pieces from games that have seen better days and save them before retiring the boards. I also keep an eye out for vintage games at tag sales and people are always passing bags of “treasures” to me. When there's a plastic pawn or wooden die, it's a welcome surprise.

Pawnacopia

There’s nothing more exciting and inspiring to me than spreading out, sorting, and playing with colorful pieces of anything. Whenever I hit a creative roadblock or feel the urge to organize, I will break out my cafeteria trays, spill out my materials, and sort the day away. This usually leads to new inspiration and ideas. It also makes me hungry because the colors look very “candy shop” to me!

Tray o' Play

Most recently, one of these spill & sort sessions inspired my “Fun 'n' Games” rings made from wooden nickels and a collage of game pieces.  I sold them for the first time at the Prospect Heights Fair. The school fund raising event was attended by lots of kids which meant lots of little fingers kept picking up and playing with the rings. I find that my materials, being upcycled and vintage, bring out a lot of nostalgia and people have a tendency to pick up and play with the jewelry or share stories about the items. As a designer, that's a big perk - I always love hearing these personal connections. 

wooden pawns & wooden nickels

wooden letter dice and wooden nickels

Clusters of pawns remind me of mushrooms or little people.

Once I attach the adjustable ring backings, I will have a whole new batch of rings to share at my upcoming shows:

Saturday, April 23^rd – New Beginnings Trunk Show with Folk Couture by Grace Napolean – Bethel, CT

Friday and Saturday, May 6th and 7th – Twist – Northampton, MA

Saturday, May 21 – Shop the Archway – DUMBO – Brooklyn, NY

Swing by and play!

Hoard, Sort, Play, Create, Repeat - Step Two: Sorting

Out with the old. Rethink the new. That's how I started 2011. I just came back from a Goodwill and consignment store drop off and feel like I've both literally and figuratively shed some 2010 baggage. It's funny how much can build up around you when you're not paying attention.

Letting go can be difficult, especially for folks like me who love the thrill of the hunt and can fondly remember the circumstances and stories behind every found object. Since I make jewelry from old/used junk, I can always find an excuse to go out and get more. I'm quickly learning that less can mean more.

"Lucky You" upcycled necklace made from vintage child's magnet and old pendant.

Being a teacher, I had a good 10 day stretch off. Toward the end of my break, I went on a purge and organize mode. This doesn't happen very often. I said goodbye to many things, including:

• old clothes and housewares
• untouched craft supplies that I was keeping around "just in case".
• a teeth collection (medical models, dentures, plaster casts, etc.) - I am officially not creepy anymore.
• piles of old programs, maps, brochures, ticket stubs, and other vacation ephemera.

The last remaining pair of teeth from my dental collection.

Fear not - not much went in the trash. Most found a good new home or was consigned. The biggest relief for me was weeding out and organizing my jewelry supply collection. I think I touched every bead, little plastic bag, and component. I never thought in a million years that I would get rid of jewelry making supplies, but it happened!

I went to my local craft store and purchase a few more plastic organizing boxes. Items were sorted by material or purpose and labeled with masking tape. Everything was stacked up in crates on a table in my living room and TADA! Organization!

The biggest thing that came out of this process was inspiration and many "oh ya, I totally forgot I had that" moments. I feel like I've rediscovered my collection and can plan new pieces with a clearer head. For the year ahead, I must remember to stop and sort every once in a while. From this past purge and shuffle, I've learned:

There's a fine line between gathering inspiration from objects and gathering dust from objects.

What is your favorite tip for staying organized?