GIVEAWAY WINNER!!

And we have a winner!!! Yel olde random number generator picked comment number 29. Christy, you'll be getting one pair of Metamorphic earrings to brighten up your spring! Shoot me an email with your address and I'll get em out the door to you by the end of this week.
Thank you all so much for your sweet comments, they truly brightened up my week. And stay tuned for another giveaway in another couple of months!

IT'S GIVEAWAY TIME!

It's spring! Really, truly, spring. And this one is a good one here in Portland. We're getting some actual sunny days interspersed with the rain, the garden is flourishing, and the studio is busy, busy, busy! All of these things are putting me in an extra good (and generous!) mood!

I realized that in the haste to get the S/S 2011 collection out, I never really did a proper giveaway to celebrate! So it's time! I'm giving away one item of your choice from the S/S 2011 collection. This one is super simple: head on over to the site and pick your very favorite thing from the new collection, then just leave me a comment with your choice below. One winner will be chosen at random on May 31st, one week from today. I'll announce the winner here, and on facebook and twitter.

Now get to entering!

xo

these kids.

today feels like this:

feeling this today.

"Nobody tells this to people who are beginners, I wish someone told me. All of us who do creative work, we get into it because we have good taste. But there is this gap. For the first couple years you make stuff, it’s just not that good. It’s trying to be good, it has potential, but it’s not. But your taste, the thing that got you into the game, is still killer. And your taste is why your work disappoints you. A lot of people never get past this phase, they quit. Most people I know who do interesting, creative work went through years of this. We know our work doesn’t have this special thing that we want it to have. We all go through this. And if you are just starting out or you are still in this phase, you gotta know its normal and the most important thing you can do is do a lot of work. Put yourself on a deadline so that every week you will finish one story. It is only by going through a volume of work that you will close that gap, and your work will be as good as your ambitions. And I took longer to figure out how to do this than anyone I’ve ever met. It’s gonna take awhile. It’s normal to take awhile. You’ve just gotta fight your way through.”

- Ira Glass

earth + sky : a collaboration with satsuma press

i'm so excited to be able to finally announce the release of this special collaboration that i've been working on with sweet lynn of satsuma press! i've long admired lynn's gorgeous letter pressed goods, so i was thrilled when she approached me about the idea of a collaboration. i've taken her original feather illustration, cut it out of solid sterling silver, and paired it with a delicate clear quartz point. each necklace will arrive beautifully packaged on a card designed and printed by lynn, with a complementary birds of a feather letterpress card. we're both so pleased with how this has all come together, and thrilled to finally be offering it to all of you! just in time for valentines day, or just as a little mid-winter treat for yourself. hop on over to the shop and get yours here.

maker monday (special tuesday edition!): isabel dammermann

and we're back! ok, it's a day late, but hey, getting back into a routine is easier said than done sometimes.
i love the weight and utter simplicity of these pieces by isabel dammermann. they feel sculptural, and able to stand on their own in that regard, but i would also love to wear any one of them. a combination that can get somewhat elusive the farther you delve into contemporary 'art' jewelry. more isabel here.

in news a little closer to home, i had a crazy busy and wonderful holiday season. exhausting, for sure, but so fun to send so many little gifts out into the world. i took almost a full two weeks off for holiday break, which went by in a flash. i somewhat reluctantly rejoined the real world yesterday, and will be spending this week organizing, planning, and re-stocking the sad, depleted little website. i'm also excited about a couple things on the horizon in the coming month or two: i'll be releasing my spring 2011 collection in mid februrary, hopefully in conjunction with a new look for the website. new year! new things! can't wait to share them all with you.

a good show and a huge thank you!

the only two pictures i took at ucu this weekend. meant to take more, but i was just too busy!

monday night and i'm giving myself a tiny break to recover from an amazing weekend in seattle. this was my fist time participating in urban craft uprising, and i'm still reeling from how freaking awesome it was. over the past eight years, i haven't done many shows (retail or wholesale) for varying reasons. and when i have tried to take my work out to shows, it's been less than encouraging. ok, fine: every single show i've ever done before this has pretty much totally sucked. there, i said it. i know that as a business person, i'm always supposed to keep my chin up and put a good face forward when asked how things are going. and i'm generally pretty good at doing just that. but here's a true confession for you: bad shows are haaaaaaard to deal with. like, really hard. maybe i'm extra sensitive, but i feel like when i put my work on display, i'm really putting a little bit of my self out there to be judged, and that makes me pretty vulnerable. and no matter how confident or upbeat we designers may appear, some of us are tender creatures. we just want you to like us. and there are few things more disappointing or discouraging than working your ass off to prepare for a show, and then feeling like your work has been poorly received. it can actually be a little soul crushing.

so on the flip side of that, a successful show/sale is nothing less than exhilarating. it is totally, truly radical. and this weekend was an absolute dreamy dream in that regard. all of my hard work and anticipation was so worth it, both financially and emotionally. i had a genuinely wonderful time at urban craft, and it was a true pleasure to meet each and every person who stopped by my little table. i spend a lot of time on my own in my studio, so getting to spend two full days getting to talk to (and sell to!) customers in person was such a valuable experience for me. it is so validating and encouraging to be able to see people excited about what i do. i feel revived, invigorated, and oh so excited for things to come.

and so, my dears, a huge thank you to all of my sweet customers and supporters. every single one of your orders, kind words and comments mean so much to me. you are what makes my job and the life that i have chosen not only possible, but also gratifying, challenging and amazing every day. thank you, thank you, thank you! i can't tell you how much i appreciate it.

xo, t