Wish you were There

I missed seeing so many of my customers at the NY NOW show last week.  I know the weather in New York was horrible.  It seems it always is during the show.  But I had hoped that many more of my gift shops would have made it out to the city to stop by. 
Still I got some great new accounts, including the Skirball Museum in Los Angeles and The Tenement Museum in New York City.  I am proud to have my work available in both those places.

If you did not come to the show than you missed seeing my new Tab Necklaces!  They are silver ( of course) and feature popular sayings in English on one side and in Hebrew on the other!

The first day of the show my small chapel locket was stolen
:(
Perhaps I should consider that a compliment?

Dog tags

 Introducing these new handmade fine silver dog tag necklaces.  I create each dog tag pendent by hand in my studio, one at a time. 

They hang from an 18" long sterling silver 1.5 mm ball chain.














          The pendant is available in three different motifs.  All the dog tags have an English word or phrase on one side and the Hebrew translation on the other.

"I believe"
"Peace"
"I am my beloved and my beloved is mine"

The dog tag necklace is available at my
Etsy store.  For wholesale inquiry please contact me.

In the Etsy Shoppe

I am so sorry that I haven't posted in a while.  I have been super busy.  First, there was the Buyers Market.  It was so great to meet so many of you retailers and make new friends and contacts along the way.  Then, it was Passover, and I was so busy cleaning and then cooking.  The sedars were great!  Now I am finally settling down and getting down to business, filling orders, and preparing for my next big wholesale show this August in New York City.
I will be part of New Yorks Newest, which is the new vendor part of the New York Gift Show.  My booth will be at Pier 94, not the Javis Center.  But if you are a Retailer looking for new talent it is the place to be.  I plan on bringing a lot of secular jewelry to the show.  I am working on some great one of a kind pieces.
Meanwhile, my Etsy shop is full of the Bronze Mezuzahs casts from my silver originals
and much more affordable! Check them out, they make great housewarming and wedding gifts.

SMM Show

I am very excited to be a part of the Society for Midwest Metalmiths show this weekend at the St. Louis Ethical Society on Clayton Road.  I recently became a member of this group of Artist, who provide support, education and also grant scholarships to artists training in the Metal Arts.  There is a huge amount of talent in this group.  It is definitely worth a stop at this show, even to browse, just to see some really new and exciting jewelry and other projects in metal.

The show is Friday, October 19th, 3pm-9pm and Saturday, October 20th, 10am-4pm.  Please stop by and say Hi!! Here is a link to Show info and some eye candy.

http://www.midwest-metalsmiths.org/MembershipShow.html

URJ Show

Well I'm packing up for my biggest and most exciting show of the year.  It's the Union for Reform Judaism Biennial Conference in Maryland.  December 14th-18th at the Gaylord Hotel Complex in National Harbor.  This important Jewish convention is a great opportunity for me to expose my artwork to 5000 plus people from all over the United States.  President Obama will be speaking at the conference as well as other Political, and Spiritual leaders.  I am especially excited to meet my fellow artist from the American Guild of Judaic Art.
If you, or anyone you know, is attending the URJ Biennial this year, please drop by booth #323 in the exhibition hall and say hello. 

questions answered

I've been doing some local St. Louis craft show and I get a lot of comments and questions from people.

What are you doing here?  This is a craft fair.
Well That's true, my things are more artwork then craft and the prices are a reflection of that, but most of the local fairs I participate in are in Temples and Synagogue.  That a good place to meet Jewish people who are more likely to purchase my mezuzahs, yads and Jewish star necklaces.  Even though they may not be interested in buying anything today, they will take my card and remember me when they want to get a special gift or piece for themselves.

Is everything you make Jewish?
No it is not.  I make a lot of jewelry.  My fine silver jewelry is a reflection of my personal style and aesthetic.  I like jewelry that is causal.  I am a former sportswear designer so I keep current with the trends and try to incorporate styles that are up to date but still stand the test of time.
There are a lot of wonderful Jewelry Artists out there who work in PMC.  One reason that I started to concentrate on making Judaica is to keep myself unique and find a niche in the market.  Of course, through that process, I found I was able to express myself even more creatively and making the Judaica became my focus.

Your stuff is so beautiful, why are you not showing at Laumeier or the St. Louis Art Fair in Clayton?

Well, first of all thank you.  I really appreciate that you like my work.  I would love to be a part of those shows, but there is a short answer on why I am not.  I do not have a booth.  A proper tent (booth) with lights and display costs $2000-$4000.  In order to be considered for these shows you must have a picture of your booth in your application.  These shows are juried and the competition is fierce, especially in the Jewelry category.  So you must have a professional display and booth to be considered, and no you can't just rent one.  Buy my work and I will invest in the booth, I promise.

a blog article about me!

Please check out this article about me from Corine from Goodness Recycled.
http://www.goodnessrecycled.blogspot.com/

Chanukah Bazaar

I will be at Bnai Amoona's Chanukah Bazaar this Sunday October 24th from 9am-1pm.  Please stop by and say hi.  Remember Chanukah is early this year, the first week in December, just around the corner.

trunk show

Well, its finally October, and now I am busy at local art shows.  Please come by and visit me if you are in the area, and take a look at the Jewelry and Judaica in person!  I will be closing down my Etsy shop for a few weeks on Tuesday night so that everything in stock will be available at the shows.

I will be at Essential Elements at 9224 Clayton Road in Ladue on Wednesday, Thursday and and Friday this week (October 13,14 and 15).  Store hours are 10am-5pm.

Please come and see me!

I am so excited about all the wonderful things I have been making these past few months. I am ready for the fall shows and holiday gift giving season.  I have a few great shows coming out starting with a trunk show at Essential Elements October 13, 14, and 15.  I am about to send out a postcard with all the show dates for this fall, if you want to be included on my mailing list, please email me.

what inspires me.....

I have been  working every possible moment I have in my studio these days preparing for the fall shows.  I have a trunk show in October and The Best of Missouri Hands show in November (more details to follow).  So I need a lot of beautiful things to sell, especially jewelry (as opposed to Judaica). 

What inspires me?  Well, my approach to designing jewelry in very different than Judaica.  For jewelry, I have to go back to my roots.

First, I research.  I look at everything!  I see what the metal clay artists are up to.  Most of this research is on the web.  I look at artists I admire and also those I don't.  I want to see what everyone is excited about creating.  I get ideas about trends in style as well as technique.  Maybe a new way to add a bail to a pendent.  Of course, I never copy, but use my own style to interpret the technique.  I always take a look at my old metal clay technique books too.  Sometimes something old looks new again.  That's also why I go through my old sketch books.  I interpreted my old wire wrapped designs into metal clay!

Now it's time to research the fashion trends.  I was a knitwear and sportswear designer for years so I am very interested in fashion.  I'd like to think my jewelry is timeless design, but I can't help to make designs that relate to whats in.  It's just fun for me.  So I look at sportswear, couture as well as accessory and jewelry trends.  My favorite places for high end jewelry designs, Barneys New York!  For real trendy, young jewelry you have to check out Urban Outfitters, (of course it may fall apart by the time you get home). Ideas can come for high and low end, so I look everywhere.

Finally, I always take some time to design for me.  It may sound silly, but some of my best sellers have come from this approach.  I just bought a new dress for the Jewish holidays.  It's a solid purple Susan Monaco,  from my favorite boutique in town Essential Elements.  The dress is understated, so its perfect for jewelry. I designed these link chandeliers to wear with it.  I think that a necklace with the earrings would be way too much, but lots of chunky silver link bracelets will look great! Stay tuned for these to show up in my fall collection.

I never make jewelry that I myself wouldn't wear.  I've tried to honor a customers request when I didn't like the idea and I am always disappointed with the result.  So trend or not, if I don't like it, it's not going to happen for rachels things.

Well, I better get back to the studio, I have a lot of work to do.

so many houses for sale......

Yes, it's a buyers market, there are so many houses for sale in my neighborhood.  But these are different kinds of houses.  They are my handmade, one of a kind, tiny fine silver pendent necklaces, which depict some pretty special fantasy buildings.  Check out the new varieties in my ETSY store.

triple flower earrings

I've added additional flowers to my periwinkle earring to make this chandelier style.  It makes a real statement! Check them out on Etsy!

check out this blog

I'm featured!

Cuteable

and now for something completely different.........

I created this multi-strand necklace for my good friend Linda P's 40th birthday.  She is very girly, a bit trendy and into classic looks.  I made my version of the popular ribbon necklace that are a must have this year.  The colors are golds and pale pink.  The materials are pearl, tourmaline, rutilated and and pink quartz and gold fill chain.  It was a challenge to make and allowed me to practice my wire wrapping skills.  Oh, and she loved it!

snow day

There was a snow storm last night with super cold tempertures and everyone here in St. Louis freaked out so all the school are closed.  It seems pretty silly really, I mean it's bitter cold yes, but  the snow is really powdery and easy to clear away. 

It's nice to have the girls home from school today, but I will probably not get as much work done as I would have liked.  But this morning I did get a chance to photograph some new things for my Etsy shop.  Here is a new necklace called "Hidden Treasures".  The silver charms looks antique to me, like something you might find on an archeological dig in Europe.

i've been busy

I'm making 4 new Jewish star necklaces, 3 pairs of periwinkle drop earrings and 3 tiny house necklaces.  Still working on the tiny houses and the earrings, but check out the etsy store later this week to see the finish products.

I also recruited Abby to model a necklace so that people can get more of an idea of the scale.  Doesn't she look professional!

my new favorites

I've been wearing these earrings almost everyday. Well, not these exact earrings but some similar ones. I decided to make some less expensive earrings so that people could buy them as gifts. I made a couple different flowers and some hoops and stars, all about $35 a pair. I found myself really loving them. They look great with everything!

shining stars

Here are the stars out of the kiln. They have a white powdery appearence to them. It is quite different for the oxidized finished necklace.

Here they are after brushing them a bit with a brass wire brush. They are beginning to look more like the silver they are. I think I may leave some bright silver and only oxidize some. I have an aweful cold today so this is all I will acomplish.

alot of hoop-lah

Here is my version of the trendy, popular wrapped gold hoop. These hoops start out 1 1/4" in diameter before they are wrapped with gold fill wire and black onyx, green or brown stone, silver or turquoise. I just made these 5 pairs and they will be available for purchase at Ladue's best boutique, Essential Elements, tomorrow for $70. My thumbs are killing we from all the wrapping! But they looks great.