wire ... metal ... fibre .... unique handcrafted jewelry and accessories for men and women

Thursday, September 30, 2010

self portrait thursday: pomo mama design featured



"crafting in, around and in spite of my family in an effort to stay sane"
my blog tag line - and not such a crazy statement.

… in which i confess
Hello.
My name is Amanda .... and I make stuff. If I don't make stuff every day I start to twitch, although I am gradually weaning myself off …. by blogging every day.

… in which i try to explain
pomo mama design began almost five years ago (as ebbandflo on Etsy) as a distraction to every day SAHM life. A house purchase, reduced disposable income and diminishing 'me-time' left me feeling really desolate. Moving to the 'burbs from Vancouver was the icing on the cake, cutting me off from the support network I had worked so hard to create on arrival in Canada four years earlier. Although I love(d) motherhood and tried to keep up, my world shrank to child and home. I found it harder and harder to find any purpose to the daily grind. I was not a happy (or good) mummy (or wife) :(

… in which i find salvation
And that's where the crafting came in. I took classes (painting, drawing, and jewelry), and re-discovered the pleasure of being creative. I took my work with us on our daily outings, to parks, play centres and playgrounds. While my son played I spread the portable crafting message! I made things, I created stuff, I made gifts ... until a polite note from my mother asked me to stop sending jewelry.
I opened a shop on Etsy.

And the rest, as they say, is history. From this small beginning my fledgling home business was born. I sold a few pieces on Etsy and ventured into the local craft scene. An casual conversation led to a teaching gig (wire crochet and chainmaille) in my local bead shop. The program coordinator at a local arts centre noticed my work for sale and asked me to run summer wire crochet workshops for teens. More classes, more craft fairs, a couple of local boutiques, and I'm very proud to say that my business has been self sufficient since its second year.

… in which i try to describe “my passions”
My work encompasses metalwork, beading, silversmithing, polymer clay and art clay silver, and wire work techniques, as well as wire crochet (my main passion). Thin gauge wire and a crochet hook is all that's needed to stitch beads into a mesh. It's not a new technique but the designs, bead patterns, etc. are all my own. I started out making cuffs and simple chain necklaces but have evolved to constructing intricate collars and chunky bib neck pieces. Flowers and my parents' garden are a huge inspiration for me; right now I'm working on daisy chains in all their forms :) 

My other 'love' is fibre - I embroider it back into the wire crochet pieces and wet felt the designs in place. I love the unusual and quirky juxtaposition of media, traditional versus unexpected. Again there's a childhood reference - my mother taught me to knit, sew, embroider and crochet, all skills which I incorporate into the wire and fibre work. At the beginning of the year, some forest-inspired wire and fibre pieces were included in a gallery exhibition. It was incredible seeing my work on display. I'm now working on submissions for further group shows in Whistler and closer to home in 2011. Gallery exhibitions are a good exercise in being more creative and less conventional. For example, instead of my usual wet felting, I'm working on some needle felted designs which allow a more precise placement of embellishments. 

Other 'close to home' inspirations include the ocean (I frequently use sea glass gathered from the Scottish beach I grew up near), and my husband.  He's been immensely supportive of my venture, and also a source of ideas - voila! cuff links; wire wrapped, metal-smithed, and from art clay. 

.. in which i try to wrap it all up (at last)
Being creative has become my business, which in turn gives me a small degree of financial independence (nothing that I could retire on, but at least I can buy birthday presents with 'my own' money), and something to do other than parenting or domestic chores. I'm doing something I never thought I would do (ie. run my own business) though I wouldn't label myself a mompreneur and recognise I do need to take pomo mama design to “the next level” (business plan anyone?). Running a small business is a great way to get to know a new culture IMO and it's also a wonderful way to stay home for my Wee Guy (though, in full disclosure, he is currently enjoying two days of after school care, and so am I). Another unexpected spin off is my thorough and complete immersion into the online world, business and personal. I've had to become somewhat web-savvy to sell online, and also found I enjoy networking, marketing and generally hanging out on the internet. I’m a social media junkie and web-wannabe, both of which have opened up new volunteer opportunities running a blog for a local artist cooperative and re-hashing a website for a local non-profit. Without selling online I don't think I would have developed these skills or discovered the joys of forums, twitter, blogging or flickr. Through them I've found a new community/support network which is accessible either when I'm "at work" or "relaxing" in the evening (ho, ho - hello raccoon mums .
This, in itself, has been a sanity saver.

This article originally appeared on Wet Coast Women on Tuesday (thank you @crunchycarpets for the invite) 




Wednesday, September 29, 2010

wordless wednesday: a day of flowers




A new flower ring in progress and a new long daisy chain.
Yes, it's all about the flowers :)


Tuesday, September 28, 2010

New inventory at the Blackberry Gift Shop



I've renewed inventory in the gift shop of the Port Moody Arts Centre. Two of the daisy chain necklaces have already sold so I'll be replacing them soon :)

Monday, September 27, 2010

new inventory at Place des Arts


currently at Place des Arts

Just to let you know, I've added new inventory to the gift boutique at Place des Arts in Coquitlam. There are also still places left in the wire and fibre workshop I'll be teaching starting towards the end of October.

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

wordless wednesday: working offline at Place des Arts

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From Evernote:

wordless wednesday: working offline at Place des Arts

Friday, September 17, 2010

fibre friday: you could do this

"spring cactus" wire and fibre beads with fluorite and glass
Yes, you could learn how to make these.

wire and fibre pendant 
"into the garden" wire and fibre cuff
Registration is now open for my wire and fibre workshop at Place des Arts. It starts on October 21st and runs over three Thursday evenings, 6.30 - 9pm. It's suitable for complete beginners as I'll be teaching you how to crochet with wire before we start adding the fibre elements into each piece.
We'll be covering making a mesh cuff, wire beads and possibly an embroidered pendant or two.
Further information and registration here.

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

wordless wednesday: restocking

 
sterling silver with fused copper posts, cut glass 'dangles'
 
New photographs for old products - gradually listing them online

brass "bud" pendant
 brass "bud earrings

chunky copper wire cuff with carnelian, tigereye, glass, amber, citrine, agate and vintage beads
currently for sale at Place des Arts, Coquitlam

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Got my inventory out!


Got my inventory out!, originally uploaded by ebbandflo_pomomama.

After the summer there's nothing quite like getting out all your inventory to set you off on the right track!

Well, let's put it this way - getting all the inventory in one place at one time was the only way I could attempt to get organised ..... so here it all is. See any favourites? Keep an eye on my online shops as they're on their way soon.

Got my inventory out!


Got my inventory out!, originally uploaded by ebbandflo_pomomama.

After the summer there's nothing quite like getting out all your inventory to set you off on the right track!

Well, let's put it this way - getting all the inventory in one place at one time was the only way I could attempt to get organised ..... so here it all is. See any favourites? Keep an eye on my online shops as they're on their way soon.

Saturday, September 11, 2010

Networking and demonstrating

This afternoon I spent a lovely couple of hours talking to visitors about my wire crochet classes at the Place des Arts open day. Although I don't have any straightforward classes coming up,there are three workshops in wire and fibre starting towards the end of October which are booking now. See the Classes tab above for more details.

Networking and demonstrating

This afternoon I spent a lovely couple of hours talking to visitors about my wire crochet classes at the Place des Arts open day. Although I don't have any straightforward classes coming up,there are three workshops in wire and fibre starting towards the end of October which are booking now. See the Classes tab above for more details.

Networking and demonstrating

This afternoon I spent a lovely couple of hours talking to visitors about my wire crochet classes at the Place des Arts open day. Although I don't have any straightforward classes coming up,there are three workshops in wire and fibre starting towards the end of October which are booking now. See the Classes tab above for more details.

halloween is nigh



Yes, it's that time of year again (roll out the spooky eye ball earrings - thanks The SherriffsDaughter for curating this spooky collection).

Friday, September 10, 2010

Fibre friday: the cat


Fibre friday: the cat, originally uploaded by ebbandflo_pomomama.

Well, she has plenty of it ..... and spends time in the studio!

Thursday, September 9, 2010

WIP: wire and fibre collar detail


wire and fibre collar, originally uploaded by ebbandflo_pomomama.

This is today's WIP (there's a video of some of the needle felting in progrees over here) and it's still not finished. Along with some wire crochet panels and a wire spool knit, all are destined for the Place des Arts open days I'll be demo'ing during, this evening and on Saturday afternoon.
The WIPs are a taster of what happens in my wire crochet and fibre classes. There'll be some fun hands-on stuff too as well as examples of class projects.

OK, the needlefelting is part of a planned wire and fibre 2 workshop proposal but I wanted to sneak it in here :)

See you this evening!

demo prep

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

(almost) wordless wednesday: fibre and wire


fibre and wire, originally uploaded by ebbandflo_pomomama.

Prepping for a wire and fibre demo tomorrow night at the Place des Arts Adult Open Evening, Ignite.
The event (adults only) runs from 7pm to 9pm and includes artist talks, music, visual arts demos, door prizes and discounts off class registration, Oh, and there's a complimentary glass of wine courtesy of event sponsors, Rigamarole.
I'll be demonstrating some of the wire and fibre techniques I'll be teaching in the upcoming evening workshop series this Fall.
Place des Arts will be running a family-friendly version of the open day on Saturday, 2-4pm, with an even bigger selection of hands-on events. I'll be there with a selection of projects covered in my teens' Pro D Day and summer classes.
It would be lovely to see you so please drop by, introduce yourself and say 'Hi'.
:)

on the bench

wire and fibre

on the bench

 
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