Sippin' Pretty Tea

Sippin' Pretty Beauty Tea is here! A collaboration I did under my Fox & Doll label with local San Francisco Tea manufacturer T-We Tea. Available for purchase via T-We events and Fox & Doll's Etsy shop.

Blended to be good for your skin inside and out. Sip this luxurious tea for glowing skin, but when it's all gone the benefits are not over!

Here are many other uses for your tea:
• Use the cold tea at the bottom of your cup as a facial toner to sooth and hydrate your skin
• Use your two post brewed tea bags on your eyes to calm tired and de-puff
• Use the wet leaves after you brew to mix with you face and body wash to exfoliate your skin
• Mix the brewed leaves with yogurt or honey for a soothing and calming mask
• Brew some tea into your night time bath to relax in

T-We does many shows around the Bay Area and beyond, so next time you are at a local independent shopping event look for their colorful display.

Collaboration with emiko oye of rewarestyle

I have been very busy lately prepping for my pop-up and other events. There have been so many new ideas flowing and of course not enough time to complete (or even start) them all. Thank god for collaborations! My new favorite thing! This holiday season I have teamed up with a few of my fellow Bay Area makers to create some exciting new items. Shown here is my first design collaboration with my long time Accessorize with Toys co-teacher, emiko oye. emiko makes incredible jewelry pieces using legos as her main material. I had a vision of glamming it up a bit with this amazing glass glitter I discovered recently, and now we have some new pieces we designed together that I am totally in love with!

This bracelet is the 'Supernova 600' and is being produced in a limited run of 12 pieces in honor of 2012. Once they are gone that is it. So head on over to Rare Device or find us at one of the upcoming events listed here.

There are also these two amazing pairs of earrings, 'The Starlet' and 'Midnight Crush', both absolutely perfect for holiday party dress up.

Currently the best place to find these and some other surprise collaborations is Rare Device at my Holiday Glamour Boutique Pop-up
600 Divisadero Street, San Francisco, CA
Open 7 days a week
Running till January 6th, 2013
www.raredevice.net

And also available online at emiko's rewarestyle etsy shop:
www.etsy.com/shop/rewarestyle

Holiday Glamour Boutique is Open

My Holiday Glamour Boutique at Rare Device in San Francisco is open! I bring you unique collaborations and works of other designers along with my handcrafted line of jewelry, accessories, paper goods and beauty products.

The pop-up boutique runs through January 6, 2013. Come visit and experience my crafty nod to eras gone by. Located at 600 Divisadero Street, San Francisco. Open seven days a week.

Facebook invite with details listed here:
https://www.facebook.com/events/102825033214765/

Here are a few images from last weeks opening reception. 

More images posted here:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.567776953239778.157504.121935954490549&type=1

Please let me know what you think once you stop by!

Shana

Three Tiny Hearts

I am guessing I was probably 5 or 6 when Nana gave me the bracelet; it was a fine gold chain with three of the sweetest tiny hearts hanging delicate on one end near the clasp. One was white gold, one yellow gold and the other rose gold. So many years later these delicate little hearts still hold strong though a bit dented and slightly crushed here and there, sort of like our own hearts. I now wear these hearts as a very delicate necklace. They are reminders to be strong but also stay soft and open to what comes your way in life. This pretty little treasure inspired me to make a new version to share. xo –ShanaI recently wrote up the story of these little necklaces to package with gifts of them from my Aunt to her Grandchildren. It was very special for my Aunt to be giving these as gifts not only because they were designed after a piece of jewelry I consider very precious from my grandmother (her mother) but also because my Aunt has strongly influenced my passion for making jewelry. She owned a spectacular art jewelry gallery in the 80's and 90's. Body Sculpture on Newbury Street in Boston was such a treasure for me to visit as a child and teen. Seeing the display of and appreciation for unique bold jewelry was a thrill to me from a early age. The exposure to artists such as Robert Lee Morris and Cara Croninger was just the beginning of my passion for jewelry and adornment. Little did I know the history already laid down at this early point and the career that was to follow. I have so many thank yous to give to those that have influenced my creative path.

I am sure my grandmother would have never guessed the influence she would have on me when giving me those three tiny hearts when I was so young. See link below to my Etsy page for this and other styles.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/32269126/three-tiny-hearts-on-a-fine-chain
Dented option available upon request.

Custom Wedding Rings

I was honored to make rings for my friends Reba and Andy. Reba's was easy, we came up with the design quickly together... little retro stars engraved into a slightly rounded band, inspired by the 'name necklaces' I had recently started making, and with a bit of a classic 50's look. And once we decided on the size and details it was done just as soon as we started the design process.


Reba's rings are the thinner ones on the right, 2mm yellow and white gold half round bands. The wider set to the left have gone off to a store in San Francisco as part of their wedding ring sample inventory. Orders are welcome on both.
This necklace is an example of the original design that inspired the rings, sold here on Etsy.

Andy's ring on the other hand was a much longer design and making process. They wanted a ring that incorporated gold that Reba found on her birthday the year before on a trip to Maine (where she is from). We came up with a design that was mostly silver with a band of gold running through it. The process of making the ring is documented here...

step 1: Melting the pure gold nuggets that they supplied (in the little vial) with some scrap added to bring the karat closer to 18k, see what a tiny nugget it turns into sitting here on a charcoal block!


step 2: The gold nugget is prepared to be drawn down into wire by adding a silver 'pull' wire onto it, before the drawing process it is hammered some to get the elongated shape started.


step 3: A draw bench is used to pull the wire through the draw plate (a steel plate with many small graduated holes), this wire was pulled about 20 times to get it down to a 18 gauge, it was annealed twice in between (heated to soften). The result is a wire that is about 6" long. Half is the gold side that we will use and half is the silver side that will be recycled.


step 4: The ring shank is made by soldering two pieces of half round sterling silver wire together, this makes for a groove that the gold round wire sits in, the wire is then soldered in the groove.


step 5: The piece is then rolled down through a rolling mill, this flattens the surfaces and elongates them. A few passes are made to get the correct flatness.


step 6: The flat wire is then bent into a almost round band, soldered, hammered round and cleaned up...


Done!


And now they are married! It really was such a special honor to attend their wedding and witness them exchange the rings I had made custom for them.

November 5th, 2011 - Rodeo Beach, Sausalito, CaliforniaMore photos from their wedding can be seen here on photographer Alison Yin's blog