Mimi-Toria’s Designs

Happiest Monday!

Meet Gretchen of Mimi-Toria’s Designs. Gretchen popped into the i-Studio a few weeks ago to share with all of us her exciting dream come true -  selling her wares at the fantastic event-  Junk Bonanza..  Oh how fabulous that show must have been! Her article was very inspirational.. and so exciting!

'Gretchen is a designer that is actively using vintage, found treasures and special new elements to design and create beautiful functional art. This may be in the form of jewelry for you to wear or art for decorating your home. Gretchen lovingly recreates with the idea of making something that was once tossed aside, now into something loved, worn again or used again and once more treasured. Recycle, Reuse, Recreate.'

I fell instantly in love with Gretchen's Art.  I love the mix of old and new. I hope to one day get up close and personal with her amazing creations.  I'd love to photograph her jewelry.  'sigh' 

I’m so happy to announce that Gretchen is going to be a regular contributor at the i-Studio.

I wanted to feature a few of her beautiful creations today.  Gretchen allowed me to play a bit with her photos. 

I added a few adjustment layers and textures just to ‘spruce’ up the images of her beautiful ART. Thank you Gretchen, for sharing your photos with me.



OH my, how I love all the beautiful forms that Gretchen displays her jewelry on.  They too are ART.



Gretchen's mix of old and new really is so BRILLIANT.



You can visit Gretchen online at her site, Mimi-Toria’s Designs. 
And watch for Gretchen’s next post at the i-Studio, later this week. Welcome to the i-Studio Gretchen.

....

Happiest week… to all …. Here’s to oodles of inspiration.
xxo, kim

Dream Big...and be Inspired

Several years ago I had a dream...it was to one day be a vendor at coveted juried event.  This event was Junk Bonanza located in Minnesota.

I am a jewelry designer, and I was inspired to create and sell at this venue.  It would be the perfect marriage for my designs.  Last week was the second year of realizing this dream. 

It feels good when you succeed, but quite often a tremendous amount of work goes into such victories.  No easy task, but so rewarding.  Here's what goes into an event such as this in a much condensed version.

First you have to find your raw elements you'd like to create with.  Many hours are spent searching for just the right pieces, as I do Vintage Redesign Style Jewelry.  I search ebay, etsy, shop at flea markets, antique shops, tag sales, estate sales, and buy from pickers that know what I'm looking for.

Hundreds of hours are spent creating my jewlery, pricing it, and finding just the right props to display my pieces properly.

Then it is packing time... Two Jeeps later, as well as a trailer filled with booth walls, we're ready to roll.

7 hours of set up time...

and it looks like this...

than the show begins...

and no photos were taken the first day.

This is a slow day...

you meet and work with customers for three days straight...

and I loved every minute of it.

I had my daughter and best friend selling for me as well,

so plan ahead with extra help.

Life is too short to wear department store jewelry!

So if you're inspired to dream big, go for it.  There will be hard work, but it can be so rewarding.

I hope you've been inspired, as I've shared a bit of my dreaming big and loving living...

Gretchen  <3

Gretchen Schaumann
Mimi-Toria's Jewelry

http://mimitoriasdesigns.blogspot.com