New Website is Coming!

a little glimpse of the new site

I am super excited to tell you I have a new website coming and it will be here tomorrow! I've been working with my graphic designer and friend, Brandon Dawley, to create a simple, user friendly portfolio site. I'm overdue for a new website and pleased to finally be moving forward on this project.

What a great way to start the new year: a new website AND a new studio! Oh! And new work! I'll start making the "homeland" part of my upcoming solo exhibition next week.

Happy New Year to all of you! 

Thanks for reading.

Getting Ready

I started painting my studio yesterday and should be able to finish the job today. I'll move my benches and tools in later this week and start working again on Saturday. Can't wait!

before

after primer

Thanks for reading.

Happy Holidays

The happiest of holidays to all of you 

with warm wishes for a new year full of laughter and love.

Thanks for reading.

Thinking About White

white spray paint

Flower Brooch from "Fabricated Memory: Jewelry Box, 1980

When I first arrived at my new home in Upstate New York everything was covered in snow and it snowed every day for several consecutive days. Then it rained and it kept raining and now there is no snow. The white and then absence of white has made me think again about white in my work: white spray paint, white thread, white lace, white enamel…

paper doilies

detail of Ruff No. 1 from Observation Series

white thread

detail of a Necklace from Heat Exchange 

white enamel

"Winter," an enameled book

more white thread

detail of "Island of 14,264 Days"

I created a white set on Flickr, too, with all sorts of images of white in my work.

Thanks for reading.

Starting Point

a partially frozen stream a few blocks from my house

I started working on the "homeland" part of my upcoming solo exhibition on Monday. I've been taking daily walks to allow my mind to wander and also to remember growing up here, to collect photographs and other visual information, and to begin forming ideas. As I walk I try to clear my mind of everything else (easier said than done!) and I try to focus on my work. I've been thinking about the definition of home, or my definition of home, and I'm thinking about ways I can show this in new jewelry. When I get back to the house, I do some writing--sentences, lists, short paragraphs, questions--just get my thoughts recorded for further reference. I would like to walk every day so by early January I have a rich collection of information to work with.

I read an interesting article on Brain Pickings Tuesday night that couldn't have come at a better time. The piece was about a book on generating ideas. A Technique for Producing Ideas by James Webb Young, written in 1939, describes the five basic steps in forming an idea. I was so excited to read the steps--I see each one in my process, especially because I begin with walking, a great place for the process to evolve and happen. I immediately bought a copy for myself and can't wait for it to arrive.

I'll be adding photographs to Flickr and Facebook regularly…or find me on Instagram!

Thanks for reading.

Setting the Stones

I've been working with a client over the last few months on a commission. Jason asked me to make an angular cuff similar to one I made last year. He gave me a set of sentimental river stones he had collected to include in the design and requested a scratched and distressed surface on the final piece.

This was a challenging and fun bracelet to make. I don't often set stones, especially ones as small as some of these. Soldering all five to the cuff simultaneously was a bit intense, but tremendously gratifying. I remember exclaiming "badass" when I was done. The cuff itself is scored and folded, which is probably my favorite technique. It was a great place to start. I'm very pleased with the piece and Jason was equally as happy.

Working with Jason was also a pleasure. He was open to my ideas and communicative and even made me a short video showing how my copper maquette fit his wrist. It was the perfect visual aid considering I made the piece long-distance.

Check out more process images on Flickr.

Thanks for reading.

Farewell, Asheville

It will be strange to not live in the south anymore. I loved living there. It's beautiful, the people are nice, often quite helpful and welcoming, and the history, although dark, is fascinating. The south also has The Penland School of Crafts, which you know I have a long history with.

Asheville was a good place for me to be for awhile. I moved there from Seattle in 2007, but my almost regular visits to Asheville and the south began in 1999 when I started going to Penland. I remember thinking Asheville would be a transitional home and it ended up being exactly that. I lived there for a year and half before I became a Penland resident artist and, later, it was my home-base during all my traveling. I think the amount of time I spent in my apartment was equal to the amount of time I spent away from it. In the last few months I have enjoyed some hikes in the surrounding mountains and some wandering around the city, the company of some absolutely lovely people, and lots of excellent food.

I just added some final images to Flickr and to Facebook of Asheville. 

Thanks for reading.

Everything Will Be New

my studio, all packed up

I left Asheville on Thursday in a 10-foot U-Haul truck and drove my studio, my clothes, my books, and my precious collection of art and objects to Upstate New York. The trip was absolutely wonderful and it couldn't have been easier. The weather was perfect for driving, the stereo in the truck was killer (believe it or not!), I had snacks, and I took my time, stopping every so often just so I could take pictures. I did drive through a little snow squall in the last 20 minutes of the drive, but I didn't mind. It was beautiful and it felt welcoming in a strange way. After I put most of my things in a storage unit, I made my way to my parents' house and the sky opened up. As I drove by thfields on the outskirts of town I realized the landscape is similar to Iceland. There are some vast open spaces here and it felt really good to me. I am excited to explore and relearn these places and my hometown in the coming weeks.

Virginia

West Virginia

Pennsylvania

I spent the weekend getting settled into my parents' house, shoveling show, and hanging Christmas lights. I do feel a bit out of sorts--I just uprooted my life and it's been about 20 years since I've lived at home. This will pass, though…

the sky over my storage unit

I will be laying-low the next few weeks as I transition into this new lifestyle. I won't be making any jewelry, but I will be working on ideas for my upcoming solo show in Sweden. I will be walking every day just as I do when I visit a foreign country and I plan to start today. I will collect visual information and thoughts as I observe, take pictures and make notes. Then in early January I will begin making a new body of work.

It's exciting.

Thanks for reading.

You Might Find Me in Your City

I have four new places carrying my work--two very close by and two very far away. Exciting! You can now find my jewelry at North Channel General in Gore Bay, Ontario, Canada, OHMYBLUE in Venice, Italy, Gallery West in Columbia, SC and This Land in Charlotte, NC.

The studio pictures above and below are from This Land who visited me a few weeks ago to talk with me about my work. The other images are from OHMYBLUE and show my work on display in their beautiful gallery in Italy.

Again, exciting!

Thanks for reading.

Sweet Goodbyes

I said goodbye to my assistant, Claire Buck, yesterday. Claire and I have been working together for the last two months and what a wonderful two months it has been. I couldn't be happier with the work she did for me or for the fantastic fun we had in the studio together. I will miss her terribly. She has gone on to work with another jeweler in upstate NY for a few weeks and, hopefully, in the near future she will continue to work for me but from afar in her own studio. Please visit Claire's website to see her beautiful jewelry and check her own Holiday Sale.

Huge thanks to you, Claire! 

Thanks for reading.

Thank You So Very Much!

Thanks to all of you who helped make my short Etsy Holiday Sale such a huge success through Likes, sharing and purchases! You all make me so happy and grateful! 

My Etsy Shop is now closed for the month of December and will reopen in January. 

Thanks for reading.

Two More Days

New earrings in the Shop!

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving yesterday! I spent the day with a few friends and we cooked and cooked and cooked and then ate and ate and ate, of course. It was a very nice, low-key day.

Large Arc Pendant $48

I just want to remind you my Etsy Holday Sale is still on and almost OVER! It ends tomorrow night…The response so far has been fantastic and I am so grateful. Please visit the shop today or tomorrow and enjoy 25% off and free shipping. The shop closes at the end of the day on Saturday and will close until January.

Seven… $136.50

And, I added a new pair of earrings to the shop. A combo of my Regal Graffiti and History Repeats Collection. See top image.

Bright Badges $36 each

Thanks for reading. Have a wonderful holiday weekend!

More Sale and More Ways to Watch What I Do

Gold Bow Earrings $150

So the sale is on and I am very happy with the response from all of you so far! Thank you! Just to remind you, it's on through this coming Saturday, everything is 25% off and shipping is free. Sound good? I hope so! Please stop by the shop and take a look…I think I might add a few new things, too, like these Gold Bow Earrings. This color is my favorite right now. It looks different when I first paint and then the color is transformed with patina. I think it's quiet lovely.

AND guess what?! I am now on Instagram! I finally broke down and got an iPhone (which I am absolutely in love with). Find me on Instagram (amytavern)…I'll be posting pictures of my work,  studio and process shots, and pictures of things I find interesting as I move through my day. 

Oh! And one more thing! I'm having a sale this Saturday at my studio (7 Ton Letterpress Collective) with my friend and fellow studio mate, Beth Schaible of Quill and Arrow Press. We'll have all sorts of lovely things on hand and would most certainly love to see you.

7 Ton is located at 178A Westwood Place in West Asheville

Thanks for reading.

Etsy Holiday Sale is On!

Rose Necklace Reg $65, Sale $48.75

My Etsy Holiday Sale is now live! All jewelry is 25% off and shipping in the US is free. The sale only lasts through this coming Saturday, November 30…

Small Earrings in Gold, Reg $72, Sale $54

Arc Cluster Pendant, Reg $172, Sale $129

I do hope you stop by the shop, take a look, and pick up a gift or two (or maybe a little something something for yourself!).

Happy Holidays and thanks for reading.

Guest Star #126…Anne Kranenborg

Today's Guest Star is Anne Kranenborg from The Netherlands. I discovered her work just the other day while visiting the blog, Trendjuf, where her series, "Fragmentures," was featured. I was drawn to the images of her plaster necklace and it's transformation in the hands of the wearer. My interest lead me to her website which includes various projects using a variety of materials and processes from wind and video to furniture design to light and photography. What I gather from the images and the all-to-brief text is that she is interested in ideas of transience, abstraction, and the alteration of space. Her work gives me pause and makes me rethink objects, function, and observation.

Thanks for reading.