Owner: Charming Sam Studio URL:http://www.charmingsam.blogspot.com/ Join Date: Fri, 24 Nov 2006 22:18:18 -0600 Rating:0 Site Description: Handcrafted travel jewelry using artist Amy Steinberg’s original mixed media paintings set in necklaces, rings and earrings. London, Paris and NYC are just a few destinations to choose from. Each piece is hand embellished by the artist before set in res Site statistics:Click here
Yeah! 2007 is finally here! 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Well, here we are...a new year and I am OVERWHELMED by the sheer amount of things that need to be done. However, to close out December and start the new year on the right foot Sam and I got together to pick out our top favs for the end of 2006.3.) We found this cute little tricycle on Etsy today and since we will be focusing on our riding skills in the new year thought this was a great pick. You can see her complete store at Art & Ghosts http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5032864 - but be prepared while she does beautiful work most of it is a lot darker then this particular piece here. Beautiful and extremely interesting!2.) Comfortable is the name of the game and Sam is very much in too "soft pants" these days. Jeans are too stiff and if there isn't an elastic waste band well then they just aren't worth wearing. So we went in search of "soft" clothing and found this cute little outfit. Everyone needs a Pirate shirt these days and with the little pants, well you just can't go wron
Little Birds 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Sam found the CUTEST little handmade birds today. How cute is this? You can thank the wonderful artist Ann Wood and her creations can be found at http://www.annwoodhandmade.com/ . Supposedly she does little owls too (which would be a coup for Sam).We found Ann because of this lovely ship she did which is TOTALLY amazing and if you visit her blog you can read more about it and see some more amazing photos. Worth the time, worth the trip so give yourself 20 minutes and visit Ann.Cheers! Read more:Birds
Oh Joy! 1970-01-01 00:59:59 One of my very, very favorite sites is a blog called Oh Joy! Complete with home, beauty, fashion and artistry of all kinds.Joy has found some of the most beautiful things on the web and her blog is worth spending extra time on. However, I picked out just a few of my favorites.Tantalizing huh? Click on the photos to reference the artist/company and be sure to visit Joy at www.ohjoy.blogs.com.Happy!
Decor 8 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Another favorite site that has truely beautiful things is Decor
8. Ohhhh! such nice things Holly picks out. AND, for those of you looking for more sites similar to hers then give yourself about 8 hours to troll through all the links Holly has put together on her site. She has chosen some beautiful artists, designers and shops all over the world and worth the time to visit each of them. I honestly am still working my way through, trying to tag the one's I love and just gazing upon the lovelies.This was posted a couple of days ago and I think it really is beautiful. Such a visually interesting room. The photograph is cool in of itself with the hallway beyond the multiple doors. Kind of like looking backwards through a mirror. (Alice and the Looking Glass?) Then the chandelier in the bathroom? Lovely! I know, I know this has been a thing for the last few years...the whole chandelier thing but I like the contemporary feelling of the black/white of the textiles and the old world feel of t
mon Petite Artwork 1970-01-01 00:59:59 About a year ago "Grammy" bought Sam these two little paintings from what I think was a street vendor in an old Eastern Block country and they hang in Sam's room along with a few other "original" pieces of artwork I've started to collect for her.Grammy & Grandpa live in Kosovo as Grandpa works for the UN. That is a whole different story but the relevancy here is these adorable little paintings from an unknown artist, done on simple 1/2" plywood, finished in this beautiful blue and then painted with the tiniest paintbrush. It takes a very deft hand to do this kind of painting and if I were to guess the person who painted these probably has some pretty amazing work that they've done for a more grown-up crowd. Unfortunately I'll never know but kudos to the artist wherever they are.The top painting is the cow that jumped over the moon, here is a zoom in of the princess on the moon. The entire painting is only about 3 1/2" square so this is zoomed in quite a bit. As for the bottom paint Read more:Artwork
, Petite
Sophie Pearl - Taffeta Garden Dress 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Today while browsing around MySpace I found a new designer, SophiePearl
. She does these beautiful 50's inspired dresses in perfectly feminine fabrics and colors. This first dress is made from Taffeta! What a pretty party dress for high tea or low tea...depending on your preference. Very Alice in Wonderland!I also love this Peplum top that is a interesting print and what looks to be beautiful craftsmanship. Mmmm, mmm...so pretty! Stop bye Sophie Pearl and check our her lovelies when you get a chance! Her website is also very pretty and I like how she's used a children's book motif.Cheers! Read more:Garden
Christine Mason Miller aka Swirly Girl 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Years ago, in another lifetime ... before Sam but after my years in the high tech world I came across this wonderful artist going by the name of Swirly Girl. I later learned her name was ChristineMasonMiller
and she is a multi-faceted artist that works in other mediums besides graphic arts for the greeting card industry. But, that is where I found her.. a greeting card artist and I fell in love with her whimsical style. I also have to say, to be fair that at the time I was thinking maybe I should try to sell my art in to the greeting card industry. Let's just say that I learned a lot, and learned there is a very special kind of art needed for that market segment - none of which I possess.Anyway, Christine is a wonderful artist and truly inspiring. She is also a very nice person AND she created the Charming Sam logo. Yeah!In the last three years Christine has expanded the artwork she shows and is doing these fabulous collages and other things. Take a few minutes and visit her portfo
Sweet Lady Jane - Sweets 1970-01-01 00:59:59 How come we've never talked about food? Sweet
s in particular are a family favorite and lucky for me Sam is a connoisseur of some of the finer candies. She only likes sour blue Jelly-Belly's (c), gum so sweet it makes you sick and occasionally she'll fall for a good chocolate. Of course she has this whole Cheetos thing that I won't get in to here but none the less she can make a mockery out of the finest cakes, brownies and cookies. Which got us to thinking that we should really share our love of some of the better sweets in the world. I won't get in to how I know "of" Jane from Sweet Lady Jane, lets just say she is the friend of a friend of mine with whom I love dearly and he SWEARS that Sweet Lady Jane's has the best sweets on this side of the Atlantic. My next trip to SoCal will include a trip to pay homage and also sample more of the delicacies then those available online. She also does some of the loveliest wedding cakes I've ever seen and rumour has it she sends them all ov Read more:Sweets
CosmoGirl & Charming Sam 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Yeah! Thank you CosmoGirl! We are extremely happy that we are in the February issue of CosmoGirl. Last November the friendly editors at CosmoGirl were kind enough to ask us to participate in the February jewelry give-a-way of which we said, "of course!". You can win several pieces of Charming Sam jewelry by going to www.cosmogirl.com during the month of February and signing up for their daily contests. We are giving away six pieces on different days of the month so check back often.I'll also probably do a fun contest for Valentines Day. I'm working on a cool fabric covered heart pendant today and if it works out well then I'll put those up and give a few a way during the month.I'm also in the process of re-designing this blog and in the next couple of months you'll see all kinds of wonderful things happening with Charming Sam online. There are exciting stuff in the works and I can't wait. Oh, and WAIT until you see the new add's for the line. I'll put them up on the sit
Swarovski Crystal Yarn 1970-01-01 00:59:59 I'm not sure of the "why" but when I started Charming Sam I said to myself, "I'm not going to do that cheap looking Swarovski
crystal thing in my jewelry!" And, just to give you a bit of perspective at the time I had just imported (yes, I said IMPORTED) my first stock of jewelry that was made in India. Let's just say the ROI on my first line was something like $12,000 to ZERO. I then figured out I should probably learn how to make jewelry myself so went about learning from a very nice shop owner in Charlotte, NC who does some of the most amazing jewelry I've ever seen. Kristine is the very hip owner and the name of the shop is "On A String". For those of you in or near Charlotte please stop bye to see her, learn from her and absorb some of her creativity because she has loads of it! Unfortunately she doesn't have a web presence so I can't show you just how amazing, colorful and interesting her designs are. (bummer!)Anyway, Kristine was nice enough to not only teach me some basics Read more:Crystal
, Swarovski Crystal
Paper Flowers - Oh, la - la! 1970-01-01 00:59:59 O.k. so ever since I did a little spot on the OhJoy! blog about a week ago I've been on a bend to find out how to make paper flowers as inspired by Justine Smith. I can use my own wire, a simple brass wire in a heavy gauge like a 14 or 16 is probably going to be good enough to create the stem. If you are looking for a kit though check out http://www.paper-source.com/cgi-bin/paper/kits/flower_kits.htmlbin/paper/kits/flower_kits.html for a slew of kits. I'm going to root around though and find some nice papers in my studio and then I'm going to hand wrap the wire stem with nice strips. Ohhh...or, I could wrap the step with strips of pretty fabric too. Hmmm? I'm going to have to experiment. Anyway this is a great kit to start out learning and from here you can move on to what artist Justine Smith has done using paper currency.Now, I can also envision some beautiful little gemstones being added to the centers of the flowers and then use gold filled jewelry wire as the stamens. Mmm! Jus Read more:Flowers
Headboards - Love At First Sight 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Sam and I found this lovely handmade headboard on Decor8 (courtesy of Marie Claire Maison) almost a month ago and just haven't been able to get it out of our heads. Sam loves this color of pink, which I realize is what color the entire wall is but I'd love to get a nice frame like this, paint the way and then start to tack up pictures of her, activities she is doing and just other things she loves. The headboard would then change over the years as she gets older and would be interesting to take pictures every six months just to see how it changes over the years. There is an antique store not to far from here that looks like it is more of a flea market so maybe I'll go in search. Have fun if you make one, I'd love to see pics!Cheers! Read more:First
, Sight
Fall-Winter 2007/2008 Color & Style Trends 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Here we go...color and style trend forecasts for NEXT fall and winter. I've actually had this in my email inbox since November 18, 2006. Yes, that was two months ago. But I've been busy, crazy and then it was the holidays and now I'm still trying to clean up from the holidays while planning for the next 12 months. I'm not sure where to begin but somehow the style and trends forecast seems important. If you've never visited InfoMat you should stop bye just to see what they have with regards to the fashion industry as a whole.The Style
Council puts out several reports a year and here is the one for 2007/2008 Fall/Winter.The style Council outlook for Women's Fall / Winter 2007-08 includes four main themes:OrnamentBattledressPortrait of a LadyMidnight MasqueradeYou can see the entire report along with color swatches at http://www.infomat.com/trends/inftr0003393.html. Read more:Color
, Trends
Jamie Zollars - Is that her real name? 1970-01-01 00:59:59 I found a new artist, I found a new artist! Yeah! Happy Dance! Yes her name is Jamie
Zollars and she does wonderful contemporary whimsical-ish art. It is not 100% childrens art, (although Sam was especially appreciative of the "Pink Elephant Procession") but there is an edginess to many of the pieces that make them more adult oriented. Oh but, honestly it doesn't matter. As with all art it is purely subjective and I personally L-O-V-E her style, use of color and subject matter. Not to mention her prices are down right affordable for prints and I'll be adding one to Sam's collection before the end of the day.Please take the time to explore her website with lovely gallery, her shop and her blog. She is a wonderful artist and illustrator and I'm so pleased to have found her.Look at this lovely painting. The flower at the top is BEAUTIFUL when you view it up close and color of the sky in contrast. I could go on and on.Guess what too? She has DIY projects using her artwork! I'm off to
Other Jewelry Designers 1970-01-01 00:59:59 I love all things and other jewelry designers are no exception. I get such inspiration from their craft and many times their work pushes me to go further, work harder and continue to improve my own craft. There are many designers out there whom I love and have spoken about here before, one of which is Beth Lauren. However I thought today I'd highlight some other wonderful designers, including some that probably don't consider themselves "indie" companies because they are pretty well known but as far as I am concerned the founders still run the company so they are indie!The first is Wendy Mink and at the top you see a photo of her jewelry store in Manhattan. Isn't it lovely?The next great designer is from a company called "Alex & Ani". I first ran across Carolyn Rafaelian designs at Nordstroms and love her signature "expandable bangles". She named the company after her kids and her use of color in many of her designs is beautiful. The photo shown here is an expandable bangle bracelet Read more:Designers
, Jewelry
Shoulder Dusters 1970-01-01 00:59:59 I LOVE long earrings right now. They are a nice change from chandelier style earrings and are a little less dressy. These are made from wheel shaped garnets of the darkest blood red and are really quite pretty. I've been known to wear these with jeans and a cute little t-shirt and even with shorts on a hot summer day to run errands.So here is a gorgeous sweater I found at Anthropologie (they buy from lots of indie designers)...and I would wear this sweater with jeans and these great earrings. Perfect for a nice autumn day! (Oh, and don't forget your ballet flats!) Read more:Shoulder
In a Funk... 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Each day brings me to find new and great things that indie designers are up too. Today has been tough though and I'm not really sure why. I bought a pair of shoes from a company out of LA named BC Footwear (see my StyleHive) but I couldn't find anything on the net about how big the company was or anything...I'm guessing they are small but who knows these days. I loved Origins for years until I found out they were founded and owned by Estee Lauder. Not that there is anything wrong with Estee Lauder but it took some of the shiny "organic" feel away from my perception.Anyway, so I did find a indie clothing designer that I think does really beautiful clothing. It is called "aelisheva". http://www.aelisheva.com/
Tulle, Tulle & More Tulle... 1970-01-01 00:59:59 About a year and a half ago I experimented with wrapping glass pearls in tulle. Actually, experimented is not the right word since I ended up including several designs in my 2005 holiday collection that were reminescent of the hot Lanvin necklaces that were so popular at the time. The funny thing was that while everyone in the fashion industry loved the tulle necklaces from Lanvin (sporting a retail price tag of about $750) they never really took off outside of the most fashionable circles. The Lanvin necklaces were meant to be tied to the side or in back with a pretty bow and then the pearls were all beautifully encased in silk tulle. Like a lot of other designers I tried out this style on my customer base and found that people did NOT want to tie a necklace around their neck. Go figure! If you want to see some of the beautiful Lanvin necklaces in this same vein though I'd encourage you to visit the Lanvin homepage.. www.lanvin.com and explore some of Alber Elbaz amazing work. And fo
Anthropologie 1970-01-01 00:59:59 For those of you not familiar with the Anthropologie brand then you should probably take a tour of their site. www.anthropologie.com I've saved EVERY catalog they have ever printed and have stacks of them in my studio. They serve as inspiration, not only because of the merchandise they sell but the catalog styling is fantastic. The styling has gone through a bit of a change the last few years but they are still staying true to their core demographic and to those of us who LOVE every single catalog. Some of you may remember Banana Republic catalogs from the 80's...while these two catalogs aren't similar in layout or styling there is a cult following to both. I can only hope Anthropologie doesn't do what Banana Republic did...So, today I'm on the Anthropologie site...I usually hit the site at least a couple of times a week just to see what is new. The company is part of Urban Outfitters whom also own Free People clothing. Of which I've been a fan of Free People for years and years.
Such Amazing People... 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Every day I find something on the Internet that I just LOVE! Some days I find even more then one thing and thank god my husband reminds me that shopping is not "my" job. Instead I wander through the net looking for ways to promote my business, see what other artists are doing and am continually amazed by the creativity people have. I mean how do they think up some of the things they do?Which leads me to the say..."Do what you love, love what you do." All the indie designers, craftspeople and artisans out there are really doing this out of love. Its a lot of hard work, perserverance and really hard. With all that said there is this little Etsy shop that I just can't get out of my head. It is called Monkey Shines and they sell buttons. The kind of buttons you pin on your back pack, purse or where ever. They do the cutest stuff! Like who would have thought of such a thing and then put it out on the net and sell them? So cool! Visit them...http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=38443 Also, Read more:Amazing
Charming Sam Discount 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Use code FRIENDS during checkout at www.charmingsam.com and get 30% off everything. Tell your friends! Read more:Discount
Alright, here we go again. I've found another blo... 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Alright, here we go again. I've found another blog that I truly am enjoying. I swear to you even up until six months ago I swore I wasn't going to do the blog thing. No way, no how! My mom started a blog before Sam and I did and at the time I thought "what a waste of time!" (sorry mumsy when you read this!) Of course now I read her blog and while I've been to Bird in the Hand before I came across it again last week and am enchanted. This lovely little blog is written by Lisa Congdon of San Francisco and you can find it at http://www.birdinthehand.typepad.com/ . Her art is beautiful, interesting and Sam and I are going to have to drive up to the city and visit some venues where she shows her work.For some reason I was drawn to this particular piece of her artwork and thought it interesting that Lisa seemed a bit unsure of her flower painting ability(?). She says, "this is probably only the second or third time i've ever painted flowers in my life. and neither of the first two times Read more:Alright
The official Charming Sam blog. 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Welcome to the Charming Sam official blog site. If you don't know who Charming Sam is then let me introduce us. I the writer of this blog am also the "mommy"(designer) and artist (see my paintings at www.amysteinberg.com ) of one 2 1/2 year old Sam. She is technically the Charming Sam in this deal. However when she was born I had a little craziness take over me and decided I should start a jewelry company in addition to my art business...so I named it Charming Sam.www.charmingsam.com This site will continue to evolve ... but conceptually I want to use this as a forum to talk about jewelry design, art, fashion and support indie designers everywhere. What I've found over the last 5 years is that indie designers and artists work really hard and are so passionate about what they do. There is a reason why some artisans and crafts people choose this path and it is because they are really doing something they love. Whatever it is that you love, translate that in too buying from indie design
I have to tell people about Etsy. If you haven't ... 1970-01-01 00:59:59 I have to tell people
about Etsy. If you haven't heard about it well...now you will. It is THE coolest site on the web for crafters, artists, designers, etc. Etsy people sell all kinds of wonderful things. First you should visit etsy... www.etsy.com Now you should visit Charming Sam at Etsy...www.amysteinberg.etsy.comHere are two of my favorite shops on Etsyhttp://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=991http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=38443
Heart Me! 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Guess what? Valentines Day is creeping up on us and we all have someone to buy a card for or a little gift. Whether it's a significant other or maybe just a friend, either way the hunt for a great card and gift is on.Personally, I hate Hallmark cards. O.k., "hate" may be too strong of a word but I really loathe sidling up to the rack at the local store AND it all goes against the grain of supporting indie artists. But I am happy to report I found a great little card company perfect for V-Day. Greetings With Heart
a little art in the form of wonderful greeting cards from beautiful photography (l'OH, fleurs de La-La), handmade charm cards (great to send to your favorite princess! Sam likes the elephants!) and of course my personal favorite the paintings! Yeah! O.k., honestly all of them speak to me in some form or another and I like the idea of three women artists getting together to create and promote their craft. So cool!Stop bye, visit with these wonderful artists and send someone y
Sam's January Fav Picks! 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Once again I've corraled Sam on to the computer to peruse some cool things I found to see what she thinks. While looking at some things she decided that she wanted to see "funny cats". "Ummm, o.k.", I said. (My mind meanwhile was sort of drawing a blank.) Then it came to me in a flash YouTube. We'd never been to YouTube and who knows what they might have. Off we went and did a search on "funny cats".Thus her #3 pick for January
is this funny video from YouTube. I know, I know...but when a 3 year old decides she likes something there is just no talking her out of it. And let me tell you how she screams with laughter EVERYTIME she watches it. Squeals, screams, crys and pounds the top of the desk. I think it may be her all time funniest thing she's ever seen.3) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIqhUCZgwXQ Now that you've given in to watching the funny cats we'll move on to number two.2) Hair ornamentation. That's right, every little girl needs a pretty hair clip for her hair and these
Paint by Number 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Yes, I know it's been a few days since I posted anything making for a rather boring site. However, I do have good excuses as I was at a gem show in Tucson and then was lucky enough to get food poisoning. Putting all that aside though I think you'll be happy with todays find. Remember when you were a kid and and aspiring artist and thought paint by number would be a great addition to your portfolio? Well now it really is cool and in the form of great wall strips. So instead of papering your entire wall or that of your kids room with some tacky, tacky wall paper you can grab the kids or the girls for a "paint by number" party and get to work on making your abode the hippest on the block. Designing has never been so easy or so much fun. Of course the monkey paper is a personal favorite of Sam's but be sure to check the site, www.2jane.com out because they also have a rockin' fish strip!Cheers!Amy Read more:Number
, Paint
Baby Mobile or Art Sculpture? 1970-01-01 00:59:59 When Sam was little she didn't spend much time in her crib to enjoy any kind of mobile even if we'd had one. However, today I ran across these great art mobiles from a friendly seller on Etsy, Quilt Baby" and love, love, love them. Not so much because they are interesting mobiles for baby but more because they are really a sculpture for your home. Assuming you have the right place in your home to hang this from the ceiling. A great conversation piece and just really pretty all around. Quilt Baby also has red, black and white which is pretty cool and a really awesome pink, grey, black and white.The proprietress and artist at Quilt Baby resides in Asheville, NC which is also home to one of my all time favorite galleries - I'll have to tell you about some other time. Another super cute item for new baby are her great baby blankets in awesome designer fabrics. Tomorrow we'll talk about NYC Fashion Week, going on now! Yeah!Cheers!Amy Read more:Mobile
Fashion Week for Fall '07 1970-01-01 00:59:59 Yes, it is true...Fashion
Week in NYC started last Friday and will continue for a few more days. The fashion world is on pins and needles (quite literally) as it surveys the latest stitching, hitching and sequining for Fall '07 from those designers who can afford to show their line. Personally I like to think of fashion week as a week of art openings because in most cases that is really what it is. Of course the Couture shows are much, much more about the art of fashion then the Ready To Wear shows that are going on now but either way its great fun to see what other artists are doing.This season I'm pleased to see a "few" pieces of jewelry on the models but things are still pretty scarce. Of course I'm not complaining because the S/S 06 shows didn't have a single piece of jewelry on any model at any of the shows on either continent. (After the NYC shows then we travel to London, Milan and Paris for more designer lines! Be sure to check out John Galliano's show in Paris for pure m Read more:Fashion Week
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