This Is What I've Been Working On....

I've mentioned that I've been busy over the last little while with event planning......

Well the "Take Off Your Clothes" clothing swap is steadily approaching! And things seem to be moving along smoothly and I'm pretty excited:)

If you're in the Calgary area and would like to do a little "swap shopping" in Spring, feel free to contact me.

Oh and if you're a local photographer, videographer or designer, I'd love to chat with you. I need a little help at the event~


It’s time to get excited Calgary! The first ever “Take Off Your Clothes” event is hitting our city in May.

Here are the details:
Date – May 15th
Time - 11:00am to 4:00pm
Location - Belgo (501-8th Ave. SW)
Music provided by Modi$club (www.modisclub.com)
Admission - $5.00

We are asking you to clean out your closets and come on down for some great music and eco-friendly shopping.

Here’s the concept:

A group of volunteers will collect clothing, shoes, and accessories (for men, women & children) from now until (and including) the day of the event.

1 swapable item will get you 1 ticket to use in “the swappers boutique” (as long as it qualifies – meaning clean, undamaged clothing/accessories ). Items deemed unswappable, along with all clothing remaining at the end of the event, will be donated to The Salvation Army.

Take advantage of Priority Check-in! We’ll pick up your clothes in advance of the event, or you can drop your clothes off at our drop-off locations.

To make things easier for us, we ask that you label your bags with your name, contact info and # of items inside.

To arrange for a pick-up or drop off, send an email to:
clothingpickups-CGY@theswapteam.org

You will receive your exchange tickets* with paid admission at the door of our May 15th event.


General questions can be directed to :
necole@theswapteam.org

Facebook event page link:
http://www.facebook.com/#!/event.php?eid=110639105629589&ref=mf

Or check out our website:
www.theswapteam.org

1luv

I May Not Tweet Much, But I'm Glad That I'm On Twitter...

Now I don't know about y'all, but I'm still getting the hang of the Twitter thang. I've been on for a couple of months now (since November of 09) and I've only tweeted about 11 times lol. I think my lack in the tweeting department has to do with the fact that I don't have a data plan on my cell phone to give me easy access., (need to get that changed) So, although, I haven't made much of an effort, I'm shocked to see that I have 62 followers!!! Thank-you!!!

One thing that I do know, is that Twitter can connect you with some fabulous people. I received an email back in February notifying me that I had a new twitter follower - Heather Bitonti, a Calgary jewelry designer with Two Penny Design. I checked out her site and instantly fell in love:)

Here was another talented individual that I had to contact for an interview.

So, tonight's the night y'all!

Get ready to get an inside look behind the creator of lovely silver pieces that would make a wonderful addition to your existing collection. I happen to love silver jewelery and have some of my personal Two Penny Design faves. Check out my picks at the end of the piece~


How did you get started designing & making jewelry?
Since I can remember I have always made jewelry. Started as beaded jewelry when I was young and in the last couple years I learned silversmithing and started working with silver. I am pretty much self taught. I had a friend show me a couple steps and I started from there. I use the internet allot as a great learning tool, from web videos, articles and forums.

Aside from silver, what other materials do you work with?
Typically I work in Silver & copper. I do some work with colored Epoxy and have some pieces that incorporate stones, glass & wood beads.

How long has Two Penny Design been up and running?
http://www.twopennyjewelry.com/ has been only up and running for 3 months or so. When I started making jewelry it was just as a hobby - didn't really have any intentions for selling any of my work. But through my family and friends I had such great feed back that I started getting more and more orders just by word of mouth. So I set up a website and its been so great and I have had such great feedback.

Where do you get your inspiration from? And are you ever uninspired?
I feel like that is such a hard question. About 5 years ago I used to sit and sketch jewelry I wish I could make. Never having the idea that I could actually do it. Now a days I either just play around with shapes and technique or sketch what ever comes to mind. I think everyone has days where they feel uninspired. Some days I get working and find I make mistakes and nothing works out so that's when I know I need to step back and take a break.

Apart from your website, http://www.twopennyjewelry.com/ , how else can one get a Two Penny one of a kind creation?
Besides my website I am going to be having an art show and sale on May 15th at the Bridgeland Riverside Community Center from 10-4. Myself and two painters will be hosting this sale.

Is Two Penny Design a full-time endeavour?
I wish I could say it was but this is just a part time gig. Although most days I work just as many hours on my Jewelry as I do at my full time job.

Now I have a few "Two Penny" faves. From all of the pieces that you created, do you have a personal favorite? I have a couple. I would have to say the "bubble" necklace is one of my faves because it was one of the first pieces that I made for myself. Also probably one of my first rings I made the 1/2" think textured band.

What would you say is your greatest accomplishment so far as a designer?
That's a great question. Feels hard to answer with out sounding big headed. I guess for myself just learning on my own how to do things and improving my skills. Being self taught.

I know this is random, but what would you say is the one item that you can't live without?
In terms of my jewelry? I would have to say a ring. I feel naked walking out the door with out a ring on. Love the ring I'm wearing currently. Its just a plain 3/4" think solid band.

Do you have any advice for newbies starting out?
Still feel like a newbie, but I would say use the resources out there. There are some very good jewelry forums, videos and blogs on the internet that I find very helpful.

I'm still astounded to know that Heather's site has been up an running for only a couple of months! All I've gotta say is "well done girl - you are definitely on the right path"

Here's a photo of several Two Penny Design Pieces~



Now here are my faves, (to be honest, I could have posted every item from Heather's site, but I've narrowed things down lol)







Click HERE to check out the Two Penny Design site.....

1luv

Can We Say Busy????

Well it's been forever y'all since I've posted.

Last week was most definitely a busy one with Alberta Fashion Week, but I also had my first volunteer meeting for the Clothing Swap event that I will be hosting in May. I had a lot of organizing to do which kept me away from blogging:(

I am back with a jam-packed week of content for y'all. Tonight I'll give you a recap of Alberta Fashion Week's final night. It definitely ended off with a bang.

Tomorrow, I have an interview lined up with a local jewelry designer and I've got a lot of designer features to post later on in the week.

I'll be going to the Brother Ali concert this Thursday night, so I will definitely post a re-cap on Friday.

Now back to Alberta Fashion Week's finale.

The week long fashion extravaganza ended with three fashion shows.

Jason Matlo
Holly Allen (for Chi Chi Couture)
KaaDiki (by Hathem Elkadiki)

Jason Matlo was my fave show of the night for sure! I fell in love with so many pieces!

I particularly loved his off the shoulder 'numbers' and there was a glitter dress that was 'to die for'.

I didn't take as many photos of his collection as I should have - I was in awe and kept forgetting.











I didn't get the chance to capture these outfits on film myself, so I went to Jason Matlo's site for some photos. These pieces were my ultimate faves!!!






The other show that I happened to enjoy that night was the Men's wear line KaaDiki by Haithem Elkadiki. Showcasing menswear was a first for AB Fashion week, so I was happy to see some innovative designs with the 'man' in mind. I loved the jackets which cleverly incorporated zippers, leather, mesh and colour.











It was a great week - didn't get to catch as many shows as I had hoped, but I enjoyed myself......

Looking forward to the next one:)




1luv peeps! Glad to be back:)

Yesterday Marked The First Day Of Alberta Fashion Week for 2010!

Hey peeps!

I hope you enjoyed the first week-end of Spring! My week-end was another busy one. I did make it to the Blame Betty sale like I planned and picked up two lovely dresses for a mere $40.00!!!!

I will post a photo of me in them soon. I bought a red one that fits like a glove:) The second one is a little larger than what I would usually wear, but the smaller size (and that would be a 'medium') was a little too small. So I figured, that it was still worth the money to buy it and possibly get it taken in.

On Sunday, I made it to Alberta Fashion week for a runway show and a Media Reception.

I got there late and was only able to catch Andrew Majtenyi's runway show - I was sad to know that I missed the Lael Osness & 442 McAdamm shows, but I must say that I was glad to have made it just in time for the final show of the evening. Andrew Majtenyi is a renowned Canadian fashion designer who made it to London Fashion Week in 2009. Taking his inspiration from fabrics first before sketches, I fell in love with some of the dresses that he showcased. I could go in-depth and give you my interpretation of each piece, but I figured that the photos I took, will speak for themselves.

What a show y'all! Oh and the Media Reception was fab! It took place at the Art Gallery of Calgary (first time I had ever been - can you imagine that!!!) which was lovely. Aside from being in the midst of those who "know" about fashion, the art was breathtaking. I was lucky enough to view wonderful works of art~

If you want to learn more about Andrew Majtenyi - Click HERE

If you're in Calgary and want to check out Alberta Fashion Week - Click HERE for more info

1luv

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

A winner has been selected y'all!

DressMeDearly is the latest winner of the Atlantique Lariat necklace

I'll send you an email and link you the Ms. A & Mr. K of Aquacitrine.

Enjoy your Saturday peeps!

1luv

There's A Lot Going On This Week-end!

It's officially the last day to enter for the latest giveaway on The Creative Mixx!

I will reveal the winter tomorrow in the AM, so there's still time to enter:)

Click HERE to get the details to enter before it's too late.


Now to my Calgary peeps, here's a list of some things that will be going down this week-end.

Blame Betty is having their 5th annual birthday sale tomorrow!!!

Now if you have never visited the Blame Betty shop, you must head over to 829 - 17th Ave. from 10 - 8pm~


Here's what you can expect people....

30% OFF EVERYTHING IN STORE!!
Everything! Books! Dresses! Jewelry! Bags! Everything! Think that's pretty rad on it's own? That's not all!

50% OFF EVERYTHING PRE-MARKED DOWN IN STORE!!
That means the whole clearance floor, and anything with a red sale sticker is an ADDITIONAL 50% off the lowest marked price!! That's almost free!! That isn't all either.

50% OFF ALL MENS CLOTHING IN STOCK!!!
We'd like to clear out our dudes clothes to make room for some new stuff we've found just for you boys. This includes the Route 66 suits we have in stock!!

The sale is going to be mad crazy! I'm gonna have to swing by.

These photos will give you an idea as to what you can expect to see at this fab boutique:)




Next up, is an event that's taking place tomorrow at the BMO Centre, Stampede Park.

I've been added to the Media list for the Fashion Has No Borders show (showcasing fabulous fashions and accessories).

The infamous, Jeanne Beker from Fashion Television will host the event along with Julia Gabriel from City TV & Meg Tucker from 101.5 Energy FM.

Head on down between the hours of 9am to 9pm and expect to see up & coming fashion & accessory designers as well as industry professionals.

Visit their site by clicking HERE for more info.



It's only $9.00 for adults ($5.00 for students) y'all, so check it out if you have the chance:)