I refuse to believe it's already October.

I can't believe how long I've gone without writing an update about T.A.M. Unique Jewelry.  We've been busy, but we have great news! We have some pieces to sell!  Don't forget, we also take custom orders. Here's a sampling of our already-made pieces though.

First, although I don't want to admit it, it is October.  October is Breast Cancer Awareness month.  Because of this, we decided to make a simple necklace dedicated to this cause.  Remember, you can click on the photos to see them larger in a new window/tab.  This is our simple Breast Cancer Awareness necklace. We think the simplicity gives it a certain elegant charm.  The photo in the right is a close-up of the toggle clasp, which is heart-shaped.  We are selling this piece for $25, which includes a $5 donation to a breast cancer research fund for each necklace sold.

 

Next, we have this gorgeous piece in festive fall colors.  I'm totally in love with this pendant (honestly, I bought it for myself, but decided to use it and get another one later).  If you click the photo to see it larger, you'll see that the clear pendant includes not only the picture of a red flower, but also the definition of the novel.  For all the glamorous bibliophiles out there, this necklace is perfect. I love it so much that I'm already planning on making at least one more just like it, but I'll make however many I need to satisfy me and my customers.  We are selling this piece for $22.

Next is what Theresa says we're calling a "Panda Bear Necklace." It's super-cute... Like a panda bear... Oh, and it's black and white (a favorite color combination of mine).  There's a good chance we will not be able to get these particular beads again, so this will most likely be a one-of-a-kind piece.  We are selling this piece for $15.

Finally, in our already-made pieces for sale section, we have Theresa's special project: her chain maille necklace.  I think it turned out beautifully.  She's planning on stocking up on jump rings to create more jewelry similar to this piece, but I'd be jumping on this piece before someone else does.  No promises that she'll make anything exactly like it in the future.  We are selling this piece for $30.

That's it for current pieces for sale, but I want to share one last piece with you.  This was a special project of mine.  I wanted to experiment with bead weaving.  I wove this bracelet entirely by hand. It took HOURS.  But it turned out really cool, and I'm looking forward to having time for more bead weaving.  However, I used plain cotton thread for this, and that is NOT what I should have used, so I can't sell this particular piece.  You would get mad at me because it will eventually break.  I'll buy some good beading thread soon so that you can benefit from my weaving experiments in the future. =)

That's all for now. Place your orders with us via Facebook ("like" us by scrolling back up and clicking on the link to the right of the blog) or at tamjewelry@gmail.com.  Give any feedback you'd like the same way or in the comments section below.  We hope to sell many Breast Cancer Awareness necklaces this month (and beyond), we'll hopefully get some holiday-themed jewelry together (nothing too gaudy, I promise), and we will definitely be taking your custom orders for Christmas. I know, it's only October, but you've got to give us some notice, so think about jewelry for your wives, girlfriends, sisters, cousins, aunts, nieces, friends, mothers, grandmothers, children's teachers, hair stylists.... We're prepared for your orders!

Until next time,

Amy

I've got some photos! I've got some photos! Hey, hey, hey, hey!

We've been so busy, I haven't even had time to tell you what we've been up to!  I have photos of finished pieces to share with you this evening!

First, this is a beautiful necklace Theresa designed for a customer who simply didn't know what to do with the square stone, shown as a pendant.  The customer loved it.

Next, this is a necklace Theresa designed after we purchased the elliptical-shaped moonstone.  It blends in with the table, so look closely.  (Clicking on the photos opens them at full size.)

Finally, we have the first true order we've been working on and working on... Our bridal party order.  The six bridesmaids' necklaces are complete.

Of course, the bride's necklace is still to come, and it will obviously be even more amazing than the briedesmaids' necklaces. ;-)

Theresa's now working on a different project- creating a chain malle necklace with a neat addition.

I'm hoping to start playing around with some seed bead stitching, but my only special project recently has been putting my 8-year-old's broken bracelet back together.

Not to fret- on to new, cool experiments... erm... I mean projects soon!  Email us with any special orders, and please leave thoughts, questions, comments, etc. in the comments section below.  We want to hear from you!  Like us on Facebook by clicking that "Like" button over there, on your right. -----> (Ok, you might have to scroll up a little, but it's there.)

And, in the words of Roy Rogers, and because I have it stuck in my head for some unknown reason:

"Happy trails to you, until we meet again.

Happy trails to you, keep smilin' until then.
Who cares about the clouds when we're together?
Just sing a song and bring the sunny weather.
Happy trails to you, 'till we meet again."

-Amy

Shopping, shopping, shopping!

It's been almost a whole week since our last post!  I'm sure you've all been frantic wondering what we've been up to!  Or not.  Either way, if you follow us on Facebook ("Like" us by clicking that button over there, to your right... yeah, that one, right there ---->>>), you may have noticed us post a couple reviews of stores this week.  We've been shopping!!!  We made a few pieces of jewelry too, but, more importantly- SHOPPING!

First, Saturday, I hit the jackpot at an estate sale:

That's three awesome beading books, a folder of some basic jewelry techniques, and a baggy of beads, wire, thread, etc... They were all in a box together.  The whole box cost $1.  Awesome, awesome, awesome deal. We're really excited about some of the techniques and patterns in these books.

So, Sunday, we hit a bead store on South Grand called Earth, Wind, and Bead.  (See their Facebook here):

We thought these were all really cool stone beads.  I like the flat corally-pink ones (the lady at the store was very knowledgeable and told us exactly what each stone is, but I forget easily) for maybe a bracelet.  Theresa's planning to use the moonstone (the clear-ish one) for a necklace for her mother.  We didn't buy a lot here, but the selection was fantastic and our visit got us to start thinking of more possibilities. (You can read my review of the store under "reviews" on their Facebook page.)

Over the weekend, I found a "Now" Groupon for Schaefer's Hobby Shop, another store I wanted to visit.  Since I wanted to go there anyway, buying the Groupon for this shop on Gravois was a no-brainer.  It had to be used Monday morning, so I went without Theresa.  I should not be allowed to go shopping alone:

A package of bead mats, a bead design board, spring rings, magnetic clasps for a special order, seed beads, art gel, and a "traditional" beading loom.  It was a pretty awesome shopping trip.  They had an awesome selection of jewelry-making tools, findings, beads, etc.  (You can read my review on their Facebook page.)

So, today, we packed up Theresa's kids and set out to hit two more shops on a day that was about as hot as St. Louis gets. (Probably not the best idea, in retrospect.)

First, we hit 2nd Street Beads in St. Charles. (Their Facebook page is rather sparse, so here's their real website.):

In the upper left are some glass beads from a clearance table.  We thought they were pretty cool and had a lot of fun going through the dish of beads.  They have a very large selection of beads, including a variety of different types of seed beads.  The little baggies there aren't actually seed beads at all, but are actually small cubic beads.  Very cool-looking.  I loved the stone beads, "zebra agate."  Then on the bottom left of the photo are genuine Swarovski crystals.  We have plans to use those particular ones in a special order, but we'll be looking for more reasons to buy these beautiful Austrian crystals.  I haven't posted a review on 2nd Street Beads' Facebook page yet, but I will soon.

The second stop we made today, with two overly-curious toddlers and a teething baby, was Bizzy Beads and Gifts in Chesterfield Valley. (You can visit their Facebook page here.):

We didn't buy as much, and I'm hesitant to write a review explaining why.  I think the children had become so distracting in this store that I was unable to fully appreciate the selection they had.  We will have to return without the kids at some point.  However, the baggy contains beeswax, which we will need for some of our beading as it will help strengthen thread and keep the ends from fraying as we're working.  The charm is for a special order, and we're very excited about it, because it means we may just have all the supplies we need for this order of 6 necklaces.

There are still more stores we want to visit, but for now it's time to draw up some ideas for how we're going to design our bridal party special order necklaces.

If you have a special order for us, email us at tamjewelry@gmail.com.

Until next time,
-Amy

Ha! I made something!

I feel like one of the children I take care of.  "Looky, looky, see what I made?  I did it all by myself! See? See? See?"

The necklace is complete.

I used the original clasp and everything.  It's so old and classy. =)

The necklace isn't perfect. I learned some things I should have done differently, but I made it. Woohoo!  Maybe I will actually rock this jewelry thing with a little more practice.

Theresa mentioned possibly looking around at some local bead shops (see our Facebook page's "Likes" for local St. Louis bead shops) on Saturday, so I'm super excited to get to the weekend!

-Amy

First Pieces?

Theresa and I got out and made some stuff last night.  I finished my necklace except for the clasp.

And we each made a super-simple pair of earrings.

I wish Theresa had been snapping photos of me with that necklace.  I must have dropped an end five times- losing beads each time.  She was reading information from starter kits we purchased and told me they suggested starting with one piece of the clasp.... Yeah, well I started from the middle... Now I know.

The earrings were ridiculously easy to put together and probably aren't the type of piece we'll be creating for sale, but every little bit of practice with the tools and findings is helpful right now.

I know we're both excited to tackle our next project, which my clumsiness wouldn't allow me to do last night. =P

-Amy

Discovering Some Supplies Aren't Optional

When Theresa and I first started looking at the supplies we would need for T.A.M. Unique Jewelry, we kind of dismissed the idea of buying bead design boards.  Have you ever tried to work with beads without a design board?  Here's Grandma's disassembled necklace without a bead board:

Allow me to describe my thought process: "Who needs a bead board?  I'll use a black shirt so I can see the beads well, and everything will be fine."  "I sure wish these beads would stop rolling everywhere."  "Okay. I'll put them in groups by sizes to start getting organized."  "No! Bad seed beads!  Why are you rolling into the 'slightly larger than seed beads' pile?"  "Aaaaaauuugh!"  "Why do these beads hate me?"  "Screw this, I'm going to bed."  And that was the night last week that I went to bed at 7:30pm.

Needless to say, the realization that I needed a bead design board came to me.  So, while Theresa and I have been focused on making plans and collecting supplies, I got the chance tonight to work a little more with my pearls and a bead board.

I'm finding this works much better than the t-shirt. ;-)

-Amy

How it Happened

We were having our usual "It's night-time, and we can escape husbands and kids" coffee at Denny's, when Theresa looked at me (ok, actually, she looked at my necklace) and said, "We should make jewelry!"

Seriously, that's all it took.  Here's the kicker though: While we're busy pulling together a business plan, collecting all the tools and materials we need, and preparing for our first order of necklaces for a friend's wedding party... Neither of us actually have any experience making jewelry.

That's right, we're throwing ourselves full-force into something that's brand-new for both of us.  And we're calling it T.A.M.

I found a little bag of pearls my Grandma had given me (it contains two broken necklaces, I believe), so I already know my very first project will be creating a necklace for myself from these pearls.

As I get the materials and start working, I'll keep you updated.

Happy Crafting!

-Amy