A Pratt graduate, Jessica started her design business in a space in the back of a now defunct Brooklyn indie boutique. Along the way, a romance yielded both a husband and a business partner. As Paul got involved in Lady J Jewelry Designs, he began to manage the financial aspects of the business, facilitate marketing, and to help with future business plans. The partners are exploring the international jewelry market, which continues to show strong potential for growth. They have also successfully carved a niche in the booming accessories market and Paul is continuing to scout out new business in that market. Another result of business planning was the decision to exhibit at Women’s Wear Daily MAGIC. This was a carefully considered decision because the show will mark a new phase of increased business for Lady J Jewelry Designs. Deciding to be an exhibitor at MAGIC, which is the premier industry show, means addressing issues such as handling the larger orders that will result if any of the lines are picked up by a major store. The industry show was held February 12-15, 2008 in Las Vegas. At the trade show, Lady J launched her Fall 2008 Sweet Leaf collection. Lady J was in Booth AC 41926, where her 19-piece collection was on display.

Lady J Jewelry Designs boasts several collections. If you frequent Brooklyn fashion boutiques, you’ve probably seen many of her designs. There is the romantic, rocker-chic feeling Original Collection and the big selling Giraffe Collection. The Saturn Series is a leather and silver line that draws on 60s mod and 80s power style. The new line, Sweet Leaf, features geometric patterning, rain forest and nature motifs using sparkly tourmaline, genuine leather, and real porcupine quills. The look continues to highlight Jessica’s powerful style, but also has a delicate, elegant appeal. The pieces form a tight collection with use of the intertwining leaf motifs, red leather, and genuine quills. The ROAR! Earrings are a very dramatic way to make a powerful statement. And as always, all of Lady J Jewelry’s pieces are hand-polished and 100% handcrafted.

Jessica and Paul are also environmentally conscious, and are donating a portion of Lady J’s profits from the Sweet Leaf collection to the Rainforest Alliance.

Jessica really likes working with silver because it is easy to work with and the reasonable costs allow her to explore her design aesthetic. She has a successful working relationship with local caster Carrera Casting. Carrera’s has a great reputation for producing quality castings for several well-known jewelry companies. The two-piece molds Carrera produces for her designs allows her great flexibility in the design, as well as production, process.

When asked about the source of her inspiration, Jessica revealed that much of her inspiration comes from being in the studio and the process of working with the component parts that become jewelry. She likes working with silver to create a strong, but delicate feminine look that is raw in texture and bold. This design aesthetic is the key to her brand. These days, she and Paul strike a balance between time in the studio and being new parents. The future is quite bright for Lady J, so stay with DIY City as we will follow Jessica and Paul into the next phase of their business.

Primarily a web-based business, you can buy Lady J Jewelry online at www.ladyjjewelry.com.

An earlier version of this article appeared in DIYthing.com

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sylviamay.etsy.com

Sylvia created the artwork for the first issue of DIY City mag. Check out her other art at her Etsy shop - sylviamay.etsy.com.

Sylvia Newton is a doodler. Being a doodler myself, I understand how it is that any scrap of paper can become a target for scribblings. Such was the case with Sylvia when she discovered a new medium for her designs. Sylvia was involved in a very long telephone conversation when she began to doodle with a black felt tip marker in an old novel. When she hung up the phone she realized that what she had drawn was “quite good and the text added to the appeal”. This method has since become one of her favorites.

You may know her work. Yes, it was Sylvia who designed the cover of DIY City’s first issue. Sylvia lives in Newcastle, Australia with her four kids and partner. As you can probably tell from her artwork, she enjoys people watching. Whether it’s a stranger on the street walking by, celebrity, character in a novel, or family member, she says that she can always find something about a person to draw inspiration from. Her pop art style is eye catching and modern.
“I do my best work while listening to music (the White Stripes, the Strokes, David Bowie, Sonic Youth, We Are Scientists).”
She loves the work of Yoshimoto Nara, Warhol, and some of her favorite indie artists are Beci Orpin, Lilly Piri, Audrey Kawasaki, Ali J of Aussie Patches, and Ashley G.

Sylvia really values her many sketch books and journals as most artists do. And when we asked about her earliest memories of creating she recalled creating something with “a tissue and sticky tape dress for Barbie and a forest scene out of felt piece.”

You can find Sylvia’s work for sell at her Etsy shop: sylviamay.etsy.com

Anne Holman, an Ohio based artist, really impressed us with her work. She has a fine eye for detail that is evidenced in her sculptural and jewelry work. We first noticed Anne’s work when we were looking for artists creating NYC themed products. She works fulltime at her art. Take a look at what she has shared with us.

DIY City: Can you give us a little background in how you got started?

Anne: My first vivid experience making jewelry was in 3rd grade and I was living in rural northern Minnesota amongst iron ore mines and many Native American Indian tribes. A Chippewa woman taught our class to make earrings out of porcupine quills for a mothers day gift. I was smitten with the tiny beading needles and the colorful glass seed beads, thus beginning my love for jewelry. I would make bracelets for all my friends with my beading loom, which eventually evolved into searching for wire in my dad’s workbench and using his pliers and hammers to create earrings that i sold on consignment at a local stationary shop. Many years later, I acquired real metalsmithing tools, and received my BFA from the Columbus College of Art and Design in Columbus, Ohio. Soon after, I began a line of jewelry that I have been selling for the past five years in various shops around the city including the Columbus Museum of Art’s gift shop.

DIY City: Why did you chose metal?

Anne: It is substantial and lasting, yet is malleable and forgiving. Historically jewelry represents so much that is personal to the wearer. I love to create custom work that holds personal significance to the buyer. It is rewarding to make a piece that will become part of a family’s story.

Metal can be warm or cool, and can be used to connect disparate materials. I often find materials of different age, texture and color to incorporate into my jewelry; such as antique maps, recycled glass beads from Africa, and vintage German glass beads, or Japanese cabochons. It excites me to give these old objects a new life with a modern aesthetic.

DIY City: How long does it take to create an average piece?

Anne: I have sculptural and installation work that I exhibit in galleries (www.anneholman.com), some of which take hundreds of hours to complete from concept to execution. My jewelry is something that is so much more immediate. I can design something and have several completed pieces within days. It is a good way to keep my hands and mind active at all times.

DIY City: Do you have a regular 9-5 job or is this your full time job and is your family creative?

Anne: I currently am a full time independent jewelry designer, exhibiting fine artist, freelance graphic designer and single mother of an 8 year old son. It is quite a balancing act, but I have somehow found a way to manage all of these elements. I worked in an office for several years, and realized that the 9-5 cubicle was not the life for me. My time and creative pursuits are so precious to me. Creative energy is what keeps me going day to day, and the status quo of the office didn’t allow for the flexibility I needed to be available for my son. So I traded a 40 hour work week in for what is ultimately a 24 hour a day gig… there is really no separation between my ‘job’ and the rest of my life. I wouldn’t have it any other way. That doesn’t mean I am at the jewelry bench or managing the business end of things all day long, but it means I spend most of my time when I am not doing those things finding new inspiration and fueling my creative energy.

I take my camera along everywhere, go to gallery openings, plan art events, make notes in my sketchbook, and spend time experimenting in the studio. My son has been participating in art events since he was born, and even has his own area in the studio where he makes paintings, drawings and Lego sculptures. He’s been a huge influence in the way I live. I want him to grow up seeing that it is possible to do it yourself, live creatively, and make things happen for yourself that fit your ideals, no matter what sort of adversity you face.

DIY City: How do you promote your work?

Anne: I am part of an artist group, the Couchfire Collective (www.thecouchfire.org), that organizes large art events and provides networking opportunities for local artists. I’m also a part of the Columbus Crafty Cotillion (http://cbuscraftycotillion.blogspot.com/), a group of independent crafters and artists in the city. I hand out a lot of business cards at my art exhibits, and the arts festivals and DIY craft shows that I participate in. Word of mouth and viral networking online through Etsy (www.anneholman.etsy.com) and my blog (www.anneholmanart.blogspot.com).
This past year, I organized Tiny Canary Indie Design Market (www.tinycanary.com) with Aline Yamada (yumiyumi.etsy.com). The event was a two day DIY art/craft event in Columbus Ohio with about 40 regional artists. We met so many amazing and talented people and were excited to provide another opportunity for independent designers to network and sell their goods. We plan to hold the second event in November 2008.

DIY City: Can you tell us some of your favorite places to shop for DIY stuff?

Anne: Wholly Craft! - a great local shop of all handmade products .
3171 N. High St. Columbus, OH 43202 (www.whollycraft.net)
North Market - a historical open air market in Columbus Ohio featuring local independent businesses.
59 Spruce St Columbus, OH 43215 (www.northmarket.com)
Tiny Canary Indie Design Market - (www.tinycanary.com) 2 day sale featuring independent designers November 2008
Etsy.com

DIY City: And what about some of your favorite sites?

Anne: How do I begin to narrow it down….? these are just a few of my favorites:
Moco Loco http://mocoloco.com/
NOTCOT http://www.notcot.com/
Found Object http://foundobject.squarespace.com/
Modish http://modish.typepad.com/
Design Sponge http://www.designspongeonline.com/
TED Talks http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/list
Google Maps http://maps.google.com/

Looking for Anne:

my website: www.anneholman.com
my etsy shop : www.anneholman.etsy.com
my blog: www.anneholmanart.blogspot.com

DIY City mag is available in three great formats to meet your needs:

• Flash based magazine style - just make sure you have your broadband kickin’ (diycitymag.com/flash/2008-diycity-mag-nyc.html)
• Web based Magazine style blog - this one is searchable and you can find posts in all of your fav categories (diycitymag.com/themag)
• PDF - for the price of a movie rental ($5) you can get a pdf version that you can print out - that way if you are looking for some of your favorite shops in town you will have a handy reference. Just send us an e-mail (diycitymag@gmail.com)and we can arrange a download for you.

So there you have it, a DIY mag for a DIY City! And stay tuned as each day we will bring you tidbits on what’s happening in the DIY world. We will meet artists from around the globe. Our next mag will focus on New Orleans - and after that - we may be coming to a city near you.

In our first issue you will find NYC themed products, as well as some of our favorite DIY resources. We will also bring you an inside look at some indie designers living and working in New York. We also have some DIYs from outside the Big Apple because the world is a big place you know. Look for the NYC symbol – this will be an indication that the indie designer or shop is located in NYC.

Be sure to join our DIY City community at diycityguides.ning.com to help us build the most comprehensive resource guide for DIY. DIY City Community will be your place to locate do-it-yourself supplies, resources and indie artists in a city near you.

We are always looking for contributors and DIY project submissions – e-mail us at diycitymag at gmail.com with your ideas.

Special thanks to all our contributors, designers, shop owners and friends that we have met along the way – without all of you DIY City would not exist.

Deb and Wendy
Home: diycitymag.com
Mag: diycitymag.com/themag
Community: diycityguides.ning.com

We just love her delicate “I love NY” lariat. It would be the perfect accessory for Valentine’s Day. So go ahead, “Show your love for NY!”.

Do-it-yourself (DIY) is an idea that has always had adherents of varying commitment. But, today more than ever, DIYs are defining style. The current indie craft revolution is one indication that independent artists are offering real alternatives to mass produced items. DIY City is an online magazine that celebrates the independent artist and the DIY spirit. The idea for the mag grew out of a need to find arts and crafts supplies and resources in New York City. Launching in February 2008, our first issue will highlight NYC themed products. We will also bring you an inside look at some indie designers living and working in New York. DIY City will be a guide for indie artists searching for resources and supplies. Each issue will highlight a different, exciting DIY city. In the second issue, we will focus on New Orleans. In the meantime, as you wait for the next issue, we will bring you stories of DIYs from around the globe.

If you are interested in knowing more about the publication, please contact us at diycitymag@gmail.com.