I've Been Examined by The Examiner

You can’t make art in a vacuum. I firmly believe it takes community. Rochester, NY has one of the finest art communities in the nation. Having made the foray into doing local art and craft shows, I have had the opportunity to meet many fellow local artists. I find this group of people to be excellent networkers, sharers, and cheerleaders. I can’t believe some of the opportunities that have come up for me as a result of all this art love here.

Today I am especially grateful for a local connection I made with a reporter named Kathleen Landers from The Examiner at the MayDay Underground Arts + Crafts show in May. Kathleen has written a deeply humbling story about my artwork and me. She really took the time through phone calls and many emails to get to know me and what fuels my artistic passions. I could not be happier with how her article turned out. Click the screenshot of the article above to go read it.

“Kathleen is a Rochester native who owns her own decorative painting business and displays her work in local shops and art shows. Inspiration is fostered when seeking out area talent and she loves sharing concepts she's learned.” - Kathleen’s Bio on The Examiner

The Examiner consists of local news, events and attractions, real estate, shopping, and more where you can find local top breaking news and perspectives by trusted local experts. The Examiner serves 240 markets in the United States and Canada. The site is broken down into local pages, such as the Rochester, NY Examiner. There is probably a local Examiner for your area.

To keep the celebration going the Rochester NY Etsy Street Team (RNEST) is holding a giveaway on their blog for one of my new domino pendants (pictured below). Check out the post on Wednesday, June 16th for details and a chance to win! Many thanks go out to Michelle of The Quilted House for organizing the RNEST giveaway and blog post!

"Sophisticated Squares" Altered Domino Pendant you could win. The contest starts on Wednesday, June 16th on the RNEST blog.

This domino pendant was created from a larger original work of art I made especially for my line of domino pendants. It is printed on high quality photo paper and ink. This process allows me to create stunning detail on a small scale.

So hop on over to The Examiner post and get to know me better! And don't forget to enter the RNEST giveaway on Wednesday! I'll post about that again so you don't miss it!

Have a happy day!

"Memories Under Glass" Class

A few months ago Marilynne Lipschutz from Studio 34 emailed me through Etsy to ask if I would like to teach a class at her studio about microscope slide glass pendants. To be honest I was totally shocked. I had kind of stopped making them because I really do not enjoy one part of the finishing process very much. But I love to teach so I said yes!

Many conversations were had about supplies and how the whole teaching thing works at the studio. Marilynne is super nice to work with! We settled on how to go about this and scheduled a practice class so we could see how it would go.

Me, my mom, and my twin sister. Cannot tell we're related at all, can you?

I asked my buddies Augie, his very kind girlfriend, my artsy friend Stefani Tadio (see her pendant here), and my twin sister Valerie (and Marilynne sat in, too) to come to the class. I’ve known Augie for about 20 years. We met in high school in Fairport. He’s one of the funniest people I know so he spent the whole class being a smart ass and it was hilarious! We all had a ball! Lots of laughing to stave off my very serious case of the nerves. It took longer than I thought it was going to to teach five people how to put together soldered pendants. But that was one of the reasons we did the practice class so we could know how long to make the class. Everyone’s pendants came out really well.

So if you are in the Rochester, NY area and want to learn how to make a soldered pendant the classes are scheduled for Monday, April 12th from 2-5 pm and again on Tuesday, April 27th from 6-9 pm. Studio 34 is located at 34 Elton Street in the Neighborhood of the Arts. Cost: $35 + $15 for supplies. Call Studio 34 at 585-737-5858 to register.

I would love it if you joined us! It’s going to be really fun!

“Memories Under Glass” Class Description:

“This class will teach you how to create your very own photo or artwork keepsake Microscope Slide Glass Soldered Pendant. Learn about soldering iron safety and care, some basic stained glass techniques such as cutting glass, the use of copper tape and solder flux, and a little wire working. You will complete one double-sided pendant in this class. We will also discuss working with paper and photos for collage using the 1 inch by 1 inch canvas.

You will need to bring TWO photos or your own artworks that measure no bigger than 1 inch by 1 inch. The pendants are double sided so you need two images to use. Examples of things that can be put in pendants: pictures of your kids or pets, paper of any kind, real lace, and tiny pieces of original artwork. The two pieces of art or photos should not be thicker than 1/16th inch when sandwiched together back to back.”

Monday, April 12th from 2-5 pm
or
Tuesday, April 27th from 6-9 pm

Studio 34 is located at 34 Elton Street in the Neighborhood of the Arts.
Cost: $35 + $15 for supplies.
Call Studio 34 at 585-737-5858 to register
You will need to bring TWO photos or your own artworks that measure no bigger than 1 inch by 1 inch.

Photos for these photo pendants right here were taken by Teri Fisk at Pumpkin Patch Photos

Last Show of the Season

This week has been busily spent getting ready for the next craft show today at the Irondequoit High School. This is going to be a good show. I can feel it. I’m pretty much all packed up and ready to go. I have three pendants that were sprayed with sealer yesterday to finish.

These are domino pendants I finished this past week. I am unable to pick a favorite from this bunch! They’re all really nice!

Stop down to the show if you're local. It's our last show of the season!!

Irondequoit High School Arts & Crafts Show
Saturday, November 28th
260 Cooper Road
Irondequoit, NY 14617
10 AM to 4 PM

I'm offering free worldwide shipping on everything in my shop at inmyheadstudios.etsy.com. It's good until Monday! And for reading my blog I'm also offering an additional 10% off through Monday if you type "Blog10%" in the Message to Seller upon checkout! I'll refund your discount promptly through PayPal.

Etsy Buy Handmade inmyheadstudios

Red Hat Domino Pendant

At the last craft show we did at St. Rita’s School I got several custom order requests. This was the first time this happened at a craft show so, as you can imagine, I was thrilled. I adore doing custom work. I love the challenge of figuring out exactly what my customer wants and making it happen.

One very kind lady said she plays dominoes with her friends. And one of her friends is into the Red Hat Society. So she asked me if I could make a Red Hat domino pendant. It’s interesting to say, “Yes, I can do that!” before I actually have a plan of how to do it. But if I stood there and thought about it for too long the customer would walk away. So I say “yes” to these things without really knowing what I’m going to do. I have to tease information out of the customer. More often they know what they don’t want more than they know what they do want. I like sifting through that information to form an idea. So I quickly came up with thoughts about feathers and rhinestones. She agreed to the design and I went from there. This is the finished product.

I let the light hit the extreme shininess of this one to show you just how glossy these end up if all goes well. This has two layers of sealer on it. It looks like it is encased in glass!

I used white ink to stamp on the purple and red cardstocks. I made a little template of a hat so I can reproduce this design later. Then I made little fake feathers out of lilac paper. Real feathers would have ended up looking wet under the sealer so I had to improvise. I added a tiny rhinestone for some additional shine. I tied red and purple beads onto the black waxed cotton cord.

Now it’s off in the post for this one. I hope my customer likes it! And I hope her friend likes it, too!

This would be a really good time to contact me at inmyheadstudios@gmail.com about custom orders. The earlier the better as I have quite the busy schedule coming up with shows and the holidays and the Etsy Twitter Team. You dream it… I can do it! Let’s work on something together!

Etsy Twitter Team: Shop of the Week: That’s Headley!

Ginny Headley Maserang, of That’s Headley!, creates artisan jewelry, mostly one-of-a-kind pieces in semi-precious gemstones, art glass, and sterling silver. Her shop features bracelets, necklaces, earrings, jewelry for special occasions and holidays, and has a unisex section for jewelry for everyone.

The “Hope for Whirled Peas” section of her shop has cute green pearl “pea pod” items whose proceeds go to benefit Fisher Houses. For more information about this fundraising effort by Ginny, please see her blog.

“I am dedicated to crafting pieces that are fun, well-crafted, and timeless in design for a lifetime of enjoyment. I make the jewelry I wear, but I like to share with folks who appreciate color, texture, balance, and uniqueness.

My creative inspirations most often come from the beautiful materials I work with - I've loved pretty rocks since I was a little girl, and nothing pleases me more than to pull all my treasures out like a glittering box of crayons and have them tell me what they want to be. I love, too, the color combinations in nature, and can't keep myself from looking at a sunset or garden and imagining the colors coming together as a work of wearable art.”


About Twitter: “I admit I'm pretty much a novice at Twitter, but appreciate so much its community and sense of shared experience. I love its search function to find folks talking about the same things that interest me, and then follow to find out more about what interests them.”

Custom work: “I love to do custom work, too, so if you have something inspirational you would like to have a custom piece to wear with, send me a picture or description of what you would like and we can be creative together!”

She is happy to ship internationally and offers free shipping to the US on all her items.

Follow her on Twitter @thatsheadley
Read more on her blog

Etsy: Your place to buy & sell all things handmade ThatsHeadley.etsy.com

Reposted from my original post at: Etsy Twitter Team: Shop of the Week: That’s Headley!

Textured Dominos – New Work

Much of my day is spent staring down a pile of dominos trying to figure out what to make them into. About a week ago I came up with one of my best ideas ever. Yes. Ever. And I would love to share the details of what I came up with, but I don’t want anyone to copy my idea. So I’ll share the pictures of my new work instead, and you can try to guess at how I did it. :)

These domino pendants still need the final glossy coat, a bail, and to be strung on a cord and beaded. I’d love to know what you think about them.

New Product in My Etsy Shop

I’m rolling out the new line of Scrabble Tile Pendants today!! I’ve already listed two and four more will be coming throughout the day! Check them out! They’re cute as can be. And affordable!!




On the wood tiles, I glue paper to the back and then seal it with this really nice raised glossy layer. They’re hung on silver bails on ribbon necklaces. I have different colored necklace ribbons to choose from: white, off-white, black, brown, pink, lavender, light blue, and gold. The necklaces are adjustable from 16.5” to 19.5”. The tiles measure 3/4” square.

Collect a bunch or give them to your friends! Teens absolutely love these as they can change out the ribbons for completely different looks. Not recommended for small children.

Etsy: Your place to buy & sell all things handmade inmyheadstudios.etsy.com

New Dominos

I’ve been really busy in the studio this week cranking out work for consignments and an upcoming show. Here are some sneak peeks to what I’ll be posting in my Etsy shop soon!

This one was made with a lot of little paper scraps I save from making other things. I hate throwing out good paper. There are quite a few containers of little paper scraps in my studio. I think this one is my favorite out of these five.

The one was created with a vintage air mail stamp and some collaged paper. The postal cancellation is a rubber stamped image.

Hopefully I'll get these posted to my Etsy shop soon! Call dibs now if you want something you see here!

Shameless Plug:

I will be at the
First & Last Arts & Crafts Show
May 1st, 2nd, and 3rd
5 – 10 PM
Spot Coffee
200 East Avenue
Rochester, NY 14604

Home Show Success

Altered Vintage Domino Pendants

Altered Vintage Checker Pendants

My twin sister, Valerie, had a home show party last night at her house. She invited me to bring my jewelry to sell. So I have been working my butt off getting more domino pendants ready for the show. And it was a good thing too because we did really well. Might have been our second best show total ever, mind you we’ve only done a handful of shows. The domino pendants and Scrabble tile pendants were big hits. I also sold three microscope slide glass collage pendants, which surprised me. Almost everyone who came bought something from me. Two people came back for more! A custom order might come from this as well.

The girl who was selling purses bought two domino pendants. She showed them to the shop owner she works for. The owner loved them and called me this morning to ask if I would like to sell in her shop! I meet with her tomorrow! Now I have to figure out how to transport these things without getting all the necklaces tangled up.

I sold so much that my Etsy shop looks empty. My mission is to get photographs taken so I can restock my shop. I have to make more domino pendants to do that because I’ll be dropping off about 10 to the shop. So keep your eyes open for new additions to inmyheadstudios.etsy.com.

You should check out what my sister is selling and give her some love!!

New Pendant for Your Valentine: Love & Lace

Incorporating lace into my collage pendants makes me happy. The vintage lace I use came from my grandmother’s garage sale days. It adds such dimension to my miniature collages.

This pendant features a tiny Boston postmark, stamped “XO”s, a red heart, and the word “love”, in addition to the vintage lace.


The back was created with heart and circle shaped paper punches.

Show your special someone you really care with this handmade, one of a kind, beautiful necklace!

Etsy Artist Feature: Beadwork by Amanda Preske

I met a marvelous artist at the Community Nursery School of Irondequoit Craft Show today by the name of Amanda Preske. She makes the most striking, intricate beaded jewelry.

In addition to being an avid jeweler, she is a chemistry student at Rochester Institute of Technology. Her work reminds me of complex molecular structures, almost like she is weaving atoms together. I find it interesting how artists’ lives play out in their work and always enjoy when the two marry so well, as in Amanda’s instance. This piece especially makes me think of long, crystalline chains of atoms.


Her work has been awarded a silver key in a scholastic art competition in the jewelry division. She is a member of the Etsy BeadWeavers Team.

A free pair of earrings accompanies every purchase from her Etsy shop. How nice! Specify what colors you want when you check out. If you find something in her shop you like but want a different color, just ask. She’s open to custom orders.

Amanda offers jewelry parties in your home with some really great deals. Hostesses receive 20% off purchases at the party and an additional 5% off for every $100 in sales. Everyone who attends receives a free gift. I’m sure you and your friends will enjoy her work. More information is available here.

Her website has a page of some of her creations that are not yet offered in her shop but are incredibly nice. They are worth a look-see!

Visit her site for a 20% off coupon good at a craft show or mention this offer in a message if you purchase an item from Etsy.

Amanda, I wish you much joy and success in all your endeavors! I’m looking forward to seeing you again at the craft show at Irondequoit High School on November 29th!

Images used with permission from the artist, Amanda Preske.

Take This Little Witch Home

Halloween is fast approaching. Get this little sweetie in time with a fabulous deal to boot. I am offering free USPS Priority shipping today only plus $5.00 off the purchase price. How cool is that?!

A Little Witchy

Halloween will soon be upon us. Don’t leave your neck out of the fun of holiday decorations! This little witch is so cute she’s almost scary! BOO!

Available for sale in my Etsy shop!

Tokenblogger’s Custom Pendant

Around Christmas last year, I got a custom pendant request from Tokenblogger. Her original request was a design with pansies on it and the words “I AM”. We emailed a lot to nail down more details. Usually a custom pendant takes about two weeks of communicating and drafts to get right. This one took longer, and I didn’t mind one bit. I really wanted her to have exactly what she wanted without a doubt. That’s what custom pendants are for, right?

I really liked working on this project because it kept changing from the original request. She would send me new ideas and pictures weekly and I would find a way to incorporate the new pieces each time. I know some people may find this kind of work taxing, but I honestly liked the new additions she kept making. It forced me to rethink an idea each time keeping the work fresh and challenging.

She ultimately decided on a green background with two purple pansies on the front. I included the original “I AM” while adding real lace and a picture of her pet dog, a whippet named Emma. The back turned into a conglomerate of things that Tokenblogger holds dear: a piano, the star of David, a blue bicycle, a coffee mug, a container of Earl Grey tea, and a cello. Since she wanted so many images on the back we came to an agreement that it should be a digital collage to make it look best. I’m very happy with how it turned out. It’s better in person than I thought it would be.

She blogged about on at her blog. Check it out to see how I lovingly gift wrap every purchase!! She took pictures even!

Thank you, Tokenblogger, for allowing me to make something so personal for you. Again, I really enjoyed working on this. I am so glad you love it!

Sweet Treat Pink & Purple Double Sided Art Collage Pendant

This glass and metal pendant is double sided. One side has juicy pink and purple paper hand stitched together with silvery thread. The pink side has purple handwriting rubber stamped over tissue paper. The purple part is inked and wrinkled wax paper.

The other side has a dark plum background with a lighter shaded piece of paper running down the center. Tiny black paper dots adorn the strip.

In short, this is quite simple and elegant but perfect for everyday wear as well.

Click the image to read more about it at my Etsy shop.

I've noticed that many artists who make soldered collage pendants don't do much finishing work to the solder. They leave it flocked and rough. I sand and polish all my solder by hand so it shines like a mirror. This takes a lot of extra time and it shows in a quality, finished piece of art jewelry. My prices reflect that extra work.

Felted Bead Necklaces

Remember the felt beads Mom and I made? We created many pretty things with them!


Mom designed and made the Green and Black necklace.

Mom did most of the designing. I did some too, but I must say that I think her stuff is better. One of hers has little glass seed beads sewn onto the blue felt beads, and it’s so attractive and elegant.




We made this one together.

The necklace with the purple beads was the hardest to make. Figuring out how to get the filigree parts in between the beads to stay put was a challenge. They are sewed onto the felt beads with purple thread. The rest is strung on tiger tail. Mom did the sewing and I did the holding so they wouldn’t get away from her. It was a two-person job.

One of the necklaces I made is my favorite. The tiger tail is woven in and out of the beads in a fancy way. It has a delicate look about it that I find lovely. The other beads are glass. I wanted to do something different, something decidedly non-felt-bead looking.

This one is sold!

Please see my Flickr page for more pictures. There are a lot more things to see!

Some of these will be posted to my Etsy shop soon. Mom and I are still discussing pricing and shipping costs. I’ll let you know when we roll them out. If you are interested in them now I can set something up just for you.