Posts
-Where are you originally from?
-How did you choose the lovely name for your Etsy Shop?
The name PersonalDesignz came from the concept that my jewelry designs are
one of a kind creations and the name DesignedbyMargaret is just that... that they are designed by me personally...
one of a kind creations and the name DesignedbyMargaret is just that... that they are designed by me personally...
-How did you find Etsy? How long have you been selling on Etsy?
I found Etsy through the internet and have been with them since December of 2010...
-How would you describe your style? Have any other artists etc influenced your style?
Have any other artists influenced your style? etc My style in everything I do is free form.... with my wire wrapping, I have developed a technique that is called "free form " wire wrapping.... but even in my traditional work, I still always add something that it is totally my concept of what it should be... I dont like planned designs... I want to make it my own...
When I started wire wrapping... I loved Cougar Armstrongs style ... she was a big influence on my learning to wire wrap... then I was given
a pendant by a local artist by my husband... and I liked it so much that I called the gentleman and we met... He encouraged me to bring my designs and come sit with him while he worked for the 2 days he was working locally... I learned so much from that artist and owe him a debt of gratitude for all of his help... He taught me the finishing techniques that make wire wrapped pieces have a finished element that
only comes from experience....
When I started wire wrapping... I loved Cougar Armstrongs style ... she was a big influence on my learning to wire wrap... then I was given
a pendant by a local artist by my husband... and I liked it so much that I called the gentleman and we met... He encouraged me to bring my designs and come sit with him while he worked for the 2 days he was working locally... I learned so much from that artist and owe him a debt of gratitude for all of his help... He taught me the finishing techniques that make wire wrapped pieces have a finished element that
only comes from experience....
- How did you first come to art and creativity? How did your journey in art and creativity begin?
I started jewelry design after attending a jewelry show... and after looking at the pieces... and the prices... I felt that I could make them as easily as they were for half the price... So, I took one class in wire wrapping and one in beading and then took off with a few books..."Cougar Armstrong " being one of them.
My mother was very creative and I can remember trying to draw like her and she was a seamstress so I of course was taught to sew and crochet at a very early age... I can still do both but dont get the joy from it that she did....( I will also never be as gifted as she was at either)
My mother was very creative and I can remember trying to draw like her and she was a seamstress so I of course was taught to sew and crochet at a very early age... I can still do both but dont get the joy from it that she did....( I will also never be as gifted as she was at either)
-How long have you been creating?
My journey in art began when I was 50 years old... I started painting in oils.. and still do today... I have always been involved in one hobby
or another my whole life but got serious in my older years... I play with all forms of jewelry design now.. from precious silver clay to polymer clay... I love anything that has a challenge to it...
or another my whole life but got serious in my older years... I play with all forms of jewelry design now.. from precious silver clay to polymer clay... I love anything that has a challenge to it...
-What is it that you love so much?
I love wire wrapping! Give me a gemstone and I am already thinking of things to do with it.... I love to make a piece that draws
attention when I wear it... I also take stones that people want redesigned and create new pieces for them...
attention when I wear it... I also take stones that people want redesigned and create new pieces for them...
-What are your main sources of inspiration?
My main source of inspiration is God... then would have been my parents, who have passed ... but are still inspiring me today... then it would be my sons and grandchildren ... who amaze me every day with their accomplishments....
-Have you had any mentors, or are you self taught?
I am predominently self taught except for the day of mentoring from the gentleman I mentioned before... I do have books that I have learned from but mostly from trial and error...
-Do you sell more at one time of year than others?
I think the holiday season is my best time although it could have to do with the fact that we have northerners who come down to Fla at
that time of year... I am a semi retired hair colorist and stylist.... so my business is far busier in the fall and winter months... and my clients are my best jewelry customers...
that time of year... I am a semi retired hair colorist and stylist.... so my business is far busier in the fall and winter months... and my clients are my best jewelry customers...
-What is one thing about your creative process that you think most people don't know?
That most of my work is free form work... Most people have a pattern or procedure that they follow... Most of the time, I take wire and
just wrap, adding stones as I go... If I am making a pendant piece with a larger gemstone or cabachon, I set the stone in a wrap and then free form the finishing touches...
just wrap, adding stones as I go... If I am making a pendant piece with a larger gemstone or cabachon, I set the stone in a wrap and then free form the finishing touches...
-How has life affected your art and art affected your life?
My life has been enriched by my art... It gives me great pleasure to make a piece of jewelry or paint a painting and have it be loved by the person it was intended for... My life and everything I have experienced is very influencial in my art... whether it is in my jewelry or in my painting... I grew up in a military family living in Germany most of my life and that shows in my art... I had a wonderful childhood and was taught that I could do anything I put my mind to do... so I am never afraid to try new things...
-Do you have a favorite item you have made?
Yes, it is a painting that I did of 2 wolves... I painted it for a dear friend who collects them... and it is my best piece to date... In my jewelry, it would have to be my Aquamarine pendant... I love the design of the bale....
-What is the best reaction you have gotten from one of your pieces?
I would have to say that it was one evening at Pokeno, when I looked around the room, and over half of the women there were wearing my pieces that I had designed for them from stones that they had from old pieces they didnt like and they all wore them on the same night...
-Your message for all of us?
Never give up on your dreams... If you have a desire to learn something ...find a way to make it happen.
Knowledge will never be a waste of time. It will always come to the surface when you need it....
And everyone has abilities hidden inside of them that they dont even realize are there... It is only when you start to live your dream that all of that comes rushing to the surface..
Knowledge will never be a waste of time. It will always come to the surface when you need it....
And everyone has abilities hidden inside of them that they dont even realize are there... It is only when you start to live your dream that all of that comes rushing to the surface..
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