Busy time of year!!!

Posted on December 13, 2010 by ClaireJacobs| Leave a comment

Well it’s official, I have reached a whole new level of busy.  In fact, I feel like the word ‘busy’ doesn’t really cover it.  I have tons to do!  For the next two weeks, I will be at dead sprint, working as much as possible to get all my orders finished by Christmas.  I’m totally excited about all my holiday business and I’m happy to make each piece of jewelry for all my wonderful customers!  I have to say though, I wish the weather was not going to be quite so frigid this week because it gets cold at my studio and I’m going to be there a lot in the next few days.

So when I’m not in studio, I do try to come up for air every once and a while and do something to relax.  Many times that means I’m flipping through my Harper’s Bazaar seeing what’s going on in the fashion world.  I was going through the December issue recently and stopped on one of my favorite articles, ‘Buy, Keep, Store.’  It’s just a quick rundown of items that you should buy for your wardrobe, keep if you already have it, or store for the time being.  Call me crazy, but I always think of it as a kind of test to see if what I have been buying recently, syncs up with the latest fashion trends.  Actually, it would be more accurate to say it is a test to see if what I have been drooling over in stores but sadly have not purchased syncs up with recent fashion trends.  Anyway, when I went through the ‘Store’ portion in December’s issue, I saw metallic clogs on the list as something people should not be wearing now.  Dare I ask, who had metallic clogs in the first place?  I think I must have missed that moment in time when metallic clogs were popular…

Thanks again to all my wonderful customers who chose to make it a handmade holiday!!!

-Claire

Wide Sterling Hoops

Check out these great sterling hoops on my website.  They one of my new favorite things!

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Posted in Fashion, Musings

Boylan Art Walk

Posted on December 3, 2010 by ClaireJacobs| Leave a comment

This Sunday is the Boylan Art Walk in Raleigh, and it is one of my favorite community art events all year long.  My studio, Antfarm, happens to be in the beautiful, historic Boylan Heights neighborhood.  Every year in December, the residents of Boylan Heights open up their homes and their front porches for local artists to use as space to showcase their work. They then invite the community to walk through for an afternoon in December and get a taste of what the Raleigh art scene is all about.  It is an incredible time to meet artists, enjoy a lovely part of Raleigh, and maybe even find some unique Christmas gifts.  As artists, we are lucky to have a neighborhood like Boylan Heights that so generously supports the creative community.

Antfarm Studios participates in this event every year and it is a really fun time.  As you can imagine, it can be a little chilly walking around on an afternoon in December, so at Antfarm we get our wood stove fired up and always make hot cider for our visitors.  As a result, Antfarm becomes a cozy haven for attendees to stop for a while and warm up!

Stop by if you are in the area!  I would love to see you:

Antfarm Studios
303 Kinsey Street
Raleigh, NC 27603
12-5pm

~Claire

ps- Just a reminder to all you last minute shoppers… the last day to place order in time for Christmas delivery is December 17!  That will ensure I have plenty of time to get everything made and shipped out to you.  Thanks!

Oval Studded Ring
Check out this great new statement ring, available now on my website!

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Posted in Events

First Friday at Antfarm Studios

Posted on October 31, 2010 by ClaireJacobs| Leave a comment

This Friday evening, November 5, we will be opening the doors at Antfarm Studios for Raleigh First Friday.  Every month, we like to feature a different Anfarm artist, and November is my month for a solo show.  I was very busy all weekend, putting the final touches on my new work, putting a fresh coat of paint on the gallery walls, etc.  I made one trip to Lowes for supplies on Friday, but unfortunately it looks like I will be making one trip more tomorrow.  It’s going to be a busy week!  I still have a bit more to do, but I think I’ll be able to pull it all together by Friday.  Wish me luck =)

My work will be featured in our large gallery, but we also have a small gallery to fill up.  The Antfarmers decided on a group show, so if you are in the area and stop by on Friday night, you will also have a chance to see some new work by my studio mates- a diverse and talented group.

Again, the event is Friday, November 5, 6pm-9pm.  I hope to see you there!

-Claire

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Posted in Events

Things I Love

Posted on October 24, 2010 by ClaireJacobs| Leave a comment

-  I recently ran across an artist, Robin Barcus Slonina, who definitly peaked my interest. She is traveling around the US creating site specific dress sculptures to represent each state.  Check out her website http://www.robinbarcus.com/Home.html to see some of the images from her project.  I really love the willow branch dress, representing Wyoming.

-  My new favorite accessory, infinity scarves!  I recently found one on sale at Anthropologie and have pretty much had it on ever since.  They are so cozy and stylish!

Other updates:

I have just launched my ‘Studio Collection’ on my website.  This collections is all about exploration, both technically and conceptually. I enjoy this body of work so much because I feel it is a result of some of my most creative moments in studio. While some pieces are one of a kind, many I put into production. Some even become jumping-off-points for other new collections.

Friday, November 5, from 6pm-9pm, I will be having the opening for a solo show at my studio, Antfarm.  For those of you who are in the area, please stop by.  I will be featuring my collection from fashionSPARK, as well as other new work.

-Claire

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Posted in Musings

New Work

Posted on October 7, 2010 by ClaireJacobs| Leave a comment

The past few days I have mostly been taking photos, editing photos, and just taking care of business.  Below are a few of my favorite new pieces.  I’ll be adding everything to my website as soon as I can, but here is a quick preview:

Black Onyx Ring

Fringe Bracelet

Oxidized Segmented Bangle

Studded Oval Drops

-Claire

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Posted in New Work

fashionSPARK recap

Posted on September 22, 2010 by ClaireJacobs| Leave a comment

This weekend was a complete rush and so much fun!

The big fashionSPARK event was the fashion show Friday night in downtown Raleigh.  There was a huge crowd and I was very nervous, but things went really smoothly.  Thanks to Crystal Pickard, the clothing designer I worked with for the show.  Crystal designed a collection of totally fun black cocktail dresses and I had a great time accessorizing her work.  Her models looked great and did a wonderful job on the runway, and I managed to make it out on the runway without tripping, so I was pretty happy.

Saturday we were outside for the fashionSPARK shop, part of bazaarSPARK.  It was a little windy that morning, but once that died down, it ended up being a beautiful day.  There was a big crowd and I had a great response from the people who stopped by my tent.  Thanks to everyone for coming out!

On a more personal note, my family was in town for the entire weekend, helping me out and cheering me on.  We had a great time just all being together… it seems like those times are few and far between these days.

So what’s next… I will say that I have been taking a break that past few days.  I took it easy all day Sunday because frankly, I was exhausted.  Standing up and talking to people all day long can really take it out of you!  I haven’t been back to studio to work since the weekend either.  Typically after an event like this I feel the need to take a little break from making work, but that doesn’t last too long.  I will be back in studio in full force this weekend.  I’ll be focusing on new designs (my favorite thing to do) and getting those designs ready for the upcoming holiday season.

Also, just and FYI, my calendar is already starting to fill up for the upcoming months:

Friday, November 5- First Friday, Raleigh: I will be having a solo show at Antfarm Studios!

Sunday, December 5- Boylan Art Walk, Raleigh- Come the to Boylan Heights neighborhood in Raleigh to see some local artists, and of course, come see me at Antfarm!

That’s all for now.  I will upload some pictures of fashionSPARK soon!

-Claire

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Posted in Events

Fall is in the Air

Posted on September 12, 2010 by ClaireJacobs| Leave a comment

First thing’s first, I am a warm weather girl.  I love it when it’s hot and dread winter every year.  That said, after a hot summer when the air starts to lighten up and I can feel the onset of Fall, I can’t help but get excited.  The weather is changing, the world starts moving again after the lazy days of summer, and exciting times are approaching.  Plus, the closely approaching holidays are always a great time of year for jewelry sales!

While I always feel energized in the Fall, something else happens to me as well, an overwhelming homesickness.  Now I know what you might be thinking, I’m homesick for home and family, but that’s not the case.  I’m actually homesick for Penland.

So for those of you who don’t know me, here’s a little background info:  I studied Visual Art in school and obtained a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Printmaking in 2004.  After that, I jumped straight into a Printmaking MFA program, thinking I would do what many young artists do, get my masters and become a professor.

Well, two years into the program things were going well.  I had learned so much, grown as an artist, and had a kick-butt thesis proposal on my hands, all I had to do was execute the show.  While on the outside, it seemed like things were going perfectly, on the inside, I had a nagging feeling things just weren’t right.  I had lost interest in my work and had lost the drive I so needed to complete my final year.  As a person who has had a very distinct drive to create for as long as I can remember, this was a very unnerving feeling for me.  Also, after getting some teaching experience, I had realized that I had no desire to become a professor.  I finally made a very difficult decision, in fact, it was the hardest decision I’ve ever made.  Thankfully, with the support of my family, in 2007 I abandoned the goal I had been working towards for the previous six years and I left graduate school.

So then what?  What was I going to do?  I toyed around with different ideas that I was interested in, but nothing really ignited a spark.  That was until I was perusing the Penland School of Crafts (Penland is a national center for craft education in NC) website and I noticed that there was a beginning jewelry class being offered in the fall.  Jewelry was something I had always been interested in, and always thought I would like to try.  Any why not go spend two months in the beautiful mountains of North Carolina?  I didn’t really have anything else to do.

So I went to Penland in the fall of 2007 and stayed for two months learning basic metalsmithing techniques.  Talk about igniting a spark- from the minute I picked up a jeweler’s saw, I was hooked.  I absolutely fell in love with making small metal objects.  All the creative drive and excitement I had lost track of while in school was back in full force.

But it wasn’t just the my new found artistic practice that made that fall so special, it was my whole experience at Penland.  Penland School of Crafts is one of the most wonderful and unique places I have ever been.  It is a little piece of paradise tucked away in the mountains of North Carolina.  The landscape is beautiful, the people are inspiring, and the food is absolutely fantastic!  My two month stay at Penland is one of the happiest times I can think of in my adult life.

So every fall, when the air starts to get crisp, I feel a pang of homesickness for Penland.  I long for the mountains, the cool air, the changing leaves, and I long for those two months at where my creative life truly took on a new direction.

-Claire

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Posted in Musings

My Studio

Posted on September 6, 2010 by ClaireJacobs| Leave a comment

This past Friday, September 3, was First Friday in Raleigh.  First Friday is a city wide gallery hop where all the galleries and studios in Raleigh open up so the public can check out the local art scene.  You guessed it, First Friday happens on the first Friday evening of every month.

I am a member of Antfarm Studios, a group studio close to downtown Raleigh.  While in the past, Antfarm has opened up for First Friday only once or twice a year, this year we have been trying to open up as much as possible.  We took a break over the summer months, but we started back this month with an awesome show by fellow Antfarmer, Ben Reid.

Since we were having guests come though not only our gallery, but also our individual spaces, I did a little (I do mean a little!) sprucing up in my area.  I thought this would be a perfect time to take some pictures of my work space- Take a look at my favorite place in Raleigh, my space at Antfarm Studios.

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Posted in Studio

bazaarSPARK

Posted on August 17, 2010 by ClaireJacobs| Leave a comment

fashionSPARK is exactly one month from today and I’m a busy girl.  I still have a lot of work ahead of me but I’m really looking forward to it.  I have a new shipment of materials on the way and I’m headed into the studio this weekend with some new ideas that I’m really excited about.

As a fashionSPARK designer, not only will I be a part of the fashion show on Friday, September 17, but I will also be showing my work at bazaarSPARK.  bazaarSPARK is an outdoor shopping experience like no other.  Stop by downtown Raleigh anytime from 10am-6pm on Saturday, September 18, to see all the unique artisans who will be selling their wares.  Make sure to stop by my booth and say hello!

-Claire

http://www.sparkcon.com/sparks/bazaarspark/

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Posted in Events

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fashionSPARK

Posted on August 12, 2010 by ClaireJacobs| Leave a comment

If you have checked my Facebook page lately, you have probably noticed a few posts about fashionSPARK 2010.  I’m thrilled to say this year I have been accepted as one of the designers for fashionSPARK.

So what is fashionSPARK?

fashionSPARK is part of a SPARKcon, a showcase of creativity and talent in the Triangle area.  SPARKcon is sort of a “creative potluck”celebrating poetry, art, music, film, fashion, and more. This fall will mark the fifth annual fashionSPARK fashion show.  Since its creation, fashionSPARK has grown into the largest and most popular fashion event in the triangle!

The show itself will be held Friday, September 17 at City Plaza in downtown Raleigh at 8pm, so everyone in the area, mark your calendars!

For the show, I am paired with a local clothing designer, Crystal Pickard, and will be accessorizing her looks on the runway.  I’m super excited to be working with Crystal!  Over the past month we have met, discussed ideas, and equally concluded that we are a match made in heaven!  We both love clean designs with an edgy flare, and the color black!  However, that’s all I’m going to say… I wouldn’t want to spoil the show!

More to come later!

-Claire

http://www.sparkcon.com/sparks/fashionspark/

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Posted in Events