Off the Record and Sew What at Art Dimensions 3rd Floor Gallery

Art Dimensions' Call for Artists are fairly broad, leaving a wide variety of artists access to having their work displayed in an excellent gallery in the heart of downtown St. Louis. I submitted two pieces to the Off the Record and Sew What shows this year, my first submission to Art D!

Off the Record- Use vinyl in your work

I dug my jeweler's saw into unfamiliar territory, sawing delicate swirls into the vinyl, and echoed the shapes on the opposite side with spray paint. When I picked it up afterward, Gina Weaver (the method behind the madness of the 3rd Floor Gallery) said people kept asking, "How did she do that?"

Criteria : Sew What- Use stitching, fabric, or any image that evokes sewing

Seamstresses have piles of fabric remnants than can later be sewn together to create a colorful new creation. Metalsmiths have piles of copper, sharp edges, and odd angles. Strictly using the scraps from my workbench and minimal cutting or alteration, I "sewed" together pieces of copper with sterling wire to create a classic Katie asymmetrical necklace.

Una Mae's Boutique

Katie and I hit the pavement in Los Angeles after the Renegade Craft Fair to scout for boutiques to sell our line. After hitting up several dozen boutiques in many areas of LA, we finally found uNa Mae's on 4651 Kingswell Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90027-4301, (323) 662-6137. The owner, Karen, was so friendly and totally into independent designers. After looking through our collection of one-of-a-kind designs, she ended up stocking her store with some make and bake, vintage, feather, and cut metal pieces. Check out Una Mae's every time you visit LA or Chicago, (yes, they have two amazing locations!) They carry a mixture of specially hand-picked vintage and modern clothing and accessories, creating a truly unique shopping experience every time you visit. We are so thrilled to be a part of this forward thinking boutique! Thank you, uNa Mae's!!!

Cute sign!

Katie completing our order at the front desk. Love the vintage displays!

Quite possibly the largest and healthiest jade plant I've seen. Succulents just thrive in the LA desert. I've personally not only killed, but murdered, every jade plant I've ever tried to nurture here in KCMO. I blame it on our crazy seasonal weather patterns, not on my black thumb. Nice ambiance, uNa Mae's!

Karen custom ordered these CA necklaces cut from copper set with black pearls on antique copper chain. We surprised her with a freebie CA cut from a record paired with labradorite and sterling silver chain. That's right, boutique buyers, if you order from us, you might get freebies from time to time. That truly does not suck, right? Order from us!!

I found this vintage skeleton key at the KC Rivermarket Antique Mall and set it with a mixture of large vintage links and new modern chain. I still think about this design and hope it found a good home :( Miss you, love...

Make and Bake plastic jewelry galore! Karen loved the recycled aluminum cherry blossom earrings and ship earrings. These are sooooo large yet super light weight. My kind of statement earring!

Vintage German enamel pendant (hand picked from a market in San Francisco by Katie) mixted with copper chain. Yum! Yum!

More Make and Bake! This is a label from an Anchor Steam Beer - yes, that counts as recycling! Do you have any idea how hard those labels are to pick off without tearing? The other is an Arizona Tea label, also difficult to remove from the bottle without tearing. So, yes, you can wear these and gloat that you are going green. Do it!

White feather and swarovski crystal copper scarf necklace. What can I say, it's just sexy. Buy it, wear it! You will not regret it.

Thank you, Karen, for not only supporting independent designers but also for trusting in the design capabilities of complete strangers from Missouri (of all places) who wandered into your boutique one random Tuesday this past mid July. We are proud to say that uNa Mae's is the first boutique in LA to carry Scarlett Garnet Jewelry!!!! Thank you Karen, Scarlett Garnet hearts uNa Mae's forever!!!