Our Etsy Shop is Open for Business!

We've just listed our first handbags in our Etsy shop and we are so excited. We'll keep adding listings until the shop is at full strength. To check it out just click on the Etsy button on the left.

Gearing Up!

Cheri and I are both hard at work planning for the Just For Her Expo in Kansas City (www.justforherexpo.com) that will be held the last of May. Tickets are on sale now! Become a fan of Silver Pansy Designs on Facebook and stay up to date on the latest happenings. We will be posting pictures of new designs and specials on a regular basis.

On the Road Again!

Cheri and I have truly enjoyed fall show season! The crowds have been great. We'll have pictures to share later on.

We're In the News!

Thanks to the Tulsa World for featuring one of Cheri's bracelets in their article about Holiday Market! See it here: http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?articleID=20091007_41_A2_Silver107625&allcom=1

We had a great time in Tulsa. Thank you to all who stopped by our booth and, particularly, to our customers.

Karen

Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree --in Tulsa

We are enjoying the Holiday Market in Tulsa. If you are in the area please come by and see us today or tomorrow. The Junior League has done an outstanding job planning the show and there are some wonderful merchants. Across the aisle from us is the Tropical Tea Company (www.tropicalteaco.com) -- great tasting tea and interesting tea pots, including an electric one. The Christmas blend tea is awesome.

This is the first time for our full double booth set-up. We've always had a single corner booth, but with the expansion to the handbags and other textiles we needed more space. There has been a very good response to our new things and we are pleased. Cheri's jewelry designs continue to evolve and only get better as evidenced by the comments and purchases.

More later -- the doors are opening!

(Thank you Nicole Kelley from Backstreet Photography for taking our picture. Check out her work at www.backstreetphoto.com)

Pictures are Up!

We would love to have you join our Silver Pansy Designs group on Facebook. Cheri has just uploaded pix of some of her new jewelry work. Don't miss it!

It's Show Time!

It's show season -- YEA!!! Not only is autumn my favorite season, but it's time for the holiday selling shows. We love the shows. Silver Pansy Designs is looking forward to seeing old friends at our shows and making new ones. We will have a larger booth and LOTS of new products from which you can select. Don't miss the beautiful new bracelets that Cheri has been working on. We also have a variety of textile items including cosmetic bags, tiny teepees that can hold coins or lipsticks or even a gift card, going out bags with beautiful genuine gemstone trim, fabric handbags with genuine leather handles. You can even custom order a bag -- however, we are accepting custom orders for delivery in January. All times before that are already taken! Fabrics for the textiles include cottons, silks, wool and brocade. They are all beautiful.

You will love the stunning jewelry that Cheri has been creating. It's new, different and vibrant.

It's a great season -- come see us!

New Studios!

Sorry for the length of time between posts! We've been traveling and moving -- our studios that is. Cheri and I both moved our studios to new spots in our homes -- yea! The necessary items had taken over and now they are restricted to a more reasonable spot that is out of constant view. We are both working on products that will be available this fall. It's been a great summer but we are looking forward to fall show season and to seeing friends along the way!

Karen

Designing is intense

Hi all,

I've been working all week designing a custom order bag for a friend. It has crazy quilt patchwork accents. I am pleased with the results and hope she will be too! Meanwhile, I have managed to spread the fabrics all over my sewing area and make a tremendous mess. Creativity is not neat!!! It's so bad I refuse to show a picture. I'm excited to finish it and send it to her. Today is mostly sunny and somehow that improves the creative process. So much of this week has been dreary. It just doesn't inspire creativity. What about you?

Write and let Cheri and me know what type of jewelry and bags you're interested in. We are in "high design" mode. I'm thinking bags that have embroidered accents. I'm also working on evening bags that I'll send to Cheri for semi-precious gemstone accents. Send us a message or comment on this post and let us know what you think.

Check out our Silver Pansy Designs group on Facebook.

Have a good week!

Karen

Thanks for stopping by!

Thanks to everyone who stopped by our booth at the Just for Her Expo. We had a great time and were able to showcase some of our new things. New handbags included the paisley linen, yellow dot, green Earth Day bag and flowered frame bag. We had a great time!

The Pansies are Coming! The Pansies are Coming!

Part of the "behind the scenes" work of getting ready for a show is making sure that all of our props are ready and our poor lampshades were looking really bad. They had been through two seasons of Fall on the road shows and they were definitely showing the wear. Their poor little bead trim needed to be trimmed off! I've known since December that they needed to be redone, but have I done it -- NO! So early this morning I got out the fabric and started in. Here's my work in progress. I still have to put the binding on the top, but I am pleased with how it looks (never mind that the photo is slightly out of focus -- remember, I'm not a photographer). So our new pansy lampshades are coming to the Just for Her Expo (www.justforherexpo.com) in Overland Park KS this Friday and Saturday (29th & 30th) and so are we. Hope to see you there!

Memorial Day

Have a good Memorial Day weekend!

Gemstone Shopping!

Yea Cheri! She went shopping yesterday with one of her favorite vendors and was able to purchase one of my most favorite stones -- pink sapphire. I can remember going to a very fine jewelry store when I was a young teenager. They were so sweet to me while my grandmother was shopping. They took me aside and showed me the most beautiful rings, and the one that I have always remembered was the pink sapphire. Not only is pink my favorite color, but I was totally intrigued with a sapphire that was pink. That wonderment hasn't subsided as I've gotten older. I still think they are awesome and wonderful. Cheri designed and made me a splendid pink sapphire bracelet. I love it and wear it all the time. Thanks Cheri!!! I wonder what she will create with the new sapphires.

Working, Working, Working

The handbags are flying! My mind is creating them faster than my hands can. It's design, design, tweak, tweak. I love putting together all these yummy fabrics. I'm not a great photographer -- I need to take a class, sorry!

Here are a few of the latest designs. See them at the Just for Her Expo, May 29 & 30, Overland Park Convention Center, www.justforherexpo.com.

Starting Clean

I hate to clean up my work space. I've always felt that a cluttered space equaled a creative mind. I know Cheri must feel the same way also because her work table is as much a mess as mine was. It just seems such a waste to clean everything up just to get it out again. But -- I was forced to organize my things a little and I have to admit that it is nice. Perhaps I'll remember that nice feeling and keep it a little cleaner!

Great things come from creative disorder and I'm deep into creativity. Keep watching! Have a wonderful weekend.

Karen

Sapphires and Rubies and Emeralds -- Oh My!

Cheri and I had a great trip yesterday to the gem show in Kansas City. Some of our favorite suppliers were there and we were able to purchase some really beautiful gems including our favorite London blue topaz! Keep watching to see the end result of some of the purchases!

Earth Day -- We're Going Green!

We wanted to make our contribution to Earth Day and Cheri came up with this beautiful 18" green and pink tourmaline necklace.

Just for Her Expo

Happy Saturday!!! Take a look at www.justforherexpo.com. We are going to be vendors at this Kansas City show on May 29 and 30. It's going to be great. Enter to win prizes, including a fine silver, tourmaline and freshwater pearl bracelet with a retail value of $315 donated by US! See the pics below for an idea of what the bracelet will look like.

Have a great weekend.

AHHHHH and GRRRR!!!

It's the most satisfying day and the most frustrating day! I've been working on a great bag with the most wonderful fabric -- that's the good. The frustrating is that everything that could go wrong has gone wrong. I am persistent, though. The satisfying will outweigh the frustrating. Only six weeks until the Just for Her Expo and I'm excited to be designing summer handbags for the first time. I can promise you there will be some great ones and Cheri has been hard at work on jewelry. She promised something with green garnets -- oooooo la la!

Happy Easter!

Happy, happy Easter!!! It is really starting to mentally feel like spring although the weather isn't cooperating. It was very cool yesterday.

I am looking at fabrics and thinking of all the wonderful handbags and handbag linings that will be created. I found the fabrics of Lila Tueller and think they are wonderful. Here's a link to her blog www.lilatuellerdesigns.blogspot.com. Let me know what you think.

Have a wonderful day!