Meet Your Makers: Jennifer Baldauf of Charmed by Jenn

This is the first in our series of "Meet Your Makers" blog posts.  We interviewed each of our artists and the first is Jennifer Baldauf of Charmed by Jenn.  Following are her answers, in her words.

Please introduce yourself and tell us about your handmade business:  My name is Jennifer Baldauf of Charmed ~by Jenn and I've been with Boutique 208 since our inception.  I began designing while living in Arizona as a reprieve from my day job as a Director of Marketing and Human Resources.  I found the variety of landscapes out West to be great inspiration.  Eventually I moved back to Pennsylvania, and found that I had missed the seasons, lush forest and greenery more than anything and began painting trees, and incorporating more nature into my designs.  My first tree painting was used for an album cover for Peter DiStefano's album Unconditional".  You can find my miniature works of art exclusively at Boutique 208.

You will find a theme of nature in a lot of my work; from my use of natural gems and minerals, my hand embossed designs of nature,  and my miniature tree paintings.  

 

 

Everything I do  is a one of a kind, so my inventory is constantly changing.  Stop in to see my work! 

How did you come up with your business name?  My company was formerly known as "Faerie Beautiful Jewelry."  I decided that I wanted a change, and wanted to come up with a word that conjured an image of magic, fantasy, beauty, and whimsy, as well as jewelry.  Charmed came to mind, and the name "Charmed ~by Jenn" was born.  My tagline is "Jewelry and Art for the Soul." 

Where do you live? I live in Bradfordwoods, and am inspired by the trees and woods on a daily basis.  This is where I live and create.

Who’s in your family? I live with my man and my cat.  I moved back to PA 11 years ago to be near my sister, Anna, and the rest of my family.  

If you could sit down and talk to any person, living or dead, who would it be and why? I struggled to answer this question since there are so many amazing minds and artists to choose from, however, my great grandmother passed away when I was 19, and although I had 19 wonderful years with her, I would give just about anything to be able to sit and talk with her now as an adult.  She was an amazing woman, a WWII vet and heroine.  Rosella Painter taught me how to be strong, independent, loving, and caring, and I would love to thank her for everything she did for me.

 

What inspires you?  My main source of inspiration is life in general.  There's inspiration around every corner, in every soul, in a persons eyes, my cat, in the trees, and in every sound!  Music is a huge source of inspiration for me as well.  

 

What is your favorite item you make for Boutique 208 and why?  This is also a hard question to answer because everything I do is a one of a kind, therefore I don't duplicate items.  My miniature tree paintings and hand embossed and patina'd jewelry are my favorites to work with, but I also love to bead, as well, and work with natural gems and minerals, and Swarovski Austrian Crystal.  I got my start in jewelry by beading, so it will always be a love of mine, but once I discovered embossing and working with patina's I quickly became hooked.  My favorite aspect of my jewelry is that I only work with metals that are nickel-free and lead-free and safe for all skin types.  I take a lot into consideration when designing, and whether or not people may have metal allergies is a huge concern, so I eliminate that worry by choosing my metals very carefully.

 

What is your favorite item at Boutique 208 that’s not one of your own and why?  My favorite item by another artist in the shop is the upcycled tea cup candles by "Barkers Herbs and Heirlooms."  They smell delicious whether they are lit or not!  I have had mine sitting on my shelf in my living room for almost 3 months, and have not had to light it to give off fragrance yet!  They are wonderful, hand poured and soy based!  And, I am a tea addict, so the look of the upcycled tea cup is perfect to me!

What advice can you offer to someone who would like to start selling their handmade creations?  I would suggest to start off doing some small art and craft shows to get a feel for what the public thinks of your items.  I believe the public dictates what is and what isn't sellable since they are the ones purchasing it.  Friends and family will always tell you your art/craft is good, the public will determine whether they are being honest with you.

Join us this Saturday, March 8, for a Trunk Show Featuring Angela Todd of Funnermother: Let's Get Fun!

This Saturday, March 8th, from 11:00 am - 8:00 pm, stop into Boutique 208, at 208 6th St., across from Heinz Hall, for a special trunk show featuring Angela Todd of Funnermother: Let's Get Fun.

She will be premiering her new Cabbage Patch Kid inspired wig hats and will also have her "Devil Music" tees available.  The Devil Music tees were included in gift bags for an after party at this year's Grammy awards.

Enjoy a free mimosa while you shop this free event. 

Sign up for her E-zine and receive a crocheted dishcloth as a thank you gift.

Featured Artist for February 2nd - 16th: Angela Todd of AngelLeighDesigns

Boutique 208 is proud to introduce our current featured member - Angela Todd of AngelLeighDesigns.  We hope you enjoy reading a bit about her in her own words.  

AngelLeighDesigns has been represented by Boutique 208 for several years now.  I quit my full time library job in July and am getting more active there.  I'm also starting a cozy family-focused label called Funnermother, leaving my vintage items and whatnot in my AngelLeighDesigns label.  You'll see both labels in the Boutique.  For me, handmade is part of my rural Maine history, but it's also an important politics of the future.  In an economy of handmade, producers get the power of production and creative control. Consumers are offered not just the illusion of choices (Smucker’s or Welch’s grape jelly), but real choices (homemade mango jam). Societies benefit with engaged producers, somewhat leveled playing fields, less dominance and more engagement. Handmade purchases feed artists and families, not corporations. 

Individuality cannot be expressed through mass produced objects. It is a structural impossibility. Shopping at the department store downtown I would have five choices. Working with a seamstress or artist on a handmade wardrobe, I have a world of choices. Handmade is freedom.

A selection of sizes and colors of this silkscreened tee are in the Boutique!

This hat celebrates adoption!  Did the giraffe take on the attributes of his fish family?  Or did a fish start to look like his adopted giraffe family?  

Felted bowls are great to fill with candy hearts, plushies, chocolate kisses, or jewelry.

You'll see this vintage flashbulb pendant in the window.

Introducing our Current Featured Artist - Judi Erno of Urban Baroque

Boutique 208 is proud to introduce our current featured member - Judi Erno of Urban Baroque.  We hope you enjoy reading a bit about her.

Judi Erno of Sewickley, Pa. is a former chef and caterer who now shares her creativity by cooking up new and delightful jewelry designs.

Sprinkled with gemstones, laced with leather and mixed with metals, Judi's designs are sure to satisfy your craving for the unique!

Featured Member: Bulla Designs

Boutique 208 is proud to introduce our current featured member - Bulla Designs.  We hope you enjoy reading a bit about them, in their own words:

Bulla Designs is a collaboration of Tanya & Ivy.  We are 2 girls from Wilmerding, a suburb of Pittsburgh, PA. We have finally found a creative outlet that allows us to share vintage and new designs with everyone. We believe in reusing, recycling and upcycling everything we can. We love to find one of a kind vintage items, and give them a new life.   Vintage material is one of our favorite items.  We use this to create our handmade bags, then often times we hand silkscreen a Bulla design on the bag.

Our products have evolved over time, and still continue to evolve as we learn and try new techniques and applications.  Our shirts, baby one pieces and bags are picked by us, often times handmade by us, then a design is carefully picked out and applied by silk screening or hand printing techniques of many kinds.   Our interests in the creative process keep expanding, as do the products we create.  Recently we added guitar straps,  plush pillows and greeting cards.

We take our inspiration from anything and everything! If we find something we like, we find a way to create it ourselves, and improving upon it in the process, adding character and uniqueness that is otherwise lacking in the mass produced products consumed on a regular basis.

The featured artist for the end of May is Neighborhood Blonde.

Greetings! My name is Shelly Picard, and I'm the creator of Neighborhood Blonde. I started Neighborhood Blonde four years ago after realizing that creating had become more of a passion than the word "hobby" encompassed. I have always been a creator, as were my mom and both of my grandmothers. Although there were times during my childhood that "DIY" was more out of necessity than desire, I always marveled at how my mom could figure out how to recreate just about anything she encountered. And I loved trailing behind her at fabric stores, touching the bolts she touched, learning about the different kinds of textiles and dreaming of what they could become.

Today I create upcycled and recycled personal and household goods. I believe that just because an item is recycled, it doesn't have to look used. It's what I call eco-chic. Many of my creations are paper based, such as notebooks from product boxes and found paper, dishwasher magnets, wine bottle tags, and cards with vintage elements. I also use papers with soy-based inks and recycled content as much as possible. 

Other upcycled items include cards made from floppy disks and books, pillows from vintage chenille bedspreads & vintage fabric, and flowers made with vintage sewing patterns, knitting needles and buttons. In addition to creating environmentally friendly items, I also knit. I knit scarves, cowls, fingerless gloves, and wash cloths. Knitting provides a soothing calm at the end of a hectic day.    

If you want to see more or have any questions for me, please visit me at www.NeighborhoodBlonde.com or my Facebook page. Until then, thanks for taking a walk around my neighborhood!                 

   

Featured Artist: Dina Noon with Design by Noon

As you step into Boutique 208 and look to your right, you will find our featured member section.

 

Every 2 weeks this area changes to showcase a different member.

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For the next 2 weeks, May 1st - 14th, Dina Noon, of Design by Noon will be our featured artist.  Please enjoying reading a bit about her, in her own words:

Design by Noon began with inspiration of both ECO friendly resources along with an eye for salvaging used materials to make them ‘new again’.   Design By Noon makes hand poured soy candles utilizing ECO friendly processes and materials.  

Our candles are hand poured in recyclable glass jar containers. We also will refill custom containers or salvaged containers suitable for burning wax.  

Design by Noon also carries salvaged items that are repurposed into home or garden décor along with one of a kind dried floral arrangements and terrariums. 

Our terrariums are made from found glass containers and use many local materials found right here in Pennsylvania. Self harvested mosses and hand picked stones are just a few items which make each one unique.