Autum Collection Launch 2012

Happy New Year everyone. Well not so new year any more but I'm still behind the times. I have been busy making new pieces though - below is a snap shot of a few of them. I hope you like :)

The full Autumn collection can be found on my facebook page and website.

xoxo Amelia

New Collection

The first collection for 2011 has finally been launched! 

Here is a peek - the rest can be viewed on the Millicent Russell website.

There will be more pieces released in the coming months - this year will be one continuous collection. I will send updates when new pieces are uploaded onto the website.

Thank you again for all being patient.. I hope you like the new collection.

xoxo

Late start to 2011

Hello All,

Life's like a rollercoaster at the moment!

What's new?

Well, I've been slowly working away at the upcoming collection. It will not be launched by february as planned but will now be launched on the Millicent Russell website in March!

In the meantime, I have been to Singapore to celebrate Chinese New Year - this photo is of me getting my rabbit on.

I will also be gettting my wisdom teeth out in the next week or so - landing me at home for a whole week. If I am not too sore I will spend most of that time working away at new pieces.

Thank you to all my supporters who have stuck around. I promise the new collection will be wonderful :)

Not long to go now.

xoxo

Feature Artist #2 - Ring-a-ling

FEATURE ARTIST #2 - VINTAGE DESIGNERS AND SELLERS

Name: Ring-a-ling
Country: United States

Etsy Store: ringalingbybeth

Why do you love vintage? What inspires you to create pieces using vintage materials?

I love the idea of something being unique. It is really easy these days to get mass produced items, but when something is handmade or vintage it is nostalgic and special. It sets you apart. There is a sense of something living on and having a whole other life......that is the cool thing about repurposing items. When I find a cool vintage button or old clip on earring I think where did this come from? It gets a whole new life once I make it into a ring.

What type of feedback do you get from your buyers - why they love your pieces so much?
My rings are conversation pieces. When people buy them or comment on them are , they are 99% surprised to find out they are buttons or vintage earrings etc.
I guess when people think of buttons they think of a sew through plain flat button, and the buttons I search for are unique and most do not look like typical buttons. So they appreciate that they are one-of-a-kind pieces, wearable art.

Where do you see repurposing and recreating designs out of vintage materials going in the future?

I think these days people are keen on recycling items and buying more organic and earth friendly items. I think there has been a surge of helping the environment, and going back to basics in a way.

I know for myself, anything that reminds me of my grandmother always makes me feel sentimental. Whether it be a juice glass she had in her kitchen or an old button that she had on her favorite sweater it always evokes a nice memory.

What would you say to someone starting off in this style of design?

I would say it is oodles of fun, but it is hard work. Out of every 100 buttons that I search through, I would say that I make a ring out of 5 interesting pieces that I come across. It is a little like art, where it is subjective, not every one is going to like every ring I make, that is why I try to create a variety. It is funny because I try to love all the rings I make, but honestly every once in awhile I will make a ring that is not my particular taste or color palette but I know that everyone is different, so I try to think of everyone's taste level and style, not always just my own.

What is your goal with your craft?

I want to have fun with it, and Iam also hoping it will prove to be extremely lucrative:) I would say that it is important for me to provide rings that are affordable, but also special as well. I like the fact that there is a

story behind each item, that is the whole beauty of handmade vintage items.

Where do you find your inspiration?

Magazines, flea markets, televison. Every once in awhile I will see someone on tv and think "Her outfit needs a big chunky ring.....I have just the one".

What advice would you give to crafters just starting out?

Seeing as I am still in the beginning stages I do not have many words of wisdom, but I would say take pride in what you do. If you love what you create, that is most important.

I mean it is a lot nicer when other people also enjoy what you do:), but you have to enjoy it yourself first. Crafting is fun, but when you try to create a business out of it, it does

take on a whole other life. There are things you probably won't enjoy as much as the creation process......like bookeeping or promotion. It is a different experience for each individual.

Please visit Ring-a-lings or make contact via email

• Etsy Store
• Facebook
• Email

xoxo Amelia

A Vintage Wedding

I'm currently working on jewellery for a friends wedding and I'm completely inspired by all things wedding.

I found these amazing designs on Etsy - ahh to add to the ever growing wish list.

1. Vintage bridal bouquet by Noaki

2. Glitterati garter by Florrie Mitton Couture

3.Colourful vintage bridal bouquet by 1 Amanda

4. Romance garter by Florrie Mitton Couture

5. Vintage chunky necklace by Raquel Castillo

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!! xoxo Amelia

Meet the Designer - exclusive late night shopping event

I'm enjoying my first lazy Sunday afternoon...It's been another lovely day in Canberra with the sun shining brightly all day - but the chill is starting to set in. I can feel that Winter is just on the verge of showing it's very cold head.

For anyone in Canberra or in the surrounding regions needing a reason to come and visit, Shop Handmade is having an exclusive late night shopping event where people are invited to come and Meet the Designers and pick up something for Mothers day.

This will be a great event to chat to some of the local designers - I'll be there, alongside some amazing local talent :)

Here are some of the pictures of my pieces in store - Thanks to Lisa for sending these to me!

To have a look at what else is in store - visit the Canberra Handmade Market Blog or Canberra's Got Style Blog

xox Amelia

April/May Double Giveaway Bonanza!

wSo apparently April was a busy month for me - too busy to post a giveaway and in a couple of weeks I will be heading overseas to Taiwan to visit my mum, dad and little sister and enjoy some relax time.

I will also be on the hunt for new treasures to bring back and share with you all!

So before I go, here is a double giveaway to take you through till I get back.

I'm giving away a beautiful porcelain flower ring and a $40.00 gift voucher to use in my ETSY store.

These porcelain flower rings are striking and bold and will stand out in a crowd. They are chunky yet delicate and will really make an outfit look fantastic. What's even better is you get to choose one in your favourite colour! They come in canary yellow, baby pink, green, baby blue and mauve.

To enter - please let your name and address in the comment section .

For extra entries, please join my Facebook page or Twitter and let me nkow you've done so!  (if you are already a fan of either, let me know in the comment section and I'll add in the extra entries)

** Giveaway is open from now until 10 May 2010

This is an international giveaway so anyone from anywhere can enter!

Good luck! xoxo Amelia

March Giveaway Winner!

And the winner is.............

ANNA!

Anna said...

I'm now a facebook fan... excited to be following you. Great stuff!
March 30, 2010 10:13 AM

 

  

 
Thank you to everyone's great comments and for entering - it really means a lot to me!
 
I will be taking into account a lot of the suggestions made:

• "More colour" - working on that for my new collection - stay tuned :)
• "Sterling silver for people who can't wear metal" - already looking into a new collection of sterling silver findings to use with my pieces
•  "Behind the scenes/work in progress pics" - I actually have a whole heap of these photos that were taken from my friend - just waiting for the CD so I can upload them to share with you. Can't wait!

Thank you again everyone! Stay tuned for my next giveaway at the end of the Month.

*please note that the winner is chosen from a random number generator so everyone is in with exactly the same chance as each other :)

xoxo Amelia

Love that Vintage

I honestly can't begin to express my love of vintage and in the little time I've had over the past few days to relax I've had a chance to read up on some of my favorite blogs which I'd thought I'd share with you today.

Great photography, great articles and great vintage finds!

BLEUBIRD VINTAGE

SALLY JANE VINTAGE - THE FASHION PAGES

LIEBEMARLENE VINTAGE







xoxo Amelia

March Giveaway - Beautiful Canary Floral Cuff

To celebrate the month of March, I'm pleased to announce another giveaway! I will be doing a giveaway at the end of each month.
Each Millicent Russell giveaway piece will arrive to you beautifully giftwrapped and tagged.

The giveaway for March/April is beautiful chunky gold canary yellow flower cuff. This was featured in Bride to Be Magazine last year. Only two ever made!

 

You can enter in the following ways:

• Follow my Blog - leave a comment and tell me what you'd like to see more of.
• Follow my Facebook - leave a comment and tell me what you'd like to see more of.
• Follow me on Twitter - leave a comment and let me know what you'd like to see more of.

 Everyone from around the world is invited to enter this competition!

** The March giveaway is open from now until 9 April 2010. Enter as many times as you'd like.
Good Luck! xoxo Amelia

Pretty Vintage Arrivals

I'm very excited having just received a large number of packages in the mail!

Here is a sneak peak of what I've received so far and there's much more to come :)

These are some of the pretty things I'll be making exclusive pieces out of over the next few weeks in the lead up to the Handmade Markets.

xoxo Amelia

Millicent Russell Interview with OutInCanberra

Very excited about the article that's just gone live on the OutInCanberra website.

Thanks so much to Natalie for interviewing me!

You can read the article here

xoxo Amelia

February Giveaway

To celebrate the month of February, I'm pleased to announce another giveaway! I will be doing a giveaway at the end of each month.

Each Millicent Russell giveaway piece will arrive to you beautifully giftwrapped and tagged.

The giveaway for February/March is a sweet lace necklace made from dark fuschia lace and peacock freshwater pearls hanging from a silver chain necklace.

You can enter in the following ways:

• Follow my Blog - leave a comment about how I can improve my blog and let me know what your favourite piece is from my Etsy store.
• Follow my Facebook - leave a comment and let me know what your favourite piece is from my Etsy store.
• Follow me on Twitter - leave a comment and let me know what your favourite piece is from my Etsy store Everyone from around the world is invited to enter this competition!

** The February giveaway is open from now until 7 March 2010. Enter as many times as you'd like. Open to wordwide.

Good Luck xoxo Amelia

January Giveaway!

To celebrate the new year I will be doing a giveaway at the end of each month.

Each Millicent Russell giveaway piece will arrive to you beautifully giftwrapped and tagged.

The giveaway for January/February is a pair of beautiful earrings made from vintage Japanese glass beads - each bead has a flower design that shimmers in the light. Each bead hangs from a vintage set of shell earring hooks.

You can enter in the following ways:

• Follow my blog - leave a comment and let me know what your favourite piece is from my Etsy store
• Follow my facebook - leave a comment and let me know what your favourite piece is from my Etsy store
• Follow me on Twitter - leave a comment and let me know what your favourite piece is from my Etsy store

Everyone from around the world is invited to enter this competition!

**Giveaway is open from now until 7 February 2010.

Good Luck xoxo Amelia

My New Designs

The first lot of new pieces for 2010!

I have taken the pictures using my poladroid application. I have also taken them normally so people can get the real feel of the colours. I do very much like that the polaroid look gives it a vintage feel though.

These are now available on my ETSY store.

Plenty more to come!

xoxo Amelia

What a way to start 2010!

Happy New Year everyone! I hope that you all had a wonderful christmas and ate great food among family and friends.

I had the shock of my life this afternoon when I typed in the Canberra CityNews Magazine website to see if my article had made it into this edition. When the first page came up I almost screamed - It is me on the front cover!! The first edition of Canberra CityNews for 2010!

Never in a million years did I think that I would make it on the front cover of a magazine! You can check the article out at http://www.citynews.com.au/. Thank you to Silas Brown for taking the photos and for Kathryn Vukovljak, Lifestyle Editor for doing up a wonderful article. And a big thank you to Itrip Iskip, my stockist in Canberra for letting us use their space for the photos!

My etsy store re-opens on Friday 8 January and there will be a number of new pieces. I've been working hard the last two weeks (since being back from my hoilday) and working on pieces for a new stockist in Western Australia as well as for my current stockists and of course my etsy online store.

This year will be packed with new pieces, new promotions and competitions! Stay tuned!

xoxo Amelia

Christmas is coming!

Hello everyone!

Some great news the past week which has kept me off the internet, hence no blog until now..

Firstly - I got promoted at work! YAY! This means that I'll be getting some extra money to buy more exciting things to work with for Millicent Russell - stay tuned!

Secondly - I have a new stockist!! The owner of All About Me in Denmark Western Australia which will be opening its doors in February 2010 has asked me to make her a collection for her little boutique.

Last but not least - Christmas is coming! I've been flat out doing custom orders over the past few weeks and getting ready for the first gift for the Millicent Russell Special Secrets Club subscribers. Thanks to everyone who has joined! I promise it will be an exciting year for subscribers. Subscription closes in December so for those interested, check out http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=18224065

I hope everyone else is getting into the Christmas sprirt - on a side note I was in Wollongong for the weekend and they had their annual santa pub crawl. The streets were filled with Santas, Gingerbread men, elves just to name a few! Ah the good ol' Christmas spirit. Love it!

xx Amelia

Melbourne - A city with everything!

With every visit to Melbourne I am sad to say farewell at the end of my stay. Melbourne has been one of those places I've always wanted to move - to spread my wings (so to speak) and experience a city which has so much to give in every aspect.

In the past couple of years most of my friends have moved to Melbourne - which is a novelty as every visit turns out to be a weekend of fantastic mayhem with many memories attached.

I kept getting asked to move - or be 'stolen' from my place here in the capital (Canberra) but I am happy for now and I think the novelty of those special weekends would wear if we could do it every weekend. So for now Melbourne (and co) will have to wait.

Getting to the point of this blog, my weekend as per usual was a busy and fantastic one - catching up with friends, enjoying the wonderful late mornings with coffee and breakfast on High Street and the plentiful shopping (with my limited spending funds).

For those who haven't visited Melbourne before, here are some of my 'must visit' places.

For the best:

• Breakfast and coffee in town - visit Oska Whyte on Hight Street Armidale.
• Vintage jewellery, clothing and furniture (or anything for that matter) finds - visit Chapel St Bazzaar, 217 Chapel Street Prahran - Open Mon - Sun 10am - 6pm.
• Bar/Lounge Bar - visit Sister Bella, Sniders Lane in the City.
• Dinner - visit La Camera Restaurant, 446 Chapel Street South Yarra.

Busy week

Sorry to everyone for the lack of posts this week. Work has been very busy and I haven't had a chance to come on here or make any new pieces. I'm actually in Melbourne for work until Tuesday so it will be all quiet on the blog scene until then.  Hopefully I'll be able to bring some exciting things back with me to share with you.

For the time being I'll leave you with some of my ultimate favourites on Etsy since I first got involved in what is an amazing community and place to shop for unique items!

Vintage Piano Locket Charm - Purple Daisy Jewelry

Flower Mug of Tea Necklace - Lychee Kiss

Heart Frame Purse - Emedemarta

Keepsake Box Ring - Yellowgoat

Until next time - hope you all have a great weekend! xx

Millicent Russell photoshoot and editorial

So I just got back from a photoshoot for my label Millicent Russell and it was very exciting! I went to one of the boutiques my jewelery is stocked in - a little boutique called Itrip Iskip - and met up with the lifestyle editor of a local magazine which is circulated weekly CityNews. I was photographed with my pieces and asked about how I started my business. I'll be sure to post the photos and articles as soon as it comes out :)

On another note I've finally scanned in the photos of my pieces in the Australian Bride To Be magazine. They used my pieces in two shots for their August edition.