Saturday, April 16, 2011

For Me, For You: an interview

I'm reading: For Me, For You: an interviewTweet this!

Interview of KATE MISS Jewelry Designer


all photos are taken by Kate Miss


Today I am so excited to share with you one of my favorite bloggers + jewelry designer, Kate Miss. I emailed her a few months back and asked her if she would do an interview and she was so kind enough to say yes. So here is the little interview. One thing I want to point out is that her work ethic is amazing. She's a full time graphic designer, takes amazing photos for her blog and still has time to make her necklaces. whew. People, never say that you don't have time to do your own projects after work. She MAKES time. Another thing I'd like to draw attention to is her personal style. She consistently has great color palettes and knows how to make simple style come to life.


1.

Me: Kate, I've stumbled across your blog by chance a few years ago and its been so inspiring to see how far your necklaces have come. You have such a great simplistic yet fashion forward style in everything from your website, your photos and your wardrobe. What's your background? and how did your jewelry making come about?


Kate:
I’ve always been involved in creative things – be it art, music, and/or design. I’ve been a graphic designer for about eight years and have a full-time job doing that during the day, but I’m the kind of person who hates being bored and having too much time on my hands, so after some dabbling in making and selling art prints, I decided to teach myself how to make jewelry (I also ended up taking a couple classes). It revolved around the idea of turning friendship bracelets of my childhood into necklaces from the very start, and eventually evolved into different styles that also use thread, or simple brass pieces that coordinate well.


Interview of KATE MISS Jewelry Designer


2.

Me: Did you think that you'd be doing this a few years ago? It seems hard to believe that your able to handmade every necklace! Would you ever consider mass production or are you a handmade advocate?


Kate: I never even thought I’d sell them when I first started! They were just necklaces I was making for myself and something creative to keep myself busy, but as soon as I posted a few photos on my blog and flickr page, people asked if they could buy them. Sometimes I feel like I’m missing out on a big opportunity to grow, but then again I don’t really want to have someone else making my jewelry, even an assistant. I like it just the way it is right now – making them when I have time, making the jewelry more limited edition and special that way. When I made 100 necklaces for Target, it killed me and took all the fun out of the business. I had no life for months! I don’t know if I’ll ever do something like that again. If the perfect opportunity came along to join forces with someone else who was business minded, or I found myself unemployed, I might consider growing, but right now, it works for me.


3.

Me: What are some of the challenges of juggling maintaining your blog, working full time and still being creative and make jewelry?


Kate: It’s a struggle sometimes. I had to cut back to three posts a week on my blog because it just became impossible to keep up with, posting every day. If you’re forcing yourself to blog, it shows. I’ve found that quality over quantity works for me – both for my blog and my jewelry. I get asked all the time how on earth I handle all three of these things, but like I said before, I have to keep busy in order to be happy. But of course, that can take it’s toll sometimes, so it’s nice that I can take a little break from the blog and jewelry line if I need to sometimes, people understand.


Interview with KATE MISS Jewelry Designer


4.

Me: What inspires you? And who are your favorite designers? musicians?


Kate: My move to LA is my biggest inspiration right now. The colors, the sunshine, the plant life, the laid back attitude – it fills me to the brim with creative energy. I had no idea that waking up to sunshine every morning was such a life motivator for me. Other than that, I love and am inspired by Rachel Comey, Caitlin Mociun, Maira Kalman, Louise Bourgeois, among others. As for music, the list is pretty endless! My favorite musicians to work to are Neko Case, Iron & Wine, Nina Simone, and Mulatu Astatke.


5.

Me: What are your favorite places to shop?


Kate:Madewell, Zara, Needsupply.com, Asos.com, Totokaelo.com (when I can afford it!), J. Crew for the occasional basic, Sephora (I’m a beauty product addict), Mohawk General Store, Tortoise General Store.


6.

Me: How would you describe your personal style?


Kate: Sometimes I joke with my friends that I dress like a blogger. I own many striped shirts, skinny jeans, and seven pairs of shoes with wooden heels. I rarely wear anything that’s the slightest bit uncomfortable (no heels over 3” high), and I have a
pretty consistent color pallete my boyfriend calls “Kate Miss colors” – marigold, camel, navy, burnt oranges and reds. I'd rather wear something with an interesting shape than an interesting pattern. Simple, with a twist.


Thanks, Kate for taking the time out to do this!


Visit her blog HERE and go spy on her shop HERE. You won't regret it.
also, make sure to sign up to be on her mailing list for shop updates cause her necklaces sell out faster than Radiohead tickets. Seriously.

4 comments:

Unknown said...

thanks for the interview! check out my blog and etsy! i have my lookbook up.
http://hammocksandtrampolines.blogspot.com
http://etsy.com/shop/puddinp0p

lisa cole said...

coool.

Coury Combs said...

Inspiring for sure!

GlassesShop said...

Inspiring for sure!

Related Posts with Thumbnails