Trashion Team Spotlight- Antonia from Artimentary!

Shop name: Artimentary

Shop address: www.artimentary.etsy.com

Other sites: www.flickr.com/photos/artimentary/ and Artimentary.com

Trashion materials: Salvaged aircraft aluminum & fiberglass, old earring parts, backs and other clasps, shoe clips, zippers

(looooooooooove the zippers), Swarovski crystals from the floor sweepings of a defunct 1980’s costume jewelry manufacturer,

Bits of shiny metal, vintage watch faces, casings, straps and buckles, reclaimed chains, reclaimed sailmakers Dacron thread, found objects,

Circuit boards, old floppy disc parts, damaged or broken vintage jewelry

I transform them into: Ecopunk jewelry, steampunk designs, visual ReUse art and accessories

How do you do it? Rivets, glue, cement, links and wire wrap, sewing, laminating

What inspired you to do this and why are you involved in trashion? Like a raccoon or raven, I cannot resist shiny things, and found objects. I find them everywhere, and have a trove of treasures I’ve been collecting and making things out of for the past 30 years (yes, that WAS thirty). Yes, I AM older than dirt.

Do you remember the first thing you made using the trashion concept? How could I forget, and this is a true story.
What was it?
Don’t choke up. Seriously, it was Christmas and I was a young mom with two children under six and a husband who’d just lost his job. Long story short, my youngest daughter had wanted a particular dolly and there was no way we could afford to buy toys. I made EVERYTHING. The kids’ clothes included. So I had to make her something so unique she’d be flabbergasted enough to forget about the storebought doll. Recycling old tights with runs, my flannel nightgown and cotton towels for stuffing, I made her a life-sized cotton dolly from some ivory flannel sheets passed down from my grandmother who’d saved everything since the depression. The doll had a sweet blue stripped dress, enormous handpainted button blue eyes (just like hers), and moppish brilliant cobalt yarn hair! She was adorable and actually just a bit bigger than my 3 yr old daughter who fell in love with ‘her best friend’. It was great to be off the hook, but now the secret question: Can Trashion predict the future? This was the same teen daughter who announced “I just LOOK more like myself when I have blue hair. It’s the color I was supposed be born with only there was a slight mistake, and fortunately I am able to fix THAT”. By the way, she is now a chef at a 2-starred Michelin restaurant in a major upscale location and still is known for…wait for it…. her French blue hair….Who knew!?

What are your current projects and what is on the horizon?

I’ve designed a nice packaging solution for my jewelry, as I am also a proud member of Team EcoEtsy. I am playing with circuitry and salvage metals to make Ecopunk jewelry on bird and nature themes mixed with steampunk and geekery. I just scored a bunch of Mycarta, a vintage aircraft material from the 40’s which has a lovely deep amber surface and unique texture so check my shop to see how things work out. Fusing plastic is also affording me a whole new view on soft surfaces to combine with my beloved hardware. Go Trashion! I am also a proud member of Interior Design Team at Etsy, and am working on visual ReUse art for the home and office.




Why should people buy handmade, and buy from trashion?

We really live in the best of all worlds when we combine art with reUse and proudly live a handmade life. Walk our talk! It inspires change through joy. It works by attraction rather than promotion. What is more compelling than responding to someone’s interest in that unusual design you’re wearing and getting to introduce them to Etsyworld? And don’t we LOVE to make and do? And see what others make and do? And share the Love with the maker-doers! Trashion is all about the love! It all works together.

Thank you for sharing your awesome work with us Antonia!