WESTie Wednesday with Eighty8Eighty9

Welcome to WESTie Wednesday, where each week we get to know a proud WEST member and their Etsy shop! Learn about Andrea along with her husband Graham and their shop Eighty8 Eighty9!

"It all began one Christmas when I wished for a custom peace sign bracelet from my husband Graham, who works with metal in his 9-5."

"He created and gifted me a beautiful peace sign bracelet and earring set and so began our interest in creating jewelry. We opened our Etsy shop in the spring of 2014 and we have been creating jewelry and evolving our brand ever since. We strive to create jewelry that has meaning and that reflects beloved aspects of a woman's life. 

"Lake Winnipeg is a particular inspiration for us and we have created a number of pieces that reflect the peace and joy that the lake brings to so many. We also want our shop to raise awareness to the water quality issues that Lake Winnipeg and many other lakes face. We source our metal from scrap pieces at Graham's workplace and our chain and other notions are sourced from Etsy."

"We sell stainless steel necklaces and earrings. We design and cut all necklace and earring pendants from stainless steel. Our earrings are made from 100% stainless steel and we are transitioning our necklaces to 100% stainless steel also. Stainless steel is good for people with metal sensitivities and it will not tarnish or fade over time. Our product is targeted to women who are looking for timeless and meaningful pieces of jewelry."

We asked Courtney “Why Etsy?”
 
We run our Etsy shop as a creative outlet. We enjoy having something that we can work together on as a team, both bringing our skills and abilities to create a product and brand.

"Thank you for letting us share about our shop and we hope you check us out on Etsy and on social media! Our jewelry can also be found at Savior Faire, a lovely locally run gift shop located at the corner of Henderson Hwy and Johnson Ave in Winnipeg."

Want to see more? Be sure to check out Eighty8Eighty9 on social media!

  Twitter | Instagram

 

W.E.S.T. November Design Challenge Results

The design challenge for November was based on the Fall 2011 colour trend forecast from Pantone:

Four WESTers took up the challenge with fabulous results! I'm going to start from the last to the first entry with this post.

Just under the wire, Kat from aeliodesign entered this beautiful one of a kind cuff:

OOAK Luxurious Horn Cuff Bronze Metalwork Emberglow Agate Stone set in Sterling Silver by aeliodesign

Kat notes that she had plans to make a necklace for the challenge, but on the last day of the challenge, she just sat down at her bench with some metal and a saw, and this was the result. The cuff itself is "bamboo," with some rippling through it, and the stone is "emberglow."

You can see more of Kat's Original, contemporary & stylish jewelry designs in her shop aeliodesign. When you go there, you will see she is currently living in Greece, but she will be moving back to Winnipeg soon!

Our third entry was based on the colour Quarry:

Modern Elongated Swarovski Crystal Hoops Earrings, Light Denim Blue and Argentium Sterling Silver - Roxie by Toxie Designs

Jennifer says earlier this year she purchased vintage crystal in the colour Indian Sapphire, which she thinks best matches Pantone's Quarry hue. These crystals are in a discontinued shape in a large 10mm size.

Vintage light grey blue faceted crystal saucers floats on an arced earwire which meets at the bottom latch. These sexy earrings, made of Argentium Sterling silver* (anti-tarnish, nickle free and ethically mined) are hand-shaped and hardened by me. The crystals are brilliantly cut vintage saucer beads in pale light denim blue or quarry blue from Swarovski. These are limited edition earrings as only three pairs will be made.

You can find more of Jennifer's Modern Geometric Jewelry in Silver and Gold in her Toxie Designs shop!

The second entry was from MonCherieCreations:

Cafe Latte Fingerless Mitts by MonCherieCreations

Just the thing for a cool fall day in November! Miriam notes: I love the colours for this challenge! This was a pattern I'd been wanting to make for a while, and I had two perfect colours with which to make them.

With these fingerless mitts, you'll keep your hands warm with comforting colours and style. Perfect for running errands or an evening out, these mitts will keep you hands warmer but leave your fingers free to use the outdoor ATM, pay your parking, order at the drive-thru, or fasten your kids' seatbelts. A great gift for yourself, a teacher, a bus driver, or anyone else for whom you'd like to get a thoughtful gift.

You can find more of Miriam's handmade crocheted bags, hats, headwraps and more in her MonCherieCreations shop!

And last, but not least, Susana from lemon dear was our very first entry, and she made a very cool moustache calender for 2012:

2012 calendar. Printable PDF. Original illustrations. Moustaches by lemondear

Susana writes:
Ever since I was a child, I've always found moustaches to be absolutely charming - and I don't mean just Clark Gable and John Waters' cooler than cool pencil thin moustaches. My fascination has always included the magical bearded lady of the amusement parks, fairs and circuses of yore, and of course, Groucho Marx's grease moustache and the millions of imitations that followed in the form of "funny guy" masks. While thinking of a calendar idea, something one will see all through the year, I thought: I'd like to see colourful moustaches. It was a huge aid to have this challenge and the Pantone colours available, since I am still a bit scared about colour--hence one of the lines of my manifesto goes "Do not be afraid of colour." This was a perfect chance to run wild with the amazing hues presented. Using the suggested colours was like writing an exquisite corpse: no one knows what the previous verse was or what the following one will be, but somehow, they match beautifully.

You can find more of Susana's embroidery patterns, embroidered hoop art, customized colouring books and 2012 calendars in her lemon dear shop!

We will be taking a break from the design challenges in December. What theme would you like to see for future challenges in 2012?

Fall Colour Trends Design Challenge Entry #3

Here is our third entry into our November Design Challenge based on the colour Quarry from the Fall Colour Trends from Pantone:

Modern Elongated Swarovski Crystal Hoops Earrings, Light Denim Blue and Argentium Sterling Silver - Roxie by Toxie Designs

Jennifer says earlier this year she purchased vintage crystal in the colour Indian Sapphire, which she thinks best matches Pantone's Quarry hue. These crystals are in a discontinued shape in a large 10mm size.

Vintage light grey blue faceted crystal saucers floats on an arced earwire which meets at the bottom latch. These sexy earrings, made of Argentium Sterling silver* (anti-tarnish, nickle free and ethically mined) are hand-shaped and hardened by me. The crystals are brilliantly cut vintage saucer beads in pale light denim blue or quarry blue from Swarovski. These are limited edition earrings as only three pairs will be made.

You can find more of Jennifer's Modern Geometric Jewelry in Silver and Gold in her Toxie Designs shop!

July 21st - Item of The Day

Recycled Fine Silver Pearl Pebble Stack Earrings by The Silver Agenda

Recycled silver pebble disks add movement to these simple and unique earrings. I shaped metal clay into flat pebbles and then rounded their edges. After the clay was fired in my kiln, I wire wrapped a peacock freshwater pearl to the disks and then to a length of sterling silver round cable chain. Finishing the earrings are fine silver ear wires.

The length of these earrings are 1 & 3/4 inches(4.5cm).

Each item purchased in my shop comes wrapped ready for gift giving, or just for you!

I welcome custom orders!

This piece is part of my new collection, Noble Silver which is made from metal clay.

The clay is shaped and then dried, and when fired in a kiln produces pure silver. Fine silver will not tarnish as readily as sterling silver and is strong enough to be heirloom quality.