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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (April 1, 2005)
HH--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------- aprii 1. 2005 » Just O U t 15 ITrinTTTTTTTTinews irds, bees and skulls. Every day-Teresa Robinson etches these delicate images and others from sheets of ster ling silver. She then layers the images over stained glass to make her signature pendants, rings and earrings. She calls her jewelry business Smallthings Designs for a reason. The largest pendant she sells measures only 5/8 by 1 5/8 inches, and the “Large Necklace” of her “Originals” line is just 1 inch square. Each piece is Robinsons own design and is handcrafted by her personally or by her sole employee, Natalie Hunt. Each day the two of them together produce about 28 of the silver and glass adornments, which range from $60 to $95. People frequently ask Robinson about the process she uses to make her unique creations. She starts by cutting a square of beautifully col ored but simple stained glass. She wraps the edges of the glass in soft silver. She cuts a tiny image from a sheet of silver, by hand, using a jeweler’s saw. She then solders everything together. A three-part finishing process tumbles and polishes the piece. The result is a ctxilly glowing silver image sil houetted over a candy-colored or earth-toned glass background. In her “Modem Goods” line, i the concept is reversed. The glass forms the prominent image, surrounded by shiny silver for contrast. Robinson’s tiny treasures are making a big splash in the fashion world. They’ve been fea tured in Venus and Lucky magazines and on DailyCandy.com. They are offered in more than 50 retail outlets across the country and are even sold in the United Kingdom and Canada. And customers are becoming addicted to Smallthings. According to Robinson, Christmas B G ood T hings in S mall P ackages Queer designer finds every hobby has a silver lining by Rebecca Ragain orders were insane in 2004. Valentine’s Day was make jewelry while studying abroad in Mexico, crazy, as well, with partners and spouses calling ! so she started tinkering with silver again. her, list in hand. For her first sales presentation, she walked “I had so many people calling me saying: into a couple of stores carrying her display ‘Please can I get this? I’ll be in really big trouble case—a cigar box filled with jewelry—and asked if 1 don’t get this.’ ” if they wanted to sell her stuff. After she sold Business has been so solid for rhe past year two pieces, she decided to quit her job and make and a half that Robinson can only dream of tak jewelry for a living. She rented a studio and cre ing a break. “I’m always saying, ‘OK, probably ated a Web site, and she was on her way. next month things are going to really slow Ltxiking back, down.’ And they just don’t.” Robinson admits It t<x)k a while for Smallthings to build this that her haphaz kind of momentum. Robinson started the com ard business ven pany in 2002 with no prior business background ture was like and only hobby-level experience with jewelry jumping off a cliff making. She was teaching at the time and get into the abyss. ting burned out with her job. She had learned to She’s gently self- deprecating about her atti tude at the time. “1 made no money at all for a year. It was fool ish, really,” she says. “1 didn’t know the differ ence between consignment Images and symbols from the natural world and wholesale. predominate in Teresa Robinson's work. I had no idea what goes into this.” Now, only three years later, she’s making 125 pieces a week, filling orders and taking press calls. Her business has grown to the point that people are asking her if she intends to go into mass production, perhaps even overseas. “It’s really appealing at times. ‘Oh, I could just send it off and then everything would come back in a box.’ And I would be able to sleep,” she says. But while the business may occasionally overwhelm her, Robinson doesn’t really want to sit in a cushy leather chair in an office, presiding over her jewelry realm. Instead, she admires the management style of another Portland design business," Rebecca Pearcy’s Queen Bee Cre ations, which has seven employees. “1 think she’s done a really good job of keep ing things on a gixxl small level but still having a steady and viable successful business,” says Robinson. For Robinson, expanding Smallthings is more about adding new lines than ramping up prixJuction or hiring more employees (although she wouldn’t mind having another person to help at Christmas time). She’s contemplating a higher-end line of items or doing some limited editions. She may even decide to move away from glass in the future and use only silver. Whatever direction her new designs take, the important thing for her is to stay involved and keep it hands-on. “I make things. It’s what I do. It’s totally part of who 1 am,” she says. “So I always want to keep it on that level. ” jri For more information about SMALLTHINGS DESIGNS visit www.smallthmgsdesigns.com. R ebecca R again is a Portland free-lance writer. Looking for something to do? Need that special gift you can't find anywhere else in town? Coffee • Pastries * Quiche Gourmet desserts We are gay owned and operated gourmet coffee and gift shops. We carry a wide selection of unique gifts and Cards • Candles • Books products that you will not find anywhere else in the area. Jewelry • Fine gifts Visit our linens and bedding area for a variety of lines for your bed & bath at the best prices in town. Free wireless internet access We have great cards and magnets too We are open early, and you can delight in an amazing dessert after dinner-we close late! — www. I etsdocoffeel lc.com - iriMMtf Lflt S Do CoffS6 & MoTß! For our great coffee & füll selection Drive of merchandise: West Linn, OR 97068 ■■■■ 503-635-4224 ■ & a ...... ... ..I-II.I.W. . « : 1721 Willamette Falls Drive West Linn, OR 97068 503-722-1722
