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One of a kind jewelry
Using belt buckles, buttons and many improbably itsy-bitsy treasures, jewelry designer Gretchen Schaumann crafts one-of-a-kind necklaces and rings in her Champlin, Minn., basement. She will join more than 100 other trash-to-treasure vendors at the fourth annual Junk Bonanza.
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What: Fourth annual gathering of more than 100 vendors of vintage, repurposed and antique furnishings and decor, orchestrated by Junk Revolution operator Ki Nassauer.
When: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Thu., 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Fri.-Sat.
Where: Canterbury Park, 1100 Canterbury Rd. S., Shakopee
New this year: A licensed precious-metals dealer to buy silver, gold and jewelry; Marshall's Farm Market; a blog party featuring local and national junk bloggers; a tabletop display assembled only from used items; an ARC Value Village truck on site for donations.
Other features: Book signings by the Farm Chicks, Matthew Mead and Nassauer.
Tickets: $6 per day; $20 online or at the door buys a two-hour "early bird" head start at 8 a.m. on Thursday.
Details: www.junkbonanza.com.
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Modus operandi: Schaumann makes "vintage redesigns," using repurposed and found elements. Schaumann uses new elements (sterling silver wire, some beads, semiprecious gemstones) in a few designs, but "only when they keep the integrity" of the style of the piece being designed.
Got her start: More than 13 years ago with a stash of family beads. "I would look at my maternal Grandma's jewelry box and my Mom's. My fingers just couldn't get enough of the stuff."
Favorite materials: Vintage pocket watch faces, cases and movements, faux baroque pearls, rhinestone roundels ("they look like disco balls"), belt and shoe buckles, old coins, game dice, metal toy cars, screw-back earrings, broken jewelry, buttons from all eras, brass numbers, cow and locker basket tags, keys, beads, tokens, drawer pulls, chandelier prisms, old crystals.
Other sources: Flea markets, occasional sales, dickering with bloggers, eBay, Etsy and antique shops, "if you watch the price point."
Inspired by: Texture, nature, "all things vintage, which have had a previous life and hold stories to tell."
Design process: Schaumann doesn't picture a completed piece in her head before she starts. "I wing it."
Start to finish: "Sometimes it takes a while for it all to come together." For example, she bought up an entire stock of vintage Swedish chandelier prisms five years ago with no plan in mind. She used some in pieces a year later, but didn't finish them until two years ago.
Her aesthetic: She combines sparkly items with flat for contrast. "I like to use birds in my work. Little treasures. I'm a very detailed person. It can drive you nuts, but it comes in handy with jewelry."
Most unusual element used: The serial tag from an old cash register.
Most unusual element not yet used: A token from the Chicken Ranch brothel. "I only bought one, because I don't know how many people have a sense of humor for that!"
Trade secret: How she forms and wraps wire to link beads.
Indispensable tool: Round-nose pliers.
Sells for: Most of her pieces cost from $22 to $79. "If it's $79 or $99, it's something I've got three-plus hours in with elements I'll never find again. I never want my jewelry to have the reputation of being expensive. I'd rather it be known as a good buy."
On the workbench: "A couple of pieces that aren't completed. This one is going to be big and bold. This is not my style, but there's someone out there. She's probably 5-foot-3, 110 pounds. She'll love that. Bigger women want small pieces and smaller women want big!"
Still learning? "Self-control. I don't want to spend a fortune. I can learn from someone else's mistake and do it right the first time. But that's generally not what happens to Gretchen Schaumann!"
Advice for would-be vintage redesigners: Start slow, search things out. Use the Internet, find your own style. "And don't overpay" for materials.
Find her stuff: Junk Bonanza booth (Tent Section G), French Flea monthly occasional sale in Anoka (www.frenchfleamarketofanoka.com for dates) and her blog, mimitoriasdesigns.blogspot.com.
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