Tom Björn Designs

Autumn in Stockholm

2011-10-30T08:22:00.000-07:00

My neighborhood is magically beautiful!

Yellow leaves over bike paths - this is what autumn means for me

Karlavägen. My love

Himlegården. It's almost evening now.

My new friend

See, the street lamps are already on - the evening is here.
Engelbrektsgatan

And here am I in my favorite coat from a second hand shop.
The best thing about it are it's huge red buttons. And as you know, I love buttons

Cafe60. My favorite place in the north of City. mmm

Bone pendant

2011-10-02T13:32:00.000-07:00

My mother-in-law has given me this beauty.
It's a pendant made from raindeer bone.
Amazingly beautiful and gentle. This type of craft is typical for Sami (Lapland indigenous people), nomadic tribes who live in the north of Sweden, Norway and Finland. They have beeing herding raindeers for centuries, mainly for meat and skin.

Bones are used mainly for decoration.

Isn't it gorgeous?

Panduro Competition

2011-09-20T13:07:00.000-07:00

Yey! My button necklace / bracelet finished on the 5th place in the competition arranged by Swedish shop for craft supplies PanduroHobby

Here is the competition page

Flee market is LOVE

2011-09-06T13:45:00.000-07:00

This weekend we had a 2-kilometer long fl;ee market in Stockholm. People sold EVERYTHING you can only imagine. I was of course, hunting for beads :))

and I was lucky - I found a lot of amazing old necklaces made of glass, stones, wood, shell beads

I am completely happy - now I have an entire treasure!

Autumn - necklace and earrings

2011-08-05T11:39:00.001-07:00

summer is still here, but I already look forward to my favourite season

Red, brown and very nostalgic :)

And warm...

for more - see my shop

Lavender, orange and lime - life is perfect!

2011-06-07T05:49:00.001-07:00

Lately I am having a "coloful earrings" mood :)
meet my new babies - all crocheted with cotton yarn. Up-cycled wooden beads serve as a basis.

Lavender :)

Orange :)

Lime :)

As always - everything is for sale in my cozy shop.
Every pair is $16.5 free shipping, but you can get any pair of earrings for freee with the purchase of two necklaces :)

Smörgåstårta

2011-05-17T05:11:00.000-07:00

When I just came to Sweden I could not get it - why all swedes are so in love with this Smörgåstårta (sandwich cake) - white bread spread with mayonnaise, creme fraice, shrimp, crabsticks, decorated with ham, cheese, eggs, vegetables...

But now, I love it! It is so juicy and fresh (if it is fresh, of course), crispy and fishy..... mmmmmm

This one is home-made - yummmmmmy

Meet my friend - the oak tree

2011-05-11T09:47:00.000-07:00

One of the things I love in my apartment - this small balcony and this huge oak tree.
Summer evening is here - just about time to have a cup of warm tea on the balcony.

Enchanted Forest

2011-05-05T12:00:00.001-07:00

Meet my new necklace - inspired by nature awakening and by amazingly beautiful landscapes of Wermland - this magical part of Sweden with small rustic farms near enchanted forests where trolls still roam. The kingdom of moose and moss.

The moss on the stones is so soft and gentle that I could stand or sit there for hours, listening to a close-by spring, smelling aromas of awakening forest, hoping to meet a baby-mooseThis necklace features amazing beads of green jasper from a vintage necklace, lovely metallic-colored glass beads and other findings.

Already in my shop :)

Several necklaces together - why not?

2011-05-04T02:46:00.000-07:00

Summer is coming and I am working on new designs - lighter, happier and more close to nature.
By the way - who said that they can be worn one at a time?

They can be combined to fit your mood :)

Summer Bells

2011-04-14T01:39:00.000-07:00

Fancy a jewelry piece with sound?
This new necklace / bracelet features several little metal bells that blend among other colorful glass and wooden beads and they create gentle chiming sound everytime you move.

Wear it as a collar necklace...

I love these happy paster colors :) They make me happy

as a bracelet

Taking photos

2011-03-22T23:14:00.000-07:00

everyone knows that taking good photos is essential, especially if you expose your product online and not in a real live shop.
And so keeping an online shop is a constant process on working with your images, improving the angles, experimenting with backgrounds, waiting for good light, mastering photoshop.

The photoshop part is a bit too much for me. I usually add light and contrast to my images, but ideally I would like to master photoshop so that I could play with the depth of field, designing new backgrounds etc. But well, since I am not a graphical designer, I know just the simplest actions. My plan is to really invest time and effort in it - take books from library, download online workshops.

But let me show you how (in my opinion) the angles of my photos have improved. Let's take the photo of my crocheted earrings.

The first two are "before" pictures. They are not awful, but could be improved.
This one is good because it shoes the exact size of the earrings. But the light is bad!

This image "earrings hanging on the glass" is not a bad idea, but in my case I think it is badly done. The white ballance should be fixed and I find proportions of the mug a bit wrong. Also this matte
This photo on the page of an old book is much much better then the first two. The background is quite, but not plain. The depth of field is shallow, with makes the earrings in the very focus of the image. And the light is neutral - the color of the earrings is exactly like they are in life.

Should earrings be photoed on models? Good question. Those who are against this claim that buyers are turned off by seeing their potential purchase being worn by someone else. But believe me, those who will be turned off are minority, more customers will be attracted to a beautiful model, showing how exactly these earrings will be worn.
But since this issue of taking pictures of earrings on the models is sensitive, make sure that yours is outstanding. So that you definitely can attract more customers than those you will probably turn off. Create a lifestyle in your pictures - the lifestyle that your product represents. In this particular case it is - gentle, innocent, graceful, old-fashioned, beautiful with a touch of fairytale.

And the last tip - if you make several copies of the same item - mention in the description that the item on the model is just for visualization. You customer will receive a completely new and unworn item.

The locks

2011-03-20T14:56:00.001-07:00

So many friends, customers and retailers asked me about the locks of my necklaces.
So I decided to make a short post so that later give this link to every one who has questions about the locks.

So here we go - two lobster clasps on each end of my necklaces.

This allows to
- wear the necklace open ended or tie the ends like lariat.

- lock the locks with each other and have several wraps bracelet or necklace. Or belt. Or headband.

- lock each lock on a different part of the string. This is especially useful in wearing my necklaces as tight bracelets. You make one wrap around your hand, lock the first lock in between the beads. Continue wrapping until it sits tight. Then lock the second lock on the part of the string where it reaches. hmm, I hope I have explained it ok!
but I feel that it is about time to start making video tutorial about how to lock my necklaces :))

Basar Under

2011-03-14T03:39:00.000-07:00

Another Saturday at Basar Under was lovely - a lot of people, music, homebaked buns and a lot of amazing sellers.

People we looking, touching, playing with my necklaces. Some were buying. I must say this "live2 selling is very exciting!

Here is me (photo by Basar Under)

Adventures in snowy Oslo

2011-03-07T23:05:00.001-08:00

couple of weeks ago, while it was still

Couple of weeks ago, while it was still winter here in Scandinavia, we went to Oslo.
And believe me it was one of the best weekends this winter. The entire Saturday we spent going with sledges down the hill. Then we took metro up, and down with the wind again.
I didn't have proper clothes, so I had to use an old and huge skiing jacket

The mountains around Oslo-fjord were sun-washed and full of crispy snow. Truly winter paradise.

Our happy and tired faces.

and the evening highlight was national Norwegian cuisine - Pizza.
Didn't you know that Norwegians think that they invented it?
Well, given that pizza was amazing, we can agree with Norwegians!

Crocheting around beads

2011-03-05T14:37:00.000-08:00

Just a bit more about crocheting around beads and upcycling vintage necklaces.
These beads I got from my follower in exchange for one of the necklaces from my shop (she also included a bunch of buttons, and I am so grateful! I will surely find how o use them!)

The best thing about crocheting around beads is that you can use the little leftovers. Amazing way to utilize the destash.

and there can be made so many beautiful jewelry pieces out of those beads.

Fresh Green Mix

2011-02-27T10:32:00.000-08:00

Do you remember a post of mine, where I have been admiring all those treasures that I received for Christmas - among them were these old vintage broken necklaces.

These red broken necklace made of real red corals was my favourite!And finally I have come up with a new design using these old beads!

See more pictures in my shop :)

Bronze and turquoise

2011-02-20T13:09:00.001-08:00

I find this color combination very inspiring. Deep and mysterious bronze and bright turquoise.

I used small chips and bigger beads of turquoise, Czech glass beads, shell chips, wooden beads and amazing metal antique bronze-colored vintage beads from an old necklace.

As always - long crocheted string that give you thousand of different looks.

Check my shop Tom Björn Designs for more!

Milky greens glass flowers necklaces

2011-02-19T03:01:00.001-08:00

Love those milky green shades. Absolutely fresh, springy and gentle

I used cotton and silk mixed yearn cord to achieve perfect fit on the neck.

I also have a similar Milky Blue necklace. Look here

Blue flower glass necklace

2011-01-25T11:18:00.000-08:00

These gorgeous blue glass flower beads are my favorite finding last year.

wax cotton cord to achieve perfect fit on your neck.

And a smaller turquoise bead is used as a lock.
These gorgeous blue glass flower beads are my favorite finding last year.

Lemon Curd earrings

2011-01-17T12:32:00.000-08:00

These ones are very very LEMON :)

The beads were once part of an old necklace. I crocheted around them with ecological cotton yarn.
I love them :)

Spring is close!

2011-01-11T02:18:00.001-08:00

Some spring feeling :)

This one-of-a-kind item is made of mix of vintage wooden beads, lovely large aventurine beads and sparkling orange glass beads!
I hope the spring will be inspired and will come sooner :)

Just before Christmas I got an amazing present - look

2011-01-09T06:57:00.000-08:00

As part of gift exchange game, I have received these wonderful gift from Tanya Soroka.

A lovely set of Christmas decorations and an absolutely adorable felted wrist cuff - bracelet.

The little bears very soon found their place on our Christmas cactus (we were too lazy to get a proper tree this year). And the wonderful bracelet fits parfectly with my style! And I cannot be happier!

I am so grateful and happy!

Go to her shop web-page and see other wonderful creations.

And let me show several of my favorites made by her!

Get greener - upcycle!

2011-01-07T13:50:00.000-08:00

Nothing gives me more crafty pleasure than re-using things and giving them new life. Besides, it makes my life and the life of my customers greener! And on top of this - I spend much less money on my supplies if I buy second-hand, or do an exchange for my products and thus can keep lower prices of my items :)

What can be better?

Use material that are already there. Get vintage and old items and make new. Get ideas from books on handmade that are plentiful in every library.

In this post I will give you some ideas on where to get alternative supplies for your craft and what to do with your own unnecessary supplies.

1. First of all, check vintage and second hand shops in town - many of those offer amazingly cheap old and tired items. Give them another chance! Moreover, in many second-hand shops one can find leftovers of yarn and other supplies - use it :)
This ring is crocheted with red yarn I have bought in a charity second hand shop and is embellished with a turquoise bead from a vintage necklace.
Old and tired wool sweaters can be easily felted into beautiful new accessories. Just as tiny bit of unwoven wool can make a stunning felted flower.

Check out the tutorial of TonyaUtkina on how to create a felted flower
Moreover, youtube is full with video-tutorial on what to make out of old woolen sweaters.

2. Find soulmates! I regularly post on a local blog an advert saying that I exchange my products for a bunch of old jewelry, even broken or torn (anyway I will upcycle it), leftovers of yarn etc'. You won't believe it, but MANY people are happy to get rid of things they do not need - especially if they get a handmade designed item in exchange. Besides local online forums you can find handmade clubs in town or designs faculty in university or college and simply put paper advert on their board. Believe me, you will be surprised by result!
That's the treasure I got lately from such exchange for only one of my necklaces.

That red broken necklace is made of real red corals. Good bargain, isn't it? :)

3. Revise your old stocks.
Every craft artist has a bunch of old supplies, those that are not colorful enough, shining enough, those that cannot be incorporated into any of your designs, or those little bits that are simply left over and are not enough for a new design. What do you do with them?

- Change them!
Color them, crochet around them, reshape them :)
I have a lot of amazing buttons. Many of them are absolutely unique and vintage, other more common and dark.

In my designs I mainly use happy colors, so brown and black buttons will have hard time finding their way to my necklaces. But I still love them, and I have an idea what to do with them - I will crochet around them and make necklaces out of them. Just wait and see!

- Exchange them!
Yes, your boring leftover supplies maybe a real treasure for someone else. Find your local fair and forum - give advert that you want to get rid of them and see what people can offer you in exchange - their leftovers can be a real find for you :)
- Sell them!
yes, as simple as that. List them in your shop and sell.
If you have them for couple of years, you haven't used them until today and still don't have any idea of how you will use them - get rid of them!

- Combine the leftovers.
do you have a bunch of old beads of different size and color! paint them in one color or crochet around them with similar yarn - and then they will make a nice necklace or other accessory. Their different size will only add uniqueness!

In this particular necklace most of the beads come from different other necklaces. Even the yarn I used to crochet over is of different shade. And yet, this necklace is charming, isn't it?

As I said, I love seeing old and sad things getting new life and starting sparkling again.

I hope this can inspire you to reuse and recycle. You can both make crafts and make the world better. So why not simply doing that? :)

A lot of old buttons - happy Christmas treasure

2011-01-05T14:37:00.000-08:00

I am a happy happy happy person - I got hundreds of vintage buttons as presents from different people for Christmas - and I cannot be grateful enough!
Look at this crazy amount!

And look at how special they all are. Mmmmm - absolutely delicious :)

And the rusty old metal boxes that keep old family stories :)

Let's see what I will craft out of this amazing treasure :)

New business cards - desined by KarisaGraphic

2011-01-04T11:08:00.000-08:00

Let me proudly boast -

I have printed my new business cards. Dear KarisaGraphic created the design and I am more than happy to hold a bunch of them on my table!

They are so fresh, springy and absolutely adorable! I will use them as both business card for my shop and as tags for my sales :)

Go to KarisaGraphic lovely shop to see more of her designs!

Red crocheted flower rings

2011-01-03T10:35:00.000-08:00

At my live craft show my crocheted flower rings were especially popular. And so I made A LOT of them.
Now I am happy to show them here one by one :)

Here come the red ones.

This one is embellished with large wooden bead that adds depth to light and soft crocheted flower.

In this one I used a real turquoise bead, up-cycled from vintage necklace. I love reusing and reshaping vintage and antique jewelry and this ring is a wonderful example of how an old and beautiful bead gets a new life :)

And finally my last red one - with small tube black beads. Poppy ring :)

In all of my rings the metal base is nickel free and it is size adjustable.

To see of my rings - go here

Christmas in Sweden

2011-01-02T11:06:00.000-08:00

Now, when the holidays are behind us I thought maybe I can tell you a little about Christmas in Sweden, which is in my opinion, the loveliest holiday full of lights, decorations and happy smiles outdoors despite snowy weather in December. And though it is already January, I is better late than never. :)

In Sweden, Christmas officially begins with Saint Lucia ceremony on 13th of December. On this day, the youngest daughter from each family puts on a white robe with a red sash before dawn and wears a crown of evergreens with tall-lighted candles attached to it. There are special morning services in every church, and most of them are overcrowded. One has to be in good time at the church before the ceremony in order to see it.

Christian traditions are very respected in Sweden, but for most people, the preparations for Christmas begin at late November or early December. That's when the shops start competing about who has got the best Christmas decorations (especially such shopping mekkas as Ikea, Ahlens, Nordiska Kompaniet). The same day people start trying to find appropriate Christmas presents for everybody. Christmas markets are especially popular. There you can find unique handmade decorations, presents and simply a lot of good mood.

Glögg, or sweet hot spiced wine, is served outdoors and it definitely helps to warm you up, as it is usually freezing cold at this time of the year.

Christmas decorations in Sweden include advent-ljus, special candle to put on your window sill (those really remind Jewish Hanuka candles), apples, straw ornaments, Swedish flags and small gnomes wearing red tasseled caps.

Christmas is not a proper Christmas without pepparkakor or the famous gingerbread biscuit. Swedes love making gingerbread houses – they usually make complicated drawing of a future house and then bake the roofs, walls and other parts strictly according to the measurements in the plan.

Christmas Eve you usually spend with your friends and/or relatives and eat Christmas food. Three o'clock in the afternoon is sacred, though. Then every kid in the whole country sits down in front of the TV to watch "Donald Duck and his friends wish you all a Merry Christmas". Most adults don’t admit that they love it too, but they do! I love it very much, too :)

Swedish Julafton, or Christmas Eve, dinner may be a julbord, or buffet with julskinka, or Christmas ham, pickled pigs feet, lutfisk, or dried codfish, and risgryngrot a special rice porridge. Usually it is served with a special dried bread.

After Christmas Eve dinner, some of the presents are usually opened. Swedish Santa Claus, Jultomte (Christmas Gnome) unlike Santa Claus is supposed to live under the floorboards of the house or barn and ride a straw goat. The make-believe Tomte, wearing a white beard and dressed in red robes, distributes gifts from his sack. Many are given with funny rhyme that hints at the contents. However, modern American figure is quickly catching up in Sweden and Tomte is losing his original identity.

But he is nevertheless lovely and welcoming :)

article was originally written for the Etsy Russian Team Blog

some passion!

2011-01-01T14:59:00.000-08:00

here I am created again once so popular item :) - black fire.

This time I call it "passionately your"

Reds on black - I find this piece extremely versatile regarding what outfit you are wearing. It can fit any festivity, or regular office day, or even some lovely gothic outfit
ah yes, vampires love this one a lot :)

Christmas baking

2010-12-31T11:39:00.000-08:00

Baking before Christmas is a tradition that followed by almost every house in Sweden.
And so we did with friends a couple of weeks ago :)

Gingerbread cookies are a must. Unlike Christmas gingerbread men in English-speaking countries, Swedish gingerbread cookies are usually made in such shapes as moose, pig, Dala horses, special Swedish horses, and hearts. Those are made very thin and it takes only 7 minutes in the oven for them to become crispy.

Many families take on the challenge and guild their own gingerbread house. First they made a drawing, then the dough is cut according to the measurements of the drawing.

After the walls and the roofs are baked, they are glued to one another with sweet syrup.

And then comes the last touch – colorful decoration with sugar cream and candies. But we decided to leave our gingerbread skyscraper just as it is :)

Another pastry that no Swedish Christmas can do without is lussebullar – rolled saffron breads with raisins.

It is baked of regular yeast dough with a lot of saffron which gives them this yellow color and a fantastic Christmas taste!

And of course, no baking can be done without drinking glögg, warm spiced wine, drunk in small glasses with raisins and almonds at the bottom. As you can see, there is even a special gadget with candle to keep the wine warm all the time

Baking is incredibly important for creating a Christmas atmosphere at home. And together with special decorations is makes Christmas absolutely magical!

This article I originally wrote for out wonderful Etsy Russian Team blog :)

Tom Björn Designs at Basar Under

2010-12-30T12:15:00.000-08:00

Three December weekends in a row I was having a show at the Basar Under. Absolutely lovely place - definitely worthy visiting on your weekend vintage shopping in Stockholm. A lot of amazing old findings, a lot of surprising and brave design ideas and a lot of handmade.

I worked like crazy before the show - made tons of brooches, rings, earrings and of course, my necklaces
I spent several evenings and nights thinking on how to present my items - I wanted to keep vintage and handmade spirit in the way the table looks. Old wooden frame, recycled paper and small piece of old lace - and a lovely "grandma" frame for earrings is ready :)

Oh yes, I had a lot of brooches. And somehow I enjoy selling brooches the most!

I was upgrading my stand every day. The wooden frames gave way to bigger stands (still all made by me and still keeping the vintage-lace feeling). I kept the little ones for side stands :)

Look how happy I look! I got huge portions of adrenaline when selling offline. I love explaining people about how to tie my necklaces or what my brooches are crocheted of - I love my things!

I must tell that buttons attracted most of the attention. One I sold two button necklaces one after another and was sitting during the show and urgently crocheting more button necklaces. a lady came and started asking what I am doing, after explanation she bought 2 button necklaces before they were made!
she came back to pick them up in two hours :)

The sales went very good, and now I can buy so much more beads and yarn!! Basar Under will be again open from March and on. Come and touch my necklaces in person :)

Christmas in Wermland

2010-12-29T13:28:00.000-08:00

Christmas in Wermland was SNOWY, and amazing, and cozy, and warm.

The nature in that part of Sweden is absolutely magical. I think I like it better than Dalarna (and I like Dalarna a lot)

The snow was so soft and gentle that we could not stop making angels all days long.

Ah well, chopping wood was also important!

Because when we had arrived the windows in the house looked like that
and only by making sure all the fireplaces in house are well fed - we could have a warm and lovely Christmas.

Unfortunately we didn't have a Christmas tree, because we arrived one day before Christmas and it was too late for going to the forest and getting a tree, because all the trees looked like that
and therefore the trees must be defrosted first, and it takes more than one day...
But otherwise it was the best Christmas ever! and I hope the next Christmas will be even better!

Forest Fairy

2010-11-09T01:20:00.000-08:00

Like a year ago - when I lived next to beautiful Hagaparken, I decided to make my photosession outside, on the stones, moss, trees. After all, that's where I get my inspiration from, so why not taking my creations back to nature and take pictures of them in their "natural environment"!

So this is one of my new versatile necklaces / bracelets - Forest Fairy.
This piece comes from a fairytale. From any fairytale about deep forests, tall trees, green moss and of course, kind fairies.
These earth colors - brown, green, beige and moss - are my absolutely favorites. And small chips of transparent crystal feel like fresh dew drops :)

See more pictures here!

The scarf :)

2010-11-09T01:13:00.000-08:00

So here is the finished scarf, sorry no pictures on its owner!
65% Icelandic wool
30% mohair
5% acrylic
Amazing combination - Wool makes it unbelievably warm, mohair adds softness and
acrylic will make sure it is wearable, durable and washable :)

Here you can peek and see the back side :)

And here is my previous post with a picture "in the process" :))

Scarf for HIM :)

2010-11-03T07:16:00.001-07:00

Last two weeks I was busy knitting this scarf (that is I was laso busy working on my shop and studying)
As for the scarf - I wanted it to be soft, lovely, warm, long and.. and... and... everything a scarf should be.
I came up with the pattern by myself, but obviously, there is nothing new under the sun - I based it on many many other patterns.
Last year I tried a similar pattern on a scarf for a friend, but this one turned out to be more successful - easier to knit and looks prettier.

Here is the picture in the process:

I will upload the pictures of the finished scarf later. Also, I am trying to draw my patterns so that other people can use it (if I upload it to my blog for example), but so far I only used good old pen and paper. Are there any programs to draw knitting and crocheting patterns, I wonder...

Here is the finished scarf :)

Buttons are still on my mind :)

2010-11-02T06:04:00.000-07:00

Well, well, I am preparing for Basar Under, where I will have a table for three consecutive Saturdays (December the 4th, 11th and 18th). apparently, my brooches attract more attention to my table than my necklaces :) So be it - it is a mass-brooch-production-factory in my apartment now :) Crocheting, combining, inventing new patterns, sewing buttons, taking pictures...
all this made me realize how urgently I need a proper studio, or at least a corner in a room for my shop :)

Here are two of my new creations - embellished with upcycled buttons. For more info - click on the picture and go to my shop

I wear glasses

2010-10-24T13:38:00.001-07:00

since last weak - I wear glasses. That's how I look on a rainy autumn day in Stockholm park.
Don't ask me, why I don't smile - I usually do!
And this day was such a happy day - long walk under umbrella along the Djurgården shore, then brunch at Djurgårdsbrunn. Later - walk in the Old Town and peeking into old book shops - ahhh.

I truly live in the most beautiful and amazing city!!

Buttons collection

2010-10-24T13:21:00.000-07:00

More buttons!!

I am in love with these little colorful buttons. I bought a bunch in a secondhand shop and now is utilizing them into a new buttons collection!

Do you like upcycled things as much as I do?

I will list more items (versatile necklaces and earrings) in my "Passion for Buttons" section of my shop on Etsy

Dreamy Blueberries

2010-10-03T12:47:00.000-07:00

I came up with this item in a nostalgic search for late summer. Juicy blueberries, green meadows and sunny smiles :)
I used this turquoise shade for blueberries to make them a bit dreamy, a bit creamy, as if preparing them for their future fate - blueberry cheesecake.. or icecream :))

More - in Tom Björn Designs

Little pumpkins in your years :)

2010-10-03T12:36:00.001-07:00

I need some Halloween :) Do you?

Read more in my shop Tom Björn Designs

New mosaic of images - how to wear my versatiles pieces :)

2010-10-01T05:51:00.000-07:00

Necklaces, bracelet, belts and headbands - all in one!

Now this renewed mosaic will be featured in most of my items on Etsy :)

Orange and Turquoise

2010-09-06T02:45:00.000-07:00

Another experiment - mixing orange and turquoise.
Let's prepare for Halloween in a happy way :)

If you click on the images, you will be forwarded to my shop.
The price for the necklace / bracelet is $23.5 Free shipping
Earrings - $12.5 Free shipping
If you purchase the set, it will cost $32, see the details in my shop

Chocolate and turquoise combination - I can feel autumn coming

2010-09-05T08:33:00.000-07:00

Autumn in Stockholm... Grayish mood outside my window...

But no matter how gray and sad it is, this city always inspires me to improvise with colors :)

Here is the result:

How to wear them?

2010-08-31T00:26:00.001-07:00

This post will summarize most of the possible ways to wear my necklaces/ bracelets/ headbands/ belts - call them whatever you want :)

So here you go - here and here you will see different ways of wearing it as necklace.

For those who prefer bracelets - find your inspiration here

You can even wear them as headband. Check out these pictures

Or maybe belt? See this post

Please let me know if you come up with an additional way of wearing it!

some new bracelet photos...

2010-08-31T00:16:00.000-07:00

Cklick the image to go to the respective item.

Apple Delight as bracelet.

Spicy Curry and Chili -

Lavender Milk as bracelet

Cherry Candy worn as bracelet (I loooove its combination with jeans)

Buttons!!

2010-08-31T00:09:00.000-07:00

Why not making necklace of upcycled buttons?
And look, you can even wear it as a belt!

or as an open ended necklace...

or as collar-necklace

Or in any other way that your imagination would allow you :)

My necklaces can be worn as headbands - easily! :)

2010-08-29T15:18:00.000-07:00

So I have always mentioned that my necklaces / bracelets can be worn as headbands too, but I have never shown you images of how it might look like. Here you go!

Spice up your autumn!

2010-08-26T10:34:00.000-07:00

Yes, here comes the spicy one!
Inspired by warm August dinners and the colors of coming September.
Striking combination of mustard yellow and sparkling red drops... Final touch - olive and whiskey colored faceted glass beads and crystal pieces.
Enjoy the best season of the year!

Save the Children at Medieval Week on Gotland

2010-08-19T10:16:00.000-07:00

So as I said, during the Medieval week on Gotland, I was volunteering with Save the Children Sweden, doing various activities with kids. Mainly painting shields, riding wooden horse and making jewelry.
Of course, I was in charge of the necklaces part :)

here are some pics of the kids ... aren't they incredible??

As it happened boys were very very keen to make their jewelry as well :)

And this little one, Oliver, was watching his sister making necklace for half an hour with these sad eyes :))
So eventually he got to make his own bracelet :))

Medieval week on Gotland

2010-08-11T23:24:00.000-07:00

Probably you wonder, why haven't I been writing for so long.

Well, first summer vacation, then the festival on Gotland. I am coming here every year, wearing my medieval dress and helping the organizers of this amazing week.

Usually I help the Save the Children team, and this year we are making necklaces for little princesses and knights. We were donated a bunch of colorful beads, and now I am running around kids that try to make themselves medieval jewels.

All the income goes to Save the Children, of course.

I will upload pictures later, and starting from next week, I will be back on a full scale - listing new items, sharing handmade thoughts :)

Some apples in my life :)

2010-06-28T00:46:00.000-07:00

Last weeks I am being in a very apple mood. Everything is greener and fresher than it used to be :)
The world is a happier place :)

And this new mood have inspired me to make several new necklaces / bracelets.

Let's start with this one - Apple Delight.

Do you love apple jam, apple pie, apple everything as much as I do?
Or do you prefer just a crispy fresh green apple?

This long necklace / bracelet is dedicated to all apple-loving people. It's gentle, green, fresh and so juicy!

Just wear it everyday and spread apple mood around you!

Round big aventurine beads, jasper and aventurine chips, sparkling czech glass beads and gentle wooden touch - truly apple mix :)

And so the seaside theme continues

2010-05-25T01:11:00.000-07:00

How can summer be without a seashore? Well, I can perfectly survive without warm sea, but a seachore is a must. It can be Batic Sea, Northern Sea, any other cold sea, but it must be sea, at least for a short while.

And so I continued my seaside line of necklaces.
This one is more gentle then the last one, more down to earth. There is less bright sunshine in it, more sunset light. Less salty water, more warm sand.

See more necklaces / bracelets in my shop Tom Björn Designs

Summer in Stockholm

2010-05-21T03:03:00.000-07:00

And so finally the summer is here. windows are open all day long, everything is green and blooming (which is amazing as only 2 weeks ago it was 2-3C degrees).

I have so much on my to-do-list now that I can hardly do anything!

- 1001 projects for Tom Bjorn Designs... including new necklaces with buttons... but I need time for that.
- write my papers for university!!
- enjoy summer and go to swim :)
- think of presents I am going to bring to Israel. (I am going there for two months now to work at the Jerusalem Film Festival)...

I guess I will start with swimming, and then - crafting :)
evening will be dedicated to study :)

good luck to me and to you all :)

When burgundy goes purple

2010-05-20T02:15:00.000-07:00

The feather theme continues

This time - I wanted to dive into a more intense color.

Earrings with feathers - orange

2010-05-18T07:54:00.000-07:00

How could my shop stayed without feathers for a month!

Here they are back :)

Unbearably light :)

sunny beach collection :)

2010-05-18T07:48:00.000-07:00

and here is my new direction - whites and blues.
The more it brings summer to you - the better

still more amber... lilac this time

2010-04-23T02:55:00.001-07:00

Yeap - I don't desert my amber ambitions!
Look how amazing yellow amber goes together with lilac thread and beads!

GIVAWAY

2010-04-23T02:50:00.000-07:00

I probably shoud have written it sooner, but there still a couple of days, so here you go:

My work is featured in a weekely givaway on Eye Candies blog.

so if you want to enter and try and win my earrings for free - go and check it out!

Amber theme continues....

2010-04-20T14:29:00.000-07:00

Meet two new sets in amber collection:
Chocolate amber necklace/bracelet and earrings. Big turquoise beads combined with chocolate colored amber - amazing mix!!

Amber sunset -

Orange, yellow and red ... on a brownish background - mmmmm

And of course, as always - more of my handmade jewelry is in my Tom Björn Designs shop

Amber magic

2010-04-08T09:09:00.000-07:00

Well, as promised, I started a new amber collection - as a way to celebrate sunnier days coming :)
I loved working with amber - having a handfull of "golden" sparkling and warm pieces. Just look at the way they respond to the sun beams - it is real magic :)
Besides chips of natural Baltic amber I also used my favourite glass cubes, and other glass and wooden beads.

Both earrings and necklace / bracelet are available for sale in my Etsy shop

Finally blueberry!!

2010-04-06T06:39:00.001-07:00

Finally I had enough time to make a matching pair of earrings for my favourite "Emily's blueberry dreams". Here is the necklace / bracelet

And here are the earrings: I made two pair - with different shades and array of glass and wooden beads.

Click on pictures to go to my shop with more photos :)

Help is needed

2010-04-01T07:07:00.000-07:00

(see Hebrew version below - לגרסה העברית דפדפו מטע)

russian version - русский вариант

Tom Björn Designs tries to help a dog Alpha to get enough money for an operation.

Please read the below story

Around 4 months ago a beautiful German shepherd dog came to my friends’ (Iren and Boris) house in Taoz, Israel. The dog was kind and intelligent, but it could barely be called a full-fledged dog. It was too thin, too hungry, and too tired. It seemed that the previous owners threw it away in the fields around Taoz. (after checking the chip in the dog, the owners were found, and Boris and Iren called them, but with no result. The ex-owners said that they don’t want to have anything in common with that dog). Needeless to say that the dog could not find a better house. Iren and Boris gave it food, place to sleep and spared as much love as they could (given they have already 1 dog, 3 cats and a 1-year old baby). Very quickly Alpha turned to be a family member.

But 2-3 weeks ago she started to bleed. Veterinarian found uterus inflammation and ehrlichiosis. An urgent operation is needed, which will of course, cost a substantial sum of money (1000euro), which this family simply do not have (especially given that all the check ups have already costed quite a lot). Without this operation the dog will die for sure, however, the operation is not very complicated and is very likely to be successful and to give alpha several years of happy life.

We can’t let alpha die. That’s why I have decided to give 50% of this week’s profit to Alpha.

so if you wanted to buy something for a while and if you like animals – join me in this – let’s do what we can to save this amazing creature J

So if you want to help, just go to my shop and purchase what you like (you can simply pay by regular credit card via Paypal – there is not need of having an account on paypal). And please let me know if you want to receive an update on the outcome of the operation.

Thank you very much in advance!

בניסיון לעזור לחברים הטובים שלי ולבכבה המדהימה שלהם, אני רוצה להציא משהו. אבל קודם תקראו את הסיפור של אלפה.

לפני כ-4 חודשים הגיעה אל אירה ובוריס כלבה מדהימה, רועה גרמני אמיתי, חכמה וטובה, אשר היתה זקוקה נואשות לאוכל ולבית חם. האמת היא שזו לא הייתה ממש כלבה, אלא אולי חצי ממנה, מאחר וככל הנראה אנשים אחרים זרקו אותה בשדות והיא הסתובבה שם הרבה זמן ללא אוכל ושינה. (אחרי בדיקת הצ'יפ ובירור פרטים של הבעלים לשעבר – מסתבר שהם לא מעוניינים בשום קשר עם הכלבה). כמובן שבוריס ואירה לא יכלו להתעלם מהמבט העצוב שלה, נתנו לה אוכל והכניסו אותה לבית (שבו כבר גרה כלבה, שלושה חתולים ותינוקת). מהר מאוד היא הפכה לחלק מהמשפחה ולחברה טובה ונאמנה.

הבעיה היא שלפני שבוע היא התחילה לדמם באפון פתאומי. בעקבות הבדיקות שעשינו אצל וטרינר, נתגלו אצלה שתי מחלות קשות: דלקת רחם וקדחת קרציות. היום היא זקוקה לניתוח באופן דחוף בימים אלה ממש, אחרת היא עלולה למות בזמן הקרוב. כל הוטרינרים שראו אותה, אמרו שלמעט הבעיה הזו מצבה טוב, ואם היא תעבור את הניתוח, היא תהיה בריאה ותחיה עוד מספר שנים טובות. ואולם, מכוון שמדובר בניתוח מסובך, אין וטרינר שיכול לבצע אותו בקליניקה הפרטית שלו, אלא רק בבית החולים הוטרינרי. אין צורך להגיד שהניתוח הזה עולה הרבה כסף (בסביבות 5,000 ש"ח), והוצאה כזאת בלתי אפשרית בשבילנו במצבנו הכלכלי של היום, לאחר ש הם כבר הוציאו סכומים גבוהים לכל הבדיקות. יחד עם זאת, כואב הלב לראות אותה גוססת ואסור לתת לה למות, או לזרוק אותה החוצה, כמו שעשו "האנשים הטובים" שקראו לעצמם בעליה. לכן ההחלטה היא שלא עוזבים חברים קרובים ברגעים הקשים וחייבים לעשות הכל כדי להציל את אלפה.

ואז אני עשיתי חושבים והחלטתי לתרות חצי מהכנסה של החנות בשבוע הראשון של אפריל. אז אם מזמן רציתם איזה פריט מהחנות ואתם אוהבים בעלי חיים – אז פשות תכנסו ותקנו. חצי מהסכום ילך לניתוך של אלפה ואני העדכן אתכם לגבי התוצאות של הניתוח. רק תשאירו לי הודעה פה בבלוג או בזמן קניה בחנות ותרשמו את הדואר האלקטרוני שלכם אם אתם רוצים לקבל עדכון לגבי בריאותה של שלפה אחרי ניתוח.

תודה מראש!

Citrine and turquoise set

2010-03-24T04:38:00.000-07:00

And here is the last set I made in Moscow.
I love this color combination, rich turquoise and gentle champagne - I had a similar set before, and now I decided to make it again, due to its success.

I made 5 items, and 3 have been shipped to their new homes already, I do hope they will find warm and loving hearts :)

As usual - click on the picture and you will see more images at Tom Björn Designs

matelials:
glass beads, wooden beads, cotton thread, metal lobster clasps

Trying to feel the spring coming :)

2010-03-19T16:14:00.001-07:00

There can never be too much green, can it?

Two new sets - foresty green and green with purple.

back to Sweden

2010-03-18T00:17:00.001-07:00

And here I am back home!
full of new ideas and a lot of energy and inspiration.

I have to tell you that Moscow turned out to be bigger and louder than ever, and I realized that I am not a city type. Well, Stockholm is more of a village than a city :))

So most of my time in Moscow I spent with my grandfather listening to his amazing stories, and crocheting.
And here is the result:
A Happy Set :) - necklace and earrings

spring spring spring

2010-02-11T12:08:00.000-08:00

And yes, we are preparing for spring to come:

Coasters

2010-01-31T03:30:00.000-08:00

I have been using crocheted coaster for a quite a while now. They are so soft and cozy, that they make my tea-time just the way I love it :)
And why not making them for others as well? Why keeping all the pleasure only to myself?
So I ended up crocheting several sets of coasters for my shop.

Erikshjälpen

2010-01-22T08:41:00.000-08:00

Dear Stockholmers,

Tomorrow I am volunteering in Erikshjälpen secondhand shop in Spånga. All the profit will go to the people in Haiti.

So if you feel like secondhand-shopping tomorrow, come to Spånga, the shop is really big and cheap. And what can be better than knowing that your money go to those who need it most.
(I buy much of my yarn there, by the way. They often sell leftovers for a very cheap price - like 10SEK per piece).

Poppy is Love

2010-01-20T11:20:00.000-08:00

Probably, poppies are my favourite flowers.
I think I have done more poppies with my crochet hook than I actually saw in nature :))

Here is my new interpretation of this amazing gentle and passionate flower.
And thanks again to Anna. N. Kazakova for being the best model in the world!

Yes, you can wear it in different ways :)

It has both safety brooch pin and alligator hairpin attached to its back

Three of these poppies have found a new home already - one in Märsta, Sweden, one in Belgrade, Serbia, one in Haifa, Israel. Ah, I feel such a satisfaction imagining my flowers populating this planet :))

necklaces

2010-01-18T12:11:00.001-08:00

oh yes, we did a new photosession with my necklaces.
Thanks to Anna N. Kazakova for being her beautiful self!

If you click on the picture - you will see the relevant item in my shop.

The older post with ideas about how to wear my necklaces / bracelets can be found here

Do you love upcycling as much as I do?

2010-01-08T07:12:00.000-08:00

I love old things. I love secondhand shops. I love fleamarkets. What can be more inspiring than buying an old thing and giving it a new life?!

Lately I bought three handfulls of amazing colorful buttons in a secondhand shop, and already on the bus on my way home I came up with thousands of projects where these buttons can be used. Wait and see!

But for now I started with simply embellishing my new bold red flower brooches, that were crocheted a couple of weeks ago, but I had hard time finding matching beads to go with it. And the buttons sit there just perfectly.

And these brooches I have upgraded to hairpins as well.

They are made of soft nohair with polyamid mix and they measure 3.5" /9 cm in diameter.

They would lookgorgeous on a shawl, jacket, sweater, coat or any piece of clothing, and it will look absolutely stunning on a purse, hat, scarf, headband or wristband as well.

more of my brooches are here

Cabled scarf from Icelandic wool

2010-01-02T04:01:00.000-08:00

Knitting is such a great way of relaxing after a long period of crocheting.
This scarf was made as a present to a friend. The pattern is "plagiarized" from a beanie of a woman sitting in front of me in the train :))

mommy and me..

2009-12-26T17:20:00.000-08:00

This red necklace I made in summer for myself. Crocheted beads, felted beads, wooden and glass beads. Organza ribbon.

My mother loved it very much and asked me to make one for her as well. In greyish-beige-pearl shades. And here is the result:

think spring

2009-12-26T16:34:00.001-08:00

I love winter - it is all white here, and I had a snow bath yesterday together with two huge neghbor's dogs. I love when it's all white and fresh and clean... and innocent....

but I do need some warmth sometimes. so after yesterdays rolling in the snow I had a warm bath with candles and "Hard Times" audiobook in my earphones. And after that I had a strong drive to crochet something warm. Something honey-beer-tea-spices-cinnamon shades.

And this is the result :)

Necklace / bracelet and earrings.

More pictures on my Etsy site, as always.

Let's talk earrings :)

2009-12-18T17:13:00.000-08:00

I made a few lately - what I love about earrings is that they are fun to make and it takes much less time than a necklace. And they look unusual!

More pictures and information - on TomBjörnDesigns

Festive, sparkling, happy.

2009-12-16T13:48:00.000-08:00

I didn't have time to post these here - they started to sell right away, so I had to crochet all the time :)

Now, when the pre-xmas shop invasion is behind me - I can proudly show you these necklaces / bracelets. Glass beads, cotoon thread, as always :)

Hair work

2009-12-06T05:48:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we went to see the crafts fair in Kista. Well, honestly, I wasexpecting to see more artist and more visitors. No, it was not empty, but it was not full either.

But I truly enjoyed talking to those artists who were there. Especially I was amazed by a lady who was making jewerly from human hair. She had absolutely amazing pieces! And she was sitting there and making it all in front of the public. So if you want to have a necklace (or even underwear!!) from the hair of your beloved (dead or alive) - she is the right address

Unfortunately I cannot find her site, but I surely will, and then I will share it with you. But here, I found another blog describing similar technique. Isn't is just amazing? Remember, it is made out of human hair!!

Here you can read more about this technique.

As for me - I bought little ceramic Christmas tree decorations. I will include them (or one of my handmade cellphone chokers) as a tiny little extra gift to every purchase in my shop from now and untill the beginning of January...

2009-11-23T13:10:00.000-08:00

Lately I spend quite a lot of time by watching other shops on Etsy. There are so many talaned people... each and every. and so many undiscovered.. and so many are crafting quite ordinary things, but doing an amazing branding and promotion... I still have learn so many things!!

Especially I am admiring artists working with wood - my absolutely favourite material.

I think I will probably start featuring other artists here, and though my blog is quite fresh and not very well read, I will still do it!

Back from Moscow

2009-11-18T12:53:00.000-08:00

I am back.

7 days in Russia were too short!

Though I bought a lot of beads, pearls and gem-stones. Now let me find my camera charger, and I will show you my new treasure!!

Just a perfect day

2009-11-08T12:37:00.000-08:00

Easy Sunday.

A bit of laundry in the morning, a lot of shopping in the afternoon (going to Moscow on Tuesday - can't go without presents) and a lot of crocheting in the evening with two amazing movies: "8 women" and "Mindwalk".

Among other things, I bought a string of turquenite today. It is cute, but blue or turquoise are not my colors, so naturally I am having a hard time in trying to imagine a necklace with it... but it will come, and no doubt sooner than I expect it.
Only now do I understand that creative process is not only inventing new things with the help of familiar skills and materials, but constant discovery of new horizons. Cliche, but I do feel it strongly today. I will work with turquenite!

Brooches

2009-11-08T00:31:00.001-08:00

What can be more heart-warming in winter than a cute vintage crocheted broosh?
I wear them every time I have romantic-cozy mood.

Moreover, my brooches are all created in an attempt to be more ecologically sustainable. I had a bunch of yarn leftovers - beautiful pieces, but too small for any serious project. Throwing them away would break my heart. Buying new yarn for brooches - would break my anti-consumption-phylosophy heart too. So the way out was to try and combine the yarn I have with the beads I have. And here we go!
So of the brooches are absolutely unique as the piece of yarn was just enough for one.

Pumpkin brooch with glass beads (wool with acrylic)

$13 - free shipping

White mohair brooch with glass beads

$11.50 - free shipping

Pink flower brooch with glass beads (acrylic and cotton yarn)

$12 - free shipping

More of my brooches are in my shop.

Black and white - winter is here, isn't it?

2009-11-08T00:18:00.000-08:00

And so even I need a rest from colors sometimes.

I have to say I am proud of this black and white necklace / bracelet. It is absolutely fresh, frosty, magical and festive. I expect it to be one of the major highlights of my shop around Christmas time.

We shall see :)

price $19.5 - free shipping
To see more of it - go to my shop

Vampire and Emerald

2009-10-27T14:26:00.000-07:00

So we have news, haven't we?

The days are getting shorter so fast. Night Stockholm is dominating surrounding. Lights, cold air, dark water - absolutely stunning city. How come is exists at all?

I am absolutely lucky to be here and now!

And I do feel christmas in the air. Though the shops haven't started with decorations yet, still the wind wispers magic.

And here what this dark late October Scandinavian wind has wispered in my ear...

This one is bloody passionate necklace / bracelet... deep red glass beads... black cotton. Target audience - vampires.

$19.5 + Free shipping - still twi items are available.

For more pictures and info go to my Tom Björn Designs shop on Etsy

Another on is an Emerald fire necklace...

$19.5 + free shipping. Available
For more pictures and info go to my Tom Björn Designs shop on Etsy

2009-10-21T00:43:00.001-07:00

was crocheting all night long!! now I am completely sleepy in the office. But I canät help myself - crocheting while watching good BBC series (like Lark Rise to Candleford ) is my one weakness :)

Inspiration

2009-10-13T14:42:00.000-07:00

Undoubtedly - the nature around me is my main inspiration source. Rocks, rain drops, moss, berries, clouds, leaves, crispy air...

here is my recent favourite item... was created as a "piece of Sweden".

Enchanted collection!

2009-10-05T14:51:00.000-07:00

Inspired by approaching Halloween, I have created a whole collection of enchanted necklaces.

Two of them are listed on on etsy - the first one is listed on Etsy

for more pictures - follow the link to Etsy.
I have made 5 of these. 3 have rightful owners. 1 is reserved. one is still available.

The second one is deeper purple. No pink anymore. Dark Arts. Also featured on Etsy

One of a kind.
available. $19 icludung shipping.

the third one - With light pink stones

Still available. $19 icluding shipping.

another one - with bigger black wooden beads

Still available. Is not on Etsy yet.

Pinky-pinky.
more pink than any other necklace. Has found a loving home.

no available anymore. Sold.

Yeap, that's it for now :)

Berry theme

2009-09-29T14:26:00.000-07:00

Juicy earrings - mmm

2009-09-25T17:07:00.000-07:00

So how do you wear them? my necklaces.

Remember - it has two locks on each of its ends which creates unlimited options of wearing it. If your imagination is not your weakness, you will be able to invent new necklace every single day. Or bracelet actually.. Or belt...

Here are some of my suggestions

Wear it as an open-ended necklace - tie the ends

Or wear it as a scarf

Or make one loop around neck and then tie the ends

Or make 3 or four loops around the neck

Or wear it as a bracelet

Or...

Or....

Or...

Or lock the locks with each other and arrange it as a regular closed necklace - you choose the number and length or loops.

Or even tie a knot...

And the most important thing - I do these necklaces with love. They are charged with positive emotions and happiness - take a good care of them - and they will take of you. I promise!

For more ideas - see my newer post here

ring ring - why don't you give me a call? (abba)

2009-09-24T00:01:00.000-07:00

9 rings have appeared in 2 days.It is an addiction - once started, you simply cannot stop crocheting! I mean it!
So here are the rings - all of the crocheted with cotton thread and with czech glass beads. All of them are on the adjustable ring base.

1. Mustard color with golden glass beads.

2. Mustard color with brown "tea" beads

3. Mustard color with brown wooden breads nad a gentle golden touch

4. And the last mustard one - with caramel beads. yummy

working on improving pictures on Etsy

2009-09-21T10:58:00.000-07:00

Of course, pictures are one of the most crusial things when you're selling online. So I am trying to improve. Looking at other treasuries, realising which ones among my items have made their way to treasuries and why...

I have to say - I am really proud of my last pictures! And I know, I will improve more.

Now working on another set of necklaces - black with purple and pink. A girl has made a custom for a pink-black item (with emo flavour) and I could not honestly warm to it. however I promised to give it a try. And quite unexpectedly I have found an enormous inspiration in playing with shades of purple and pink... I have made 4 pieces so far - 3 of them have already found their new homes - even before I have taken pictures of them! And I suppose it will be such a great color combination for xmas festivities!

"things to do... things to do..." (c) jane austen

New strings!!

2009-09-15T14:56:00.000-07:00

Here we go again with new color combinations!
All the following items are crocheted strings 53-54 inches long, which can be tied in many different ways! All of them have two locks on each of its ends, which allows your imagination to freely play with design.You just close the lock on any part of the string and the beads are big enough to make sure the lock stays stable.
Wear it as a bracelet, belt, or a thousand different necklaces!!

Look for more in my Etsy shop!

But meanwhile let me introduce 3 new strings!

Green background, blue theme and juicy pink touch... very gentle combination.

The next one is one of my absolute favourites!!

It's about time to gather some berries, am I wrong? The days are still long and the forests are still green, even here up in the north in Scandinavia. And this combination of fresh juicy berries and the green of the wilderness inspired me to crochet this string.

Brown wooden beads, red glass beads and orange drops. Juicy, melancholic and so down to earth warmed up by September sun

All of the strings cost 16$ before shipping ($2) Also I am doing custom items.
Give me a theme and I will make a string fitting your theme.

Please read about my payment and shipping policies. And please note, than Israeli and Swedish customers have special terms of shipping and payment.

and some more strings

2009-09-11T13:51:00.001-07:00

One of my absolute favourites - look at the blue!!

A touch of Mediterranean summer - a bit of turquoise complementing the deep brown wood.

One more gentle string - sleepy rosy morning.

as I said, it can be tied virtually anyway!!!

Another one in brown and blue theme. Am I the only one that finds this contrast between thin thread and big wooden beads sexy????

Here we go - new necklaces / bracelets!

2009-09-11T13:41:00.000-07:00

Tender Purple

Cinnamon rooibos tea

And cute brown and blue wooden beaded one!

Each of them cost $16 (and $2 for shipping).

Phoenix

2009-09-11T13:37:00.000-07:00

Well, the first thought was about Dumbledore's Phoenix. :)

Price - $8

Item on etsy

Treasury on Etsy.

2009-09-08T05:35:00.001-07:00

Created my own one!

At ast, my passion for collecting things and showing them has been satisfied!

Here you go - "Misuc in Black and White"

It will stay online untill Friday.

Getting to know each other

2009-09-07T15:11:00.000-07:00

Welcome to my page:

Here are some shortcuts to main information about this blog -

Wondering why "Tom Björn"? Click here and see the answer.

Some facts about myself

Here you can find ideas about how to wear my items

Here is my etsy shop

And I am also on Twitter

And on Facebook

This blog is for sharing, communicating, selling, meeting other artists and keeping an online catalogue of my items - so feel free to ask me any question related to my shop, items, techniques, materials ets' - just send me an email or leave a comment here!

Waiting forward to hearing from you!

Crocheted earrings - blue and brown

2009-09-07T15:02:00.000-07:00

Long and noticeable, but also light (due to wooden beads) and gentle (due to airy crocheted chain)

A dominating item in your outfit! Infinitely summer feeling, that will warm you up during long winter evenings!

They are 8.5 cm (3.3 inches) long (without earwire).Metal earwires (for the cost of an additional dollar can be changed to sterling silver ones).

Please, notice, that it is possible to purchase only 1 earring instead of the pair. In such a case, the price will be $5 (shipping details stay the same). Just comvo me prior to buying if you're interested in purchasing only 1 earring.

This item on etsy

price - $8
(plus shipping, unless you live in Stockholm, in which case I do a free delivery)

see important payment and shipping information here

Facts about myself

2009-09-07T13:41:00.000-07:00

Well, let's start with only 5, shall we?

1. I am 27
2. I am in love with Stockholm
3. I am always happy to get to know new people.
4. I bake a lot and nothing gives me more please than seeing other enjoying my cakes.
5. I am absolutely excited about my Tom Björn Designs project, and I am going to invest all my powers in promoting it!

Earrings, earrings, earrings.

2009-09-07T09:56:00.000-07:00

Had put my earrings on today, and they had a success :)

People actually did like them! And why should they not? Actually very cute, made with love and devotion. I would never expect myself to be so proud to wear my own jewelry and to actually promote it - I am completely proud of it's quality, it's design, it's materials and the message it conveys. Well, otherwise I would never have dared to open a shop :)

I am keeping my fingers crossed. I really want it to turn out a success, which will make so many many people happy! And I will make everything possible to make it come true. A little casual Monday resolution :)

And here is an illustration of today -

EARRRRRRRINGS.....

The story behind Tom Björn

2009-09-06T14:54:00.000-07:00

Well, there is no actual story! I have been making things with my own hands since I was a child (thanks to my grandmother Nelly, and to my Mom), and now I feel like making it my main occupation in life.

However, there is a story behing the name Tom Björn. Many Swedish people have already asked me why I have this weird name as my shop title. Both Tom and Björn are normal swedish names, but you can never get the combination of both of them together. The closest you can get is Torbjörn. And so many Swedes indeed assume that I simply has made a mistake - but no!!

This name belongs to my beloved huge teddy bear, which is actually serves me as a pillow while I am typing these lines. In Swedish bear it "björn", so he is actually Tom the bear. He was given to me by my friends on my 26th birthday and was initially named just Björn. "Tom" was added later as one of these friends wanted to share his own first name with this adorable teddy bear.
And so here we are - Tom Björn and I are virtually inseparable. We live together, sleep together, crochet together. That is I am crocheting, and he is making sure my environment stays cosy, warm and inspiring. He is my best supporter and companion in this endeavour of my shop, and as an aknowledgement I decided to name my shop after him.

He deserves it!