Best of Jewelry @ Unique LA Independent Design & Gift Show

all images above: earrings, necklace and ring by Sweet Siren Designs

Unique LA is an independent design and gift show. Hundreds of makers and small businesses sell to a market of 15,000 visitors over a single weekend. The premise is that all goods are locally produced, but seeing as LA is a famously sprawling city, that fortunately still leaves room for a vast amount of choice.

When I visited, the halls were buzzing with activity. I focused on two aspects: jewelry and booth design, and am presenting some of my favorites to you. Honestly, I must admit that the hour I gave myself to browse Unique LA was nowhere near enough, so this is by no means an exhaustive "Best-Of" list.

Sweet Siren Design:

Sara Yasmin produces fantasy-inspired jewelry with whimsical themes and a handcrafted touch. Her creative influences range from, "everything from Mexican and Middle Eastern cultures to mermaids, nautical, sea life, pin up girls, gorgeous flowers and old vintage costumes. There really is no end to it." Yasmin has been working out of her apartment in LA for the past 10 years. See more on her etsy site - www.sweetsirendesigns.etsy.com

necklace by Sweet Siren Design

White Fly:

White Fly designs are all cast directly from textiles into solid silver and gold. If you look closely, you can see the unmistakable ghost of real vintage lace, ribbon, satin or string. You can see the whole collection at www.whitefly.etsy.com.

silver cuff cast from lace by White Fly

iwearuwearwewear:
Tatiana De Andrade revisits safety-pin jewelry in her newest collection. The mix of pearls that she throws in distance the necklaces from their punk heritage, but the overall shape is still organic and rebellious. Tatiana, originally from Portugal, works out of Sherman Oaks. You can visit her online shop at www.etsy.com/shop/iwearuwearwewear

Best of Booths @ Unique LA

This post presents my favorite booths, in terms of style, at the Unique LA independent design & gift show.

The Craft Night Collective:

Their booth was a hub of activity. All decked out in baroque cardboard furnishings, the place was more of a pop-up shop and was very engrossing. Everywhere you looked, there was a strange product to wonder at. They were selling plush toys, handbound books, clothing, photographs, glittery handbags, and more. Amongst all that glorious jumble was a photo booth where you could stage a hot-air balloon ride picture. The people were really friendly, and for a moment, I thought that the Puff&Flock girls had somehow made it to LA and lost their British accents.
I'm hoping to write more about this crazy gang, but for now, you can check out Craft Night LA at http://www.craftnightla.com/.

Rock Scissor Paper:

Rock Scissor Paper has been designing and making greeting cards for nearly 20 years. They started in 1993 - the result of a natural entrepreneurial partnership by two creative sisters. I can imagine, from their cute circus-stlye booth (picture below) that their studio is a very fun place to be. About their funky look, the sisters say, "the bright color palette, bold typography and exuberant floral motifs of the 1960s and 70s forever remind us of our happy California upbringing and understandably saturate our design aesthetic."

http://www.rockscissorpaper.com/

Detroit Sprinkles:

The nice guys over at the Detroit Sprinkles booth print bizarre slogans on t-shirts and sweatshirts to outfit the cool kids of LA. They were great to chat with, and as we know from doing trade fairs ourselves, personality contributes tremendously to the "feel" of a booth. Their product and photoshoots embody a certain LA vibe. Check it out! http://www.detroitsprinkles.com

7 Lightningbolt:
I was surprised to see so many guys selling hand screen-printed goods. 7 Lightningbolt, like Detroit Sprinkles, have been designing for the LA scene and printing out of garages and studios around the city. Their booth had a special interactive features - a 4 screen press. All products were custom printed on location. Clever way to avoid overstock, and also educational for the shoppers. Great! See more at http://www.7lightningbolt.com/