dream catcher

how she did it

claudia endler

1.14.12

Claudia Endler never quite got over her childhood obsession with jewelry. After finding success in the fashion industry, she found a way to turn her lifelong passion into a successful business. Claudia Endler Designs is a Los Angeles-based premier designer of contemporary jewelry that combines the best of graphic design, art and architecture. Her collections include unique pieces for men and women, such as stackable rings, statement pieces and wedding designs, and she has earned numerous awards for her distinctive designs.

What makes you different from your competition? I am what I would call a boutique modern fine jewelry design house. My designs range from sterling silver designs under $200 to bridal and couture pieces over $10,000. And I do custom work specializing in modern design, which not many modern design companies do.

My favorite quote is… Anaïs Nin: “And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom”

What three words best describe your company? Modern, Timeless, Elegant.

One thing I hope to pass along to my children… …if I had children I would say, be open and imagine the possibilities, pick something that moves you, move through fear, and find a way. With persistence and time many things are possible.

I wish someone would have told me… Building a business is like building a house. It takes longer and requires so many more resources than you think it does. But if I knew that ahead of time, I may not have headed down this road. So naiveté has its benefits .

I gave up ________ to pursue my dream. Well, I would not say I had to give up anything. I made a trade. Many times I traded my social life, other times I traded having a bedroom, dining room or living room to make room for my studio, and still other times I traded having the newest dress for creating a new piece of jewelry.

 

Title: Owner/Designer

Email: claudia@claudiaendler.com

URL: www.claudiaendler.com

Twitter Handle: CEDesigns

 

post by Noelle Hale

wanda soolip wen

12.30.11

 

Wanda Soolip Wen is the Founder and Creative Visionary of the paper and lifestyle brand, Soolip. A life-long love of letter-writing and a habit of collecting uniquely beautiful stamps and papers on her travels around the world are the inspiration for her businesses, Soolip Paperie & Press in West Hollywood, and A Soolip Wedding, California’s premier bridal event. Her approach to paper and invitations is rooted in conscious action and seeing the beauty in simplicity. Fun fact: Soolip is her middle name, and its Chinese translation is that “Life’s destiny is to seek wisdom”.

I knew I wanted to create my own business when… I realized that the world is everyone’s oyster. Those who are successful are the ones that follow their dreams and desires with a courageous, passionate and loving heart.

What are three words that best describe you? Soulful, beautiful, calm

My best advice, in one sentence, for launching a venture is… Be true to yourself.

Top three tips for using social media… 1. Be consistent 2. Be constant 3. Be engaging

Lately I’m inspired by… my dear children.  They teach me and inspire me every day.

On my desk right now…. (5 items) – iphone, shrimp enchilada verde recipe, marketing collateral for A Soolip Wedding, “I love you, Mom” note from my daughter Simone, little black book with all the numerous passwords of all my online accounts.

My favorite thing to do with my kids… go on road trips.

My biggest challenge is…having enough time for everything I want to do.

What living the dream means to me…  that I get to live freely.


Title: CEO

Email: wansoowen@aol.com

URL: http://www.soolip.com
http://www.asoolipwedding.com

Twitter Handle: wandawen

 

post by Noelle Hale

Ryan Larson

11.15.11

Ryan Larson plans the kinds of weddings that make couples swoon… it’s not just about the glamour (though there’s plenty of that too), but more the vibe and ambience that leave couples and guests alike wowed by the experience. Ever wondered if it was possible for a wedding to be spectacularly elegant and warmly intimate all at the same time? Call Ryan. Trust us, we’ve seen it firsthand. For Ryan, the design is inspired by the style and personality of the couple themselves, but she has a reputation for dreaming up the kind of distinctive details that create one-of-a-kind weddings.  She is based in Southern California but has planned weddings all over the country and has been featured in numerous wedding magazines and blogs.

I knew I wanted to be a wedding planner when… I assisted a planner at a wedding over 10 years ago and I got all misty-eyed when we sent the bride down the aisle. I just got a little taste of wedding planning that day but it opened my eyes to a career I hadn’t even thought of before. I was suddenly smitten with the idea of being a part of this amazing rite of passage for people.

What are three words that best describe you? Creative, approachable, excited.

On my desk right now… 1) photos of my kids, 2) a band DVD I need to watch, 3) my Blackberry, 4) a ribbon swatch I need to mail to a bride,  5) a coil of copper wire I want to do something with…don’t ask.

My biggest challenge is… making a dream wedding on a small budget. We do it all the time, but it’s always a challenge.

My favorite thing to do with my kids… read books in our snuggle chair.

Lately I’m inspired by… residential design. I don’t get inspired by looking at wedding magazines and blogs….but rather interior design magazines, blogs and online magazines.

If I weren’t doing what I do, I would be… an actress.

Living the dream means… being able to choose the projects that most appeal to me, not care about turning down the ones that don’t appeal and working from home with a flexible schedule so that my kids remain my priority.

 

Title: Owner, Wedding Coordinator and Designer

Email: ryan@savoirflairweddings.com

URL: www.savoirflairweddings.com

Twitter Handle: savoirflairwed

 

post by Noelle Hale

I am out…

10.7.11

Until Monday, October 10th. This is my official attempt at not working while I am on vacation–let’s catch up on Monday.

Cheers,

Nada

p.s. This is categorized under Expert Advice because it’s my belief that we all need to refresh in order to inspire.

 

Lemlem: to flourish or bloom (Amharic)

9.22.11

Check out what supermodel/actress and World Health Organisation’s Goodwill Ambassador, Liya Kebede has been up to.  Miss Kebede is a case study in what social entrepreneurs can do by recognizing a need and creatively respond to the call to action. Liya discovered that traditional weavers in her native country of Ethiopia were losing their jobs due to declining local demand for their goods and wanted to do something about it. Recognizing the beauty, quality and historic significance of their work, Liya started Lemlem as a way to inspire economic independence and to preserve the art of weaving. Her line has been featured and sold through J.Crew and has made the fashion rag rounds. Way to make a giving look so great Liya!

What are you doing to flourish and bloom?

Jennifer Kellogg

11.10.10

Jewelry, as an art form, has the power to create moods, provoke opinions and produce reactions. This is the design philosophy that New York based jewelry designer Jennifer Kellogg follows in creating and developing her own unique collection of jewelry. Although she uses precious metals and stones in her work, the design is of much greater importance to Jennifer than the intrinsic value of the materials she works with. Her ultimate goal is evoking humor, whimsy and rare imagination through the use of striking color and inventive design in each of her pieces, which is what gives Jennifer Kellogg her signature look.

Born and raised outside of Washington DC, Jennifer’s interest in jewelry design began at the young age of 12 when she found herself making earrings and pins out of painted papier-mâché. But it was quickly becoming apparent that this adolescent pastime was much more than that as Jennifer’s talents far exceeded her years. So much so that her work caught the eye of a local woman, who invited young Jennifer to sell her papier-mâché jewelry in a boutique near the Capitol. This invaluable experience encouraged Kellogg to continue making jewelry through out high school and over the next few years, she began displaying a flair for fantasy and whimsy in her design and exhibited a remarkable talent for incorporating ordinary objects and materials like seashells and small stones into her work. These were the beginnings of the distinguishing style that can now be found throughout her collection.

In 1993, Jennifer received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the Rhode Island School of Design, where she learned the fundamentals of traditional jewelry making and began developing her signature style. Kellogg then moved to Amsterdam where she apprenticed with leading Dutch jeweler Philip Sajet, while continuing to design and exhibit her own works throughout the city of Rotterdam. After declining her acceptance to the Royal College of Art in London, Jennifer moved back to the States for the opportunity to work with American jewelry artist Pat Flynn. During this time, Kellogg refined her pieces into a collection, cultivated her own contacts and started to sell her own work through prominent galleries and shops in the United States. Soon thereafter, the Jennifer Kellogg jewelry brand was launched in 2000. As her young business began to grow, Jennifer’s innovative designs quickly caught the attention of her peers and the press alike. Subsequently, she was accepted into the prestigious International Jewelry Designers’ Guild (IJDG) in 2001 and to date, her jewelry has been featured in some of the top consumer and trade publications while also appearing on Sex and the City and worn by several celebrities including Gwen Stefani, Paris Hilton, Kelly Osbourne and Amy Sedaris.

Today, Jennifer spends time with her family and gives her all to bring her special touch to the creation of memorable jewelry.

Lindsey Wieber and Gwen Whiting

10.22.09

The Laundresses

Lindsey Wieber and Gwen Whiting are the co-founders of The Laundress(TM), created this luxury fabric care and specialty detergent line to take the chore out of laundry.

The cleaning duo saw the necessity of properly caring for their clothing, but were not able to find products that met their standards of delicacy and fragrance. This propelled the ladies to design a luxurious brand of detergents and fabric care.

Lindsey and Gwen were both educated in Textile and Apparel Design and Management at Cornell University. Lindsey was the Manager of U.S. Sales for CHANEL Ready-to-Wear while Gwen was a Senior Designer of the Ralph Lauren Home Collection. While in college, the two knew they possessed the same entrepreneurial spirit that would one day develop into a joint venture.

Lindsey and Gwen finally combined their research and knowledge of the luxury business to create their own line of products with carefully developed scents, and in March 2004, The Laundress launched. Their enthusiasm, drive and creativity will ensure that The Laundress is just the beginning of many great things to come.

Ali Hewson

10.6.09


Meet Ali Hewson founder of Edun, a clothing line and so much more.

EDUN is a socially conscious clothing company launched in Spring 2005 by Ali and her husband, Bono. The company’s mission is to create beautiful clothing, while fostering sustainable employment in developing areas of the world, in particular, sub-Saharan Africa. In March 2007, EDUN launched the EDUN LIVE brand of blank tee shirts. The EDUN LIVE range enables EDUN to drive further trade into Africa through high-volume sales direct to the wholesale and consumer market. The tees are 100% African produced, from the fields where the cotton is picked, to the factory where the final printing process occurs.

EDUN is a full fashion collection for men and women, including tops, bottoms, denim, dresses, jackets, knits and sweaters with prices ranging from $60 – $450. The line is sold globally in leading department and specialty stores.

EDUN is based on four respects – Respect for the People who make their product, Respect for the Community where they make it, Respect for the Materials used and Respect for the Consumer.

For a little visual inspiration, click here to see how Ali has become an agent of change with her vision and mission for Edun.

Maureen Kelly

9.1.09


Meet Maureen Kelly, Creator and CEO of Tarte Cosmetics

She loves safaris, kicking back in jeans and flip-flops, and has a weakness for the Cheesecake Factory’s brownie sundaes. If this doesn’t sound like the typical CEO of a cosmetics company, you clearly haven’t met Maureen Kelly.

A natural-born product junkie and entrepreneur at heart, Maureen became frustrated with unhealthy makeup sold in boring black pots. So she created tarte, a makeup line that is chic and most of all loaded with natural ingredients that help treat the problem, not just cover it. She’s dubbed it “health couture”-the marriage between fashion and nature. With two Master’s degrees in psychology and prior work experience in interior design, she brought a fresh perspective to the industry.

Launched in Manhattan-based department store Henri Bendel in September 2000, tarte was immediately praised by customers, beauty editors, industry peers and celebrities alike for its innovative packaging, impressive color range, portability, and cheeky names. Her first-to-market cheek stain filled a niche in the beauty market and continues to be tarte’s best-selling product, having been voted “Best Gel Blush” in InStyle magazine for six years running. Having graced the pages of magazines such as O Magazine, People, Vogue, Elle, Glamour, Shape and Lucky and a regular on the New York news circuit, Maureen continues to be a constant in the beauty media. She’s a commentator on CNBC’s The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch and has been featured in several books such as “If I’d Known Then” by Ellyn Spraggins and “Sephora: The Ultimate Guide to Makeup, Skin, and Hair from the Beauty Authority”. Celebrities such as Jennifer Garner, Alexis Bledel, Mena Suvari, Kristen Bell and Denise Richards are just some of tarte’s famous fans.

A favorite line of makeup artists, tarte has continued to shine over the years, winning various product awards from Allure, O, Cosmopolitan, Fitness, Latina, Self and Redbook, as well as two CEW Beauty Awards and four CEW Award nominations. As tarte’s popularity rose, Maureen staged a slow, careful expansion of the company, starting with distribution in Sephora in 2003 and then bringing the brand to QVC in early 2005. Each month, tarte’s audience widened, and the customer feedback over the years has been nothing short of stellar. When it isn’t, though, Maureen wants to hear about it. To that end, the interactive forums on tarte.com serve as a direct line of communication between Maureen and tarte customers. She constantly refers to the feedback on the “tarte talk” forums when creating new product or reworking old-making sure that along the way, consumers’ needs and issues are being addressed. As beauty customers have grown more sophisticated and savvy, demanding more from their products; tarte upped the ante, making sure that each product is infused with skinvigorating ingredients that treat, nourish and protect skin, to help fix problems instead of simply hiding them.

In 2008 Maureen received the Metro New York Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year Award in the Retail & Consumer Services category and was named the 2006′s Woman of the Year by Entrepreneur Magazine and OPEN from American Express, she is also a dedicated philanthropist. Since the company’s inception, Maureen has insisted on donating all discontinued products to nationwide and local charities. Since 2004, tarte has worked with the Young Survival Coalition, a support network for women under 40 living with breast cancer, thanks to proceeds from annual breast cancer awareness products. tarte has donated to Habitat for Humanity and in 2006 Maureen and her team helped build a home for the Women’s Build program. Most recently, tarte’s supported the Sustainable Amazon Partnership (SAP), a public and private collaboration to promote lasting sustainable management of the Brazilian Amazon Rainforest. With the purchase of every tarte product that has the t5 super fruit complex, customers will be helping to preserve the Amazon Rainforest through forest conservation, improved living conditions and educational opportunities for communities in Brazil.

A member of Cosmetic Executive Women and serving on Beauty Packaging Magazine’s Advisory Board, Maureen received a B.S. degree in psychology from Binghamton University and an M.A. from Columbia University. She resides in Manhattan with her husband and two sons.