I need your help...

Apparently I had a Bling Ring in an issue of Lucky Magazine and missed it, which I am really sad about as I love that magazine and its a goal of mine to be in it. Now I know at least few of you ordered after you found me there, as you told me that in your order...so what I am asking is...does anyone know which issue it was? I looked through the past few but can't find it...pleeeeeeease help me? Thanks!

News, Coming Soon & Updates...

So where I have been recently you ask...well I've been in my studio trying as hard as I can to make your holiday shopping easy at Manic Trout...I'm working on a whole pile of new pieces which should be up on Monday, yay! I also have a wish list underway, a gift guide to help you make up your mind coming and even new line sheets on its way for you wholesale buyers out there. The Holiday shipping deadline list will be posted this week too...you still have about 5 weeks to shop your hearts out...

and the big news is...Manic Trout has three pairs of earrings in the December 2008 Real Simple Gift Guide!!!!! I'll show you more soon, but here is the online version!

Above is one of my favorite photo's as the day is grey here too...

The Other Side by SusannahTucker

Manic Trout in Modish : Handmade Spaces today!!!

I was so excited to see the Manic Trout studio in the Modish: Handmade Spaces Column today...please check out the interview and photos and take a whirl around Modish! I have been a fan of Modish for a few years now and think Jena is the cat's pajamas and her blog rocks! I was so excited to be included in the ongoing tour of creative spaces, thank you Jena!

Manic Trout in the Fall Teen Mag!

Check it out, the Anaconda Button Ring is in the Fall issue of Teen Mag!

Manic Trout in Time Out New York this week!

This week Manic Trout (and Sierra) are in Time Out New York, yay! You can read the article online here.

Love + Happiness Necklace on cover of Justine!

The Sabine Love + Happiness Necklace is on the cover of the August /September Justine Magazine!

Thanks for the Love Fashion Tribes!

I just had to share for a second...the fabulous Lesley Scott from FashionTribes just called me one of the "most talented indie designers on the market". Oh swoon. Read the whole thing here. Thank you Lesley!

In Case you missed it last week...

I was interviewed by one of my idols...I know, it was awesome...check it out here. Thanks again Jen!

Interview on Craft Gossip!

So Jen of Naughty Secretary Club Fame has a new endeavor, man that gal does a lot!...anyway...she is the new Craft Artists editor over at Craft Gossip and she interviewed ME! I know, its pretty freakin' cool...you can check it out right here. I love the days when I feel like a rock star of the world I am proud to be a part of...Thank you Jen!

Manic Trout is in great company today!

Such exciting news today!!!!! Manic Trout has the Mirela Sweetest Thing Earrings on InStyle.com today! In the Hot Finds section (which also went out in the newsletter today), the earrings are the only jewelry item in the Flirty Florals slide show, also shown are Stella McCartney platforms, Top Shop skirt, Lois Vuitton bandeau and Julie Haas dress!

Look Mom, Nana would be so proud!

After waking up waaaay to early this morning (especially since I had a date last night) for my open studio...which was fun...thank you to all of you darlings who came...mwah, I decided to treat myself tonight. I spent four hours on the couch with Faye, listening to Tony Bennett and Frank Sinatra reading Tom Robbins Villa Incognito which was AWESOME! He is one of my top five favorite authors and I stash his books for times like this...ultra luxurious hours of goodness.

After I finished the book I came back into the studio and found this...

A photo that I took and put on my blog last May is being used to illustrate the Bulletin at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church. I had such a great chuckle over this, and the best part is that they linked the post it was from right there in the bulletin!!!!! Maybe they used it because someone called the photos Heavenly in the comments?

Whatever the reason, this is pretty cool for two reasons...one, I rarely take good phots and really liked this one, so I am touched that others like it too...and two...I wish more then anything that my Nana was here to see this because it would by far have made her prouder of me then anything else I have accomplished. I love and miss you Nana!

Hey it's Earth Day!

Ah yes, April 22nd...once upon a time it meant naughty activities on the quad and seeing bands like the Samples for free at school....back when my dorm room looked like this:



and I looked liked this:



um, yeah, I was a deadhead waaaay back in the day.

Anyway, the eco friendly vibe that I picked up at shows and the quad sunk in a bit and I use quite a bit of repurposed materials in my jewelry. Also, any paintings that are done on wood, I am repurposing...a bunch are done on my grandmothers old kitchen cabinets!

In Earth Day news, I was in the Earth Day Issue of Time Out Chicago (mentioned here on their web site), and they took my necklaces on TV in a segment on CBS 2 Chicago about eco friendly products! You can see the footage here and read about it here!

Allergies and Easter Candy

That is what my week has consisted of. Although it took me until Wednesday to realize that it was already allergy season for me. As my birthday was the day before Easter this year, my mom presented me with a mountain of my beloved Cadbury creme eggs...this happened once in prep too, as a result one of my friends called me cadbury for years! Anyway, I have been slowly eating my way through them all week, perfect timing to be all fashionable on Monday, although with my allergies I have hardly been eating, so I guess it all evens out.

Other then that I have just been prepping my tush off for the Bendels Open See. I have line sheets all ready and I think samples that well represent my work...now I just have to go.

One long weekend is upon me...a meeting at 4 and then work until most likely 1:30 tonight. Saturday my good friend Jono has a show that I cannot make, but will at least be able to pop into before work...Sunday I have to go the restaurant in the morning to do the dreaded end of the month inventory...then get my car inspected and washed before I leave for nyc. I will meet up with Gilly...and hopefully my long day will have made me tired enough to go to sleep, as I am then getting up at sparrow fart to go stand in line all morning. Then the 5 minutes will happen that could change my life. I will then lounge around nyc for a while until dinner at 6:30 with my friend Bryan, who is one of my favorite people in the world. Then finally I will get home around 11 Monday night.

I also have a show next Saturday! Woo Hoo, I bet if you come you can score a Cadbury Creme Egg! Speaking of Saturday April 5th...If you are in the Chicago area, please tune in to CBS 2 Chicago at 8 am to catch Manic Trout Necklaces on TV in a segment about eco friendly jewelry!

I am so behind...but check out all this press!

OK, so last week left me much more behind then I thought...all the new goodies I have ready to post and the Manic Monday Newsletter are all pushed to next Monday...sorry. Although the good news is that the red Sweetest Thing Earrings are all coming back then too, yay!

The exciting news is that so far today I have found out that Manic Trout is in Seventeen Magazine (April 2008), Venus Zine (Spring 2008), Justine Magazine (February/March 2008) and Figure Magazine (March/April 2008)...how awesome is that?

A two year anniversary of sorts

So I spent the bulk of yesterday redoing my press page and I realized that my first blog mention was on January 19th, 2006. I believe I had just made the decision to narrow down my focus to jewelry and paintings and the shopping cart was only just being added. I have a tendency to be hard on myself and not always look at all the good that has happened and is going on and instead thinking about and focusing in what still needs to be accomplished. Well yesterday made me at least see that in two years I have done a lot and I could never have had that much press without the help from all of you wonderful bloggers and fans of indie designers, thanks y'all!

A very busy January

What happened to January being a slow month? I was enjoying my little stat of the year/post holiday break and getting ready to ease myself into to 2008 with a list of things to catch up on, when wham! I'm busier now then I was leading up to Christmas! I have to admit that I have been working very hard to make this happen, but I was not prepared for it to happen so quickly. I have begun to advertise in a larger scope then I had last year and thanks to some great press in magazines I have been getting the word out about Manic Trout more then ever this month, woo hoo! Check out the Feb BabyTalk...


I designed 6 new Freak Like Me Necklaces yesterday, which I already started to photograph, so they should be online soon. There will be more to come shortly as well...right now I am spending a great deal of each day processing orders, so time is tighter then normal, but I am starting to get into the new rhythm...speaking of which, I need to get away from my desk now...I wanted to check in however and let you all know where I have been all week....

Prom Season and Manic Trout

I never had a prom, I know, its tragic. I went to boarding school and we just didn't have one. I have found myself randomly collecting vintage prom dresses in the past, I never wear them, but it makes me feel happy, so I figure what's the harm? I used to have them hanging in my living room, but then a fit of re decoration and room changing after the flood last year (can you believe that was a year ago!) made the dresses retret to my closet. So anyway...there is a point, I may not have been to a prom, but apparently i channel prom style and have jewelry in both the Teen Prom and CosmoGirl Prom issues this year! It makes me want to buy more vintage dresses. So here they are, in all there glory!


CosmoGirl! Prom


Teen Prom 1


Teen Prom 2


Teen Prom 3


Teen Prom 4


Teen Prom 5


Teen Prom 6

New Year...new ideas!

So Manic trout has some big things in the works for 2008...I have a list of upcoming magazine appearances that I will let you know as they come out, I have been slowly working on a higher end line, international shipping is now an easy option, studio trunk shows will be a regular occurrence and these are just the great things already happening!


To celebrate the big things, I have decided that I want to have more little things, well little quantities, meaning more one of kind things...I have tons of vintage treasures that I want to use, but there is only enough for one trinket...so I will be releasing a few a month for your enjoyment.


After this last show I had two requests for one of a kind necklaces that were different versions of current designs...I thought I would share these special pieces as I think they are so lovely. The top image is a different version of the O'Keefe Necklace that I had in turquoise with fuchsia yarn. The bottom image is a bottle cap necklace with luscious vintage red faceted glass beads.

Manic Trout in Justine Magazine!

I discovered tonight that Manic Trout is in the December/January issue of Justine Magazine! Woo Hoo! The little online preview of the issue showed the picture, which is hard to see, but will do until I go and buy the magazine.


I am also not quite sure which necklace it is, I think its a Brass Love Necklace, more on that later too, but woo hoo!

Manic Trout Earrings in WWD!

I have such exciting news today, you can find Manic Trout in Womans Wear Daily!!!!!

A pair of The Sweetest Thing earrings are adorning the model for the Prom article, I am so happy I could cry!

The photo is even on the main page of the website today!!!!!