Featured Member - Trincar Uvas - The Interview

Hello!

We are back with the second in-depth interview of this month.
We bring you "Trincar Uvas".
Beautiful textile jewelry. Colorful, geometric and tribal inspired, this is what you find in her shop.
Just take a look. :)

Ombre Tribal Earrings by Trincar Uvas

Name: Joana Pedroso
Etsy shop: Trincar Uvas
Site & Blog: www.trincaruvas.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/trincaruvas

1.Can you tell us a bit about yourself?

My name is Joana. I am a portuguese girl living in the Netherlands where I’ve come 6 years ago to study. Meanwhile I met my boyfriend, many great friends and decided to stay here, but very present in my heart is the dream of going back South. I feel the happiest amongst Nature, Art and Friends.

Joana Pedroso aka Trincar Uvas

2. How and when was this creative passion born?

I can’t really pinpoint an exact time. I always loved art and felt very strong about everything visual. As a teenager my room wasn’t full of band posters, but of art prints and postcards. I followed the Art branch in high school and I played a lot with different mediums. But somehow I didnt feel I had enough new ideas to follow an Art or Design Degree, so I decided to stay close to Art by studying Conservation and Restoration. Some years ago I made my first bracelet and I finally felt like I was doing something original, something of my own. In a way I feel I’ve been brewing creativity for a long time, but it was only with Trincar Uvas that it truly came out.

3. What was your formal training in? Do you find it helpful for your business? In what way do you find it helpful for your business?

I studied Conservation and Restoration of Paper and for the business side of things its not really that helpful, but I’ve certanly taken other things from it like attention to detail and loads of patience.

4. Is this your fulltime job or do you have another job?

I work freelance as a paper restorer and sometimes I will work other jobs here and there. This month, for example, I am working in a hotel and maybe next month I’ll be a nanny. It’s pretty chaotic, but I always try to keep these jobs to a maximum of 2 or 3 days a week, so I can have enough time for Trincar Uvas.

5. How did this project start?
Trincar Uvas started when I made a bracelet for a friend. I had such great pleasure making it and was very pleased with the result. Once the first bracelet was done I had so many ideas and I haven’t stopped since then.

Necklaces by Trincar Uvas

6. What inspires you?

My style is definitely inspired by ethnic and tribal arts and crafts. My parents always travelled a lot and the house I grew up in has always been full of objects they’ve collected on their travels. I guess a lot of that has seeped into me and my work.

When it comes to each single piece I am very inpired by the materials I find. A special thread or a vintage brass component can be the starting point of a piece.

7. How do you choose your materials? And where do you find them?

Like I just said, materials are a big part of my inspiration. I choose them for their texture, color and history. Most of my threads I buy from textile artists that I find on etsy, second hand markets or in a local embroidery shop. Recently I’ve been also playing with beads - these I find in bead shops and sometimes i also find old necklaces and take them apart for single components.

Most of my metal components are from vintage or dead stock origin. I feel they transfer all their past history into my work giving it more depth.

8.Could you share a typical work day?

That’s a very difficult question! It really depends. When it comes to Trincar Uvas I tend not to have a routine. Every part of the day can be used for different tasks. I usually wake up early and do all the computer related work in the morning and leave the afternoon and evening for practical work, like making pieces, taking photos or going to the post office. I can also be a night creature and if i have an idea in my head banging for a couple of days I stay up late working on it.

Necklaces from the new collection by Trincar Uvas

9.What is your favorite part of your work? Why?

My favorite part is finishing a piece (I’m always in love with the last piece I’ve made). But jewelry only makes sense when its worn, each piece is only truly finished once it finds its owner. I love seeing people wearing what I make and seeing my creations come to life.

10. Why did you open an Etsy shop?

I’ve been an Etsy buyer for many years and I always knew that when I opened a shop it would be on Etsy. It’s such a great platform for all these makers to connect and share their work and I am happy to be a part of it.

11. What do you think are the benefits of belonging to a team like the PTteam?

I treasure all the support I get from the team members. Running a business from the back of your computer can be a lonely task sometimes. The support we give each other is priceless, either promoting each others work or just talking about our frustrations and successes.

12. What do you do to promote your work and shop?

Promoting my work is something I am still trying to figure out - it’s not something I’m really comfortable with. (I still make the rookie mistake of not having business cards with me!) I use social media like facebook or pinterest and I’ve kept a blog for a long time even though it has been quiet for a while. I am also working on a new website focused more on my jewelry.

Dangle Spikes Necklace by Trincar Uvas

13. What advice would you like to share with fellow artists or crafters or vintage sellers?

Don't make your dreams a goal - keep realistic goals in short/medium term and let your dreams free to drive you.

14. What do you find most inspiring in Portugal?

I love the diversity of natural and cultural landscape from South to North. Of course I love the people and how polite we can be. But I couldn’t forget about our melancholic soul drenched in the atlantic ocean.

15. Where do you see yourself and your project in 5 years?

I imagine a studio with big windows, a garden with vegetables and flowers growing outside, new materials and inspiration, new creations and a bigger audience. I see the sun and perhaps mountains and the sea, and most of all I see many friends and family stopping by for a quick chat or a long homemade dinner.

Thick Rope Ombre Bracelet by Trincar Uvas

16. What would you take with you if your house was on fire?

I would try to grab all these little trinckets I have collected during the years or were passed down to me by my mother and father. I bring these things with me wherever I go and once I lay them around I know I’m home.

Quick fire questions. Your favorites:

Book: L’Ecume des Jours from Boris Vian
Movie: Bufalo 66 from Vincent Gallo
Music: Uri Caine interpreting Mahler in Primal Light/Urlicht
Artist: I refuse to pinpoint one!
Food: Grilled fish with sea salt and olive oil.
City: Lisbon
Country: in my heart, Portugal and in my dreams Madagascar

All photos by Joana Pedroso aka Trincar Uvas.