Hi! I'm Amy Tan. I was born and raised in the northern suburbs of Chicago, the only child to Chiao and Archie, immigrants from India. I moved to Atlanta, GA with my father at the start of high school. After having all my requirements met for electives my senior year, I decided to take as many sewing classes as possible and made my prom dress, as well as a friend's. I spent the summer of 1996 working at Publix, relaxing, and going to different Olympic events downtown. In the fall, I attended Georgia Tech to study Industrial Design. After a couple of years making several dresses for friend's formal events and dreaming about fashion, I transferred to AIU to study fashion design and marketing. I worked numerous part-time jobs ranging from interning at a modeling agency, hostessing at a restaurant, and then working as a fashion stylist. Because my mom worked for American Airlines at the time, I was able to travel to New York, Miami, Los Angeles, Chicago, and after graduating from college I went to Australia for 2 weeks.
Styling and producing photo shoots kept me busy most of the time. In the fall of 2001 I asked my mom to show me how to crochet. I wore my creations into a store opening party and after delivering their first order, the owners called me 3 hours later to tell me they sold out of half of them. In the spring of 2002 I started adding embroidery to tank tops and reconstructing men's tees into women's silhouettes and selling them to boutiques across the country. In the fall of 2002, one of my stores called to tell me that Cindy Crawford was in Glamour magazine wearing one of my tank tops. Delighted, I decided that this was a sign that I should start a business. We have a fun, crafty line of women's and baby tee shirts that have been sold in Barneys NY Japan and KItson and Fred Segal in Los Angeles as well as numerous other boutiques across the country. Turning a hobby into a business has taught me a great deal of lessons and after 6 years I am still learning something new every day.
I just turned 30 and think it's been the best decade of my life already. I've decided to expand Amy Tangerine into a fresh and juicy creative consulting company and have been doing a lot of traveling for both work and pleasure. Excited for new journeys, I have a list of 30 things I plan on doing this year. http://amytangerine.blogspot.com/2008/11/list.html
I began scrapbooking less than 2 years ago. Here is one of my earlier layouts:
My first layouts were 8x8, and then I expanded to 12x12 and 8.5x11. Inspired by fun new products, I love incorporating a little bit of a twist into my pages, whether it be magazine snippets or some stitched details. Here is one of my newer layouts:
1. Do you have a nickname? If so, how did you get it?
I guess my company name is my nickname. Amy Tangerine came about from a friend of mine who suggested it as a fun play on my name and because I didn't want people being confused with the author of 'The Joy Luck Club'.
2. What is your scrap space at work/home like?
I enjoy being able to pack up stuff and take my supplies with me when I travel. I take essentials (glue stick, scissors, date stamp, tape runner, paper piercer and sewing needle and thread), favorites (stickers, journaling tags, thickers, stamps and inkpad) and select new papers and embellishments. My small "organized chaos" scrap space at home looks like a mess, but I usually know where everything is.
3. Tell us in as much detail as you can remember about how you first got into scrapbooking!
After driving by my local scrapbooking store numerous times, I finally went in and was instantly in love. I signed up for a class by Emily Falconbridge and enjoyed making mini books to start. I tried my first layout at the beginning of 2007 and have been hooked every since.
4. What is your favorite subject to scrap, and why?
I love scrapping the good times. Usually I highlight events, but enjoy every bit of scrapbooking, from traveling and hanging out with friends, to the quirky little random occurrences that happen in my life. When I sit down to make a page, I feel like I am re-living all the fun memories and it helps me appreciate all the little joys in life.
5. Random facts:
I don't have a sweet tooth.
Bacon is one of my favorite foods, but it has to be extra crispy.
I've been single for over 6 months and it's been fun and interesting, and while I am hopeful to find someone who'll enjoy this sweet ride with me, I'm very happy with my life right now.
I always carry a glue stick in my purse.
Jumping when there's a camera around is fun.
Thanks so much!
*amy
