True Partners In Craft started in the middle of winter in 2009. After graduating from Columbia College Chicago I had a lot of free time on my hands and less of a creative outlet. Having heard about Etsy for the past few years I now had the time to open up my own shop. I listed a hodgepodge of items: needle point patches, Polaroid collages, and screen printed bags but little sold.

About a year later a friend requested I sew him a vegan wallet to replace the leather one he had; he brought me a bike tube to make it out of. The Bike Tube Wallet was born. In 2010 I was regularly selling bike tube wallets on Etsy and had begun to expand my bike tube work to jewelry, making the Zig-Zag Bike Tube Bracelet.

Stuck inside for another Chicago winter in 2011 I made a pair of Fringe Bike Tube Earrings for myself. After receiving many compliments I made a pair to list on Etsy, they sold within a few hours. Throughout the next few weeks the bike tube jewelry ideas kept flowing. I was excited to offer a vegan and recycled alternative to the popular leather fringe and feather style jewelry.  Recycled bicycle inner tubes has been a sometimes difficult but exciting and versatile material.  With the help of friends and friendly bicycle shops and the many pot holes and broken glass strewn across Chicago bike lanes, True Partners In Craft will have an endless amount of busted tubes to turn into beautiful jewelry.

Not long after selling my first pair of Fringe Bike Tube Earrings on Etsy I began to approach boutiques and getting approached by boutiques. Check out the "Stockist" tab to see a full list of stores that carry True Partners In Craft. Being part of independent businesses that sell artist work has been very exciting, but I must say the most exciting is when I pass a strange who is wearing my jewelry.

I am always interested in expanding to more stores and making custom pieces for people. Drop me an e-mail at [email protected]