OF TRYING TIMES
www.oftryingtimes.com
This accessories label was inspired by its founder’s anxiety of turning 20.
Ms Peixin Tan, 21, says: “Last year, I graduated from polytechnic and realised it wasn’t as easy or happy as I thought it would be.”
And so, she channelled those feelings into her hobby of making accessories. Ms Tan, who goes by the name Pixie T., launched her label last November.
She graduated from Temasek Polytechnic with a diploma in apparel design and merchandising.
The collection consists of earrings, necklaces, bracelets and rings made of polymer clay. She also has a small selection of homeware such as sake cups and dishes.
Prices range from $31 for a pair of earrings to $119 for a necklace.
“I called it Of Trying Times because it was my outlet for expressing difficult emotions. All my collections are about revelations that came from trying moments.”
For instance, & Sleepless Nights features the different phases of the moon. That is tied to “how one watches the moon change when he is too worried to sleep”, as stated on her website.
She handmakes the accessories and can take up to a week to complete a piece.
On how she tries to differentiate herself from other jewellery brands, she says: “I do minimalist very differently – I don’t have a lot of new products and I try to emphasise the stories people can relate to. I try to connect with the intangibles.”
As part of her brand, Ms Tan started a project called & Shared Sentiments, where strangers could write in via e-mail or by post to share their feelings about facing their own personal challenges.
“It was interesting to see how everyone was facing different challenges, but they were all rooted in the same strife of finding oneself. I picked up on emotions as inspiration for my upcoming collection, Dreamers, Planners, Doers.”
This story was first published in The Straits Times on August 13, 2015. For similar stories, go to www.sph.straitstimes.com/lifestyle.
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