Interview with Designer Amy Tangerine by Kristin Harmel
Amy Tan of Amy Tangerine is one of my favorite people in the world. She is not only a superstar designer (with clothes sold at more than 200 upscale boutiques all over the world!), but she’s also one of the sweetest, funniest, smartest people I’ve ever met. We’ve been friends for years, and when my first novel, How to Sleep with a Movie Star, came out in February 2006, we decided to partner up and go on tour together! Now, we’ve toured the country for three years running, and we’re already talking about our Summer 2009 tour! We have an absolute blast together, and I love rocking her amazing tees and tanks, which always garner lots of compliments! In fact, as I write this now, I’m wearing a gorgeous “Bonjour” tank, with the Eiffel Tower embroidered on it that Amy made for my most recent novel!
I sat down with the fabulous Amy to ask her some questions for All Things Girl so that you can get to know her a little bit too. I guarantee – you’ll love her as much as I do!
Kristin: YOU AND I HAVE BEEN FRIENDS FOR A WHILE, BUT I NEVER GET TIRED OF HEARING HOW YOU GOT STARTED IN THIS BUSINESS! CAN YOU TELL US A BIT ABOUT GETTING YOUR START?
Amy: I really started my business on accident. I was working in Atlanta as a fashion stylist and decided to ask my mom to teach me how to crochet so I could make some arm warmers. I wore them to styling jobs and to a store opening party (Blue Genes in Atlanta) and they loved them and placed an order. When we delivered them the following week, they had sold out of half the order in just 3 hours. We were very excited obviously and I started to call on other stores and then in the spring time, we began making hand embroidered tank tops and selling those to various boutiques across the country. We had about 5 solid accounts including Fred Segal. After a store called to tell me that Cindy Crawford was wearing one of my tanks in Glamour magazine, I decided it was time to really start the business.
Kristin: AND THEN CINDY CRAWFORD APPEARED IN GLAMOUR IN ONE OF YOUR DESIGNS, RIGHT? HOW DID YOU FEEL WHEN YOU SAW THIS?
Amy: It was an amazing feeling- especially since it was a paparzzi shot which meant that she actually went into the store in and chose it herself (as opposed to a stylist putting it on her for a photo shoot).
Kristin: HOW DID THIS CHANGE YOUR CAREER?
Amy: It really just helped reassure me and gave me the confidence to launch my business. Even though the name of the tank was not mentioned in the magazine, it was cool to be able to have the press clipping.
Kristin: HOW DID YOU TRANSITION FROM DOING THIS FOR FUN TO DOING THIS FOR YOUR MAIN INCOME?
Amy: It was difficult at first, and since things sort of happened very quickly. I was fortunate enough to have the support of family and they loaned me the money I needed to get started. I was still doing freelance work while getting the business off the ground. After I realized that this would demand most of my time if I wanted it to grow and succeed, then I transitioned slowly out of styling (only taking jobs that paid well and were on the weekends).
Kristin: TELL US A BIT ABOUT YOUR DESIGNS; HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE CHARACTER OF AMY TANGERINE?
Amy: Our designs are always upbeat and positive. We like creating shirts that make people smile. We have super soft tops that have a crafty feel and are made with creative hands in the USA. We are a small company and right now we are so happy to stay that way. Our employees are like family to us. It’s really a great thing when you can feel like everyone is really happy with what they are doing!
Kristin: I KNOW SEVERAL CELEBRITIES ARE FANS OF YOUR WORK! CAN YOU LIST SOME OF THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN SPOTTED IN YOUR TEES?
Amy: Carrie Underwood picked up a couple of tees from Olive & Bette’s, Kate Beckinsale got a tee from Kitson, and Keira Knightley picked up a couple from a boutique in New York. Carrie Ann Inaba from Dance Wars has been a fan for quite some time and even Mr. Big (Chris Noth) just recently got a couple of shirts for his baby.
Kristin: SO HOW DO YOU GO ABOUT COMING UP WITH IDEAS FOR YOUR SHIRTS? THE SLOGANS AND DESIGNS ARE ALWAYS SO WONDERFUL!
Amy: I am really just inspired by the world around me. I like to stay positive and happy. I really enjoy traveling and seeing new things and meeting interesting people.
Kristin: I’M LUCKY ENOUGH TO KNOW YOUR GREAT BOYFRIEND AND YOUR TWO ADORABLE DOGS TOO! CAN YOU TELL US A BIT ABOUT THEM AND ABOUT YOUR LIFE OUTSIDE WORK?
Amy: I am lucky enough to have a wonderful boyfriend and 2 jack russell terriers and to know you too! I have been with Cap’n for about 4 years and Buster and Bamboo are 3 and 2 years old. We live in Southern California and love the warm weather. Cap’n has a boat in Marina del Rey and we really enjoy going there on the weekends. My mom lives half a mile away and works with me and my father is in Atlanta.
Kristin: WHAT DO YOU DO FOR FUN?
Amy: We love to just hang out with friends, ride bikes, and spend quality time at home. We do a lot of traveling for work and try to balance it out with seeing friends in different cities whenever we can. Scrapbooking is something I have recently gotten into and I am totally addicted.
Kristin: WHAT AMY TANGERINE-ESQUE WORDS DO YOU LIVE BY?
Amy: Love, Dream, Laugh.
Kristin: CAN YOU SUM UP YOUR ATTITUDE TOWARD LIFE IN A T-SHIRT-READY SLOGAN?
Amy: Hug life.
Kristin: LET’S DO A FUN TOP TEN LIST:
FAVORITE FOOD? Nachos
FAVORITE DRINK? Non-alcoholic: Ginger Ale. Alcoholic drink- Grey Goose and Tonic with a lemon.
FAVORITE COLOR? ooh I love them all but if I had to pick one right now it would be 70’s pukey green
FAVORITE MUSICIAN OR CD? Courtney Jaye, friend and uber talented singer-songwriter
FAVORITE BOOK? Catcher in the Rye
FAVORITE MOVIE? She’s the One
FAVORITE VACATION DESTINATION? Kauai
FAVORITE CHILDHOOD MEMORY? there are too many to name
FAVORITE CHARITY? any animal rescue groups- Humane Society, Much Love
FAVORITE INDULGENCE? going to the spa
Kristin: YOU AND I DO ALL THESE FUN PARTIES TOGETHER AROUND THE COUNTRY EACH YEAR – I CAN’T BELIEVE WE’RE ON YEAR THREE! CAN YOU TELL READERS A BIT ABOUT THAT?
Amy: What a great run we’ve had. I love the fact that we collaborated and made tees for each of your books. The first year was great with the “I sleep with movie stars” and “I never sleep with movie stars” for “How to Sleep with a Movie Star”. The parties the first year were a great success in all the cities! This year will be tons of fun as well!
Kristin: YOU’RE ALSO BIG INTO SCRAPBOOKING. CAN YOU TALK A BIT ABOUT THAT? HOW DID YOU GET INVOLVED?
Amy: I really got into it about a year ago, but before that I walked into a store called Sweetpeas & Snapshots and fell back in love with paper. I took a class from Emily Falconbridge there and we became friends and she really got me into the whole hobby.
Kristin: WHY DO YOU LOVE IT SO MUCH?
Amy: I love all the embellishments and working with a medium where I can glue stuff, staple, and not worry about someone having to wear it! And really, I love the whole process of creating and being able to preserve the memories in such a fun way.
Kristin: WHERE CAN READERS FIND OUT MORE?
Amy: Check out my blog- www.amytangerine.blogspot.com where there’s a link to a fun video on Scrapbook Lifestyle. You can also find me at ScrapinStyletv.com under the username amytangerine!
Kristin: WHAT CAN WE EXPECT TO SEE FROM AMY TANGERINE IN 2008?
Amy: We’re revamping our website and we’ll still be doing more of the same fresh and juicy goodness. We have some great new silhouettes coming out that can easily be worn day or night!
Kristin: ANYTHING ELSE YOU WANT TO MENTION?
Amy: I love getting comments and feedback and questions, so feel free to leave me a little note on my blog! Thanks!
