About Me

Hello, I’m Tanya, the maker behind Soft Alchemy and curator of Pomme de Jour.

I create handmade art journals that blend vintage ephemera, painted pages, and layered collage into one-of-a-kind books. Each piece is both an artwork and an invitation, a place to explore memory, storytelling, and the beauty of imperfection.

My creative path began with textiles and mixed media, experimenting with old papers and found fragments to see how past and present could meet on the page. I spent years living in France, wandering flea markets and gathering forgotten scraps of history. Back in the UK, I continue to collect, cut, paint, and stitch, giving these fragments a second life in my journals and in the curated vintage collections at Pomme de Jour.

Soft Alchemy is about transformation: turning the ordinary into something extraordinary, where a torn envelope becomes a backdrop, a vintage photograph becomes a character, and paint strokes bring new stories to light.

Each journal I make is completely unique, no two will ever be the same. They are part artwork, part keepsake, and part companion for those who love paper, poetry, and the tactile joy of handmade things.

Thank you for visiting my shop and supporting independent craft. I hope these journals inspire you as much as I loved creating them.