Meet a Granville artist who turned a fourth-grade quarantine hobby into a sophisticated craft.
What got you into making jewelry?
I got my first beads and findings for earrings in fourth grade, mostly because I was bored and wanted to try something new during quarantine. Later I stopped making jewelry for a while, but after I moved to Ohio in sixth grade, I started again. The first time I tried wire working was after my aunt gave me a spool of wire, and I mostly made rings. After that I started trying to copy wire things I saw on Pinterest, and it took me a while to figure it out, but that was how I got into more complicated stuff like wire wrapped pendants and layered necklaces.
What is your favorite material to work with and why?
For wire I use silver plated copper. I’m really specific about what kind I use because I know it’s the right hardness, and it won’t be too soft to use. The gemstones I get to use are important to me because I love collecting them, my favorites are labradorite, rainbow moonstone, aquamarine, garnet, and moldavite. I love the shiny flashes in labradorite and moonstone, especially the stones that have multiple bright colored flashes. Pink and purple labradorite are my favorite. I also like garnet and aquamarine because of the colors. Moldavite is expensive and harder to wrap because of the weird shapes, but I like it because the way it forms is so cool. I also love tanzanite but pieces big enough to wire wrap are very expensive.
Where do you typically find inspiration?
I’m honestly not sure, most of the time I feel like ideas just come out of nowhere. Sometimes I have an idea for something and I’m so excited to start it’s all I can think about the whole day, but other times I just start a project without a plan and just see what happens.
What was the biggest hurdle you encountered when starting out?
Probably learning how to work with wire when I first started was the hardest part. It was mostly trial and error, and it took me forever to figure out because of that. I don’t know why I never thought to watch a Youtube tutorial or something, but think it would have been a lot easier if I had.
Do you sell these or have a business-like way of handling the jewelry you make?
I mostly sell them at the Granville farmer’s market, but sometimes also through Facebook or other craft shows. I only go to the farmer’s market every once in a while, but I am hoping to go more often this year. I have been wanting to try and sell them online, but because of my age and legal stuff it’s been hard to try and find a way to do that.
Is there anyone specific that inspires your style?
Not really, I do really admire John Farris’s (I believe that is his name, I might have to double check) wire working, but I haven’t been able to figure out how to do the cool thing he does with wire crisscrossed over a empty space without it getting tangled though.
How do you balance jewelry-making with schoolwork and other parts of life?
I don’t only work on my jewelry at home, I have a bag with wire and pliers that I take to school, in the car, pretty much anywhere so I can work on it when I have time. Though I have been doing that a lot less this year so I don’t distract myself while I have schoolwork to do. I try not to get so mentally focused on craft projects that I get distracted from other things, because that definitely happens sometimes, especially at school. I’ll have an idea and end up so focused on planning it that I don’t pay attention to what’s actually going on. What I’ve been trying to do to help with that is write down what I’m thinking, so I can come back to it later without feeling like I’ve forgotten something.
What is one of the favorite pieces you have made?
It’s hard to choose, but I think it’s the anatomical heart necklace I made with silver wire and garnet beads. It’s a hollow shape with wire arteries, and the chain is garnet, and it has a garnet teardrop bead coming from the bottom. It took about seven hours to make. I’ve made two hearts after that one, one I sold, and the other one is gold wire with a heart shaped crystal hanging on the inside. Another one of my favorites is a pair of silver elf ear cuffs with blue flowers on them that I made for the renaissance fair.
How long did it take you to become this skilled?
I’ve been using wire for four or five years now
Do you see this as something you will do long into your future?
Yes, I definitely think so. I love making all kinds of things, but jewelry is my favorite. I don’t know if I want it to be a full time job, but I do hope to keep selling it.
