A Q&A with the jewelry designer from Greensboro
www.witchhazelhandmades.etsy.com and www.underthewitchhazel.blogspot.com
What She Does
I started my jewelry-making business, Witch Hazel Handmades, in the fall of 2008. I make pendants using paper images I find interesting.
Sometimes I embellish them, and then I frame them between two pieces of hand-cut glass. Then they are all copper-foiled and soldered with lead-free solder.
A lot of times I make an entire collage sheet -- I will stamp, paint, use glitter, sequins and rhinestones on them, and the points of interest on the collage are the bits that are framed.
These kinds of pendants have lots of layers and are whimsical and can be kind of wild. They have some dimension. I try to use interesting or pretty pieces of paper for the backs since you can see both sides. I can choose the shapes my pendants will turn out to be because I cut the glass to match what I cut out to frame. I was doing mostly squares, and now I have bought a circular glass cutter, so I am working on making round pendants.
The Process
The whole process to make an individual piece takes about 30 minutes. But I usually do everything in steps at one time: the collaging, the cutting of the glass, the soldering.
I joke that since my husband taught me how to solder, nothing flat is safe in our house because I might frame it. Soldering has taken over as my favorite technique used to make jewelry right now. It's fun to finish a piece, and there is something transformative to solder and have this nice, little, complete piece framed.
A Way to Destress
This is my release, my way to destress. I use a different part of my brain, and I can do this sitting down. It is really nice to get home and just work on a piece with music on in the background or set up my work table and watch a movie while I solder. I watch movies I have seen 100 times. Sometimes I am in the mood to listen to and follow a story while I work.
Framing Vintage Stamps
I spend a lot of time in antique malls. The vintage stamps that I frame have become so popular. It surprised me how many people would tell me their connection to the particular country on one the stamps. One lady who came to my booth at the Indie Market had a grandmother from Poland, and she bought the Polish stamp pendant. I remember a couple who was looking at a stamp from the United Arab Emirates. The stamps are a little bit of home for people.
Backyard Inspiration
We live in the Glenwood neighborhood of Greensboro. It's a neighborhood with a lot of good energy. I garden a lot. We have chickens and a pretty big garden. I am a horticulturist by day, and because of that background I use a lot of images from nature in my work, especially in the springtime. I am drawn to images of plants, flowers, birds, insects. I am very inspired by anything vintage; I am kind of obsessed with those images. Most of the furniture in our home is hand-me-downs or antiques. I worked at an antique store and a garden center during college, and it is obvious I have been inspired by both experiences.
Available to Everyone
I want to try and keep my stuff affordable. The solder is just an alloy. If I were using sterling silver, it wouldn't be available to everyone. There is something for everyone in my work. I have all kinds of customers: college students all the way to older adults. Everyone is pinching pennies, and my work is marketable. The prices range from about $8 to about $12.
Choosing a Name
I really was looking for the name of a tree to name my company after. The name Witch Hazel wasn't being used already. It's a really pretty tree and one of my favorites. It blooms in really early spring on bare branches, and they are like little orange tassels all up and down the stems.
Why She Admires Her Grandmother
I have an old picture of my grandmother on my business card. Her image really spoke to me. She was a fisherman, and she could crochet a blanket. She canned her own food and cooked; my grandparents made it all work. I have thought a lot about them this past year. I started this venture right when the economic crisis started. We are still completely spoiled. Thinking about and remembering my grandparents is my way of staying positive and not panicking during these times. People have lived through worse and survived and prospered.
As told to Erin McClanahan Rainwater, eringrey718@yahoo.com
