ShinyAdornments, a talented jewelry designer!

• Tell me a bit about yourself

My name´s Kristy, a´m fromWichita, KS and i´m member of JET and Artisan Beaders Street Team on Etsy

• What is the name of your Shop?

ShinyAdornments is artisan handmade beaded and wire wrapped jewelry, handcrafted in my Wichita, KS studio. I use sterling silver, gemstones, SRA lampwork, glass, and polymer clay beads. My jewelry shop includes bracelets, bangles, earrings, necklaces and cocktail rings for both work and play.

I make jewelry I would wear myself. The materials depend on my mood and inspiration. My goal is to create wearable items for work and play that offer an interesting statement about the women who wear them.

• Where do your ideas come from?

I find inspiration in the wildflowers I drove past this morning on the way to work or the suit I just bought that needs the perfect accessory or the strange dream I had last night. I take lots of pictures of colorful things, then refer to them later when I need a color inspiration. I like jewelry that makes a statement. So when I wear jewelry, I WEAR jewelry. Those that know me would say I am definitely NOT a shrinking violet and my jewelry generally reflects that attitude. I also love color. I like pieces that have heft and texture best. Or mix light and dark elements. Or both.

• How did you get into your craft?

I started making jewelry because I couldn’t find pieces to coordinate with my work attire. I discovered that I really enjoy the creative outlet. I’ve come to crave coiling wire, which I’ve discovered creates an almost meditative state. I also love being able to hammer components into submission. lol Creating little wearable expressions of color has become a stress reducing therapy for me. I am self taught, but inspired by many. You can not even imagine how MUCH copper wire I have used practicing and experimenting with a shape or wrap, before trying it out in sterling.

I was wearing the things I created to work and received lots of positive feedback, and sales! from my coworkers. It seemed a sensible step to create someplace to showcase them online, as many of the individuals I know aren’t in the same state. Etsy seemed the logical choice.

• Apart from creating things, what do you do?

I work full time at a large corporation and also spend a lot of quality time elbow deep in crayolas and play doh with my son.

• How do you promote your work?

I like blogging. I’m a geek at heart, so all the online, technical stuff is the most promo fun for me. I’m also lucky that I have a fairly large work cadre, so sell a lot to those that work with me. You can check my blog and you can find many many photos of my work in my flickr.

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