Where do you come from, where do you go

I’ve had some weeks to “develop” the concept of Natural Charms and it’s been much harder than i’d anticipated it would be. I set out a list of things to do: finish/send out outstanding orders, update blog and Fbook page, open a e-shop, research where i’d like to sell if i could do it through a shop..

I’m pleased with my first little collection -yes, I know I am biased- i like the combination and concept of Midsummer Night’s Dream. It features 5 different stones: golden yellow citrine, sensual red carnelean, fresh green kyanite, soft breezy aquamarine and beautiful and positive black tourmaline. The starting point was a pair of earrings developed as a wedding present, a request from my sister for a good friend of hers, she hoped i could also make a matching necklace for the groom to be. Loved every minute of working on Ari and Sasha. Fion came after, i love the result of mixing techniques and materials (there are a couple more pieces not yet finished).

Ari in sterling silver

Sasha in sterling silver and hemp

Fion in sterling silver and hemp

So everything on the creative department is swell, but I’ve been stuck with the rest as it requires me to be sure of the name of the brand. I like natural charms, it seamed to suit from day one, but i’ve had reservations for a while now. There is a lady trading under the same name in the UK, she started later but she was more active than me, and it is possible she didn’t know about us. I’m not sure this would stop me from using the name as i’m confident we started first, but it brought up second thoughts and since then every now and then i find myself toying with other names, so far, always coming back to the original..

Because i really am keen to find out if it’s actually possible to make a living out of this enterprise, i’d like to set up shop asap, and so the matter becomes more urgent: who am i as a brand, what drives me, where do i want to go.. (very big concepts!!)

I made lists of what i want the brand to be like (values), how i want the pieces to be (quality?) and what I like most about the enterprise.

So here it is, the first sketches of a new brand in the making:

What do I want the brand to be like? Ethical, sustainable, sincere, empowering, educative, aware

How do I want my pieces to be? Simple, natural, comfortable, practical, durable (not disposable)

What do I like the most about the enterprise? (as you can see, it’s actually the potential that excites me the most)

The stones, the amazing array of colours and textures, the time and processes they underwent in their formation, both naturally and through human intervention

Creative freedom, the universe of possibilities in design that come with working with stones, noble metals and natural fibers.. loving it

Flexibility, the freedom to work from home and be around when the boys finish school and pick up when they are sleeping, no long commute but mainly no time wasted in traffic. Allow me to elaborate: I live near London and peak time is just really really scary, I was always stressed coming back to pick up the children from nursery, and back then I could call if there was an accident or a train had been cancelled and there was always someone to stay with my boys if that happened. I heard they can call social services if you don’t collect your child on time from school, and we have no family here to go for an emergency pick up.

The potential for sustainability: there is surprising range of sustainable alternative products that is starting to be available: less harsh chemicals for working with metals and more sustainable materials are making their way into the market: recycled silver, Fairtrade gold 😀

The potential for creating an ethical brand: the potential of generating a fairer and more ethical production chain: make the chain shorter and the benefits better distributed amongst local populations where the materials are sourced

So.. what will it be.. should I stay as natural charms? or embrace the freedom that comes with being practically at starting point and make it something fresher, more modern or more playful.. I was thinking maybe twigs&stones(??) I know there is practically 3 people reading this, so to you three: what do you think?

Thanks for reading! love xx

M.

ps. of course I’ve been googling to find out if all the strange names ii kept coming up with already existed as a jewellery brand and found a beautiful song called twigs and stones.. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cr5ZaIrsCyA

Fair Jewellery Action

Fair Jewellery Action.

via Fair Jewellery Action.

Soaking up the London scene

I have been doing a lot of research into the current jewellery scene here in London, and on-line. I went to my first catwalk on the 5th of June, it was Graduate Fashion Week 2013 and I went with a designer friend, Vivian (mentioned here after as V), who is building her own design brand of patterned silk textiles inspired by the Andean culture and cosmo-vision. The Show was amazing, apparently it is the biggest catwalk displaying work from the years graduates in the UK and around the world. Here’s some of my best pictures of the show, we where lucky we got really good seats!

I did feel a bit like miss Bradshaw, and it was nice, but also strange because I have never been a girl much into fashion. My product choices have more to do with materials (natural always preferable), practicality (I like to be active and I have children, so it needs to stay in place and withstand more than only gravity), quality (I like things to last, I am loving the movement against products that are expressly made with an expiration date) and origin (ideally locally sourced or with a short production chain). But let’s face it, I am also a bit poor, so price a lot of times trumps origin. I’m not proud of that, its just a fact of life that I am working on changing soon :o)

I am thinking it will be important though to have a better understanding of the industry and the trends to be able to make pieces that are both conscious in the making but also current and contemporary. I would like people to choose them because they are beautiful and wearable as much as for the ethical values that they stand for, and I would like to spread the love of natural stones into younger generations.

Another exiting event was Jewellery Week 2013 which was last week in London. I managed to have a look at the Treasure exhibition, at the Somerset House, which was showcasing a few ethical jewellers.. Yaay there IS an ethical movement! I even found a designer who is already working the way I hope to be able to some day, the brand is JoKaminska and she sources her stones locally and has set up an educational program about art and recycling. Hearing her tell me about her project put such a big smile on my face..

Then afterwards I met up with V and her husband (who makes beautiful semi professional jewellery pictures by the way)..  to visit the Cockpits Arts Open Studios in Deptford, this is one of two blocks of studios that offer crafters, designers and artists a space to work along side other creative souls under the umbrella and guidance of an experienced team that are supposed to help you set up and start your business smoothly.. I know, I had the best time! It was really exciting to meet so many new people in different artisan/artistic trades.. I’m liking the scene so far..

Thanks for popping by, comments are much appreciated 🙂 xx

Making it fair

I have been busy busy making samples and taking pictures and developing the whole concept of Natural Charms. I had a very nice conversation with a friend who asked me how it was going. My answer was similar to what I have written so far: I’m happy to be giving it a shot, I enjoy it, if it doesn’t work out at least I’ll know I tried . As I heard myself pitching it to her I realised I’m not that convinced I can make it work.

The problem is there are too many things I want to do. Natural charms is one of them, I love the stones, I love the creative work, I would looove to have a decent income doing something I enjoy that also gives me the flexibility I want to be able to have the family life I wish for. But there’s a lot of passion in this little heart of mine, and I was reminded of it while at work the last week.

I was working with a selection of South American music in the background and my favourite songs where in the list. In three acts I remembered so many things that I normally carry in my heart, but that had gone to the background with all the changes happening in my life. Three songs to remind me where I come from, what moves me and what life is about: Latinoamerica (Calle 13) speaks of my lovely continent, it’s people, it’s landscape, it’s struggles, and our past; Canción para un niño en la calle (Mercedes Sosa/Calle 13) reminds me that at this very instant there is a child living alone in the street, jumping on trains (or buses) trying to make people laugh, hitting us in the chest with his tired wing; and Noche de Bodas (Joaquin Sabina y Chavela Vargas) that is  happy song that wishes for every night to be a wedding night, for the make up not to cover up your smile, that the end of the world finds you dancing, that the heart never becomes out of fashion, that being brave wouldn’t cost you that much and being a coward wouldn’t be worthwhile..

There is a need in my heart to help make some change happen in those places in the world that need a little hand.. In the past I have done research on natural resources, biodiversity conservation and alternative land use in the Amazon and I learned there is so much that can change with not too much effort.. What people need in order to live a life that is more sustainable for themselves, but also more forest and biodiversity friendly, is a sense of security in land tenure (which is very complicated to achieve and involves national and international efforts) and an income obtained from alternative sustainable economic activities.

There are so many interesting things that could be happening.. one of them, I think, would be the possibility to generate alternative income for families living in areas where gemstones are sourced. It would be lovely if Natural Charms could eventually purchase the stones directly from local communities, in agreements with local families to make sure the sourcing of gems benefits local populations more fairly. I am looking forward to find out if this is a possibility.. Another exciting thing is that there are initiatives that are making fair trade gold and eco-silver (fully recycled) available now!!.

I realised that one passion and an other do not need to compete, even when they seem very unconnected they can work together..

I’m feeling hopeful and happy 🙂

Here is a sneak peak of some of the charms I’ve been working on (more pics will be available in our Facebook page soon):

“Warmi” Phosphosiderite and Pyrite in Sterling Silver. Dangle of 40 mm from top of earwire.

“Alicia” Crackled Crystal Quarz in Sterling Silver. 40 mm dangle from top of earwire

“Taís” Red Jasper in Sterling Silver. 35 mm dangle from top of earwire

So, what d you think, would it make a difference to you if your jewellery was able to offer the local people that found, cut or polished it a fairer deal? Would you like to know the history behind the stones?

Thanks for visiting! every comment is much appreciated. xx

p.s. If you’d like to read a post I wrote (on another blog) on street children in my home city in Bolivia, here is the link: Niños de la calle