The featured artist for this week is the lovely Rachael of Challen Charms. Rachael is a fellow Australian and jeweller. She creates the cutest jewellery as we shall soon find out.
Tell us a bit about yourself.
My name is Rachael and I am a born and bred Brisbanite, who decided to marry a man born in Canberra, of all places. My husband and I just celebrated our first wedding anniversary and bought our first home at the beginning of the year. We are already knee deep into renovations (I married an architect!), which doesn’t help my time organisational skills when it comes to crafting.
I am part of Gen Y (no judgement please) and work as a full-time marketing coordinator, which leaves nights and weekends free to create, when I’m not already roped into doing something around the house or with family and friends. When I do have time to myself, I make the most of it and create items for my store and gifts for loved ones. I have my own crafting workshop at home and am constantly interested in using new materials and equipment to make unique, one of a kind items. My husband knows this all too well and bought me a soldering iron for Christmas.
Describe yourself in 5 words.
Organised, Caring, Crafty, Outgoing, Friendly
When and how did you first start crafting/creating?
I first started crafting as a young child, making things such as paddle pop jewellery boxes and laminated placemats (from my own drawings) for family members. It then developed over the years into cross-stitching, latch hook, long stitching and paper crafts before discovering the art of creating my own jewellery.
What do you create and what are your favourite materials with which to work?
I primarily create jewellery that is simple and elegant, allowing for everyday wear, whether that involves dressing up for a special occasion or simply going out to the movies with friends. My stores offer jewellery items that include rings, bracelets, earrings and necklaces but I am always happy to custom make items to suit the customer e.g. using clip ons instead of earwires. I am learning to sew at the moment too and hope to incorporate fabric products into my online stores soon. My favourite materials to work with include mother of pearl beads, lampwork beads, silver girlie charms, Michael Miller fabric and other retro fabrics from Funky Fabrix in Brisbane.
When and how did you start selling online?
I only started selling my creations online in June last year, via Etsy. A friend told me about the crafting website and I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to talk with other crafters and sell my items worldwide. I have since opened an Australian online store via Made It to target Australian buyers and discovered the wonderful DUST (Down Under Street Team) on Etsy. I have found the online jewellery market very competitive and am working hard to offer unique items to potential customers.
Describe your store in 5 words
Simple, Elegant, Cute, Charming, Fun
Where can we find you online?
As part of Gen Y, I am a bit of a social networking nut and as such ChallenCharms can be found at the following locations and many more…
Blog: http://challencharms.blogspot.com/Etsy: http://challencharms.etsy.com
Facebook: http://facebook.com/challencharms
Flickr: http://flickr.com/challencharms/photos
Made It: http://madeit.com.au/challencharms
Twitter: http://twitter.com/challencharms
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What a delight to meet these featured artists each Friday! Challencharms definitely has lovely, beautiful jewelry! And I am pleased to meet her and know a bit about her! Another favorite artist/shop!
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