- 3 -

Interview with Christina Nicole of

Christina Nicole Studios

How do you chose your materials for each piece to ensure their quality and longevity over larger named jewelry suppliers?

It's taken a couple of years of slowly building our sustainable model of utilizing smaller, independent suppliers. We've found that for us, the best materials come from earth-friendly, recycled metals, hand-mined and hand-cut stones, recycled packaging to even our tools. We use heirloom tools, along with a few custom made ones from fellow artisans. We make a point to utilize independent businesses and we've found that suppliers that take pride in their trade, those authentic crafters don't cut corners and can even tell you the story of where they mined the stone and the little quirks that are specific to the handmade process. It's become a wonderful working relationship with independent suppliers that kicks off the create process in a new way. The more attention, time and pride that's put into a crafted piece, the stronger it's longevity and quality. We're interested in the long-term, in crafting pieces that are passed to generations and our fellow, independent suppliers share that same heartbeat.

© Photo submitted by Christina Nicole

Your website talks a lot about the inspiration in your home and everyday life. How has your jewelry making made you feel closer to your community?

We've been so blessed by the incredible amount of feedback we've received this year about our PISGAH line. People have sent us messages, shared stories and come to events to share how they've connected with and been inspired by our pieces. Sharing experiences with our community and inspiring conversations because of a piece of jewelry is what we care about. A simple necklace can give the platform for sharing life experiences, wisdom, and knowledge. It creates an opportunity to go deeper with folks. And that's what we ultimately want to create. Those moments that stir your soul through a simple conversation that sparked over a necklace or ring that caught your eye. Our pieces are built to last because we utilize the best materials available, and we hope they continue to inspire those who wear them to share their stories and connect with others.

You sell your products on multiple outlets that most likely have different customer bases. Have you found that people are more willing to buy your products at cost if they know where you were sourcing the materials from? Do you have any evidence of this?

Sustainability is such a core to our ethos but also the foundation of our business. It's the means by which we operate daily. From an energy conserving studio, to using recycled materials, to doing business with shops and entrepreneurs who support and appreciate those same goals. We're very intentional about who we allow to represent our brand. We approve retailers based on their personal ethos and authenticity with their customer base. They resonate with our philosophy of well-made, built to last, sustainable goods. We've had larger boutiques, that typically offer more commercially-made goods, contact us about wanting to shift towards a more independent model, which is so exciting to see it catch fire. This transition to authenticity of product is building a lasting foundation of quality over quantity between customers and shops. It's returning to the world of knowing where your products are made, knowing who made them but more importantly, knowing how they were made. We're thankful to the shop owners and customers who are also choosing to support the locally-made model and spreading the belief that less is more when it's made well.

It’s difficult to balance giving customers what they want while staying true to your own values. What do you do in order to satisfy trends while committing to your company’s ethos?

For us, at the end of the day, it comes down to balance. Some jewelers that are still searching for their voice may tend to be swayed more by the ebb and flow of trends and styles. While others create with little to no regard as to if someone will wear or interact with a piece. In our opinion, the objective of the designer is to build a foundation while utilizing guidelines, which produces greater levels of creativity but more importantly, purifies the authenticity of the design. Those refining guidelines should include marketability and sustainability. Designing for us, is creating with intention, something that excites and also serves a purpose. Thankfully, what we create resonates with a broader audience. We only approve a select amount of custom job requests each season; custom pieces that not only align with our ethos but also inspire us. My sketchbook is always maturing thanks to discipline, which ultimately refines the level of quality that I naturally produce. Of course, it varies for every designer. There are so many differing opinions as to honestly to materials and honesty to ethos, I just know for me, I want to look at a body of work and see the quality and intention. I expect a body of work to be ever evolving, swelling and subsiding like an organism. That refinement and growth should stretch itself over the course of a designers career, the outcome is an authentic product, marked by purity of design and quality of craftsmanship.

© All Photos submitted by Christina Nicole