Why I Make Jewelry

 Really this blog post should be titled "why I never leave my house" But with all this covid stuff going on in 2020 I felt that would be confused and slightly "click-baity" Here is the thing... I have been self quarantined for almost an entire year. (started long before any Covid stuff) In July 2019 I decided I was done trying to fit into this new ego I see forming in my generation and stronger in the younger ones. 

How do I explain this without sounding like an angry old lady... I noticed my peers where getting into mindsets that no matter what lifestyle they where choosing to live, it was ALL ABOUT THEM. Being surrounded by that mentality definitely rubbed off on me in the wrong way. I completely "ghosted" my little sisters and family members and was only really concerned about how much fun I was going to have. 

You see I can't blame my peers for being consumed by a life with all thrills and no bills... but I can blame them for allowing themselves to turn into the selfish people they are. When you step away from all the booty pics and party songs, you see the ones who raised you, the ones who look up to you and the ones you are letting down. After seeing that... it becomes miserable sitting there with loud music and people that you realize don't really care for you, you are just a supply of good times when THEY want it. 

So I cut every thing and everyone out. I locked myself in my house and decided to get to know myself again. Before I started making rash decisions and traveling a rough life path... I was a smart kid, a happy kid and a very creative soul. I needed to find her again so I went through some boxes I had in my storage and found my old craft kits. I started pulling out all beads from a collection I started when I was around 12 years old. Now before you think that this collection of beads are all plastic letter beads and large wooden beads ( all though they were present) I had some beautiful glass beads and unique beads from all the thrift stores I used to visit with my grandmother as a kid. (Stores I now happily return to with her.)

You may be thinking " how on earth does old craft kits help you find yourself?" Well I found craft kits, making jewelry & art as my main entertainment as a kid. I was raised by parents who believed in strict "screen time" and "harsher rules" then most other kids. So when I found myself in a spot where I had no one to talk to anymore and nothing to do again it felt natural for me to pick up my crafts again. I am not saying that it will definitely help you, but it might. 

I find having something to focus my hands on, small and tedious things really help get my brain out of  what I like to call a "Lonely Fog" When you get so wrapped up in all the thoughts as to why people did you the way they did or how you could have done something to not be so alone. Or just sitting there thinking of the past and letting depression sink in... You can't let that cycle continue. I don't know the answer to depression and mental struggles, but I do know that it is mental (as in, your brain, your thoughts, your reaction, your control.) I am not saying you can control every single thought in your head, but you can control how you react to them. Personally, I choose to shut all those thoughts out and focus on projects, creating something. Building something beautiful that my mother would love or my little sister can enjoy. If that doesn't sound like a solid answer then I am not too sure what is.   

And as fate would have it, turns out this beading hobby of mine is actually something I'd like to turn into something more than a hobby. Something that I could support myself off of and still live near my family ( without all the lovely run in's with people I'd rather not remember exist) There was just one hurdle for me to  overcome to really start selling jewelry and that was how vain the fashion industry can be. The industry that influences my peers to be the people they are, the thing I tried to get away from in 2019... is ironically the industry I would enjoy working in. 

I could take this as a sign to not go further... or I could say " I am going to do this my way." See jewelry is an accessory, correct. But it's also over priced and has such a heavy stigma for making you look richer or fancier. Well I make handmade jewelry for people who don't need a price tag to feel worthy. I make unique jewelry for PEOPLE who know they are pretty on the inside and that is all that matters. The jewelry they wear is made for their personality and their style, not copied and printed on every Victoria Secret model. You see I don't want to be in the fashion industry, I want to be making jewelry for PEOPLE (and not the magazine) because the good people in this world deserve to show of their bright souls and inspire the rest of us to love ourselves and the people around us just the same. 

So that's why I make jewelry. A) because I don't like leaving my house and seeing people I used to know (the anxiety and harassment is not worth a part-time paycheck, sorry ) B) I want to celebrate the people who are pretty on the inside C) I want them to shine brighter then the asshats who constantly take over and influence others to be just as asshatty. We should be uniting together to be better people, not fighting each-other to prove who can destroy the world faster. 

Anyways this is an unusual blog post for me, more like a late night thought train that wouldn't stop till I wrote it out. Feel free to reach out to me on Instagram or Facebook @s.b.eadedjewelry if you are looking to start a new beading hobby or looking for custom jewelry and have a good night / day <3 

Till next time -Shayla