Crafter finds calm in making jewelry
Like most families with school-age kids, the Blount family is a busy one. Mom Amy is an accountant who sings in the church choir. Dad David recently started his own law practice. The kids — 15-year-old James, 12-year-old Dawson and 6-year-old Sophie — attend three different schools and are each involved in church, sports and other activities.
Rare is the day that the Trussville residents aren’t headed multiple places at multiple times with duties like homework, shopping, laundry and transportation required as well.
The daily whirlwind, however, hasn’t kept Amy from pursuing a jewelry-making hobby, which has evolved into a home business she calls Beloved Creations. But finding time for it means some adjustments on her family’s part, as well as a bit of sleep deprivation on hers.
“I stay up late a lot,” she said, “and I don’t clean house or cook that much right now. David knows I love making jewelry, and he’s seen me make making money with it, so he’s very helpful.”
It all began when her oldest child was still an only and taking Sunday afternoons naps. Amy, who grew up watching her grandmother craft and had always enjoyed making things herself, saw in those quiet afternoons some time for crafting. She also oved jewelry, once working as a diamond counter for a local jewelry store.
“It sounds a lot cooler than it was,” she said. “There would be some little bitty diamonds, and they’d have to be counted for putting in settings.”
Those near-invisible gems, however, left an impression. Amy chose jewelry making as her Sunday afternoon diversion and has been churning out beautiful pieces ever since. She uses a variety of materials in her designs and is always open to trying something new.
“I do a lot of leather because I like the texture of it,” she said. “I also do a lot of beadwork. That’s what I started working with at the very beginning.”
She’s now learning about coloring metal, a process she’s dabbled in before, and wants to start working with precious metal clay, a material derived from putting metal in a kiln and burning off the epoxy that holds it together.
Amy recently received a kiln as a gift and is now working up the courage to use it.
“Except for a bit [at a workshop], I’ve never worked with a kiln. So I need enough time to go slow and learn how to use it without burning the house down or setting the cat on fire,” she said.
Amy sells her jewelry in craft shows, to friends and on Facebook. Her next big show will be the Trussville Historical Society’s Everything Christmas event in November, where she expects her best-sellers to be — as usual — all kinds of bracelets.
“I do a lot of earrings, too, as well as necklaces and rings, but bracelets are what I do more of because that seems to be what people look for,” she said.
Regardless of the item, however, each one has a place in her heart.
“Every piece of jewelry is a beloved creation, and it’s hard for me to let go of it,” she said. “Every piece is something that I would want to wear, and I want people to love it as much as I do.”