Aloha
my cherrypies, so I'm pretty sure that if you're into the vintage scene you
will have come across the absolutely amazing company that is Luxulite. I
for one have been a massive fan since I first discovered Katys
creations on Instagram, it's been wonderful to have seen her company go
from strength to strength over the last few years and it's no wonder
when you see her fabulous designs for jewellery. If you have a love for
novelty brooches, earring or necklaces then this company is the way
forward for you, as my regular readers will know I'm a huge fan of
novelty so I adore all the Luxulite brooches and have quite the
collection growing myself. So I thought I'd do a little interview with
Katy and find out all about the amazing world of Luxulite.
1. Your jewellery is simply amazing! What first inspired you to make jewellery?
Thank you! I think it's a combination of a huge love for the fashion and accessories of the mid 20th Century, and the problem of being able to firstly find it, and secondly afford it! When I started out I was making the jewellery for myself to wear as you just couldn't get good repro jewellery anywhere at that time - the vintage and rockabilly scenes were saturated with tattoo-inspired plastic jewellery (which is fine but it just wasn't my bag!) I wanted to wear jewellery that looked like the originals from the 1940's and 50's. The more I made, the more friends and family wanted things and it just grew from there!
2. I love the vintage inspired design of your pieces, how did you first come up with these designs?
I first set up my etsy shop as I had sourced a large lot of original 1950's confetti lucite stones, which I made into earrings. As I was gluing earring backs onto the lucite pieces I decided to try and replicate the appearance myself, and started to research ways in which to cast the pieces. I have always been a huge fan of brooches, especially novelty designs, so this was a natural progression once I had mastered the processes. It's lovely to look back at some of my first cherry brooches and see how they have evolved – my early ones have super-long stems and they look so funny to me now! They have come a long way and have been carefully refined and improved over time.
I first set up my etsy shop as I had sourced a large lot of original 1950's confetti lucite stones, which I made into earrings. As I was gluing earring backs onto the lucite pieces I decided to try and replicate the appearance myself, and started to research ways in which to cast the pieces. I have always been a huge fan of brooches, especially novelty designs, so this was a natural progression once I had mastered the processes. It's lovely to look back at some of my first cherry brooches and see how they have evolved – my early ones have super-long stems and they look so funny to me now! They have come a long way and have been carefully refined and improved over time.
3. I have so many favourites from the flamingos to the elephants, do you have any particular favourite theme/design?
I think my favourite piece to date has got to be the little yellow corn cob brooch with chickens! I love how my carving came out on this one. I also wear my brown horsey brooch quite a bit. I think both of these brooches look great with casual day wear – dungarees, plaid shirts or western shirts. Being in my workshop all week means I rarely get to wear nice dresses, so these two brooches are my go-to pieces to perk up my daily outfits.
I think my favourite piece to date has got to be the little yellow corn cob brooch with chickens! I love how my carving came out on this one. I also wear my brown horsey brooch quite a bit. I think both of these brooches look great with casual day wear – dungarees, plaid shirts or western shirts. Being in my workshop all week means I rarely get to wear nice dresses, so these two brooches are my go-to pieces to perk up my daily outfits.
4.
You've had some pretty big achievements like your jewellery being sold
on Pin Up Girl clothing, what would you say is your biggest achievement
so far?
Seeing my creations for sale on Pinupgirlclothing.com is definitely up there on my achievements list! When I'm browsing their gorgeous dresses and one of my brooches pops up I always get a little fright and think... I made that! I think my proudest achievement has got to be the moment I decided to ditch my day job. It was the most terrifying, exciting and emotional moment of my life. Getting to that point took a lot of hard work, late late nights and early early mornings (and there have been lots of late nights and early mornings since then too), but not a day goes by where I don't feel very lucky to be able to do this as my job.
Seeing my creations for sale on Pinupgirlclothing.com is definitely up there on my achievements list! When I'm browsing their gorgeous dresses and one of my brooches pops up I always get a little fright and think... I made that! I think my proudest achievement has got to be the moment I decided to ditch my day job. It was the most terrifying, exciting and emotional moment of my life. Getting to that point took a lot of hard work, late late nights and early early mornings (and there have been lots of late nights and early mornings since then too), but not a day goes by where I don't feel very lucky to be able to do this as my job.
5. Your jewellery is pretty massive in the vintage scene! What do you love most about the scene?
The music will always be my first love, (followed closely by alllll the dresses!) We are really lucky in the North East as there is a fantastic rockin/rockabilly scene, with tons of gigs, DJ nights and events happening every week. I love the sense of family that this scene provides too – you're never too far from a friendly face and its always so great to meet up with friends that you haven't seen for ages at the weekenders – I wish I could go to them all!
The music will always be my first love, (followed closely by alllll the dresses!) We are really lucky in the North East as there is a fantastic rockin/rockabilly scene, with tons of gigs, DJ nights and events happening every week. I love the sense of family that this scene provides too – you're never too far from a friendly face and its always so great to meet up with friends that you haven't seen for ages at the weekenders – I wish I could go to them all!
6. Does anyone in particular inspire you?
Looking at style icons such as Carmen Miranda, Lucille Ball or Jane Russell has been great for my work, I find their style and beauty mesmerising!
The work of jewellery designer Martha Sleeper is a constant source of inspiration and ideas, but I also love to look at novelty prints and designs from the period – there are so many amazing (and some utterly insane) themes in fabric prints, it really is a treasure trove of inspiration.
Looking at style icons such as Carmen Miranda, Lucille Ball or Jane Russell has been great for my work, I find their style and beauty mesmerising!
The work of jewellery designer Martha Sleeper is a constant source of inspiration and ideas, but I also love to look at novelty prints and designs from the period – there are so many amazing (and some utterly insane) themes in fabric prints, it really is a treasure trove of inspiration.
7. Luxulite is going from strength to strength, what are your next plans for your amazing company?
I have some exciting projects and collaborations in the pipeline for this year – I am so excited about them I'm finding it really hard not to blab about it! I am constantly testing out and experimenting with new techniques and processes in my workshop too, so who knows what might happen next... You will have to wait and see.
I have some exciting projects and collaborations in the pipeline for this year – I am so excited about them I'm finding it really hard not to blab about it! I am constantly testing out and experimenting with new techniques and processes in my workshop too, so who knows what might happen next... You will have to wait and see.
You can find Katy's etsy site by clicking this link https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/Luxulite
Coco Von Vintage x
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