Racheal makes and sells handmade sterling and precious metal jewelry. She sells her jewelry line under the name Sudlow Jewelry. Her jewelry line offers a wide range of unique designs and is described as 'a whimsical take on the everyday'. Sudlow Jewelry is available in stores across the world and is also sold online on her own website. Read on to find out more about Rachael jewelry line-up and about the journey she has trodden in the process of creating them:
1. Rachael, please introduce yourself to our readers.
My name is Rachael Sudlow & I'm a bit of a renaissance artist...I began in photography, but now I'm primarily a jeweler. I've also dabbled in printmaking & ceramics. I have a degree from the Rhode Island School of Design. I'm a one woman operation here at Sudlow Jewelry, doing everything from my own sawing, filing, chain making & even casting. I specialize in custom, personalized whimsical jewelry.
2. What inspired you to take up Jewelry designing as a profession? Do you dabble in any other artforms?
See Above! I've really always made art...I've got artists on both sides of my family & so I grew up in that environment. I was lucky to have some amazing art teachers in all my younger school days & they guided me on to art school later. At art school, I was encouraged to combine my artistic interests & this allowed me to get a degree in photography, a lot of work in photoshop, plenty of web design and then a good taste of metalsmithing as well. Once I left the education world, I found myself making jewelry for myself. As my techniques improved & I found some designs I loved making, it was just kismet that Etsy.com started up at the same time. I was one of their first jewelers, starting at their beginning in 2005. I've grown as they have & became a featured seller on the site a few years later. Things have just taken off from there.
My name is Rachael Sudlow & I'm a bit of a renaissance artist...I began in photography, but now I'm primarily a jeweler. I've also dabbled in printmaking & ceramics. I have a degree from the Rhode Island School of Design. I'm a one woman operation here at Sudlow Jewelry, doing everything from my own sawing, filing, chain making & even casting. I specialize in custom, personalized whimsical jewelry.
2. What inspired you to take up Jewelry designing as a profession? Do you dabble in any other artforms?
See Above! I've really always made art...I've got artists on both sides of my family & so I grew up in that environment. I was lucky to have some amazing art teachers in all my younger school days & they guided me on to art school later. At art school, I was encouraged to combine my artistic interests & this allowed me to get a degree in photography, a lot of work in photoshop, plenty of web design and then a good taste of metalsmithing as well. Once I left the education world, I found myself making jewelry for myself. As my techniques improved & I found some designs I loved making, it was just kismet that Etsy.com started up at the same time. I was one of their first jewelers, starting at their beginning in 2005. I've grown as they have & became a featured seller on the site a few years later. Things have just taken off from there.
3. What are the sources of inspiration for your jewelry? Do you actually hand craft each and every piece that you create?
Materials provide plenty of help for me...a stone's color or shape will guide how it needs to be set, a wonderful pattern in metal encourages a certain design. I love trying out new materials & new stones. Learning new techniques such as casting or resin reveal a world of new ways to create pieces. Just experimenting & trying out different methods is so fun & keeps things exciting. I do a LOT of production work as well & my customers love to bring new ideas & pieces they'd like to see created. Sometimes that collaboration ends up creating some gorgeous pieces. Some of my favorite pieces have been born this way.
Other than a few chains & clasps, I create everything in my store. I hand saw all shapes out with a tiny jewelers saw, I solder little loops & connections & I wirewrap the beads entirely by hand. I know the quality is strong that way & I can make it personalized to the customers request as well.
4. Your “cowscape” series is absolutely amazing! How did you come upwith this amazing concept? Do you have a story behind it? (Some of thephotographs actually look like mountain scenery)
The Cowscapes were my senior thesis project at RISD. With my degree in photography, I wanted to bring my pictures to a landscape painting sort of level. My grandfather, Robert Sudlow, http://www.robertsudlow.com/ did a lot of impressionistic oil paintings of the Kansas landscape. I wanted to reference both his work, my love of animals & also my separation from the prairie environment I grew up in. Being in the beautiful city of Providence, RI, I didnt get to see animals & the rolling landscape I loved. Doing the Cowscape images was my way of bringing that world to the East coast, but with my personal whimsical twist. I love to make the viewer take a second look & have to think about what they're seeing. The pictures themselves began with me working on a local farm...feeding the critters & grooming them, I was always aware of the tactile element of fur & hair. It changes seasonally just like the prairies themselves. I needed a fun way to alter the 'landscape' & I found it by just bringing a big bucket of grain out to the pastures & meeting some new 'friends'.
Materials provide plenty of help for me...a stone's color or shape will guide how it needs to be set, a wonderful pattern in metal encourages a certain design. I love trying out new materials & new stones. Learning new techniques such as casting or resin reveal a world of new ways to create pieces. Just experimenting & trying out different methods is so fun & keeps things exciting. I do a LOT of production work as well & my customers love to bring new ideas & pieces they'd like to see created. Sometimes that collaboration ends up creating some gorgeous pieces. Some of my favorite pieces have been born this way.
Other than a few chains & clasps, I create everything in my store. I hand saw all shapes out with a tiny jewelers saw, I solder little loops & connections & I wirewrap the beads entirely by hand. I know the quality is strong that way & I can make it personalized to the customers request as well.
4. Your “cowscape” series is absolutely amazing! How did you come upwith this amazing concept? Do you have a story behind it? (Some of thephotographs actually look like mountain scenery)
The Cowscapes were my senior thesis project at RISD. With my degree in photography, I wanted to bring my pictures to a landscape painting sort of level. My grandfather, Robert Sudlow, http://www.robertsudlow.com/ did a lot of impressionistic oil paintings of the Kansas landscape. I wanted to reference both his work, my love of animals & also my separation from the prairie environment I grew up in. Being in the beautiful city of Providence, RI, I didnt get to see animals & the rolling landscape I loved. Doing the Cowscape images was my way of bringing that world to the East coast, but with my personal whimsical twist. I love to make the viewer take a second look & have to think about what they're seeing. The pictures themselves began with me working on a local farm...feeding the critters & grooming them, I was always aware of the tactile element of fur & hair. It changes seasonally just like the prairies themselves. I needed a fun way to alter the 'landscape' & I found it by just bringing a big bucket of grain out to the pastures & meeting some new 'friends'.
5. Could you share with us how you go about creating your jewelry, right from coming up with a concept to actually giving the finishing touches to one? Please elaborate on the tools and processes you use.
Custom work begets a lot of fun designs. Giving tweaks to my current design or coming up with something very personalized & custom, each really can morph into some amazing pieces. I love doing custom work because it allows an emotional attachment for the buyer to have with their piece & it means they'll treasure it for years. Hearing their stories really adds a personal level for me & allows me to do little tweaks to make a piece special.
Other than that, my main inspiration is natural & organic themes. I find them to be the most appealing to my customers & the most fun to make. The designs in nature can be interpreted in modern, classic and various other ways, but still reflect their roots.
Tools vary for each project & any jeweler knows you can never have enough! Lots of hammers, kilns, torches, stamps, vices, presses, buffers, drills, and anything else you can imagine. I work in a small studio in my house & a huge studio at my local arts center. Between the two places I've got access to SO many tools & it still doesn't feel like enough, I love it. I do a lot of work with a jeweler's saw & a super thin blade...cutting out pieces in intricate designs can be frustrating, but it's so worth it for the detail that a .01" blade can deliver.
Custom work begets a lot of fun designs. Giving tweaks to my current design or coming up with something very personalized & custom, each really can morph into some amazing pieces. I love doing custom work because it allows an emotional attachment for the buyer to have with their piece & it means they'll treasure it for years. Hearing their stories really adds a personal level for me & allows me to do little tweaks to make a piece special.
Other than that, my main inspiration is natural & organic themes. I find them to be the most appealing to my customers & the most fun to make. The designs in nature can be interpreted in modern, classic and various other ways, but still reflect their roots.
Tools vary for each project & any jeweler knows you can never have enough! Lots of hammers, kilns, torches, stamps, vices, presses, buffers, drills, and anything else you can imagine. I work in a small studio in my house & a huge studio at my local arts center. Between the two places I've got access to SO many tools & it still doesn't feel like enough, I love it. I do a lot of work with a jeweler's saw & a super thin blade...cutting out pieces in intricate designs can be frustrating, but it's so worth it for the detail that a .01" blade can deliver.
6. Would you rather be an etailer or a retailer? How has your experience been selling online?
With the internet, I can connect directly with the customer efficiently & quickly. It makes borders & geography irrelevant. Today I'm working on two custom orders from Germany & Sweden, as well as my usual array of US & Canadian orders. Email is wonderful for quick messaging & allows us to work out all the details of a custom piece. Sending good photographs is so helpful, it's like they're sitting in my studio guiding me with what they'd like.
I'm happy living in my studios rather than sitting in a storefront...I appreciate all the stores that carry my work & I am happy to give them their commission for doing the selling work. I do 3-4 shows a year & while they're fun to interact in person with customers, they're exhausting.
The other benefit is that working at home/having a flexible schedule allows me to be with my 6 month old baby most of the time.
7. How do you promote your store? What do you think is the ideal mix of social, online and offline promotion? What about word-of-mouth promotion?
I'm pretty lazy & pretty cheap. I do twitter updates when I post new items- @rachaelsudlow
I have a facebook page- Sudlow-Jewelry and I do a newsletter every once in awhile. I put special sales & things there. The signup is here- newsletter.
What I think has made a big difference in marketing is Pinterest. To be successful on pinterest you HAVE to have good photography & I'm appreciative of my photo background. Pinterest allows your work to go 'viral' & see a larger audience.
As far as offline goes, I send out nice biz card with each order & I just started doing ring sizer coasters in many orders.
With the internet, I can connect directly with the customer efficiently & quickly. It makes borders & geography irrelevant. Today I'm working on two custom orders from Germany & Sweden, as well as my usual array of US & Canadian orders. Email is wonderful for quick messaging & allows us to work out all the details of a custom piece. Sending good photographs is so helpful, it's like they're sitting in my studio guiding me with what they'd like.
I'm happy living in my studios rather than sitting in a storefront...I appreciate all the stores that carry my work & I am happy to give them their commission for doing the selling work. I do 3-4 shows a year & while they're fun to interact in person with customers, they're exhausting.
The other benefit is that working at home/having a flexible schedule allows me to be with my 6 month old baby most of the time.
7. How do you promote your store? What do you think is the ideal mix of social, online and offline promotion? What about word-of-mouth promotion?
I'm pretty lazy & pretty cheap. I do twitter updates when I post new items- @rachaelsudlow
I have a facebook page- Sudlow-Jewelry and I do a newsletter every once in awhile. I put special sales & things there. The signup is here- newsletter.
What I think has made a big difference in marketing is Pinterest. To be successful on pinterest you HAVE to have good photography & I'm appreciative of my photo background. Pinterest allows your work to go 'viral' & see a larger audience.
As far as offline goes, I send out nice biz card with each order & I just started doing ring sizer coasters in many orders.
Those are a good balance of practical tool, fun bar accessory & promotional card.
Being a quality, customer based business is HUGE for word of mouth & I credit a lot of my success to my happy customers who have told their friends how much they love their pieces. Nothing makes someone more talkative about a piece than having it personalized.
8. What other Artists do you look up to? If you could peek inside the studio/toolbox of any one other artist/craftsperson, whose would it be and why?
I'm in awe of some of the other jewelers out there that are still doing their work by hand & not completely outsourcing their work. Sarah Graham is a lovely jewelry who I got my engagement ring from actually. She runs a small, family run studio out of California. She makes lovely, creative work that is a nice alternative from the classic look. I would love to spend some time interning with various jewelers & see how they setup their studio & what their techniques are...everyone seems to have their own quirks to how they do things. It's always fun to learn a new way to set a stone, or a new tool I've always wanted to try out. I'd LOVE to go work in the supply catalog Rio Grande's test facilities...they have access to all the best & newest toys!
Being a quality, customer based business is HUGE for word of mouth & I credit a lot of my success to my happy customers who have told their friends how much they love their pieces. Nothing makes someone more talkative about a piece than having it personalized.
8. What other Artists do you look up to? If you could peek inside the studio/toolbox of any one other artist/craftsperson, whose would it be and why?
I'm in awe of some of the other jewelers out there that are still doing their work by hand & not completely outsourcing their work. Sarah Graham is a lovely jewelry who I got my engagement ring from actually. She runs a small, family run studio out of California. She makes lovely, creative work that is a nice alternative from the classic look. I would love to spend some time interning with various jewelers & see how they setup their studio & what their techniques are...everyone seems to have their own quirks to how they do things. It's always fun to learn a new way to set a stone, or a new tool I've always wanted to try out. I'd LOVE to go work in the supply catalog Rio Grande's test facilities...they have access to all the best & newest toys!
9. What are your future plans as far as taking the store ahead is concerned? Any cool concepts or amazing jewelry that you are working on? What is the most amazing creation that you would like to work on in your lifetime?
I'm playing around with some more natural object castings...I recently cast a piece of asparagus in sterling silver & will probably list it in my etsy shop within a few days. I'm also working on some new cufflinks in my classic oak & acorn pattern that are going to be a really nice pairing with my oak wedding ring designs.
As far as future plans, I'm already trying to stockpile work for the holiday rush. Now that this holiday season I'll be juggling an almost 1 year old, things will be more chaotic than ever!
the most amazing creation I'd like to work on? Probably a big fancy engagement ring that somehow reflects my design sense...I really wont know till I start to work on it!
I'm playing around with some more natural object castings...I recently cast a piece of asparagus in sterling silver & will probably list it in my etsy shop within a few days. I'm also working on some new cufflinks in my classic oak & acorn pattern that are going to be a really nice pairing with my oak wedding ring designs.
As far as future plans, I'm already trying to stockpile work for the holiday rush. Now that this holiday season I'll be juggling an almost 1 year old, things will be more chaotic than ever!
the most amazing creation I'd like to work on? Probably a big fancy engagement ring that somehow reflects my design sense...I really wont know till I start to work on it!
10. What advice would you like to give to aspiring artists? Your eCommerce mantra?
Be creative, be UNIQUE & work your ass off. It takes a lot of dedication & a lot of commitment, but with good customer service & a unique, quality product, you can take it far
Be creative, be UNIQUE & work your ass off. It takes a lot of dedication & a lot of commitment, but with good customer service & a unique, quality product, you can take it far
Thank you Rachael for taking out time and doing this interview with us. We wish you the very best for the future.
I found it by just bringing a big bucket of grain out to the pastures & meeting some new 'friends.