Today we are visiting the studio of Charity Fedde, jewelry designer. Charity creates necklaces, earrings and bracelets with a specialty in metal box collage.
Each of her pieces is one-of-a-kind. Each is titled and has its own story.
Two years ago, Charity and her husband moved to the country. Her studio is in her basement, in a retreat-like setting. When she sits here...
...these friends come to call at her door.
Or sometimes these friends come calling.
Here is Charity's studio. When her family moved in, she remodeled the entire space: new flooring, new lighting, counter space galore, fresh paint and wall treatments, lots of storage, electricity. And plenty of natural light thanks to her walk out (shown above).
Since she is a mixed media artist, her work happens in many different steps.
Charity started making jewelry about 10 years ago when she couldn't find pieces that she really liked.
She and her daughter started pounding metal outside on the cement, she made a few things, her husband encouraged her and a business was born!
She began using her husband's tools and it was soon obvious that she was going to need more specialized tools (drills, a grinder) that allowed her to work on her intricate, sometimes delicate pieces.
When Charity started selling at art shows, colleagues would tell her not to take metal smithing classes. "If you study under the masters, you learn their streamlined techniques," she said.
"I've reinvented the wheel in an off beat way and now I make my boxes in a really unconventional way."
She most recently has started carving into cuttle fish bone, using this as her mold.
Fascinating!
Charity creates with recycled and upcycled materials whenever possible. Most of her metals are recycled.
She loves to shop the basement clearance at
Shapiro Supply. She finds elements for her collages at antique and thrift stores and estate sales.
I even think her tools look like art.
Her organizational skills are impressive, and necessary to produce as she does!
Spring and summer are Charity's busiest seasons. She creates all winter to prepare.
She is also updating her website. I'll post it here when it's ready.
Charity participates in several shows a year. Her next show is
Craft Out Loud, November 5 and 6 in the Central West End.
Charity says that she loves to meet customers at art shows and tell them the story that accompanies their piece. She has several collectors.
She has also started selling her work - as a featured artist and the sole jewelry designer - at
Wood Icing in Chesterfield.
Charity says many of her pieces are designed as part of a series. Her three newest series include: hands in fine silver, boxes and lockets, and branches and birds.
Thank you Charity!
