Jewelry Artist Podcast: Life’s a Bench with Julie Sanford

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Introducing Jewelry Artist Podcast: The Art and Business of Jewelry with Julie Sanford

Her sense of play, accomplishment, connection, and joy all come to life when she’s at her bench. Daughter of a rockhound, Julie Sanford started making jewelry as a teenager, and today is a full-time artisan jeweler, gallery owner, and jewelry instructor. She also has time for a personal life and managed to tuck in an interview for our new podcast, Jewelry Artist. If all that sounds like a crazy busy schedule, that’s because it is. But, as she tells host Katie Hacker in Episode 1, Life’s a Bench, “If you’re loving what you’re doing, that 70 hours feels like 20, right?”

Above: Julie Sanford’s black opal ring in 14K gold | Photo: Nick Tremmel, courtesy of Julie Sanford Design and Studio JSD

Listen to the episode below, and read on for the backstory!

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I asked Julie to elaborate a bit on how this craft brings those deeply satisfying feelings into her life. She kindly provided more detail in this Q&A.

Q: What are the top three things making jewelry provides for you?

Julie Sanford:

1. Playfulness and joy in creating new objects out of beautiful, rare and interesting materials and raw metals.

2. A sense of accomplishment in watching my skills improve, observing how techniques that were once rough and clumsy become more effortless with time.

3. Delight in making connections with people who share the same response to the materials and aesthetic of my work.

And ultimately, making jewelry provides a channel that keeps the legacy of my dad alive.

Q: How did you know you were ready to make the leap into jewelry full-time?

JS: I didn’t. I wasn’t checking off boxes, waiting for the right income level or an offer I couldn’t refuse. If I was, I would still be making jewelry part time. It happened.

Q: What was the biggest surprise you encountered afterward?

JS: I was both surprised by how hard and how easy it was at the same time. I imagined it would be hard to build a community of jewelry makers, sell enough work, bring in students, support artists and instructors, and have enough local customers for the gallery. But that turned out to be easier than I thought. Over time it evolved and grew organically, and at a pace I could navigate. The hard part was the business. Inventory, cash flow, contracts, policies, procedures, employees, insurance, accounting, tax laws . . . It goes on and on. But as things grew, I was able find great people to help with the hard things.

Q: What do you like best about teaching?

JS: It is so rewarding to see the overall self-confidence, self-sufficiency and self-motivation of others improve by teaching techniques in jewelry making. It is also fulfilling to bring a diverse range of people together to form a common bond. There is such a feeling of friendship, collaboration and mutual respect in the creative space of membership. We all belong to not just a local but also the wider maker community.

Hear It All in Jewelry Artist Podcast

To hear the complete interview, join Julie and Katie for the launch of the Jewelry Artist podcast. Listen in as this wonderfully upbeat artist offers expert advice with a good dose of humor. Follow her journey to a successful career and learn from her about ways to sell your own jewelry. Find out why she’s so impressed with her favorite new tool, and enjoy a few of her shopping exploits at this year’s Tucson gem shows.

Treat yourself to each inspiring episode by subscribing to Jewelry Artist, a podcast all about the art and business of jewelry making.

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Merle White is Editor-in-Chief of Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist magazine.

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Julie Sanford in the Interweave Store + Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist