Today we’d like to introduce you to Darina DeBenedictis.
Darina, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
For as long as I can remember, I have always had a passion for arts and crafts. I have dabbled in lots of different types of crafting over the years…you name it – I’ve probably tried it! I started making polymer clay earrings in 2019. Using clay allowed for endless possibilities to create. Mixing clay colors and using various shaped cutters to design jewelry was much more fun than using beads, as I had experimented with before. Every single piece I made was truly one-of-a-kind and designed entirely by me. The process of designing and crafting the earrings would have been satisfying enough for me, so the joy that came when I started to see my friends and family wearing my earrings was just the cherry on top! I decided to create a business out of it and Adorned Jewelry was born in October of 2019. Since then, I have made and sold MANY pairs of earrings, started creating necklaces/bracelets, began teaching jewelry-making workshops to children and adults, started planning my own pop-up events, and have created earrings for brides and bridesmaids. I am inspired by how much Adorned has grown and happy that this craft I love dearly has been able to reach so many people. It is still my favorite thing in the world to see my artwork displayed on the ears of another person. Well, no, I take that back: my favorite thing is actually when I get to teach someone else to make earrings and then seeing their excitement and confidence when they see their artwork on their own ears. That is what this business is all about: adorning myself and others with creativity.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
Overall, building a business has been a smooth road, but not a straight path. At the beginning, my biggest goal was figuring out how to make my jewelry stand out. Jewelry is sold all over the place and a lot of people have more jewelry than they know what to do with. The challenge was making unique earrings that people would want to add to their collection. I knew the trendy styles would sell, yet they weren’t as fun for me to make. It also got very boring for me to make the same pair of earrings over and over again, even if they were a popular style.
I had to rid myself of thoughts that I should make certain pairs just because I knew they would sell. That mentality limited me creatively. I’m happy that I decided to fight that mentality because to this day, people continuously tell me that they have seen a lot of clay jewelry out there, but that mine stands out from the others. I am very proud of that.
Starting a small business was both easier and harder than I ever would have thought. Having barely any marketing experience, I had to learn the ins and outs of social media marketing, build a website, figure out pricing, and do all the other things that come along with owning a business. In the midst of so many large companies, advocating for myself and my brand was definitely tedious and sometimes daunting. I am so thankful to have the best family and friends, who supported me and allowed me to reach so many more people.
I still have the first batch of earrings I ever made. At the time, I was so impressed with myself. Now, when I compare those old pairs to my new pairs, I can visually see just how much I have grown as an artist. It is the same with how far I have come as a business owner, too.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
While I am not making and selling jewelry or running jewelry workshops, I am still being creative and teaching creativity. I guess I just can’t get enough of it! I teach kids of all ages through art and science enrichment programs and camps. I believe deeply in the lessons that art and science can teach. I studied Marine Geology in college, have volunteered at multiple aquariums, and spent time working on ships out at sea, so I have a passion for teaching kiddos about the ocean and everything in it. My experience as both a scientist and an artist has given me a unique lens in which I see the world and it also inspires who I am as a teacher. I am proud of myself for building a small business, building my own enrichment curriculum, and for the life, I have designed for myself. However, the thing I am most proud of is my curiosity and my ability to instill curiosity in others. A lot of my life is guided by the “what ifs” and the ‘we’ll never know unless we try’s.”
If there is any advice that I could offer, it would be to live a more creative and curious life, allow others to see through your unique lens of this world, and most importantly, trust your crazy ideas-I bet they are so good!
We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
Success should be defined differently by everyone since everybody has different terms for how and when they feel successful. I think for people that don’t understand that there is not a universal definition of success, feeling successful can seem unattainable and is always at the mercy of others.
In my life right now, I feel successful. I am very happy with the life I am living right now. I am BIG on goal setting and reflecting on accomplishments. Due to my strong drive, I have accomplished a lot of what I have set out to accomplish. Yet I have also “failed” in ways, too. I think we spend too much time defining things as either a sucess or a failure and I think our definitions are too harsh.
The only way to really feel successful and feel satisfied is by celebrating the small wins. I think the most empowering thing in the world is when something that was once just an idea in my head comes to fruition. That could be as big as creating a business or as small as creating the most perfect pair of earrings for a particular person. What makes Adorned Jewelry succeed is its ability to inspire, to grow/change as needed, and to create community. I think those are the same things that make me feel successful personally, as well.
Contact Info:
- Email: adorned.business@gmail.com
- Website: adorned.shop
- Instagram: a_d_o_n_r_e_d
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/adorned.business
