Well this is it, my first blog entry. I’ve agonised over it, pondered for months, plucked up the courage and then lost it again and now finally I have taken the plunge! So, I’d best introduce myself and L’elli Jewellery before I go much further. My name is Lucy, I'm 30 and live in Cheshire. My son Elliott was born in 2009 and after deliberating about my career choices I decided to leave the teaching profession to become a stay at home mum. After just over a year, in April 2010, I had the urge to do something whilst Elliott was napping; something creative. I remembered back to making jewellery years ago, before the hectic life of being a teacher kicked in; I remember being mesmerised by the colours and feel of beads, the satisfaction of having created something beautiful, and knew instantly that jewellery making was what I wanted to do. I began relearning the skills needed and my first few creations were nervously placed on my personal Facebook page to show my friends. Instantly I was receiving messages asking whether the bracelets were for sale, how much were they and how did I want paying? I was a little taken aback, but absolutely thrilled and within a few hours I had enough orders to keep me very busy for over a week. Friends of friends began asking about making purchases too, so I set up L’elli Jewellery, combining the L for Lucy, with Elli, my son’s nickname. We started with a small facebook page, with a few badly taken photographs and a vague concept of a business idea. Within weeks L’elli Jewellery had become a full time job, I was inundated with orders, no longer able to complete the work I needed to during Eli’s nap times and had to arrange childcare; luckily my Mum was able to step in and help out, taking Elliott for me.
The business went from strength to strength, and by August 2010 I had made the decision to move away from silver plated jewellery and into precious metals. I have always had a love of silver; the real thing – costume jewellery which tarnished and began to lose its new look always saddened me, when picking wedding jewellery for my own wedding, I obsessed over buying items which were made from precious metals, so I could keep them forever – the idea of these keepsakes and reminders of the day getting ruined over time upset me. So gradually I phased out using silver plated findings and chains and built up my portfolio of sterling silver creations. Once again, the reception was incredible. My very first sterling silver item was a wishbone necklace; I used the most beautiful tiny hearts chain, which can still be found in many of my items now – it’s my absolute favourite.
So here we are 17 months on and L’elli has grown from being a Facebook page with a handful of friends and family, to the 6th most popular handmade fashion page on Facebook in the UK. Our loyal customers, fans and friends have supported and promoted L’elli so well that I am often staggered by how much effort they put into helping us grow and spreading the word. Our website has gone live, opening L’elli Jewellery to a wider audience, and I am very much looking forward to the future.
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