Karin Smith's Journey from Banking to Beading

My mom owned a craft store when I was growing up, so I was fortunate enough to try a lot of different types of crafts. [Jewelry making] is the one hobby that I tried and stuck with.

I love picking out the beads and making the combinations as much as I do the actual putting pieces together. I love working with stones. I love pearls. Just a combination of elements that you can put together.

I’ve done a lot of things with [jewelry making] in my life. … I owned a bead store at one time. I was working full-time [in banking], and I decided to take a leap of faith and open my first store.

I refer to it as my hobby job. I feel like now I’m at a place in life where I can start devoting a little more time to the things that I want to do for myself.

You decorate your home. You get dressed in the morning. [Jewelry making] is like that. It’s just in elements that people aren’t used to working with.

It’s the creative part of my life. It’s my outlet for the frustrations that we all have … I definitely appreciate the creative outlet.