Paula Hisel, Designer, Owner and Instructor
Click here to read bio by Fire Mountain Gems
I remember the exact moment I got hooked. I was six years old and it was Christmas morning. My Grandma Winchester had gotten me a strand of faux pearls and it was love at first sight. The feeling those pearls gave me when I wore them was indescribable and I wore my precious pearls every day for weeks.
When we went to Grandma Winchester's house, I would spend hours on end admiring her jewelry collection. She loved Avon and always had some new treasure from them to show us. We would sit on her bed all snuggled up as she would tell us stories about where her jewelry had come from. And she always let us try it on! It was pure heaven to my little heart. And then that beautiful day came when she started giving jewelry to me!!!!! I could hardly wait for Christmas or my birthday to see what gorgeous treasures I would receive.
Fast forward a few years to thirteen years old. I was an awkward teenage girl with big teeth, frizzy hair and was painfully clumsy. But I still found great joy in my Grandma's jewelry. After months of badgering our parents about getting our ears pierced, my precious Grandma took my sister, cousin and I to get our ears pierced for our birthday...hallelujah!!!. As the oldest, I got to go first. Bravely I let some stranger poke holes in my ears and then spent the rest of the appointment admiring my newly pierced ears in every shiny surface I could find. When we were done, she gave each of us girls some money to choose our very own pair of earrings. I fervently debated over what to get and finally decided on a gorgeous pair of wooden parrots. They were easily 3 inches long, bright red, and matched nothing I owned, but I had to have them. Like my pearls, I wore them proudly with everything for weeks. And every time I wore them, it was that same feeling of indescribable joy as before. From that day on, I spent all of my baby-sitting money buying new earrings to wear. I'm happy to say that none were ever quite as loud (or made me quite as happy) as those parrots.
Now I'm thirty and my passion for jewelry is still just as strong as ever. It is the first thing I look for when I go into a new store., and when I get a new catalog, I furiously flip through the pages to get to the jewelry section. When I look for jewelry for myself, I don't look for what is flashy or in style. I look for pieces that make me happy and feel good inside. A great piece of jewelry should always make you feel good about yourself. That's the approach I take when I make jewelry. I want to make pieces that make you feel good about yourself when you wear it.
My Grandma Winchester went to be with Jesus when I was a senior in high school. I am so sad that she's not around to share this adventure with, but I find that she is very much a part of what I do and create. She has become my inspiration to teach jewelry design classes at nursing homes, which I absolutely love. There is no greater feeling than seeing someone find joy in what they have created.
Grandma Winchester was an amazing woman, and I am so lucky I got the chance to know her. Now that she's gone, wearing the jewelry she gave me has a new meaning for me. Its a way to reconnect with the indescribable joy I had when I was a child. I want you to feel as happy about your jewelry as my Grandma Winchester's jewelry makes me feel. It is my honor to design jewelry for you with that goal in mind.
When we went to Grandma Winchester's house, I would spend hours on end admiring her jewelry collection. She loved Avon and always had some new treasure from them to show us. We would sit on her bed all snuggled up as she would tell us stories about where her jewelry had come from. And she always let us try it on! It was pure heaven to my little heart. And then that beautiful day came when she started giving jewelry to me!!!!! I could hardly wait for Christmas or my birthday to see what gorgeous treasures I would receive.
Fast forward a few years to thirteen years old. I was an awkward teenage girl with big teeth, frizzy hair and was painfully clumsy. But I still found great joy in my Grandma's jewelry. After months of badgering our parents about getting our ears pierced, my precious Grandma took my sister, cousin and I to get our ears pierced for our birthday...hallelujah!!!. As the oldest, I got to go first. Bravely I let some stranger poke holes in my ears and then spent the rest of the appointment admiring my newly pierced ears in every shiny surface I could find. When we were done, she gave each of us girls some money to choose our very own pair of earrings. I fervently debated over what to get and finally decided on a gorgeous pair of wooden parrots. They were easily 3 inches long, bright red, and matched nothing I owned, but I had to have them. Like my pearls, I wore them proudly with everything for weeks. And every time I wore them, it was that same feeling of indescribable joy as before. From that day on, I spent all of my baby-sitting money buying new earrings to wear. I'm happy to say that none were ever quite as loud (or made me quite as happy) as those parrots.
Now I'm thirty and my passion for jewelry is still just as strong as ever. It is the first thing I look for when I go into a new store., and when I get a new catalog, I furiously flip through the pages to get to the jewelry section. When I look for jewelry for myself, I don't look for what is flashy or in style. I look for pieces that make me happy and feel good inside. A great piece of jewelry should always make you feel good about yourself. That's the approach I take when I make jewelry. I want to make pieces that make you feel good about yourself when you wear it.
My Grandma Winchester went to be with Jesus when I was a senior in high school. I am so sad that she's not around to share this adventure with, but I find that she is very much a part of what I do and create. She has become my inspiration to teach jewelry design classes at nursing homes, which I absolutely love. There is no greater feeling than seeing someone find joy in what they have created.
Grandma Winchester was an amazing woman, and I am so lucky I got the chance to know her. Now that she's gone, wearing the jewelry she gave me has a new meaning for me. Its a way to reconnect with the indescribable joy I had when I was a child. I want you to feel as happy about your jewelry as my Grandma Winchester's jewelry makes me feel. It is my honor to design jewelry for you with that goal in mind.
About meI am random and eclectic and silly. I love laughing and eating copious amounts of candy. My family is my very favorite thing in the world and I'd rather spend time with them than most anything else. I love watching movies from the 80's, reading biographies, learning new trivia facts, and telling silly jokes. I married my best friend Chris on a Monday morning on the side of a lake 9 years ago and it was the best decision I ever made. I strive to be a godly woman, a loyal wife and a champion to those who don't have one. I love my niece Ellie more than life itself. Music is deep inside my soul as are the plains of Kansas. And I don't think its possible to have too many dogs.
Most importantly, I love Jesus. |