Hi, I’m Catherine and I’m the person behind Cicee Creative.
As a self confessed compulsive maker I always found myself creating things.
It all started when I was on mat leave with my eldest child. I had a sudden urge to make her christening blanket. After crocheting my fifth blanket I looked around and realised this couldn’t go on! I needed to find something else to make before my whole house got lost to yarn.
This was the point I discovered woven beaded bracelets. I’d seen a few on Pinterest that I had fallen in love with but, being on mat leave, I had no money to buy them. So I decided to make one! The image below was my first ever hand made bracelet - it is also my best selling beaded bracelet design.
Now it wasn't quite as simple as just weaving some beads together, as I originally thought! There were many nights of swearing and throwing needles across the breakfast bar. The needle was too fat to go through the beads, beads broke as I finished off the ends, the whole bracelet dissolved as I took it off the loom. Trust me there were many tears. But I persevered and now I love making these delicate bracelets.
However, I was falling into the same trap as the crochet blankets. I had beaded bracelets everywhere! So one boozy wool and wine night with my sister-in-law, and fellow maker, she convinced me to sign up for my first market stall. I'm not sure if it was the wine or the bracelets piling up at home but it seemed like a great idea!
As this was my first market I had no clue what I was doing or how much stock I would need to take so of course I made way to much! I think I even still have some of those original bracelets left somewhere. Here's my first market stall - the result of lots of wine, lots of making and a night stumbling around in the dark looking for matching branches for the display!
But it was a successful market! And it gave me the confidence I needed to carry on. People liked my pieces and were actually buying them.
After this I did more markets - not all successful I might add - and opened an Etsy store. This soon turned into my own online shop website. But I think the turning point for me was I enquired about a local market at the girls school and the organiser happened to be owner of a local gift shop. She offered me shelf space at her shop and this became one of my best sources of income.
So, to wrap up, a wine fuel night kick started my jewellery making career and so far it's going well! I've learnt a lot more techniques that I now apply to my jewellery. The latest being actual silver smithing. It was a bit of a pinch me moment when I made my first rings that was soldered and polished and looked like proper jewellery! I now sell my pieces in 3 shops and the focus this year to get more online sales. Fingers crossed it all goes to plan!
Thanks for reading
Catherine