Etsy Interview with Sedona Skye

My name is Sue Horine and I'm the creator of Sedona Skye. As a child growing up in southern California in the 1960s and 70s, I loved almost all artistic activities. At times my parents could hardly keep up with all my projects while my interests darted from here to there. My mother finally resorted to getting the end rolls of newsprint from the local paper to keep me supplied with drawing paper. I could often be found sitting cross-legged on the hard wood floor drawing horses but then I would be off to the garage to create candles, wire mobiles, resin sun catchers and whatever struck my fancy.

My father loved the outdoors and most summer weekends and vacations were spent hiking and camping in the California mountains. In the winter months it was off to Arizona and New Mexico to explore Native American ruins and the desert southwest during a time when it was considered a vast wasteland. My grandparents loved the desert as well and took up residence in Palm Springs in the 1960s. They became involved with rock hounding and lapidary work, traveling the deserts of the southwest as well as Mexico in search of rocks. My grandmother created beautiful jewelry combining silver work and the cabochons my grandfather cut and polished.

After earning a degree in Dietetics, I found it hard to settle down in one place. I lived and worked in Yellowstone National Park for several years, lived in Colorado for a short time but always came back to California. I taught cross-country skiing, worked as a bicycle mechanic and eventually opened my own gift shop in the ski resort village Bear Valley, CA that I operated for 10 years. I met my life partner and moved below the snow line to begin a new page in my life.

In 2003, I discovered several boxes of cut and polished stones my grandparents had created. These stones, called cabochons, had been stored beneath my parent's house for almost 30 years after my grandparents' death. I took them home where they remained in the boxes until I thought back to the beadwork techniques a friend had taught me nearly 25 years before. In 2005 my journey to create these one-of-a-kind beaded originals began with a few simple necklaces. A few short years later I won or placed in several competitions. My award winning work has appeared in beading magazines, catalogs and has been purchased by customers around the country and internationally.

I currently live in Mountain Ranch, California in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains. The 10 acres I share with my best friend and partner Mike is also home for our dogs Ted and Lizzie, cat Jackson, 10 chickens and Mr. Tortie, an 80 year old desert tortoise. The mountains and deserts continue to be a place for peace and inspiration in my life and my creations.

How and when did you start making jewelry and your other items?

I started making my creations about 5 years ago after visiting a friend who was beading around a glass cabochon. My pieces were pretty simple at first but gradually I began to incorporate more and more bead embroidery in them. I had done quite a bit of needlepoint and cross-stitch so bead embroidery came pretty easily for me.

When and how did you originally find Etsy?

A friend of a lady who had gotten on Etsy pretty early on told me about the great success her friend had on Etsy. I checked it out but our Internet connection was so slow I gave up on opening my shop. I did persevere however and opened my shop sedonaskye.etsy.com in August of 2008.

What is unique about Etsy and what about the website do you like the most in regards to your shop?

I like Etsy because it is not an auction site and the fees are low. I have had my jewelry in galleries and giving 40 to 50% of the sales price makes it really hard to price items reasonably for the customer. I like how my shop can have it's own personality and I can set my own policies, yet the site support is always there to answer any questions I have. The visibility is great and I have dealt with folks from all over the world. I love all the "hearts" sedonaskye.etsy.com has received from artisans from many, many countries. After having problems and being dissatisfied with the catalog on my website, I linked my "catalog" to sedonaskye.etsy.com. It has worked out really well.

What inspires you the most in regards to your creations?

Nature is my biggest inspiration. I love the mountains and the deserts and I search out stones that look like landscapes or remind me of places I have been. I am drawn to any stone that tells a story. As long as there are cabochons in the world I believe the possibilities are endless.

What is your favorite piece you've created and why?

I enjoy each piece I create but of course some are more enjoyable than others. I created a piece using a wonderful porcelain Red Tail Hawk by Laura Mears. I had a beautiful cabochon of Imperial Jasper, which looked like the red rocks of southeastern Utah and a fire opal cut and polished by my grandfather. I combined the three items to create a piece titled "Fly Away". It was in honor of my father who always said he wanted to come back as a Red Tail Hawk. My dad passed away in December of 2007 and this piece symbolized him rising from the desert as a Red Tail Hawk. It was a fairly simple piece, but it meant a lot to me.

What do you want to accomplish with your online shop?

Of course I would love to make lots of sales and become famous! Realistically, I would just like to sell my work to people who appreciate it and hopefully gain the respect of the many, many talented artisans out there on Etsy.

Do you have any new creations in the works? If so, what can shoppers expect to see from you soon?

After making numerous smaller pieces because that is what is selling right now, I am working on a pretty big piece. It is another Red Tail Hawk and will be a significant work of art for me. About once a year I create an "art" piece. I think this one may be my "art" piece for this year!

Where can readers find out about more information regarding your jewelry and other creations and possible special offers (including additional websites, blogs, facebook, etc)?

I recently opened a bead gallery/ bead shop in Murphys, California where I have all my works displayed as well as selling beads and supplies. In addition, I have my own web site, www.beadartbysue.com. The catalog on my site links to my sedonaskye.etsy.com shop. I also have a Facebook page for Bead Art by Sue, which like my sedonaskye.etsy.com shop, can be accessed through my web site. I usually post what I am working on as well as my new listings on my facebook page with links to sedonaskye.etsy.com