Interview with Kay Schroeder
Opus Fun Handmade Unique Repurposed Art Jewelry
Crystals, Semi-Precious Gemstones
Each one is an original art piece handmade using vinyl
Repurposed wire, crystals, Pearls,
“I find your work interesting, fun, and very creative” KS
By: Kay Schroeder
NORTHERN,CA(OpusFun)12/1/16/–I had the pleasure recently to meet (by phone) Carla Rempp a northern California artist who is receiving a lot of attention for her work in repurposed art jewelry. Her designs are fun, whimsical, and edgy-artsy, rendered in a refreshing array of materials. Here is what we talked about:
KS: Did you have any formal training in jewelry design and creation, if not, how did you come to realize that you had a talent for making jewelry?
CR: Yes, but I am also a third generation artist; my mother and grandmother are also artists. They have taught me a lot directly and indirectly. I am foremost a fine arts watercolorist, however even though I studied fabric design, I came to realize that creating and fabricating jewelry was also my passion. It is my belief that if you have an aptitude for art, those skills can be transferrable to other media like painting, jewelry design/fabrication, and even acting. As a teen, I performed in the original version of the movie, Jaws.
KS: Do you use a combination of repurposed materials and new materials? If so, what is the percentage of old versus new materials?
CR: Almost all of my materials come from discount stores and second-hand stores. I look for jewelry that can be taken apart and repurposed into my own designs. I use many types of materials in my work such as vinyl; gold, silver, and various wires; semi precious stones; pearls; and many types of beads. Although each piece is a mixture of new and repurposed, the wire that I use is always new.
KS: What was the first piece of jewelry you ever made? How have your designs evolved?
CR: My first foray into my own design concept was making a belt from vinyl. Vinyl can be made to look like leather or metal. Succeeding pieces I designed using vinyl as the base, then adding stones, beads, and other materials I had on hand. The design evolved as each piece was constructed.
KS: How did you get the start-up money for your company and how do you get your products before potential customers?
CR: The proceeds from the jewelry I have made and sold thus far are funding my work on current and future pieces. I have scheduled a show of my work (approximately 100 pieces) for early December in my hometown, Berkley, CA. I consider this not only an opportunity to get my work before potential customers, but also as a fact-finding mission. Fact-finding in the sense of whether my work is appropriately priced to cover material costs and my expenditure of time to design/hand craft each piece to return a reasonable profit.
My website: www.opusfun.com displays several examples so that potential customers may get a better idea of my style and design.
KS: Speaking of pricing, what factors most influence the price you assign to each piece?
CR: My goal is to create original, handcrafted designs at an affordable price. Pieces are generally priced from $30 – $75. The pricing is influenced most by the type and quantity of the materials used, and the amount of time required to produce that particular piece. Since each piece is unique, prices are adjusted accordingly.
KS: What is your design thought process? Do you create one piece at a time or do you try to visualize an entire collection before you make anything?
CR: Though each piece is unique, I experiment until I get a look that I like. That is the jumping off point for other pieces that I will create, each with several distinct variations.
KS: Who do you see as your customer in terms of age, lifestyle, or socio-economic status?
CR: Because my designs tend toward abstract, fun, and casual, I believe Millennials, young adults, teenagers and anyone else who has a flair for the arts are the people who will most likely be drawn to my work.
KS: What influences your design most, current styles, retro styles, funky or other characteristics?
CR: I am a fan of art deco design, however, I get most of my inspiration from the materials I have available. They tend to provide the direction of the design.
KS: If you could see any women wearing your beautiful designs, who do you visualize them to be?
CR: Anne Hathaway to Lady Gaga.
KS: What is the most important lesson you’ve learned as an entrepreneur?
CR: The importance and necessity of being able to use the computer and media like Instagram effectively, and ensuring that I have sufficient computer security.
KS: What are some of the things you did right and wrong when you started your business?
CR: One important thing I have done right is to learn to use the materials I have to their greatest advantage. Two things I did wrong in the beginning were to spend too much money and time on the materials. Currently I am concentrating on performing a better assessment of the amount of material and time required for any given product. Perhaps like every small business owner, the challenge is to determine how to scale the product process for larger production output. This is something I will be working on more in the near future.
KS: What has been your career highlight so far?
CR: My greatest joy comes from working with the materials and design concepts. My greatest fulfillment comes from having people appreciate my work.
Check out this talented artist’s work at:.
opusfun1@gmail.com