Studio 1405
Interview #14 - Studio 1405
For this next interview, I am so happy for Studio 1405 to be the first business in the jewelry business to be featured on my page.
Studio 1405 is located in country Victoria in the town of Benalla where Kellie, owner, and creator designs and creates the gorgeous polymer clay earrings that you see at Studio 1405. Kellie handcrafts all her designs, from the shapes to the patterns to the colours chosen where all of her love and passion is put into what she does. Studio 1405 has been around for approximately 3 years with the Instagram and Etsy shop being up and running but Kellie has been playing around with the polymer clay long before that. What had once been just a hobby, has now turned into a hobby with a purpose, a now running business where Kellie can sell her creations with everyone wanting a statement piece to their outfit.
Studio 1405 doesn’t target a specific age range in the market (those who wear earrings of course!) but rather those people who would like to be a bit brave and who like to push the boundaries to wear big, colorful statement earrings on their ears. It all depends on the individual whether it is their preferred style or not to be bold and wear a little colour.
The name Studio 1405 is quite unique to Kellie. The number, 1405, was previously an old postal number that used to be on the property where Kellie is today. Living in country Victoria, these postal numbers used to be used and now that they have been replaced by the new system, Kellie’s studio now sits there. So hence the name, Studio 1405, which is both clever and unique to Kellie for which no one will be able to say otherwise.
Kellie is currently a primary school teacher, teaching kids in grades 3 and 4 and also have three young kids, playing around with polymer clay was really just a hobby and it then started to grow from there. With no initial intention of selling her earrings and then, necklaces and bangles, once she got onto social media and opened up an Etsy store, she has lifted off. With no official goals, to begin with, her now future goal would be to create beautiful pieces of jewelry that people love and to hopefully in the future put the name Studio 1405 into more wholesale and brick and mortar shops.
When Kellie first dabbled in the crafty field, it was making bangles and wooden type jewelry that was mainly for herself and close friends. There is a local art shop in her town where she would buy her supplies from for her bangles, they also had polymer clay where she then bought some and started playing around with it. From this, her love and passion for the medium started to take flight as she then had many inspirations to start making polymer clay products and then it was just a matter of learning to further love the medium followed by extensive amounts of research about the versatility of the clay.
The research was vital for Kellie, not so much the business side of things because as it was, in the beginning, the love of this was just a hobby, the main research was done about the product, what materials would be best to use and the techniques associated. There is such a large market for creators designing and crafting jewelry with polymer clay, and with this niche being as saturated as it is, Kellie had to do her own research. She took her time with what materials are best, what techniques suited her and deciding which type of polymer clay works best for her as there are many different types, with different qualities. There are things that Kellie has learned along the way which she has only found out through trial and error with what products are and aren’t suitable down to the smaller things such as the type of glue to the quality of social media posts.
When the business first hit off, she didn’t anticipate and presume that her love of polymer clay would lead her down the business part, so initially, Kellie wouldn’t have changed a thing as it did start as a hobby as it has started out as a passion which has grown into something more. Other people who are also doing this, they may have gone into this with more of a business perspective, hoping for it to become a business, but with Kellie, it was her passion and drive that allowed her to become the success she is today.
What tips would you give to someone starting their own business?
“First off, be passionate about what you do. The field that I am in is really saturated and there are lots of people trying it out which is great but it’s all about being passionate about what you do and that you love it. Then, do your own research to find your niche and that’s the other thing too, find your special niche in your market and be different and unique. And then just put it out there and give it a crack, you know to be proud of what you do, put it on socials or whatever it might be and just dive in.”
The earrings that Kellie makes at Studio 1405 are statement pieces, known to be bold, bright and extravagant. When customers go through her Etsy store, supporting her and purchasing one of her earrings, they are known to get a quality product that is made with lots of love. Being a primary school teacher herself, Kellie’s days are pretty full-on, but when she comes home, instead of some people sitting down in front of the telly, Kellie opts for rolling clay. When customers buy off of her, Kellie intends for them to experience a quality product, for them to feel great in what they are wearing with lots of colour so that when they receive and open their package, it feels special and love what they have got.
The craze over earrings that are either made out of polymer clay, resin or even acrylic has taken off and the market is getting more and more popular, so Kellie is trying her best, as difficult as it may be sometimes, to stay fresh and unique. Even though her products are already outstanding and can be identifiable from miles away, Kellie likes to keep her shapes and colours unique to her. Things such as making her own cutters for the earrings and using different paintwork with patterns and designs is helping her stay fresh and up to date, with customers knowing that what they get isn’t the stock standard. Kellie likes to use her paintwork to keep herself different and unique which is one of the things that sets her apart from all the other competitors with other people being able to recognise the piece as a Studio 1405 piece purely due to this factor.
The earrings are definitely not for everyone and are something that if you should ever wear them, you should wear them with pride. The inspiration behind the colourful creations comes from a variety of different places from festivals in her local town showcasing local street art to the farm environment where she lives. Her colour waves can come from anything like her kid’s clothing, fashion and the landscape. With a constantly changing environment and ever-changing landscape, Kellie is able to draw from the colours of the seasons and also what beauty lies in the natural environment.
Kellie is aware that the earrings she makes are not everyone’s cup of tea, even having a few requests herself from close friends for smaller versions of what she makes, but her love for the statement piece will never leave as she has found it to be more her niche.
The future is almost upon Kellie at Studio 1405 with 2019 coming to a close. Kellie would love to see herself continuing down this road of polymer clay jewellery and hopefully, in the next 12 months or so, she is able to get some wholesale opportunities happening as well as having stepped up in her social media following.
How would you describe the business in one sentence?
I would say that Studio 1405 is fun, colourful, unique and a lot of happiness.
I would like to say thank you for taking the time to read this interview with Kellie from Studio 1405!
I had an absolute pleasure interviewing her and can’t wait for the future! Don’t forget to give her a follow on her Instagram page HERE and click the button below for a direct link to her Etsy store.
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