Changes

AnneMade Jewelry is about to celebrate its 10th anniversary!  I've been making jewelry since I was a kid, but I took a break during college and picked it back up after I started collecting sea glass when we moved to Delaware in 2003.  We were new in town, I was looking for work, and my mentor from home (Virginia) saw a necklace I had made and encouraged me to make a business out of it.  And so I did.  And then we moved to Virginia and AnneMade Jewelry continued to evolve and flourish.  When our kids came along it was great because I could work from home while they were sleeping.  And last year I even worked from a studio downtown while they were in preschool.  Bliss!  But then...

My husband was asked to spend 2-3 years working at his company's office in Gothenburg, Sweden beginning in February. (!) Amidst the shock of learning about the move and thinking of the dozens of things we needed to do before then, I had this thought whispering in the recesses of my mind...  What if I took a break from work and just enjoyed being there?  Making jewelry has become less like recreation and more like a job, so I'm looking forward to a break from special orders, inventory, deadlines, paperwork, shipping, and ordering supplies.  After ten years of that I welcome a sabbatical.  I look forward to having time to read, meet friends for fika (coffee date), take pictures, and go for walks.  I'll still bring my jewelry tools because creating is still something I enjoy doing.  I'm even looking forward to meeting Swedish jewelry people.

I'm planning to document our Swedish adventures on my family blog, maybe a little here too when it relates, and I will definitely be pinning away.  My jewelry will still be available at Simply Charming Boutique in Winchester, Virginia, and my jewelry tutorials will still be available on the AnneMade Jewelry website and Etsy. I'm excited to go to Sweden, and I'm pretty sure I'll be excited to come home to my studio, too.