Trucker turned jeweler beads gems
September 30, 2009
By Laura Geggel
All that glitters is not gold. In Susannah St. Clair’s case, it could be a mineral like labradorite or a Swarovski crystal. The trucker turned jeweler fashions bracelets, necklaces, earrings and more at her dining room table in North Bend.
Susannah St. Clair shows necklaces she created through her Whimsy Wear jewelry company. Photo by Larua Geggel
In spite of her careers, St. Clair’s education had little to do with either truck driving or jewelry. She majored in English literature and minored in art at West Virginia State. Her boyfriend brought her to the West coast, but she dumped the cad when she learned he was two-timing her.
In need of a job, St. Clair started driving, first a cement truck and later a dump truck.
“I remember the first time I drove down the road by myself,” St. Clair said. “I was going, ‘what am I doing here?’”
The more she drove, the more she enjoyed it. St. Clair even trucked materials for the 1990s rehabilitation of the Interstate-90 Mount Baker Tunnel in Seattle. A true teamster, St. Clair drove until the age of 59 before retiring to her books and television.
It was the latter that did her in.
“I found jewelry through TV,” St. Clair said. “Have you ever seen jtv? Don’t.”
The jewelry on television sparkled. St. Clair began ordering gems non-stop.
“If I could come back here again in a second life, I would be a gemologist,” she said.
Susannah St. Clair wears one of Swarovski crystal earrings she fashioned. Photo by Laura Geggel
When her daughter Shannon invited her to a beading show in 2007, she considered it beneath her. Beads were “plebian,” nothing compared to her gems. But she went, “because I wanted to spend time with my daughter.
“I went. Once I started looking around, I went, ‘Oh!’ You can do this with beads?” St. Clair said. “I got hooked.”
St. Clair enrolled in beading classes in Issaquah and Redmond and picked up a few tricks from jewelry vendors at Alpine Days. Her jewelry is elegant, on thin chains with colorful beads and gems grabbing the eye’s attention.
“Basically I learned on my own by messing around and trying things,” she said.
In 2008, she made her jewelry official, founding the Whimsy Wear business. Her jewelry can be found at the Salish Lodge & Spa gift shop and at Birches Habitat.
“I like to support the local artisans and I think that customers like to know that there are things here that were made in North Bend by people who live in the Valley,” Birches Habitat co-owner Nancy Wray said. “She had a different style and I thought it fit well with what we’re doing here.”
Laurie Andrews, St. Clair’s co-worker at Dress Barn asked the jeweler to surprise her with a creation. After some thought, St. Clair designed a pair of red hummingbird earrings with Swarovski crystals.
“They’re real different, but I like different things,” Andrews said. “I’ve gotten all kinds of compliments on them.”
Her jewelry might be deckled with gems, beads and crystals, but St. Clair keeps her prices lower than most jewelers, with earrings starting at $10.
She buys most of her supplies online, and though she can spend hours on end bending wire and beading necklaces, St. Clair said she would rather part with a piece than keep it forever.
“My point is do you want to keep them the rest of your life, or do you want to sell them?” St. Clair said. “A lot of people do this to make extra money. I do it because I love it.”
Laura Geggel: 392-6434 ext. 221 or lgeggel@snovalleystar.com. Comment at www.snovalleystar.com.
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