Three good friends who like to make something from nothing have turned their hobby into an Internet business.
To appreciate the South Bay women’s passion for everything from pets to jewelry, you’d have to start with Gracie Mae.
Mary Swanson, a 65-year-old retired teacher, and Ann Reynolds, a 56-year-old former director of human resources, met about four years ago while shopping. Swanson, whose bichon frise had died, stopped to play with Reynolds’ bichon, Gracie. Meanwhile, Reynolds says, the two women “fell in love with each other.”
Then, when Reynolds got sick last summer and needed some help, her friend RaChelle LaRay, a 54-year-old elementary school teacher, moved in for a few days. “RaChelle told me we would do three things and one of them was make jewelry,” Reynolds says. RaChelle also wanted her friend to teach her how to garden and make gourmet meals.
To learn to bead, the three friends got together and started reading everything they could find on the subject. They were so enthusiastic about it that “jewelling” became an “addiction.”
“When God gets you together, he just seals it with his love,” Reynolds, a widow, says of the trio that gets together as much as possible to bead.
They call themselves “sisteren” and have their baby photos hanging on a wall in Reynolds’ bedroom in the townhouse she now shares with LaRay. Even when they’re not making baubles, the three remain inseparable.
LaRay and Swanson have each purchased a bichon to keep Gracie company and themselves amused. Often, when they shop for supplies, the dogs come along.
The women pool their beads, though each has her own jewelry style. Reynolds likes “big, bold and chunky,” Swanson, “simple and delicate,” and LaRay, “ethnic and cultural.”
They say they aren’t the least bit competitive about their work. “We’re so busy giving accolades to each other, there’s no room for competitiveness,” according to Reynolds.
In fact, Swanson taught the others how to make “bead soup.” When they can’t think of an idea, they mix a handful of beads in a bowl and see what the stones inspire.
The women figure they’ve spent well over $6,000 on their hobby, buying online as well as from local stores. “We don’t like to total it up because we get sick to our stomachs,” says Reynolds, who recently won third place in a jewelry contest at Sun South bead store in Serra Mesa.
They’re hoping to turn their love of beading into a for-profit venture. “We were having so much fun and we saw how beautiful the jewelry was, we decided to go into business,” Reynolds says.
With the same fortitude they went after beading, the three took out a business license in January and found out how to start their own Web site.
After Swanson’s husband gave them a quick course in photography, they took pictures of everything they’d made and put them up on etsy.com/shoprachellelaraydesigns. They even figured out how to set up PayPal so customers can pay online with credit cards. The women charge from about $30 to $320 for their pieces.
For the trio, Reynolds says, “It’s not work; it’s our therapy. We ought to be arrested we have so much fun.”
LaRay adds, “I teach school all day and love it, and I come home and bead to mellow out.”
The three agree, the best part of beading is being together. The worst part: cleaning up.
Then, together they add with smiles: “We’re designers, you know.”
