We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Laura Velasco. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Laura below.

Hi Laura, thanks for joining us today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.

In summer of 2019 I uprooted my entire life and relocated from Minnesota to Arizona. I was separated from my partner, but I needed to go further. I packed up everything I had (including my dog and cat), and headed to the Southwest. 6 months later I filed for divorce, resulting in me flying solo for the first time in 12 years. It was scary, but it was so liberating. I started to realize there was something I had been missing for some time only to find out it was a creative outlet. I’ve always been an artist but I’d been neglecting that part of me due to depression and a massive change in mentality and life in general. I decided to Google art classes in the Phoenix area to see what was out there and to get me back into that community. I stumbled upon Harold Studio’s beginner class in Silversmithing and decided to give it a shot. I did some welding in college as part of my Bachelor’s degree and thought, “This could be it”. I ended up becoming enamored by not only the delicacy, but the roughness and patience it took to create something so beautiful. After completing the course I wanted more of this. I spoke to the instructor and she told me I didn’t need more classes and was ready to advance straight to studio time. A few weeks into having that time COVID hit. Slowly, but surely, the studio had to shut down. I wasn’t ready for this to be done. I asked what it would take for me to set up a small home studio to keep experimenting on my own and they said, “go to SJ Jewelry Supply and talk to them. They’ll get you set up with what you need for the time being”. That day I dropped a little over $1,000 and turned my vintage vanity into my new jewelry bench. Fast forward almost 3 years and I’m the owner of my own small business. :)

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I grew up in rural Minnesota on a beautiful lake. Like many other artists I have experimented with all different mediums such as photo, screen printing, painting, drawing, sculpture, ceramics, woodworking and the list goes on. In January of 2020, shortly after moving my life to Arizona, I signed up for a beginner silversmithing course to try to immerse myself in part of what I thought the Southwest culture was all about. I fell in love with it and knew this was it for me.

9 months into my metalsmithing journey I packed up my apartment and moved to San Diego. The new home I moved into provided an entire garage for me to transform into my studio. This was the boost I needed and it sent my business to a whole new level. At this point in time I did 100+ custom pieces for my friends/family and was able to pay off my car. In April of 2021 I started my own LLC in the state of California and Silversmithing was officially my proudly woman-owned small business.

The business I run is fueled by my ability to connect with my clients. About 90% of my work is custom, where I work to get to know the individual investing in my work so I can have an understanding of who will be carrying my jewelry with them every day. I don’t see this business as a way to feed off people financially, but more so to create a relational experience and connection to learn about who people are, what they like and what their story is. My creativity is what thrives off this business, not my bank account.

I’m proud of my ability to take on challenges and try new techniques in order to keep myself inspired. Sometimes clients don’t realize they CAN “pull off” things they never thought they could and my art helps them open a new part of themselves. Part of that stems from my skill of understanding people and keeping my mind open to new styles/designs.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

A lesson I had to learn(and am still learning) was that I don’t have to do build this business alone. I started off my journey in a room of fellow creators learning how to work with metal, which pushes you to ask questions and learn from others. After COVID hit and I was learning alone in my apartment studio and didn’t have a community to bounce ideas off of. The only way I could ask was through social media on my phone, which can drain anyone of their energy in the shortest amount of time. Having to learn this way got me in a bad habit of thinking this was the only way to learn and blocked my ability to think it was an option to go see fellow creators in person. Once things settled down and socialization started to come back in the world I started to go visit studios and crack back open my sense of community.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

One of the toughest parts of being the artist is helping customers understand that every creative has a different level of skills and understanding. I find that non-creatives sometimes have expectations that handmade work can be created at the pace of mass-producing companies and at their price level. Although my business isn’t money-driven, it can be hard to put a fair price when trying to balance their understanding with the true value of my work.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.velascosilversmithing.com/
• Instagram: @velasco.silversmithing

Image Credits
Laura Velasco Josh Metzger