We recently connected with Angelina Parise and have shared our conversation below.

Angelina , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

I learned traditional metalsmithing in art school ( I attended for about 6 years, started in Fashion and switched to Metalsmithing the end of my 2nd year) and the experience was amazing in so many ways, one of which being that it was in San Francisco and I got to do so many unique one of a kind things and I was able to learn from so many incredible instructors and fellow peers but it did take a long time and had multiple challenges and hurdles to overcome. In my moving metals class it was difficult for me to accept that the women in the class were having a harder time and taking longer to get the larger pieces of metal to move the way we wanted, and then watching the men in the class work faster and seemed more effortlessly then us. So I remember deciding that I would start working out my upper body and becoming stronger so that I could get better in this class and it actually worked! It made me feel so good and so capable of the work of being a metalsmith and maybe be able to do blacksmith work and in my last month of school, I was able to snag an internship with a local blacksmith and I learned sooo much that summer! Also, a year or two after I graduated, I was in line buying jewelry supplies and the person in front of me was talking about how they learned how to make jewelry from Youtube videos in like 3 months but how frustrated they were that even though the information is free ,they can’t ask specific questions or see exactly how something is done just from a video so I felt extremely grateful for having been able to learn in that type of classroom/studio environment and to be taught by some very talented artists was a gift in and of itself.

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?

So like I had previously stated, I went to art school for university and started out as a Fashion major but quickly realized it was not for me, and in my second year, I finished the first day of an elective metalsmith class and I immediately went to my advisor and asked to change my major! I just absolutely fell in love with the art of metal working and I even took a few welding and large sculpture classes but kept coming back to metalsmithing and small jewelry work. I love to create jewelry now for my line Heirloom Relics, but when I first graduated in 2011 until around 2021 my jewelry work alone did not pay the bills and I didn’t even have the money to buy the supplies to make a full range or collection of jewelry. So in 2021 I decided to open a vintage/secondhand clothing business to supplement the dream jewelry line I always wanted to do! My husband and I moved from Oregon to Salem, Massachusetts to pursue my goth witch jewelry making dreams and I opened Open Casket Vintage to provide a cushion to support Heirloom Relics, but I didn’t want to just do a normal vintage business, because I had noticed how expensive second hand clothing has gotten and how high priced regular goth retail clothing has as well. To me, the original concept of goth was music based and was a subculture that broke away from the capitalistic main stream culture and the clothes were always procured in a resourceful way by thrifting, sewing your own clothes, swapping with friends or garage sales and they certainly were not priced at $90 per garment! I wanted to bring this back to the goth culture and still provide meticulously curated clothing, accessories and home decor but at an extremely affordable price tag, accessible to all sizes as well! I strive to find all size inclusive clothing, nothing I currently have is over $50 and that includes home decor items as well, and I also wash and press each item so it’s ready to wear off the rack! I think that we should all be able to express ourselves how we want and it shouldn’t come with such a hefty price tag that could deter you from being able to achieve that and that’s why also running Open Casket is so very important to me. I didn’t know how well my jewelry would be received and so I was glad to have another venture under my belt to pursue but I never imagined that both would take off the way they have and I am so excited for the future of each one!

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

I think for me, the most rewarding thing about being a creative is just being able to express myself and how I am feeling through my art and having that be something that resonates with other people or helps them feel good or helps them heal in any way is so special and worth everything to me. It’s such a vulnerable thing to make art and put it out there for all to see, and I don’t know about other artists but I have a lot of imposter syndrome I carry with me so when others show interest in my art or think its good, it continually blows me away. When I first started my business, I was trying so hard to make jewelry I thought people wanted instead of what was in my head and heart and that was pretty painful for a few years when no one would buy anything and I decided to step away for a bit and once I realized I just needed to make what I liked and enjoyed and ideas that inspired me instead of what I thought others would want, and when I did that, people finally took notice and that felt amazing!

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

I love this question because some people think it means to buy more from creatives and yes, that’s a big part of it, but most importantly we need to be sharing our favorite small businesses on our social media, with our friends and family and if we do purchase from them, taking it a step further by writing a quick review, posting or tagging your purchase and mentioning the business in conversation. Also whenever possible purchase from small business and divest from big box stores unless it’s absolutely necessary. Small businesses also thrive when cities provide more art driven initiatives and events to support local artists and creatives.

Contact Info:

• Website: opencasketvintage.com
• Instagram: @heirloomrelics @opencasketvintage
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heirloomrelics/