We recently connected with Angie Herberg and have shared our conversation below.

Angie, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

I was always a creative child, messing with everything from drawing and painting to macrame and shrinky dinks. But it wasn’t until college that I realized I wasn’t on the right career path. I had chosen Business marketing as my major, it seemed like a good choice at the time and would make my parents happy. I struggled with all the classes, feeling disengaged and bored. My electives which were art classes, were what I looked forward to each day.

In the beginning of my junior year I walked into my Statistics class, sat down for 2 minutes and had an overwhelming feeling that I shouldn’t be there. I got up, walked out and went straight to my counselors office and changed my major to Art! And finally, I was enjoying my classes, loving it all and thriving.

Angie, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

It’s hard to believe that my 24 year career as a jewelry artist started on a very serendipitous trip to the Oregon coast. That fateful two weeks changed the trajectory of my life forever.

I had just sold a business and was a new mom again to my second son. I went to the coast, in part, to figure out what to do next. As the rains came down nearly everyday I’d walk to the little shops in historic Nye beach. I found a wonderful gallery filled with amazing art and jewelry. In the back there was a room and in the center was a bin filled with a beautiful collection of beads. It was mesmerizing and theraputic as I got lost in the search for the perfect bead. The owner and I talked as I searched. She could see my fascination and encouraged me by sharing a few jewelry making techniques and sharing her tools with me. By the end of the two weeks I had made a dozen pieces or more and shared them with her daily. And just like that, she became my mentor, pushing me to take the next steps to make this creative endeavor a reality and new career.

I left the Oregon Coast with a list of her suppliers and her blessing. By the time I got back to Boise I had a name that embraced the serendipity that had happened over the last two weeks and the feeling of how I wanted to move forward in my life and LA DE DA came to life. I was accepted as a vendor in the Capital City Public Market, where I spent 20 years selling my jewelry every Saturday during the season.

The pandemic brought new challenges and new thinking, as it did for everyone. I decided not to go back to the market. My mission had changed. It wasn’t about how much money I could make anymore. I wanted to experience life, to travel and just enjoy people. With this new mindset came a new plan. I chose a few key art shows to travel to and participate in. I chose to sell to art galleries, museums and shops throughout the country. And with that shift, my business grew and yet I had more time to spend with the people I love. It’s all been a glorious ride. And I still absolutely love what I do.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

I became a single mother of three boys after 20 years of marriage. It seems like a life time ago now, but I remember the terrifying feeling that I wouldn’t be able to do it. Would I make enough to support all of us as an artist? Would they still be able to do the things they loved? Would I need to find a different career? Or maybe a second or third job? All the unknown made for a very scary time. I loved being an artist and jewelry maker. There wasn’t anything else I wanted to do. Any other “job” would be out of necessity. I felt that if I changed careers I’d be betraying myself and my true passion. Was I being selfish for not taking a 9-5? I decided that this career I had been building and the people that loved my jewelry made it worth the risk. I would not give up on my chosen path! Of course there were sacrifices but they made us all stronger. I figured out ways to make more money; more art shows, promoting my website, custom orders, whatever it took -it pushed me to be better! The biggest life lesson for me was the inner belief I had that was completely false and yet I believed it most of my life. That belief was that you can’t make money as an artist. I found that, in fact you can make money as an artist, I had been for years and now I just needed to make more. When pushed to the challenge, I figured it out, I found a way. I’m proud that my boys witnessed that in me and that now more than a decade after that scary time, I have built a foundation. I’ve made lifelong friends through my business, brought joy to countless women through jewelry and helped numerous husbands find the perfect gift.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

I have been rewarded in so many ways. It’s interesting how people look and think of you when you make that choice to make a career as a creative. There’s admiration from many but also a bit of “you must be totally nuts”. There’s been reward in proving the naysayers wrong. But that is minor in comparison to the memories I have of what jewelry can actually bring to peoples lives. One stands clear among the rest. I was asked my a young man who was dying from brain cancer to make special pieces for those he would leave behind. His wife, young daughter of two years and his mother were among the people he asked me to make jewelry for. I could not have been more honored. He had put so much thought into what he wanted and now he was trusting me to make it happen. At two years old, his daughter had her whole life before her, and he had planned for everything. I was to make pieces for her sweet 16, graduation and future marriage among others. He wanted all of them to know how much he loved them and that he would always be with them. It was a huge challenge and a life altering one for me. I will never forget the time I spent with him and as luck would have it I’ve been able to watch his daughter grow up through all these milestones. It was a true blessing to be a brief part of their story and to be able to create a token of a father, husbands and sons love.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.ladedajewelry.com
• Instagram: ladedajewelry
• Facebook: ladeda jewelry
• Linkedin: Angie Herberg

Image Credits
Heather Webster Photography for the headshot