We recently connected with Katelyn Carpunky and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Katelyn thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

Moonchild Jewelry Co. technically got its start in July of this year. One day I decided that being on my phone so much (I’m also an influencer) was causing me a lot of stress and anxiety so I needed an escape. I walked into Michael’s and bought a few beads to start making bracelets for myself and after a while my family suggested I make a business out of it. 3 months later, I am shipping about 10 packages a day! Right now I am working on Halloween products…Halloween is my favorite holiday so of course I am going ALL out!

Katelyn, 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?

I was born with a birth defect called Spina Bifida which means my spinal cord didn’t develop properly in the womb. I’ve always been super different from everyone else, and that hasn’t always been easy. I have struggled a lot in the past knowing that I’m not like everyone else…but I have finally found confidence in myself and who I am and it is an amazing feeling knowing that I’m okay with who I am now. I don’t feel like I need to change who I am to fit other peoples’ narratives anymore or to live up to anyone’s standards. Like I said I am also a makeup influencer, so my creativity has always come from doing makeup looks but making jewelry and keychains has opened up a whole other door of creativity for me. For example I’ve always been a huge Tim Burton fan, my childhood totally revolved around his movies and I get a lot of color inspiration for makeup looks from them, but it can be hard to translate that you’re going for a Tim Burton vibe with makeup. When it comes to beads and charms, it’s easier to say “that has a Tim Burton vibe” because of shapes and patterns, so I can totally just let my creativity out with my products when I’m super inspired to create something inspired by his movies or any other movies/music I might get inspiration from, but can’t translate it in a makeup look. This business has just totally sparked a different kind of creativity that I didn’t know I had in me!

What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?

I am in no way a huge business, but if you would have told me it would be where it is now back in July, I wouldn’t have believed you. The first thing I did that really blew up on social media were matching back to school beaded bracelets for parents and kids to wear if kids were having anxiety about being away from their parents all day at school. After posting those bracelets in some Facebook groups, I really realized the potential Moonchild Jewelry Co. could have and it just led me to keep creating different bracelet sets and now Halloween keychain wristlets! It’s crazy how something so nonchalant like just going into Michaels to get a few beads for myself has led me to where I am now and I am so grateful for everything!

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

Most of my social media presence has come from posting my products in Facebook groups! It truly does help get your name out there and help boost your business!

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/moonchildjewelryco/
• Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/moonchildjewelrycompany

Image Credits
Carrie Carpunky Photography & Katelyn Carpunky