We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sharon Schaefer a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Sharon, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

I have many meaningful projects since my tagline is , “when you need it to BEE meaningful”. In my designs I do a variety of artisan angels. I hand carve depictions of angels in bronze metal clay and then I set the finished talismans in sterling silver.

Recently I was contacted about my Warrior Guardian Angel. A client was diagnosed with Uterine cancer and was having surgery in a few weeks. She thought my angel would be perfect for her to wear during this difficult time in her life. She noted that her sons were purchasing it for her as a birthday gift. Her milestone birthday of 60 also coincided with her operation.

When I finished her guardian warrior angel necklace I included a note. “To fight on my friend. That she has got this!” My package arrived safely and she messaged me that she cried when she unwrapped it and saw my beautiful Guardian Warrior Angel.

This meaningful project will stay with me because she sent me a follow up photo. Of her with a cluster of balloons. Celebrating her 60th and told me her surgeon called to let her know she was in stage 1, the lowest stage for her cancer. She went on to thank me for my Angel Warrior healing and guiding her.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers?

Hi, my name is Sharon R. Schaefer and I work under my nickname BEE. I am the sole owner & designer of Designs by BEE, “ Artisan Jewelry to Enjoy for a Lifetime.” When my son was growing independent and preparing to head off to college, I needed to research my next phase of what I should be doing next. I made a checklist of what I would enjoy and filled out questionnaires on finding my purpose in life.

I love all areas of Art and came across a workshop in PMC (silver precious metal). Maybe I would make talismans for people as gifts? Silver metal clay is so costly. I had some old war medals of my father’s and loved the patina they had developed. They were done in bronze and soon I learned that there was a bronze metal clay. However, bronze metal clay is a longer process and there weren’t any workshops available working in that medium. I needed to purchase a small kiln and teach myself all of the steps involved in making the clay sinter into metal. I love the look of the popular stretch stone stacking bracelets with a meaningful charm. I taught myself how to work with the bronze metal clay which had quite a learning curve. Around 2013 I hosted my first home show and it was a complete success.

I wanted to up my game and design more jewelry items like necklaces, rings and earrings. I wanted to play with fire so I took a series of metalsmith workshops at Metal Arts Guild of GA. I became a member and also joined the Metalsmith Society. I am involved in a variety of Facebook groups and I am always continuing to grow and learn new skills. Metalsmithing has such a variety of areas to develop skills in. Over ten years of growth I now have an in-home studio for working in metal clay, a studio to play with fire and a beading section for finishing.

I guess what sets me apart from others is that I truly hand make my components. I can’t compete w/charms or pendants made by machines or items that are cast in multiples. Each piece I design is made by my hands and they are never exactly alike. I am proud of my work and the direction I’ve gone in. I’ve even branched out and I will design components for other designers to use in their work. I must be doing something right because I am quite busy with orders. Similar to my father’s old war medals. My pieces have a sense and meaning and so much love behind them.

I truly love what I do. My passion is strong. I have met so many wonderful people along my journey and continue to find meaningful designs. I am working on developing a web page to sell my work through. In the meantime I am easily reached through my Instagram site. DesignsbyBEE_ .

What do you find most rewarding about being creative?

One of the most rewarding aspects of being a metal artist is being able to bring joy and care to so many. I have so many stories of how my work is so special. To have a story of a woman chasing another in a park venue to ask her where she purchased a choker she was wearing. Another when I would run into a client at an art exhibit wearing a piece I made years ago. Then me looking at it and seeing how beautiful it looks to this day. You might hear me say, “Wow, I made that and it is so beautiful.” This just happened , upon receiving a series of photos of their finished piece the message response was ,”I just love that!” And I’ll smile. And I’ll know my efforts are all worth it.

Have you ever had to pivot?

I might have to answer this question with , every January I tend to pivot. When I first began I was making jewelry that was popular at the time. I was working 12 hour days seven days a week. I ended up burning out. I didn’t want to make jewelry. Friends would say, “you need to sell your stuff at ABC store.” I tried that direction but found that so unfulfilling. The store owner would want a certain price point or design. I would have to do consignment and lose a chunk of the costs when it sold. That direction wasn’t a good fit. So January would roll around and I’d have to rethink what I needed to do to make me find joy. I would not work 24/7 and enjoy my family and friends more. I would have a small boutique room in my home and clients could come shop by appointment. That worked okay until the pandemic hit. THEN I really had to pivot.
No more in home shop. No more trunk shows. That’s when I realized that my artisan carved charms and pendants set in sterling silver were my favorite items to design. I need to stay with my BEE meaningful tagline.
Since I’ve done that my life is in balance. Having passion and balance in all areas of life is the most rewarding and meaningful thing to me.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: DesignsbyBEE_
• Facebook: Designs by Bee
• Linkedin: Sharon Schaefer
• Other: TikTok designsbybee_

Image Credits
Bee Schaefer