Meet Chelsea Stone of Eye Candy Jewelry in Prescott

Today we’d like to introduce you to Chelsea Stone.

Raised from the age of five in Wickenburg, Arizona, Chelsea graduated with her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Northern Arizona University and then moved to Texas for a Masters in Jewelry/Metals from Texas Tech. Chelsea makes her home in Prescott where she has resided for twenty years. After teaching at both NAU in Flagstaff and Yavapai College in Prescott, she currently makes her living as a full-time studio artist who sells her work in galleries and fine art festivals around the country.

Last year Chelsea opened the Old School Art House Airbnb to welcome travelers to Prescott and help them enjoy the art scene. For fun, Chelsea belly dances with Why Not? Bellydance and during the Halloween season teaches classes on SF/X and horror make-up. For her latest venture, she and her partner Alex Horst (also a jeweler/teacher) have recently opened Alley Arts, a downtown metal arts studio shared with a local engraver Louis Klein, where they plan to make/show their work and teach classes.

Has it been a smooth road?
My lifestyle allows me to have fun every day making wild colorful creations that get worn by interesting women on a daily basis. I still shake my head at how amazing that is! The main struggles come with the schedule/planning/logistics difficulties as a traveling art festival artist. I’m home about the half the year, then I hit the road to sell my wares.

That means besides running my business where I am the accountant and social media manager, I also wear the hats of a salesperson, construction expert (setting up/tearing down my mini-store), and truck driver, where 14 hours a day on the road is a lot of windshield time, and not uncommon. Crazy weather patterns can make outdoor shows really nerve-wracking. My whole booth, with jewelry inside, blew away at a show in Columbus Ohio, with me inside trying to hold on….it was a bit like Dorothy and the Wizard Oz! After the storm, I found some of my jewelry a block away. I absolutely love the travel and seeing the country and meeting my customers, but it’s not for the faint of heart.

Alright – so let’s talk business. What else should we know about your work?
I make jewelry that makes people smile, and use recycled elements to connect my viewers to past decades. I combine silver and gemstones with vintage lunch boxes, old cereal box prizes, old keys, tintype photos, Cracker Jack toys, bullet casings, barbie parts, and other oddities to add humor and fun to my designs. I was trained as a metalsmith but have studied other mediums to integrate techniques that add color to my jewelry. Glass, enamels and found objects bring a rainbow palette into a field known mostly for silver, copper, and earth tones.

Is our city a good place to do what you do?
Prescott is a haven for artists, and our town hosts many art shows and gallery events to celebrate the local creativity, along with many amazing local independent restaurants, breweries, and boutiques. We have an Airbnb right next to our home/studio called the Old School Art House. The majority of folks who come to stay are from the Phoenix area, looking for a quick day trip to get out of the heat.

During the summer especially, most of the folks I talk to downtown are from Phoenix, and love to make a quick 1.5-hour drive into the mountains to enjoy some fresh, and slightly cooler, air. We are very excited about our new studio venture, Alley Arts, and look forward to having a downtown location where we can share our craft and combined knowledge with the community.

Pricing:

• $100-$400 Magic Charms/Necklaces
• Voodoo Doll Earrings $550 or $300 as necklaces
• Wild Bill $800
• Helping Hands $140

Contact Info:

• Website: www.eyecandyjewelry.com
• Email: chelsea@eyecandyjewelry.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eye.candy.jewelry/  Alley Arts https://www.instagram.com/alleyarts.granitestreet/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Eye-Candy-Jewelry-359774223312/ Alley Arts https://www.facebook.com/Alley-Arts-111537066850266
• Other: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/33781263?check_in=2020-01-08&check_out=2020-01-10&source_impression_id=p3_1568053056_XW2xpsNWsaWTadf1

Image Credit:
Larry Sanders for the first three photos
Chelsea Stone for the hands photo

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