Pebble Art Jewelry celebrates two years in Niwot

Pebble Art Jewelry, located at the entrance of Niwot Market, is marking its second anniversary by offering refreshments, discounts and a free earring workshop on July 22 from 5-8 p.m.

Business Owner Katherine Head, along with two other local artists, Tammy Helart and Jill Hadley, create the shop’s hand-crafted jewelry from a variety of materials, selling everything from delicate gemstones and laser-cut wood to woven copper.

The shop had its grand opening on July 24, 2014, after Head’s partner, Katherine Walker, retired and Head decided to take over the lease in collaboration with Helart and Hadley.

“I have a degree in industrial design, Tammy Helart has a degree in art and Jill Hadley has a degree in graphic design, so we’re kind of an interesting combination of skills,” Head said. “We work in a lot of different materials and have a pretty wide price range with gifts starting at $12 and some pieces going up to several hundred dollars.”

With each artist having her own specialty, the shop is by no means an average jewelry store. Head specializes in gem, wood and acrylics pieces, while Hadley often works with Roman glass. Helart manipulates copper to make chainmail pieces using the ancient Celtic art of weaving metal rings together.

In addition to the three local women’s jewelry, Pebble Art also sells Ugandan paper necklaces and baskets through Peopleweaver, an organization committed to assisting “impoverished, women-led family groups in developing countries,” according to the organization’s mission.

The proceeds, 100 percent of which go straight to the foundation, are already putting three girls through school in Uganda, with a fourth about to start.

In an attempt to make a difference closer to home, Pebble Art also sells jewelry to raise money for Winot Coffee barista Mary Jo Wysocki in support of her battle against cancer.

“We have special edition earrings for sale at Winot Coffee to raise money for Mary Jo, who is fighting cancer,” Head explained. “We’ve already raised over $200 with that project.”

Located in a small town with several other well-established jewelers, Pebble Art Jewelry certainly has its fair share of competition. With shops such as HMK Jewelers and Niwot Jewelry and Gifts located less than half a mile away, attracting enough customers to make a profit can be difficult. However, its unique style and the goodwill between shops eases Pebble Art Jewelry’s competition.

“It is kind of a small town for three jewelry stores,” Head said. “We do have what you call ‘friendly competition,’ but we’re all very different and we try to send business to each other.”

For those interested in learning how to make hand-crafted jewelry, the shop offers jewelry-making classes throughout the fall and winter.

“We teach classes here on Saturday or Sunday afternoons, and we schedule special classes on weekday evenings [for] other skills people want to learn,” Head said. “We teach all the basic beading skills and Tammy also teaches chainmail classes.”

Pebble Art Jewelry plans to launch a website in late August to increase the shop’s convenience. Customers will be able to buy jewelry online and have it delivered to their homes.

For more information, visit Pebble Art Jewelry at 7980 Niwot Road or call 720-491-9968.