KAREN Underwood’s idea of “switching off” from work when she gets home in the evening might not seem relaxing to most.
After finishing the day running her Sulphide Street hair salon, Ms Underwood spends her evenings hand-making jewellery.
“I don’t go home and watch TV,” she said.
“I go home and to relax I make jewellery. Even if I don’t feel like making anything difficult, I’ll sit there and make some bracelets or put something together.”
Ms Underwood said she’d always wanted to make jewellery, but before the age of internet, it was an expensive hobby to begin.
“Before YouTube you couldn’t really teach yourself, and it was a pretty expensive craft,” she said.
“Then I discovered I could learn everything I wanted to on YouTube, so I did a mix of that along with an online course with a jewellery, and attended some workshops.
“Between all of that, and now getting together with other people in Broken Hill who do the same things.”
Throwing herself in the deep end, she began by learning silver-smithing, as she wanted to make herself a silver turquoise ring.
That was five or six years ago now.
But only recently, at last year’s Mundi Mundi Bash, did she feel confident enough to start selling her wares.
“I was really nervous before Mundi Mundi Bash,” she said.
“I thought people would think they were rubbish, but then I sold nearly everything I had at the festival last year.”
The confidence she felt after almost selling out encouraged her to begin selling them at her salon, and she’s currently working on a new lot of jewellery to sell at this year’s Bash.
“I want to do more markets too, and there are a lot more techniques I want to learn,” she said.
“I just look online and see stuff and think, I’d like to give that a go.”
Ms Underwood’s jewellery can be purchased at her salon, Totally Addicted to Hair, or via her instagram @argentstreet
