The garage girl
One of jewelry designer Anita Sikma’s favourite places is her dad’s gritty car garage in Saskatchewan. When Sikma goes there for a visit she brings along her camera to take photos of the old dirty tools.
“It’s crazy in there. I love it. It’s my zen,” says Sikma, her blue teacup-sized eyes smiling as she reflects on the places she has always found inspiration.
Growing up, Sikma would hang out with her dad in the garages where he worked.
“I spent a lot of time in shops with him … going to work with him, hanging out and watching him do things, just getting my hands dirty,” she says. “I like tools; I think they are beautiful.”
Sikma merges her fascination with tools with her love of art deco architecture into her namesake jewelry line. In her Broadway studio, near Main Street, the prairie girl handcrafts her wearable art in the form of necklaces, bracelets, rings and earrings. The clean silver designs are durable, yet delicate, and intricately patterned. Many of the pieces are unisex and all beg to be layered for an extra-edgy feel.
She also does custom work, specifically one-of-a-kind wedding rings. She loves the specialness of making a piece that will be treasured forever. Speaking of love, Sikma’s line is being featured in an upcoming Valentine’s Day shopping event at the Omaha Artist Space, located at 108 East Broadway on Feb. 4, from 4-10pm.
Currently, her work (which starts at about $150 for rings and goes up from there) is also available at Eugene Choo and One of a Few and online at AnitaSikma.com.
The accidental artist
Even the editors of Sports Illustrated’s swimsuit edition have noticed the stunning work of Vancouver’s Shereen de Rousseau.
Getting noticed is something the jewelry designer hasn’t had to put a lot of effort into – she fell into the jewelry business without even trying. After walking away from a fast-paced 25-year career in the fashion business to spend more time with her young son, de Rousseau started making jewelry as a hobby.
“I just needed something to kind of do,” she says. “I just needed a creative outlet.”
De Rousseau would give her hobby pieces to friends. When those friends wore the jewelry out shopping storeowners would ask about it: Where it was from? Who made it? From there, retail shops started carrying her pieces, and it didn’t take long for the hobby to become a full-scale business.
De Rousseau and her team (there’s four with the company, including de Rousseau) operate from a tiny studio on Pender Street, crafting stunning necklaces, bracelets and earrings that are coveted by women who appreciate quality.
Describing her aesthetic, de Rousseau says, “I’ve always had what I like to call a pretty edge. I like an edge, but I don’t like it to be hard looking.”
She also looks to Europe for ideas for her unique jewelry, including necklaces, which typically have multiple strands, often made of different materials, like semi-precious stones and silver chains with darling French charms or coins. The dual strands add texture, creating a ready-made layered look.
“When I used to travel a lot when I was younger,” de Rousseau says, “I would dig through flea markets and stuff in Europe, and I would find these little treasures.”
Eight years in, de Rousseau’s line (which starts at about $90 for earrings; most necklaces are in the $300 to $400 range) is carried at more than 30 retailers in Western Canada; she is branching out into mens’ jewelry and is planning an expansion into the US – quite a leap for something that started as a hobby.
