Beading the way

Aug 19 2008 by jez Davison, Evening Gazette

A CHANCE trip to the library inspired Hartlepool entrepreneur Marie Slaughter to start her own jewellery business.

Marie quit her day job as a call centre operator to establish Beyond the Ordinary, which next month will become Teesside’s first outlet selling jewellery made from beads.

Four years go she stumbled across Jema Hewitt’s “Complete Beading” while waiting for her mother to finish browsing DIY books in the local library.

Marie said: “The book is a beginner’s guide to bead-making and gives step-by-step instructions on how to create simple jewellery out of beads. I thought I’d try it out and it quickly became a hobby.”

Disillusioned with her job, she decided to turn her pastime into a commercial venture and has applied for a £1,500 grant and £4,000 loan from the Princes Trust to get the business off the ground.

The company will sell bespoke hand-made jewellery and special equipment, such as wire cutters and beading boards for jewellery makers. Marie sources the majority of the equipment from the UK, the US and China but plans to start production of glass beads. She is also planning to host jewellery-making workshops from around £10 per head for a two-hour session.

Confident that her business will survive the economic downturn because “jewellery crafting is the fastest-growing craft”, she eventually hopes to emulate Ms Hewitt by writing a book about her experiences and perhaps inspiring others to follow in her footsteps.