Dazzle: Pinderella

Something in Pinderella’s metallicky, jewel-toned pins and earrings just sets our pulses racing. Maybe it’s the solid little blasts of color, or the luster that comes from Pinderella designer Susan Gaboriault’s process. Or maybe it’s her improv patchwork vibe. However the magic happens, we’re happy to buy into the official Pinderella motto: “Who needs glass slippers? It’s the other little things a girl can’t live without!”

 Susan creates her tasty jewelry in Concord, Hew Hampshire, and when she’s not tempting us all on her etsy site, she also wholesales in some galleries and shops and hawks her wares at 12-14 craft shows a year. She started making pins 17 years ago, with a random city skyline design, which her mom promptly scooped up and wore to work one day. Co-workers saw it and ordered their own. Smack! A business was born.

Pinderella jewelry—lightweight but very durable, Susan says—is made from strips of metallic-coated clay, which are hand-cut, and then fused with heat. It won’t chip when dropped and can withstand some moisture, but is sensitive to heat. (So beware of leaving it on the car dashboard in summer or running it through the dryer.)

Since that first city skyline, her style has expanded to include many different influences, including florals, birds, trees, animals and more. (Check out the martini glass!) Some are heavily detailed, and some, chic and simple. Inspiration for new designs is no problem, she says.

“I am also a magazine and craft supply hoarder. (It’s beginning to get a bit out of control.) I love to look through art magazines to get the creative juices flowing,” she says.

She does sew, and has tried quilting, but says the demand for jewelry keeps her from diving too deeply into stitchiness.

“I have stacks of fabric that will turn into something some day…” she laments. (Hmmm. We might be related.)

The earrings and pins range in price from $11 to $13. Depending on design, some customization on earring wires might be available.

And speaking of customization, we liked another aspect of Susan’s business: She often creates custom pieces for fundraising efforts, including two different women who sold the pins to raise funds for their respective overseas adoption efforts, and an organization that helps victims of domestic violence and child abuse.