Natural handcrafted jewelry by Amanda Biederman.
Every creation is handmade and unique, no two pieces are ever made the same.
My parents opened Biederman Jewelers in Elkhorn, Wisconsin the year I was born. I spent my childhood there watching my father make rings, fix watches and clocks, while my mother beaded pearl necklaces with their faithful employee, Lois. Biederman Jewelers carried a variety of merchandise, but mostly fine jewelry ? diamonds, precious stones, silver, and gold. The store was in business for 36 years..
While a young teen, I taught myself the square knot from a photo in a book. From then on, I started working with plastic string to create friendship bracelets, then cotton and hemp cord to make necklaces and crystal wraps. The process of knotting, and counting the knots to create particular looks, felt meditative to me, and I studied different knots to change up the look of my work, and keep the process of creating fresh and interesting.
In my mid-twenties, I travelled to Thailand to start a fair trade business, buying handicrafts and artworks from locals to sell online and at festivals back home. The Thai culture drew me in, the people left lasting impressions on me, and more of my time was spent there over the next 5 years than at home in the U.S. The fair trade business was put off, and instead I lived in the ?Land of Smiles? making jewelry and learning new techniques working with waxed silk.
Waxed silk is super durable, water resistant, and the end of the cord can be melted into the jewelry piece to avoid chunky knots that might eventually unravel (like with hemp and cotton). The wax provides a firm hold on stone wraps and knots, and the silk becomes softer the more it?s worn. In my experience, no other material used previously would do what the silk does in jewelry making, and I could only find it in Thailand. After giving birth to my daughter in 2009 and raising her there for a year and a half, I finally returned back to Wisconsin ready to start Freedom4MyMind. I mix the waxed silk I brought home with the genuine stones and quality metals that I grew up learning about at my parents? store. Since then I?ve made countless pieces, from necklaces and bracelets to earrings and rings, filled numerous special orders, and created a returning customer base (quality work = happy customers!).
I hope to have the opportunity to adorn you with my work! I?m always happy to create special orders, use stones that have meaning to the wearer (perhaps you have one that you keep in a special place but would like to try wearing), and can even work with unique materials such as horse hair or feathers. Feel free to email me with questions or ideas, and THANK YOU for visiting Freedom4MyMind.
__/\__ Peace __/\__
