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When the publishing world went digital, I realized I no longer had an interest in the field. After moving from Chicago to the Bay Area, I decided to pursue my affinity for hands-on jewelry repair and began learning the craft through classes, experimentation, and simply playing with different styles and materials of beadmaking.
Eventually, I partnered with my teacher, Carole McAboy, and together we opened Broadway Bead in Walnut Creek’s Broadway Plaza. When the lease expired three years later, we found an empty storefront at 5461 College Avenue in Rockridge, and High Strung became my home for 18 years.
Bead stores have become increasingly scarce, especially since the pandemic. When High Strung closed in 2016, I wanted to make sure my customers still had a place to bring their necklaces, earrings, bracelets, and other jewelry for repair, so I set up a shop at home. I continue to reconnect with old friends, meet new ones, and follow my passion.
I repair and create all kinds of jewelry, including restringing, knotting, and wire wrapping. I’ve even reconstructed glass wind chimes. What I particularly enjoy is the challenge of taking something apart, figuring out how it works, and then finding a way to recreate or repair it.
Please email me at mjwrepairs@proton.me for your next jewelry repair need.