Coming soon....
Until today Metcalf's Jewellers has been an empty shop on Upper Market Street in Fakenham… however at 9am this morning I picked up the keys and have started work on what will be Claire Howard Jewellery by hopefully the middle of August!
The journey from working in the house and scurrying around other lovely venues in Norfolk to deliver workshops and pop up shops, to signing the lease on my own premises has been a relatively speedy one, but one I am embracing as I am so excited to put lots of my dreams in to reality in a town which I call home.
The main criteria for the shop was that it would fulfil 3 purposes - a space for me to make my jewellery (I need to spread out a bit and I've run out of room at home!), a place to run workshops and also somewhere to display my work all the time.
I am going to move my benches in to the shop and one of them will sit flush with the window so that as you are walking past, you can have a good look at what I am in the middle of making. Be prepared.... I am not the most tidy of workers, even though I absolutely know where everything is! I will be in the shop every Tuesday and Thursday at least, at my bench. I will also be there other days, but those will be my making days. I have been able to work out that our old science school benches which you might remember from my very first workshops in Toftrees, will be coming in to the shop and that's where all my workshops will take place. I can't tell you how much I am looking forward to being able to lift a hammer from my drawer and not panic that the hammer or tool I need, is the one I have left at home! The shop has enough space for these workshops to happen at the very heart of the shop.
I have invested in a beautiful dresser which will display my jewellery to sell and I just need to get all my benches in to the shop to see what else I need. I am not keen on the traditional glass cabinets that are found in high street jewellers so this part of the shop organisation is very much in an unplanned state!
The last few weeks have been a blur of consulting with the Conservation Officer about repainting the outside of the shop. We have agreed on the Stiffkey Blue colour and yesterday work started on a little bit of repairing of the window frames. I'm not a big fan of the vibrant green of the shop at the moment! With the help of my wonderful graphic designer and website guru, I have been looking at how to make the windows reflect the feel of my branding as well as the inside of the shop. Sitting on my desk are 2 tester pots of my brand colours which I am going to splash on the walls and see how it feels.
Whilst I can't show you any photos of the changes I am hoping to make, I can show you this photo from when W F Miles, a shoe and boot maker had his shop open in Victorian times. I am definitely going to find some space to display this lovely photo in the shop.
I'm hoping to use my mini mail to keep you updated with the changes of the shop and so if you don't yet receive it, please sign up on my home page. I will also be adding photos to my facebook and instagram page, so do keep your eyes out and I would love to welcome you to my new space in August when I have unpacked all my boxes and set everything up to look like the jewellery shop I have always dreamed of!
