Elizabeth is the owner, designer, and curator of The Moonstoned – a jewelry line with one of a kind antique treasures, as well as her own creations. She is super passionate about finding pieces with timeless beauty and a story to tell – and does such a beautiful job doing it. I love watching her stories on instagram to see her latest finds, and learn a thing or two about where they came from.
Here she speaks on her inspirations, what keeps her going, and why she’s passionate about feeling happy.
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How did you discover your passion for jewelry?
I grew up in New Mexico where everything seems to breathe life into creativity. I remember as a girl being fascinated by the immense Native American turquoise and silver jewelry, just piled on larger than life and being worn by these beautiful beings who had such a deep respect for their ancestry and craft. I was a history nerd and couldn’t get enough of the way things were made, including jewelry before mass production and machines. It all just kind of came together.
What inspired you to start The Moonstoned?
I felt like there were antique and vintage platforms popping up showcasing all of this beautiful jewelry, but the PURPOSE was missing for me. I felt like all the excitement, the celebration, the WHY was really hard to portray, so I decided to take a crack at it. There is sooo much celebration to be had when you connect with a piece of jewelry! There is so much happiness to be shared when you get ready for your day, put your jewelry on and feel powerful, prepared for it. Special moments in your life, mile markers, just feeling like you deserve it… these are all the vertebrae of what jewelry means to me and I wanted everyone who came in contact with The Moonstoned to feel just a little bit closer to that feeling.
What’s a typical day like for you?
I’m a crazy early riser, so as soon as the sun is up I’m up with it. There’s a window in my house where the light comes in first, so I start my day sitting there on the floor with it. I check emails while I make coffee, respond to any messages I might have missed on Instagram and then dive into sharing what I have for the day. My favorite days are when I get to go on a Treasure Hunt, I try and go twice a week and am always looking for a new place to visit/source. My husband and I always try and find time to connect in the evening, whether it’s over dinner, a bath (our fave) or just reading something together before bed. We don’t always make it, haha, but we try our best!
What inspires you the most?
Women. 100%. Our beauty, our strength, our vulnerability, our bodies, our power, our stages of life, our wisdom, our history, our fight, our voices, our eyes, our skin, our hair, our hands, our feet, our ability to embrace wildly and our ability to keep getting back up and refusing to be put down. I’m inspired by what these women make, what they say and how they share it all with the world.
What’s your favourite thing about what you do?
Getting to share and being re-energized by witnessing how others get excited about The Moonstoned too! My favorite part isn’t the buying or sourcing, it’s when that particular piece I was drawn to finds a home with that ONE person who felt connected to it too.
What gets your through a hard day?
A whole lot of deep breathing… a lotttt of it. I’m also crazy lucky to have a powerful group of women who support me and I can call on when a Bad Day gets overwhelming. They know that I’ll always answer for them and in turn, I’ve never felt alone when I call for help. It took me a long time to get comfortable with admitting I have bad days. I hated feeling vulnerable and it absolutely made my skin ITCH to admit to someone that I was hanging on by a thread. But as soon as I started opening up, all I found was other women who were feeling the same! Women I looked up to, I thought had it all together, they were having Bad Days too and needed someone to lean into just as much as I did. It’s the most freeing feeling. I always can get right back on track after having space held for me by my friends.
Best advice for those who want to start their own business?
JUST DO IT BABY. You’re going to make mistakes, you’re going to make a million adjustments, back pedals, huge leaps forward. There’s no real way to prepare for it. If you’re willing to work hard, and I mean harder than you’ve ever worked in your life, you’ll do great. I promise.
What else are you passionate about?
I’m passionate about feeling happy. That seems like a silly, no answer-answer but it takes a lot of work to find happiness all the time! It’s a whole re-wiring of your brain and I want to help as many people feel closer to taking advantage of that feeling in their lives.
Elizabeth’s words of wisdom?
Be kind. Be honest and be confident. If you are living and acting out with a full heart and clear intention you have nothing to be ashamed of. No matter what you do, there are going to be some people along the way who won’t understand you, won’t like it and will feel threatened by you. That’s ok, they are allowed to feel that way and I know I’m definitely not everyone’s cup of tea either. But as long as you keep your head high and return everything with ten times as much kindness as they delivered in spite you’re going to do just fine darlin’.
