Ardent Reverie is the jewellery project of two sisters, Melanie and Meghan Mina - who make exquisite hand-made pieces, including beautiful velvet chokers, as well as simple yet stunning necklaces.
We absolutely love their jewellery - and featured a couple of their velvet chokers in our cover shoot with Alessia Cara recently (click HERE to check out the cover).
Coup De Main spoke to the sisters about honing their craft, their challenges, and bucket-lists…
"...running your own business means working odd and long hours..."
CDM: You started out your online venture through an Etsy store - how did this end up developing into having your own site?
ARDENT REVERIE: Making jewellery started off as a hobby at first, and we opened an Etsy store to kind of gauge the interest there was for our pieces. To be honest it took a while for our shop to start gaining traction because we were still learning all the nuances of running an online business. I can still remember how excited we were to receive our first Etsy sale that came from a non-family member or friend! We kept at it and opportunities started to pop up here and there for us to grow our jewellery business. As it kept growing we realised we wanted a place online that looked and felt more official as a brand. We were fortunate to have a friend, Mark Capil, who does web-design and offered to get us started.
CDM: You both began making crafts at a young age. Do you remember what the first piece of jewellery you ever made was?
AR: This one isn't something we actually made, but when we were kids we put together this sad little D.I.Y. kit, bought only by our sweet, supportive relatives. It consisted of a weird mix of beads and thread, not sturdy enough to hold everything together long-term either. But years later, when we deemed our skills worthy enough to produce and sell to the general public, we made feather headbands and necklaces made out of fabric that we wove and sewed together. Our collection now in comparison to when we first started looks quite different.
CDM: If you could only do one thing for the rest of your life, would what you are doing now be that one thing?
AR: I think we both will always need something to channel our creative energy into, and designing jewellery has been the perfect outlet for that. We can definitely see ourselves doing this for the long-term.
CDM: Your obvious talent shines through all your pieces, do you still continue to make each one yourselves or do you have other people working on them as well?
AR: As of right now, each piece is handmade by just the two of us! We've accepted the fact that running your own business means working odd and long hours. It's manageable, but we have received offers from individuals who are interested in interning for us and that may be something we explore in the near future.
CDM: Out of the mixology chokers, which is your favourite and is there any particular reason for your choice?
AR: The teal velvet with gold feather charm choker would have to be our favourite! We fell in love with the colour as soon as we saw it and it helped inspire the creation of the mixology line and wanting to offer different colours. We incorporate the gold feather charm with a lot of our other pieces so it's definitely a go-to for us.
CDM: What would you consider the biggest challenges you face as a crafters and businesswomen?
AR: Having patience, especially with yourself. As the saying goes... sometimes you are your own worst critic. It's a double-edged sword because you always strive to put your best work out there, but it can also make you over-analytical and afraid to fail. You have to allow yourself the time to take some chances and make some mistakes along the way in order to grow. If you put the time and effort into your passion, you will get there.
CDM: What do you have left to achieve on your bucket-list?
AR: We just want to keep pushing forward with our jewellery designs and continue to see what new adventures it opens us up to. On a more general note, we want to travel the world and become endlessly inspired!
To check out all of Ardent Reverie’s beautiful jewellery, check out their website HERE.
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