Jai Johnson has been creating jewelry since she was 10 years old. Her very first venture was folding and molding gum wrappers into a collection of necklaces and bracelets. She then started making rings out of telephone wire, and when one of her grandfather's store clerks bought one, she was hooked on the jewelry design industry.

Jai creates jewelry that contains dreams, hopes, passion and love - as well as a variety of gemstones, beads, crystals and vintage components lost from their original state, yet worthy enough to be reconfigured into something new and beautiful.

Jai uses gems and pearls that are full of the colors of her life, her favorite subjects and her faith in the beauty of the world around her. Her fascination with shapes, textures, colors and nature's beauty is clearly evident in the delicate and beautiful pieces she so lovingly creates. To her, each and every stone, even those that others may toss away, is deserving of being showcased in a creative way to display its beauty... "for every stone has unique and individual qualities, just like us."

What is your inspiration for your latest collection?

My current collection are works featuring a technique I call "clustering." As I work, I form a cluster of beads into a design, using wire as the transport medium to get the beads where I want them to go and make them stay where I want them to stay. The finished pieces of jewelry remind me of life: life is a big cluster of a lot of tiny experiences, forming a total visual picture of our selves...who we are...what we believe in...how we behave...and what we do. With each bead I place on the wire, I add more and more to the cluster, just like each experience...each moment...each memory we have in life adds more to the story of who we are, and how our lives are shaped.

This is my life. It is a cluster of life experiences. My new pieces are designed to reflect a completed, yet still evolving, picture of life.

Who has influenced your artistic vision the most?

I have to say my grandfather. He did it all. His biggest success was looking at a patch of land and envisioning a community there. He bought the land, he used his creativity to build the community, and he went on from there to build, own and operate his town's first shopping center. He had incredible vision and he followed it, no matter what. As I followed Grandpa through his business days during the summers I stayed with him, I studied his entrepreneurial qualities, immersed myself in his I CAN DO I ANYTHING I SET MY MIND TO attitude, picked up his attention to quality and good design, saw his pride in his customer's happiness and was witness to his extreme sense of fairness for all, judging no one, accepting everyone. He showed me I can take nothing and turn it into something.

Where do you go for inspiration?

I don't have to go far. It's the simple things which create a vision inside of me. Just a glance at a stone or lone bead. A song on the radio. Watching HGTV design shows and how they explore with color. Spending time outside around nature. Being in church and participating in praise and worship music is also very inspiring to me. I always seem to leave fresh, renewed and filled with new ideas.

Who are your favorite jewelry designers?

Oh gosh, I have so many! I have to say the vintage designers take the cake for me, though. Miriam Haskell, Stanley Hagler and Florenza have always been favorites, along with Tortolani, Hobe, Juliana and Har. I also love the whimsical contemporary Lunch at the Ritz jewelry and adored the jewelry of the late Ian St. Geilar, who worked for Stanley Hagler.

What do you consider your greatest career accomplishment?

I originally thought it was when Ian St. Geilar asked me to come to work for him (which I didn't do). I felt proud I'd captured the attention of such a fine designer. Then I thought it was when I had customers paying premium prices for my designs. But the thing I'm most proud of only just happened. A woman posted a set I made about 10 years ago to a list of collectors, in an attempt to find out more about the designer. The positive comments I saw come in about that set, plus the number of members who "stood up" and said that was one of Jai Johnson's designs, truly amazed me. And I realized - now I am finally proud of something...proud that I've succeeded in making jewelry which is and will continue to be remembered.

What is the biggest challenge you've faced in your work?

Trying to support a family while building a jewelry business. It's tough. There's a lot of competition out there, a lot of good designers and trying to stand out in the crowd is very difficult. But two hungry mouths make for great motivation for me to keep going. Working on a budget is difficult. I don't do many "small" pieces. I use a lot of components, and if I run out of something needed to finish a piece and need to wait to buy the needed supplies due to budget constraints, it's very frustrating. But like other challenges, I manage to get past it, and before I know it, the situation has worked itself out.

What other outlets for creative expression interest you?

Art and painting. In fact, I took several years away from jewelry to explore art and painting more, and I only just recently returned full-time to jewelry design. I love to paint. My walls are proof of that, as they are covered with my paintings, which range from colorful abstract paintings to realistic works of art, mostly of animals and birds.

Is there anything exciting and new on the horizon for you?

Yes! I am holding a Spring 2009 Online Jewelry Trunk Show at ArtJewelryShow.com. The show will run from March 1, 2009 through the month of May. New works will continue to be added to the show throughout the time period. I've always wanted to do my own online trunk show, and it's finally happening. My 15-year-old daughter Allyson is going to be my guest designer and also have her works of jewelry in the show.

What's the one accessory you can't live without?

My glasses! Seriously...I have to have them on to do all of the small beadwork. I finally made myself an eyeglass chain out of a strand of colorful beads my daughter hand-wired. So now I can wear my glasses in style.

What's your favorite thing to do to relax and unwind?

Sit on the porch with a beer, listen to the birds sing and experience the beauty of the peace of being one with nature. It's been too cold to sit out there over the past few months, but warmer days are on the way, and I'm looking forward to it again. Believe it or not, I also like to push-mow the yard in the summer. It gives me great exercise and helps me unwind.

Jai Johnson's jewelry and art are available at:

http://jaijohnson.etsy.com
http://jaicards.etsy.com