Today is a new blog day! We will set on the journey to explore Portuguese beaches and the mysterious lines in the sand.
We all have some happy child memories that we cherish. Some of us take it further and get inspired by them to open the door to the creativity and start our own jewellery brand. Polymer clay artist Rita Botelho from Portugal is one of those who transformed the energy and happy feeling from the memories to the present and got inspired to start to make colorful, playful but still refined and delicate jewelry.
It all started in 2019 when Rita and her family returned back to Portugal after living abroad for some time. “The moment we arrived I knew I wanted to do a personal project, thought, designed and produced by me. I wanted to do it by hand, learn with the process and create a space for collaborations and positive energy,” tells the story about the beginnings Rita and continues: “those moments at the beach playing in the sand during my childhood, were the best representations of freedom and happiness: feeling free with our body and mind, facing challenges without being afraid of the fall, finding a balance in life and being confident in who we are… It was just the perfect metaphor! In November 2019 Piino started!”
Rita’s design is very clean, minimalistic and delicate. There are not that many artists choosing to create in minimalism in our polymer clay community. To create a simple piece of jewellery which design is built on the shape, single color and clean finish is more challenging than one might think.
Rita helps community to make better quality earrings by creating and sharing the "Piino Technique" - a technique to attach the studs to the polymer clay piece without glues that solves four problems: allows to work without toxic materials, makes the connection between stud and polymer clay very resistant and flexible, allows a very clean finishing on the back of earrings and at last but not the least, to use very small studs for the delicate designs.
In November 2020, Rita joined a Patreon, which is a space where you can get little sponsors that receive from you in exchange your know-how, behind the scenes, tutorials and tips and tricks. She shares videos of her process, precious tips to make impeccable pieces and also tips to make your business grow. “I invite other makers to join in productive discussions and I promote creative challenges to make people think outside of the box, innovate and find your own voice. It's a space where we can help each other and grow together as a community.”
We hope there will be more talented artists who are willing to share their skills and teach others as Rita does in the future. Thank you Rita, thinking out of the box is important!
Talking about boxes… Rita has a big support in her husband Philipp who is an innovative creator himself and made her this wonderful tool, a box for sanding.
