The Wonderful World of Oyster!

Welcome to the wonderful world of Oyster!  The idea for Oyster began as a small grain of sand, a constant thought in my brain that has been rolling around, and growing larger over time.

From the time I was a child, I have been involved in and interested in all kinds of art and design. At age 11, I started my own jewelry company and sold seaglass earings to a couple local stores in my hometown of Providence, Rhode Island. By 12, I had become obsessed with fashion design and interior design, drawing clothing and designing furniture, and rearranging my room twice a year, complete with floorplans of where each furniture item would go. In my free time I would draw, create sculptures out of found and recycled objects and collages from patterned paper and magazine clippings.

By the time I went to college, I had narrowed down my focus to fashion design, due to the fact that I thought out of all the things I loved that I would have to just choose one as a career. After four years of sewing and draping, organizing events, creating collections and traveling, I graduated in the height of the recession and landed a job at a furniture art gallery in Chelsea, where I was thrilled to re-visit my interest in furniture, art and interior design. On the side, I constantly continued to explore design, my own art, and assist with event planning and styling.

Eventually, though I loved it, I outgrew the art gallery and moved into the world of corporate handbag design. Working full time and balancing a plethora of other interests and passions on the side that were reduced to "hobby" status, as well as the idea of having to "just pick one" area to focus on began to wear on me... and this is where the idea for Oyster began to form.

I felt overwhelmed with options. Which path do I follow?  Do I explore my love of interior design more deeply? What about my newfound love of event planning and organization? Do I drop everything else and return to fashion design, begin my own line? Each time I thought I had come to a decision, one of the other passions would call out to me, and it became impossible to deny any of them, impossible to choose just one. Finally I took a step back and realized I had been looking too closely at each of the individual grains of sand. Dull and uninspiring on their own, I realized that when combined, they created the beginnings of a beautiful pearl.

Some overall themes began to emerge through all the varying interests. An appreciation for good design. Beauty as well as functionality. Attention to detail. Love of aesthetics. A combination of modern and vintage. Texture. Simplicity. A steady stream of new ideas. High standards for professionalism and respect. Innovation. Collaboration.

And thus Oyster was born! Oyster is the form in which all these pieces come together. I've been told that "the world is your Oyster", and here I've made Oyster my world.

Welcome!