Meet the Maker
Wixia grew out of something I've been doing for most of my life: making things. I enjoy experimenting with all sorts of crafts and DIY projects, and I have a huge passion for repurposing, finding things as locally as possible, and keeping stuff out of the landfill.
I buy secondhand whenever I can, especially when it comes to craft materials. I have a borderline unhinged tendency to save things that might have another use, and I'm always looking for ways to turn overlooked materials into something worth keeping.
Some of my favorite projects have come from a combination of necessity, curiosity, and the simple question of "I wonder if I could make that?" I've made overalls out of scrubs, painted with poke berries, learned leatherwork using upholstery scraps from a local factory, dug up and hand-processed wild clay into incense holders, and made soap using beeswax, honey, and tallow from friends' regenerative farms.
Jewelry is one of many ways I like to make things. Wixia gives me a place to experiment with materials, ideas, and aesthetics that might otherwise never have a reason to exist.
About the Process
Many Wixia pieces incorporate a mix of reworked vintage or deadstock components, secondhand materials, salvaged or found objects, and other materials that caught my attention along the way. Other pieces use new materials when that's the practical or appropriate choice. I try to be thoughtful about the difference.
I've always preferred repurposing something, finding a secondhand version, making something myself, or figuring out how to reuse something I already have before buying something new. These days, it's less about having to make do and more about genuinely enjoying it.
I like the challenge of figuring out what something could become. There's a particular satisfaction in taking something ordinary, overlooked, or slightly weird and giving it a completely new life.
Inspiration
A lot of my inspiration comes from the places I've lived.
Time spent living on the road gave me the chance to collect interesting little pieces of the places I passed through, and some of those materials eventually found their way into my work: Atlantic Ocean sea glass from a pebble beach, raw rose quartz from South Dakota, and mica shards and river rocks from North Carolina.
Working as a farmhand on my family's farm gave me an even deeper appreciation for the shapes, textures, colors, and tiny details found in nature. Moss, dried flowers, leaves, stones, insects, and other natural forms often find their way into my designs, either literally or as inspiration.
I love the way nature can be beautiful, strange, delicate, messy, and a little bit weird all at once. That's something I try to bring into my work.
Why DIY?
I've always loved alternative styles, but I've never been particularly interested in the mass-produced version of them.
I like jewelry with personality. I like pieces that feel substantial, unusual, and a little unexpected. I'd rather wear something made by an actual person than something designed to be produced by the thousands, shipped around the world, and replaced when it falls apart.
That's part of why DIY has always appealed to me. I can make exactly what I want, experiment with materials, and create things that don't have to fit neatly into one specific style.
What's more punk than keeping money out of the hands of corporations and DIYing what you want to wear?
Supporting Community Organizations
I founded Carolina Common Ground, a mutual aid organization that distributes food and clothing to people experiencing homelessness and housing instability. We also provide practical and logistical support to other mutual aid groups across western North Carolina, particularly communities affected by Hurricane Helene.
To me, mutual aid is about neighbors helping neighbors meet immediate needs and build stronger communities together. It's practical, local, and based on the idea that everyone deserves access to food, clothing, safety, and basic support.
10% of Wixia's proceeds goes directly to Carolina Common Ground.
Learn more about Carolina Common Ground
A Little About Me
I'm proudly queer, nonbinary, and gender-nonconforming, and I don't think everything needs to fit neatly into a category. That probably shows up in Wixia, too. I like mixing aesthetics, materials, eras, colors, and ideas that technically aren't supposed to go together.
I'm also partially disabled, and finding creative work that I can adapt to my body and my energy has meant a lot to me. Making things gives me a way to work with my limitations instead of constantly fighting against them, and I'm grateful for the joy it brings me.
Thanks for being here.
Whether you found Wixia because you were looking for something strange, fell in love with a particular material, or just like supporting small makers, I'm glad you stopped by.
I hope you find something that sparks a little (or a lot) of joy.