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Elementary
Realtor interviews business
Allow me to introduce myself as Jacqueline Watson, a Realtor in the Toronto/GTA area. However, my expertise extends beyond real estate. I am also a Mediator specializing in Labour Relations. My passion lies in more than just selling homes; I strive to transform lives and empower individuals to achieve financial freedom through home ownership.
In addition to my real estate endeavors, I am building a thriving community through my podcast, Elementary. This platform allows me to engage with various businesses and share their stories. My career path initially began in Toronto & GTA, coinciding with a successful tenure as a Director of Labour Relations, in healthcare working in the long term care retirement and commune services industry, which I hold dear to my heart.
Combining my passions, I feel incredibly fortunate to work as both a Realtor and a Labour Mediator. Each day, I have the privilege of doing what I love, and I am immensely grateful for this opportunity. The journey that has led me here has been remarkable, and I cherish every experience along the way.
Furthermore, I recently had the honour of joining the Pilot Place board. Witnessing the incredible impact this organization has on people's lives fills me with gratitude. I am delighted to volunteer my time and contribute in any way possible to support their noble mission.
Elementary
Following Your Passion: Anne Chikahisa’s Journey from Corporate to Crafting Healing Jewelry
Imagine leaving behind a lucrative corporate career to pursue a passion that feeds your soul. That’s exactly what Anne Chikahisa did, and her story is nothing short of inspiring. This episode features an intimate conversation with Anne, a brilliant metalsmith and jewelry designer from Seattle, who opens up about her bold transition from the corporate world to full-time jewelry making. Anne shares the challenges and triumphs she encountered along the way, and how an unexpected divorce became a catalyst for her artistic growth. Her journey showcases the incredible personal and professional transformations that can happen when you follow your passion.
We also get an inside look at the heart and soul behind Anne's personalized jewelry designs. Discover how she finds joy and meditation in crafting pieces from wax and how her creations, especially her healing talismans, serve as meaningful keepsakes for those going through tough life changes. Anne underscores the importance of staying open to everyday beauty and letting inspiration come naturally, rather than forcing it. Learn about her standout piece, a wide band ring with a satellite diamond, that perfectly encapsulates her unique design aesthetic and the unexpected joy her work brings to its wearers. Join us for a truly enriching episode that's as much about artistry as it is about life.
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Welcome to Elementary. I am so sorry about our connection today, but I am sure my guest is going to ask to join any minute now and once she joins we'll get started again. So I hope you're having a fabulous Monday, wherever you're watching. In case you haven't joined us before, my name is Jacqueline, so we will get started in a few minutes and I am so delighted to have this guest on the show. Ah, there you are. I'm not sure what happened, but you know that was so weird. I'm so sorry.
Speaker 2:That's okay.
Speaker 1:No worries, no worries at all.
Speaker 2:Sometimes, it happens, you know.
Speaker 1:Technology is great when it works.
Speaker 2:I know Exactly.
Speaker 1:Exactly so. We'll start over Introduce yourself your Instagram handle.
Speaker 2:Okay, my name is Anne Chikahisa. I'm a metalsmith and jewelry designer. I am based out of Seattle and my Instagram handle is Chikahisa Studio. So we were talking about previously where the name came from, and that's my main name. My main name, that's my last name Chikahisa. Tell us a little bit about yourself, okay um, I started making jewelry about 15, 16 years ago was a hobby, I was a corporate girl, I was working in sales and I was just really bored with my life and um yes, we have the problem again.
Speaker 1:I think Anne has frozen and, um, I don't know, give us a minute, okay, just bear with us. For some reason, sometimes things happen. Anne is frozen and I'll see if I can ask her to join, and then we'll get started.
Speaker 2:Ah, there we go, maybe third time's the charm.
Speaker 1:That's right. That's right, we will get this done. We will get it done. So, yes, you were saying you were a corporate girl.
Speaker 2:Oh, right, right. So how I got started was I was in corporate sales and I was just really bored with my life. So I decided to take a class at a local art center and I've always wanted to just make jewelry. So I started taking this class and it just became a hobby and more like an obsession. I fell in love with making jewelry and it just took over the house and I would go to work and then come home at night and on the weekends and that's all I would do. And eventually I rented a small group studio space at the um at the art center and just kept building my collection of pieces. And finally I decided to take the big leap, quit my job and started the business of in April of 2010.
Speaker 1:So here I am.
Speaker 2:So, um, so, that's a big leap, I mean it was a huge leap and it was the scariest thing I've ever done is to go from a stable job where I got a paycheck every day, every month.
Speaker 2:you know, and and had a lot of stability. But I was at a point in my life where I was so unsatisfied with what I was doing it every day that I get up and go to work I get a pit in my stomach. It just wasn't resonating with me anymore. I was feeling really, um, just not feeling that that's where I needed to be any longer. So you know, when you hit rock bottom, sometimes you just it makes you make decisions that are not very logical and um. So I took that leap and it's been a great journey.
Speaker 2:I won't say it's been easy. As you know, having your own business it's um, it's scary. A great journey? I won't say it's been easy. As you know, having your own business it's scary. You go up and down, there's lots of challenges, but I wouldn't trade it for the world. I've learned so much about how to run a business, how to, and I've learned so much about myself and what, where my strengths are and where my weaknesses are. And I've grown so much about myself and what, what, um, where my strengths are and where my weaknesses are, and and I've grown so much as a person because of it. So I am so grateful to have this journey and that people actually love my jewelry and it resonates with them as well, so it's a win-win for everyone. They get a beautiful piece of jewelry and I get to do and what I love, which is creating pieces.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I mean, you know. I mean, being a business owner is not easy at all and taking a leap of that caliber is, I mean, it's so brave. I mean I consult in real estate. I'm a realtor for heaven's and six. You know, we all know about feast or famine. You know, one day you're closing 10,000 deals and the next day you're waiting.
Speaker 1:So it's just the way it is right. But it's about knowing what really sparks joy in what you do. Right, and that feeling that you were talking about when you, when you know you're very good at what you do but you just get this feeling that you are made for something so much more, um, warms my heart. Yeah, so, um. So I mean that's a great, great inspiration story. You know you were doing this for so long and then you decided to take off and make it your full-time. You know pride and joy, but you know, tell us a little bit about how you come up with I mean. I know you say you make jewelry, but I think yours is a little bit more than just making jewelry. So tell us a little bit about you know your creative process and you know how you come up with it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's. I think the pivotal moment for me was about five years ago. Five or six years ago, I was going through a big transition in my life. I was going through a divorce, and it was not something that I expected. I just came home one day and my life changed and it's like having the rug pulled out from underneath you and you're like standing there going oh my God, what just happened? And I had to figure out how to function. You know when something like that happens to function. You know when something like that happens.
Speaker 2:And so for me, my art is very healing. It's it's how I get through things, how I get through the good things and the bad things. It's how I express myself. And so at that moment I just knew going through this big transition, knew going through this big transition, how to deal with it was to turn inward and to go to my art. So I started creating things just to help me feel more grounded, and I knew the biggest thing that I needed at that moment in my life is to have hope, because without hope you can't really move forward in your life. You need that light at the end of the tunnel, something to light you up, to know that going through all the hard stuff will pay off, and for me that was.
Speaker 2:I needed something that was meaningful, that I could wear around my neck or to hold in my hands to give me that hope. And so I looked around and tried to find something a necklace maybe, or a pendant that would have that meaning, and I couldn't find anything that really resonated with me. So I created it and so, going through this transition of the divorces, I created a hope talisman and I just started wearing it because I felt powerful, I felt more confident that I could make it through this difficult time. I think it made me show up in a different way and it also resonated to my customers and they made comments and so I started selling it, resonated to my customers and they made comments and so I started selling it. And that's what developed my talisman collection, which are these meaningful pendants that are artistic.
Speaker 2:I take a word and I just I create a pendant. So, like this is my healing talisman, and I take a word and I create an artistic interpretation of the word. So this particular pendant the healing is representative of the sun, because for me, when you're not feeling good or you want some internal healing, the sun is very, very powerful. It warms your soul, it makes you feel good, and so that's how I create, is I take a word and then find a creative way, an artistic way of expressing that word.
Speaker 2:And so this talisman collection has become my most personal collection and it inspires me every day because it's like my personal journey of where I've been when I first started to where I'm going, and I pick different words. I have healing, I have truth, I have hope which was the first one wisdom, strength, desire and it's just evolved. I think I have 16 different ones now and I keep moving forward. So I have a new one that will be coming out very soon, probably in the next two to three weeks, and so I'm excited about unveiling that new one. Yeah.
Speaker 1:I can't wait till you launch it. I'll be waiting patiently to take a look, thank you. So these little talisman pendants. I was seeing one of your posts the other day and I noticed you. You know you can clip them to like a little I don't know what to call it like a little locket clip, and you can actually.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, I had it on, but because the camera, the camera boy, the camera is, you can't really see. So I have two different clips. I have a paper clip like this, which huge um you just clip it like this and you can put the pendants on it like this so this is love.
Speaker 2:So it represents, um, all our battle wounds and our scars. It's rugged, it's imperfect, because that's what makes us unique. So I wanted to celebrate that in this pendant and it's got a diamond. So this is the paper clip connector, and then I also have another one that is the lock connector and it's on a swivel like this, and you can hold a lot of pendants. You basically just unscrew this swivel like this and you can hold a lot of pendants. You basically just unscrew this, yeah, like this, and then you slip the pendant on it and this is more of a statement um holder, like, if you want something that's really significant here, I'll take them off so you can actually see what it looks like. But, um, so there's two, two different ways you can do it.
Speaker 2:So this is the paper, uh, the lock connector and it's on this big bail that moves, so it it swivels, okay. So it's a, a nice statement piece. So you can put it on a chain. Whether you use my chain or not, but I'll have, I have, like a flat curb chain like this. I also have an oxidized silver chain like this.
Speaker 2:So there's different ways to wear it, and what makes it really fun is you get to choose what resonates with you and you can create your own personal look by selecting your chain and then the connector, and then the talisman pieces that speak to you so like I have a compassion which looks like a key. I have reflection, which is inspired by a vintage mirror and it's got a little diamond on it right there uh, here's wisdom which has a freshwater pearl on it, and this one has a bunch of holes on it. It's like a sifter, because I wanted to represent, you know, scooping through all the muck and all the things we hear every day and sifting through and finding, you know your wisdom and the things that are really meaningful and that hold true to you.
Speaker 2:So each one's a little different. I try to have different shapes and different metals. I mainly work in sterling silver and then I do use some oxidized silver you know like all this is oxidized. And then I also use bronze, and I use a special bronze that really mimics 18 karat gold. It's a very rich color instead of like a more coppery gold. So, yeah, yeah, so that that's been. That's kind of how I create. And then the other thing I do is I make a lot of rings.
Speaker 2:I love making rings as well, and most of them I they start in like a wax, a piece of wax like this I saw it off to whatever width I want, and then I will use files and other tools and then I don't know if you can see the texture, but there's a lot of texture on it um, that I carve into it and then I send it out to a caster and they cast it for me, and this is what it will look like after it's all done is a ring from the mold. So this one has two diamonds that I set into it. And then I also um have this large, larger diamond in this one. This one was all oxidized but as I've worn it the oxidations come off. But I think that's what makes it very beautiful. It makes it look vintagey, yeah. And then here's just a plain sterling silver ring that has a lot of texture and shape on it organic shape.
Speaker 2:And one of the biggest philosophies I have about my designs comes from my heritage. I'm Japanese-American and there's a philosophy called wabi-sabi, which means celebrating the beauty of imperfection. And that's what my work is all about is because there's so much emphasis in this world right now about being perfect. There's so much emphasis in this world right now about being perfect, and I think when you're always striving for perfection, you miss the journey of all the things that you're experiencing. And the beauty of that and that's what I wanted to express in my jewelry is there's so much beauty in perfection. The circle that's not completely round, the little bit of texture that shows some depth to the work, or, you know, a diamond placed not exactly in the center, I just think, adds such an interesting concept to my work, and that's kind of how I, how I design.
Speaker 1:Wow, wow. What a beautiful gift to give someone who may be going through a tough time or a tough period. Maybe they lost a loved one. I mean, this would be like I mean, for me at least, I don't know about anyone else, but depending on the person, of course, you know like, let's say, someone was going through a tough time if they had lost a loved one in their life, I think this would be a far better token than flowers, you know. Oh for sure it would be something that they could just hang on to and maybe, you know, it would resonate with them, right For sure it's beautiful, I do.
Speaker 2:I do have with that right for sure, beautiful, I do, I do have, thank you. Thank you so much. I do have people who buy my stuff for that exact reason and like the healing talisman that I showed you earlier, I have a lot, of, a lot of customers who buy this one for a friend or a loved one who's going through cancer treatments or maybe are going through a big transition like a loss of a loved one who's going through cancer treatments, or maybe are going through a big transition like a loss of a loved one or divorce, like what I went through. And it, it really it just it resonates so well and it's, it becomes a keepsake and whenever they wear it, they remember who gave it to them and why it was given to them. Um, it just makes me feel so good to know that people are sharing my work and that it has meaning for the recipient or for the wearer so what, by far, would you say would be your most favorite?
Speaker 1:um, I know it's hard because you're probably making each of these, but you know, if you had to choose just one today and or two, I don't care. Like, maybe not your favorite piece, but your, your creative, like, what do you think would be something that just kind of sparked a little bit of what should I say?
Speaker 2:Just made it a little more special, maybe. Yeah, yeah, you know it's so funny that you asked that, because I think the hardest thing is is like picking my favorite piece. It's like picking your favorite child, right?
Speaker 2:you love everybody the same. But if I could only do one thing in terms of making, it would be my wax work. When I'm taking a piece of wax and creating something, it doesn't matter if it's a ring or a pendant or a talisman or whatever there's something that about this process that I just love so much. It's and I don't sketch how I do something is I play a lot, whether it's with the sheet metal that I have or the wax or the components that I'm working with. I will just take a piece of wax and I sit on my bench and I just start carving it or cutting it, it or cutting it, and it's very what I call it's like Zen meditation.
Speaker 2:For me. It's my creative Zen process. I just let my hands do the process and it becomes very meditative and I could spend hours doing it and it feels like five minutes and that's when I'm in. My most joy is when I'm doing that. So it's more about the process for me than the actual piece that I love making, if that makes sense. Like I don't have a favorite piece, I have a favorite way of making the piece.
Speaker 1:Yeah so which makes sense?
Speaker 2:definitely, yeah, absolutely yeah, so that's what I love doing is doing the wax process.
Speaker 1:So for our viewers watching. If you do have any questions, there is a question icon at the bottom, whether it's in the comments or the question icon. Feel free to drop it in. And you know, show Anne some love, will you? Her jewelry is just like I know. It's very mesmerizing because I'm just like in awe looking at it. Oh, thank you, and yeah, very nice. So how do you stay inspired and keep innovating, like you know?
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, you know it's funny.
Speaker 2:I've heard not from anyone in particular, but I do hear about people who have creative blocks, like writers or artists or painters and stuff, and I feel very, very fortunate I've never had that problem.
Speaker 2:Um, and I think it's because I'm always just open to ideas and I think there's the biggest place I get inspiration is when I just go out and take a walk or I'm doing yoga. It's when I get into that space of not thinking and just being, so I can be out walking and I'll see like a beautiful flower will fall in the path when I'm walking and then I'm like, oh, that shape could be really pretty for X, y, z, that shape could be really pretty for XYZ. Or I'll be in yoga and I'll get into a pose and I'll get a feeling about something that would resonate, whether it's a talisman, word or a texture or something. It's just being in a space where I'm not thinking actively about creating, but letting that inspiration from whatever's around me influence me and getting a message from that. So for me it's staying open and not saying, oh, I have to create. It's going out and living and letting those inspirations come about.
Speaker 1:Very nice. I noticed on your Instagram you had a ring posted. I don't know if it was. It's a little wider ring With a diamond in it. Yes, yes, a little bit of a wider ring. I don't know if it's a new piece. Tell us more about that piece. Yes, that is such a wider ring. I don't know if it's a new piece, or you know?
Speaker 2:tell us more about that piece. Yes, that is such a good piece. I wish I had it here.
Speaker 2:I'm at home and not at my studio but, it's a wide band ring and it has a beautiful satellite diamond just at the top. And to me I just I first started with that big wide band ring. That was one of my very first rings. It's been a classic for me. I've sold a lot of them over the years and I just wanted to update it. So a couple of years ago I added the diamond. And it's such an unexpected diamond because it's a wide band and then the diamond is just sitting off the side and it's to me it just brings such joy because when you look at it you see this little teeny spark of sparkle from the diamond and it just lights me up to see that little spark, because you just don't expect to see it and that's what makes it so special. So it's a beautiful ring. It comes in both the bronze and the silver, so you can pick whichever color that suits you.
Speaker 1:You know, when I look at your pieces, they're so unique and they just have even though. You know, when I was looking through just your Instagram, right, I noticed, like it's just so gorgeous. You know, Not just that one piece, like a lot of your pieces are so gorgeous, like they're just so unique and people, whoever's watching you, need to go to her Instagram page and check out what I'm talking about, if you like. I mean, like I said, this is not just jewelry, it's actually just more than jewelry. It's got like meaning behind it and it makes such a fabulous gift to give someone or a member to keep safe.
Speaker 2:Don't forget that you should spoil yourself too. Yeah, you should spoil yourself too, I think, yeah, yeah, I think I and I'm a victim of this too is so often we, as women, are such givers and we're always taking care of everybody else Right, and we're always the last ones to take care of ourselves. So what I hope that more women will do is to step into taking care of themselves and to treat themselves for things that they've done, and it doesn't have to be a monumental thing, but maybe some little shift that you did or some project that you completed that is really meaningful for you, that you should celebrate it, because every day we're alive and every day that you do something special for yourself or for the world should be celebrated so, absolutely, you know, you said it.
Speaker 1:Well, you're right. You know, we're always looking at how we can please other people and, by, you know, make other people feel so special, and sometimes you forget about, you know, the most important right. Okay, um, if someone were to come to you and ask you to create a piece for them, um, that he didn't already have, would you do it?
Speaker 2:yeah, absolutely I love doing that?
Speaker 2:um, I've done that I. I take a couple clients every, uh, couple months on a commission basis. What I will not do, though, is if somebody comes to me with an existing design that they see and say I want you to copy it. As an artist, I just can't do that because that person who created that piece that's their piece and I don't feel comfortable copying it. But if they wanted me to be inspired by that piece and do my version of that piece, I don't feel comfortable copying it. But if they wanted me to be inspired by that piece and do my version of that piece, I could do it.
Speaker 2:But a lot of my customers that I do custom pieces for will come to me and ask me to create something for them, and it's really fun when I get creative freedom to whether to create something for them, and lots of times it's rings. You know people are looking for a ring for, you know, anniversary or a big event in their life, or repurposing. I've done a lot of repurposing of gemstones and taking an heirloom that they love but they don't wear anymore and they want to rework those gemstones, and that's always really, really fun is to take those special heirlooms and make them into something really pretty for them and update it so it looks contemporary. So I love doing that. And update it so it looks contemporary, so I love doing that. If anyone wants to see some examples, I do have some examples on my website, on my blog.
Speaker 2:You can look at the blog. I don't have the page on there, but you can just go to my website and look under the blog section on the bottom of the website and you can see some of the pieces I've made. Those are super fun. I just did one um for a customer, which I just posted a couple days ago. It was a husband and wife. They're celebrating their 25th anniversary and they wanted a ring that they could have that wasn't quite so traditional as what they already have, and so there are two 18 karat gold rings with some diamonds in it that are channel set, and they just got them a couple of days ago and I love it. So I put it's on my Instagram page. You'll see it. Those were super fun to make.
Speaker 1:Yeah, wow. So I want to be able to make sure that I've captured everything I can possibly capture about um, about what you do. One thing I wanted to ask before I go down that path is um, what about a young designer who is looking for inspiration to get started? What would you tell them?
Speaker 2:I would tell them. I would tell them two things. First thing is follow your voice and find your own, because there's a lot of jewelry designers out there and I think the most important thing as a jewelry designer is to find your own authentic voice and develop it. And it's a lot of hard work because you see so many different jewelers that it's hard to differentiate yourself. But really finding that unique way of expressing your jewelry that looks different from somebody else is probably the most important thing.
Speaker 2:And then the second thing is to surround yourself with people who are who are really knowledgeable in things that you're not good at. Like, I didn't know how to do my website or how to do emails and those kinds of tech things, and so I found a community to help support me in that. So find people who are really good at things that either you aren't good at or don't want to do, and that will help round out your business. Your business so I think that's helped me tremendously over the years is having that community of other experts in areas that I was never very good at, nor did I want to learn, or I didn't want to learn, how to do yeah absolutely so, before we wrap up, anything I missed maybe you want to share.
Speaker 1:can you think of something um?
Speaker 2:well, I do have one thing. So if you, if, if you are interested, I do have a quiz on my website if you are looking to find your perfect talisman. It's a really easy, like three minute quiz. You can just go to my website, chikahisastudiocom and hit the quiz button and it's super fun. You can take this quiz and it'll show you suggested talisman necklaces that could help you start on your journey of wearing something powerful, very nice.
Speaker 1:Yeah, perfect. And where can people reach you?
Speaker 2:People can reach me on my website or on Instagram. I would love it if they wanted to follow me and introduce themselves and introduce themselves. It's again. My Instagram handle is Chikahisa Studio and it's C-H-I-K-A-H-I-S-A Studio. Or you can just go to the website, which is the same. If you go onto the website, you can opt in to get. If you join my email list, you can get $25 off on your first order.
Speaker 1:Nice, very nice. There you go $25 off your first order Join her email list.
Speaker 1:I want to thank you, anne, for taking the time to do this Instagram Live to share your beautiful art pieces with the viewers and for all of you who watch. My name is Jacqueline Watson. I'm a realtor with Sutton Group Tower and I thank you for spending your time with me on Monday evenings to give up your dinner hour, should I say? Or to hang out with us while we either do an interview, we talk about the market or we just give you a little update. But so, so, thank you so much and, and I'm so delighted for you, I wish you the very, very best. And, yeah, I'm so delighted for you. I wish you the very very best, and your pieces are very gorgeous and everyone should check it out. So thank you so much for coming on and until next Monday, I'll see you then.
Speaker 2:Thank you so much, jacqueline, for having me on. I really, really appreciate it, so have a great evening you too. Thank you, thank you, take care. Bye-bye.
