Meet Kim

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kim.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Kim. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
My path to my craft started a while ago in Europe. To be more precise, I am originally from the Netherlands and in November of 2014, I made a move to the United States and Colorado. I have always loved being creative and I have always had an affinity for simple, elegant, and clean designs. I have my wonderful parents to thank for sharing their architectural and design backgrounds with me as that has had a large influence on my designs.

In the Netherlands, I was a physical therapist, a profession that was creative in a different way as I was helping my clients make meaningful changes in their lives. I dreamed about making jewelry for a long time before I started this new chapter of my life here in Colorado. Once I made a move to the US, I decided it was time to start working toward that dream. Designing jewelry started as a hobby, but over time I have honed my skills and now I’m at the very beginning of building a real business around that passion.

The last few years have been an amazing adventure with a lot of ups and downs, but that’s life when you’re experiencing major changes or transitions. Every single day I continue to learn more and more about the world, myself, life, and all the wonderful, amazing things in it.

This process of discovery has sparked a lot of ideas as and one of the things I’ve realized is that I need a creative outlet and jewelry design has become that outlet. I try to design meaningful pieces that remind you of important moments or steps throughout your life’s journey and the path you are walking today. I’ve discovered that being creative is very therapeutic for me, so I’m doing my best to stay engaged in that creativity as much as possible.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
This is an interesting question for me to think about. Starting your own business definitely has its own set of challenges. I have no background in running my own business and I’m a first-time entrepreneur. That is already a challenge for me with my personality as I tend to be not just creative, but also very detail-oriented and trying to run a “creative business” requires a continuous balancing act.

As I mentioned, this adventure over the past few years has taught me a lot about myself, and I’m always trying to incorporate this personal growth into my designs. A lot of my designs are inspired by things that I have run into in my daily life here in Colorado and being on this growing path of my life.

And I have noticed that my personal growth can sometimes be held back because of my anxieties or fears, and that can be a struggle. So one of the keys for me is to be willing to be aware of where I get stuck, being willing to continue to grow, and learning how to work through challenges. I have also been able to surround myself with many other amazing, wonderful, and talented artists/entrepreneurs and that has been also very helpful in keeping me moving forward. I’m so grateful for them.

We’d love to hear more about your art.
I love to create hand-made jewelry with simple, clean, and elegant lines inspired by nature, life and love. I strive to create designs which represent that and which hold a meaningful message that can be a reminder or inspiration for people on their path of life.

I try to also create balance within my designs. I use a balanced combination of square and round forms. I use silver or gold metals that have a light, soft texture or a satin finish to reflect light softly. In semi-precious and precious stones, I look for colors of the blue sky, sea-foam green ocean, and blue or green water. All of my designs are inspired by nature, life and love and I want to connect you to the path that you are walking or offer a gentle reminder of something meaningful to you.

Jewelry is very often meaningful as it is used to mark milestones in people’s lives, unfortunately most of the meaningful hand-made jewelry I have found was not quite the style I was looking for. So I wanted to take that traditional concept and add a modern feel and look to it.

If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
Everyone has their own challenges and as a new business owner, I’ve tried to change my perspective and view any of the hurdles that I run into as learning opportunities. If I could do something differently at the beginning of this journey, I would simply tell that person just getting started and say the same things that I tell myself every day now:

“Have faith, believe in yourself, you can do this, take it one day at a time, be patient and kind to yourself, be open to learning and growth, ask for help when you need it, share your struggles with others because you’re not alone on this path, do what you love and love what you do, find your tribe, and take a deep breath and go for it!”

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.designbykrk.com
• Email: designbykrkco@gmail.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/design_by_krk/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DesignByKRK/

Image Credit:
Katherine Sleadd (headshot photo)
Design By KRK (product photo’s)

Suggest a story: VoyageDenver is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.