Not so long ago, I had the chance to get introduced to Isa, the creator behind the jewelry brand Art’Isa Creations, A name bringing together her love for artistry, artisan work, and her identity – her name. An inspiring lady from France, for which Montreal opened up her future, revived her love for art and allowed her to work full-time towards a passion that suits her much better than the industry she had been working for for over a decade. This is the Female Tribute to Art’Isa Creations, Montreal entrepreneur.
Shop Art’Isa Creations Jewelry here
Her Beginnings
Luckily, our era allows for entrepreneurs to emerge much later in their life than often imagined. We do not need to be entrepreneurs from the very beginning, right out of university, to become a successful one. Just like Isa, who had always enjoyed visual arts but had only considered it as a hobby.
She had worked for about 15 years in the tourism industry – because she was also very curious about cultures, like many of us – but when she arrived in Montreal, she felt it was time to change things up a little.
What about bringing together both of these interest and making it her source of income?
When I met Isa, she told me about the inspiration behind her collection, and that was from a tribe she had lived with for a while. From a Tiki mask, she had developed many designs, thinking about many aspects of the cultural meaning as well as for the wearability of the piece. By doing so, she was spreading the culture she had been blessed with encountering to others, while ensuring that they would proudly and fashionably wear them. Isn’t such sensitivity intriguing?
Related: 5 Adorable Cultural-Inspired Online Boutiques
As she started to create pieces to her own liking for herself, her friends and family encouraged her to pursue that interest further. “Let’s give it a try!” With such attitude, that is how she came to become where she is at today.
Her Growth
She studied at a Jewelry School in Montreal to give herself the tools to be successful with this project; if she were to try, might as well do it right! She also did a program for entrepreneurs to better understand how to start her own business, and even went to Florence, Italy to learn from a master from Bulgari!
She worked in various environments to practice her craft but also to get to know more about her style and the market. Which type of clients are they? What are they looking for? From Caroline Néron to The Bay, now she is at the Bijoux Nanou Boutique in Montreal.
There, she is proud to help the boutique’s awareness grow further. Surrounded by fellow jewelry artisans, she keeps being inspired, motivated and challenged in regards to her craft. How can she answer the clients’ custom asks? How can she make custom jewelry more common? The experience she gets at the boutique and the live information about the market is invaluable to her. She grows from there and can polish her own craft faster that way.
Art’Isa Creations – The Brand
There are 2 main parts to her brand. First, what she truly gets passionate about: custom pieces; and second, what allows her to spread her passion for cultures as well, her regular collections.
Custom Pieces
Where Isa sees Art’Isa Creations evolve in the future is towards custom pieces. I could notice it from our conversation already but she truly likes to connect with people, to get to know what touches them, and to bring forth their best emotions. That is a skill that is often overlooked in our fast-paced, fast fashion industry; but it was very welcome to see pieces that were made to have an emotional connection.
She likes to consider them as talismans.
Pieces that people come in to reminisce about someone. Pieces that would embrace a part of their story. Pieces that would warm their hearts every time they look at them and touch them.
For example, one project she worked on was from a woman whose horse had just passed away and she dearly wanted to create something as a tribute for her friend. From the string of hair, Isa evaluated multiple ways to maintain the hair while presenting it in a fashionable, ergonomic and wearable way. Then, she drew what she had in mind, presented the drawings to the client, they adjusted the custom piece to then develop the bracelet.
What Isa mentioned that was so rewarding from working on such pieces was to see the joy and gratitude from her clients’ eyes.
She also wanted to bring her part of her solution to the fashion waste by creating meaningful pieces that she knows people will keep for a long time.
Her custom pieces prices vary from the level of work and the material at hand.
Get a custom piece from Art’Isa Creations
Regular Collections
Isa knows that custom pieces will not come at every corner. Therefore, as a grounded entrepreneur, she also is aware that she needed a more stable source of income to her business. The regular collections serve that purpose while also allowing her to fulfill her passion for travel!
As mentioned earlier, she gets inspiration from her trips, from cultures she discovers and turns them into metallic jewelry pieces. Isa often works with silver sterling, brass and sometimes gold. Beautiful, intriguing, different.
You can find her regular collections in some boutiques – she even is present in one in Nice, France already! – and also at markets. For example, she was at the Grande Braderie Québécoise de Montréal in Fall 2019.
Her regular collections prices currently range between $50-$250.
Where To Find Isa & Art’Isa Creations
Isa is so easy to talk to – if you want to meet her and get inspired as well, do not hesitate to reach out! Either introduce yourself in person at a market – just follow her on Facebook, she often shares where she will be next – or at the boutique 🙂
Follow Art’Isa Creations on Facebook here.
Discover the Bijoux Nanou Boutique.
You can also directly browse through her collection on Etsy, or on her upcoming website (it was not launched yet at the time of publishing this article).
Visit Art’Isa Creations’ website: www.artisacreations.ca
Hope this Female Tribute inspired you; if you have anyone else you believe deserves to be recognized as well, do not hesitate to reach out 🙂
WithNancy 