The Hope Creations Story
Thanks for visiting our website. To say that I love what I do is a HUGE understatement! I've got the best job EVER!! I always wanted to open my own store "when I grew up"! My retail career began with my working papers at age 14 in my aunts tanning salon/ little boutique. I remember following customers all around her store and feeling like it was mine. Throughout high school, I worked at different mall stores and it wasn't until I went out to college that I
really invested myself in where I worked. I was always the "artsy" kid of the family.
My first year of college was a focus on ceramics and turned into a major in painting. While working at this great little store on Pearl Street in Boulder, the store owner taught us how
to cut vintage jewelry pieces and re-create something great with wire working these great, old glass beads into new funky pieces with a few tools and our imagination. I found myself wanting to do only that and from there, my interest in metals and jewelry design grew.
Following college and meeting my husband Mike in Boulder, we moved back to my hometown in Rhode Island and it seems like within a blink, our three daughters were born. Mike worked
himself thin to allow me the opportunity to stay at home with our girls. But, even at home, nothing could keep me from crafting. I worked as a freelance mural artist, made small pottery pieces, took painting classes and consistently beaded.
Hope Creations opened it's doors for business on August 1, 2005 as an "Artsy Fartsy" Gift Store. Without much of a plan, but a whole lot of excitement, I signed our first lease on our 900 square foot storefront. We had just returned from 7 months in Houston, Texas where my husband had a stem cell transplant and the clarity that life is short smacked me in the face. I know that I always wanted to open my own store so at a time that many people may have thought that I was nuts to take on such an endeavor, it seemed like no better timing to me. As a cancer survivor, now playing the role of caregiver to my full of fight husband, this was the time. There
is no time like the present to go for your dreams.
After Mike was diagnosed with Stage 4B Lymphoma, our family realized how short life really is and that there is no time like the present. Following a dream, I decided to open Hope Creations to showcase my jewelry and that of other local artists. Hope Creations began with a focus on hand crafted gifts. Shortly after opening, we realized after listening to our customers, that there was a need for a bead supply store in our area and the supply of
jewelry making supplies has been growing ever since. Our focus is on quality made gifts and custom made, quality Sterling Silver Jewelry. We offer beading classes, as well as finished jewelry and jewelry making supplies for those who like to make their own.
Our hope is to continue to grow with the needs of our community and customers. We love what we do. Mike has become more involved with the business as he continues to fight his battle with cancer. Often our customers will come in to Hope Creations to the sounds of our three daughters or the greeting of a slobbering lab. We love what we do and couldn't do it without our awesome customers! THANK YOU!