Tiffany Zhu

“One [thing I’ve learned] is creativity and problem solving. There’s a lot of innovation, like ‘How can I manipulate this to look like what I want, but without using countless things?’ I’ve also learned precision and focus, and I have an eye for small details. That applies to school, so when I’m learning, I make sure to understand every aspect of a subject,” Katie Reed (12) said.

As Katie Reed (12) scrolls through her social media feed, a video of a creator expertly threading a wire through a metal charm to create jewelry catches her attention. For a brief moment, she pauses, captivated by the artist’s skill and precision. In that instant, a burst of inspiration ignites within her. Before she’ll know it, her interest in arts and crafts will evolve into a journey that equips her with a range of life skills. 

Katie’s love for arts and crafts activities began in seventh grade when she started bullet journaling every day. Since then, her interests expanded to crafting candles and fashioning keychains. In her junior year, she discovered an interest in jewelry-making after seeing videos and photos of the craft on various social media platforms. 

During the process of making her first necklace, Katie sought guidance from online creators and artists. The craft itself was difficult, taking over three hours to complete one piece of jewelry  Although completing the piece took over three hours, Katie persevered until she achieved a finished product. 

“My favorite [piece of jewelry] was my first necklace I ever made,” Katie said. “It was very difficult to get started, and so I was very pleased with the end result. I was scared because in the process videos, [the creators] make everything seem easy, but it’s not. Sometimes there’s a lot of nitpicking with the wire, so it’s a little difficult to get started. I was really proud because it took me so long. ” 

To make a necklace, Katie first looks for inspiration from friends and various media sites. Then, she picks out the gems and charms she plans on incorporating into the piece, and using pliers, she molds wire through the pendants to create one connected piece of jewelry. 

The wearable art pieces Katie designs gained support from her friends. Although jewelry-making is a unique hobby, she still openly shares her creations with people she cares about. 

“Katie wants to show me when she’s making [jewelry], and it’s always really cool,” close friend Annabel Yang (12) said. “She spends a lot of time doing it outside of school. Everyone in our friend group is encouraging her to open a shop or sell [jewelry], and when she was first getting into it, she was really excited to make one for all of us.” 

Katie especially enjoys crafting jewelry for her friends and family. In April, she handcrafted a necklace for her close friend Cecilia Yang (12) to wear at prom. The necklace featured a silver bow, intricately fashioned from white pearls, which required a new type of wire Katie learned to handle in order to finish the piece. Cecilia admires Katie’s detailed process for creating her jewelry. 

“She was very excited about [making the necklace],” Cecilia said. “She had a lot of ideas, and it’s cool how she implements those ideas into a reality. With my specific necklace, she was trying something new, and she was getting inspired by other people’s necklaces that she saw online. I also did get a lot of positive comments on it.”  

Engaging in a niche hobby like jewelry-making presents challenges in seeking help and obtaining all the supplies needed. Despite moments of feeling discouraged when creating, Katie always adapts to her circumstances, a skill that proves valuable in her academic studies. 

“One [thing I’ve learned] is creativity and problem solving,” Katie said. “There’s a lot of innovation, like ‘How can I manipulate this to look like what I want, but without using countless things?’ I’ve also learned precision and focus, and I have an eye for small details. That applies to school, so when I’m learning, I make sure to understand every aspect of a subject.”

Through her craft, Katie also cultivated a sense of determination. She recognizes the parallels between creating a finished jewelry piece and fully understanding concepts in classes. Both take time and commitment to excel. 

“[Others] see my dedication,” Katie said, “There have been times, especially when I was in sophomore year, where I was struggling with certain things, but I would always go in and ask [teachers], ‘How can I do this?’ or ‘How can I improve my work?’ There’s a dedication and focus [that others see].” 

In her classes, when she sets her mind to a belief, she unwaveringly supports it. Upper school math teacher Caren Furtado proudly sees Katie confidently assert herself in front of others.

“Once we were having a group test, and she was in a group of fairly aggressive kids,” Furtado said. “They were like, ‘We got all this.’ Katie had a different answer from this other child, and she said, ‘No, you’re not right.’ She told them to look at her work. I had never seen her like this before, and it was really, really great to see.” 

Katie’s dedication ascends beyond jewelry-making and academics. Her commitment also shines in her role in journalism. As the business manager for Harker’s yearbook, TALON, Katie serves as the mediator between parents and the TALON staff. While she can feel frustrated when communication wavers, she remains calm, a trait Katie’s close friend Natalie Chen (12) admires. 

“My first impression of her was that she was a leader,” Natalie said. “Now, that’s developed into the fact that she’s really strong-spirited, hardworking, and ambitious. I know that she applied for a senior position in journalism, and she was really proud of the fact that she got it. It may be a lot of work on her part, but I really admire how she balances her life.”

While Katie’s passion in jewelry-making is not widely known, those who know her witness her strong work ethic and ambition, true products of her craft. In the future, Katie hopes to grow her jewelry-making skills into a business that can reach more people who appreciate her art. 

“Jewelry-making is an outlet for me to be very creative, and it’s also fairly unique,” Katie said. “It’s not necessarily a very particular method of expressing creativity. [Jewelry-making] is something that is more out there, but it’s a really good way to bring joy to both yourself and the people that you give it to, like the people around you.”