My Other Life with Janet Reimund

PM360 recently spoke to Janet Reimund, Senior Manager, Patient Engagement and Advocacy, CSL Behring, about creating her own jewelry line.

PM360: How did you get started making jewelry?

Janet Reimund: I always had a love for both jewelry and nature. My father was a landscape designer and taught me everything he knew about leaves and plants. My mother was an accomplished seamstress who designed and made clothes—even wedding gowns. She taught me how to design and sew and to always have a vision of the end product and work backwards. I combined both of their passions and channel that into designing and making botanical jewelry, which I have been doing for four and a half years now. I sell it via my online shop called “Woods and Willow” (www.etsy.com/shop/woodsandwillow).

What is the meaning behind that name?

Because my parents were a huge inspiration to me, I named the first part of my business—“Woods”—because it is a derivative of my father’s name and “Willow” is our family tree and also my favorite tree because of its rich symbolism. Weeping Willow trees thrive near water sources, have graceful branches that reach out to new heights, are flexible to withstand storms, and have deep roots—all of which mirror our struggles and where we find our inspiration to overcome adversity on our own, personal journey.

Did anyone inspire or teach you how to make jewelry?

I’ve always been a jewelry lover and especially attracted to handmade, organic jewelry. I was at an art fair and visited a booth where the artist made jewelry from Precious Metal Clay, which I learned was so versatile in capturing the rich details found in nature. This clay, when fired at 1,650° for two hours, transforms into solid, sterling silver. This intrigued me so much and I took many classes to perfect my skills. I’ve also taken many classes from nationally acclaimed instructors in metalsmithing, jewelry design, advanced gemstone setting, and bead work.

What do you hope people who see or wear your jewelry take away from it?

My main goal with making botanical jewelry is to encourage my wearers to “Look Up!” Look up from your cell phones, computers, and busy lives and breathe in the beauty of nature that is always surrounding us yet seldom noticed. I even started debossing these two simple words on the back of my jewelry to further remind them.

I am also on a new mission. I am putting my nature-inspired jewelry designs towards a good cause, namely, anti-bullying initiatives. I am proud to announce that I have a new “branch” to my current collections, entitled, “Sticks and Stones.” Proceeds from the sale of these pieces will be provided to anti-bullying foundations in support of bringing national attention to bullying incidents occurring throughout the country and developing resolutions to end this epidemic. So please join this movement to end bullying and help make a difference to connect people one stick at a time!

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