=========== From the SF Chronicle, March 27th, 2011 ===============
As a chemical engineering student at UC Berkeley who eventually switched to biology, Peggy Li had already considered a couple of other careers.
In high school, she thought about being a pastry chef. A serious love of TV also led her to consider screenwriting. But ultimately it was the handmade jewelry she saw along Berkeley's Telegraph Avenue that most inspired her.
"It found me," the 37-year-old San Franciscan admits. "Early on, I didn't think about designing jewelry as a career, because I thought being a doctor or engineer was a 'real' job. "But I remember the artisans on Telegraph doing wire work, lots of really beautiful hair clips made from nickel and copper. I loved the hand-crafted look of them, and I loved the uniqueness of the pieces, done by hand, out of the imagination of the artisans."
Born in Mountain View and raised in Santa Rosa, Li has always been a creative type with an interest in arts and crafts. "I started by making pieces for my friends," she recalls. "A pair of earrings with a birthstone or a simple necklace. I found I loved making jewelry, because it's instant gratification."
Li moved to Los Angeles after graduation but continued making jewelry in her free time. While working as a pop culture writer for Channel One, she profiled Cynthia Bergstrom, a costume designer for "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" (and also a Santa Rosa native).
A couple weeks after their interview, Li worked up the courage to write Bergstrom a letter and send her some of her jewelry. Less than a week later, she received a call from the show saying they loved her designs and wanted her to send more.
"It was such validation," says Li, who admits with a laugh, "and sort of crazy, too."
"They were just really simple and beautiful," recalls Bergstrom, who soon used Li's jewelry for actress Patricia Arquette's character on "Medium" and later for characters on "CSI Miami" and "Private Practice."
"What I like about Peggy's jewelry is that it accentuates and doesn't distract. Some of the pieces are very ethereal, and some are just fun. They don't overpower. And her prices are great - she keeps things very accessible."
The exposure on "Buffy" led fans and media to ask where they could purchase the jewelry, and the interest motivated Li to set up a website to sell her designs online. Loyal customer and "Buffy" fan Katharine Yee of San Francisco discovered Li's jewelry when doing an online search about the show.
"There's a nice symmetry in her designs," says Yee, who now owns more than a dozen pieces of Li's jewelry. "You don't feel like the jewelry is wearing you. The lines are clean and not fussy. Her jewelry feels elegant and even if I'm wearing a schleppy outfit, I feel great."
Accessible pricing
Priced from about $50 to $200, Li uses beads, semi-precious stones, vintage finds and charms along with sterling silver and 14k gold-filled metal chains to create her deceptively simple designs. Her spring 2011 collection, which she designs out of a small studio space in her Potrero Hill home, incorporates asymmetrical, fluid shapes in gold and silver with stones in shades of blue, pink and white."I was just looking for some really fresh colors for spring, trying to keep it light," she says. "The collection is all about pops of color and touches of texture that's light and easy to wear."
While she previously also sold her jewelry at a couple of brick-and-mortar boutiques in San Francisco, Li now sells her designs exclusively online from her website. The difficult economic climate of the past few years and the uncertainty of life as a jewelry designer and small business owner can be daunting, she says.
"It took me a lot of time to admit to people I was making jewelry. But I love the process of creating, and I also enjoy the selling. The energy in San Francisco encourages individuality and challenges you to be unique."
Designer focus
Li, who once worked full time doing marketing for an online gaming site, now works part time for the company. She says having work outside the jewelry business actually helps her focus as a designer."A lot of the creative freedom I've had comes from having two jobs," she says. "I'm not as affected by the ups and downs of the jewelry business by having this other part-time job. I feel like I can take more risks and invest funds in travel and classes."
And the rewards for her work definitely go beyond financial.
"I love that my work can give people confidence," she says. "The best compliment I can get is when someone tells me they get compliments on how great they look."
For more information or to purchase Peggy Li's jewelry, go to www.peggyli.com.
Peggy's blog is at here.
