March 17th, 2026

​It began as a detour after lunch at Hudson’s Hamburgers on Sherman Avenue in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. I’d spotted a bead shop farther down the street and couldn’t stop thinking about it. This was the early–mid 1990s, when I was still a sewist, not yet a jewelry maker. We were on our way to our annual Montana trip, but first — burgers, a stretch, and one quick stop.

The shop is almost certainly gone now. But places like it still exist if you know where to look — tucked into small towns, a little mysterious, a little magical.

I didn’t have much time, and bead stores were completely new territory. Still, the moment I stepped inside, I was captivated. The dim lighting. The faint sweetness of incense. Jewelry dangling from the walls like tiny sculptures. Trays and bins brimming with beads. It felt bohemian, artistic, slightly rebellious — and it spoke directly to something in me.

Then I saw the necklace.

I lifted it from the display and carried it with me while I wandered. It was simple — leather cord, brass and horn beads, and a smooth carved dolphin pendant. Very boho. Very sixties. Completely irresistible.

I didn’t just want it.
I wanted to make things like it.

So I bought it — not as jewelry, but as inspiration.

Since I had never beaded before, I also picked out tools: a cheap blue set of pliers made in Pakistan. I’m certain I still have a couple of them somewhere. (There's one below.) Then I searched for beads and leather that would let me recreate that dolphin necklace.

That small purchase — a necklace, a few tools, a handful of supplies — quietly marked the first step in what would become my life as a jewelry designer and maker.

The necklace still hangs in my collection today here at the Hayes house. In our Livingston home, it lived on the wall of my studio where I could see it every day. I rarely wear it.

It isn’t just jewelry anymore.
It’s the symbol of where everything began.

✦  This moment lives in the Introduction of 30 Years at My Bench. 

The original pliers that started it all.