Staff writer
Laura Francis of Florence, after suffering for a couple of years with grief, found joy again by making jewelry.
Francis became depressed about five years ago when her husband, Richard, passed away while they were separated. She said she questioned whether she could have done anything to prevent it. She was so melancholy she couldn’t even leave her home.
Eventually, in an effort to overcome depression, she took up a variety of hobbies, but they all frustrated her.
Things turned around when she became interested in making jewelry. She was watching a television shopping channel about jewelry, and the hosts talked about making jewelry.
Francis began looking for resources about making jewelry and found many books and magazines on the subject.
“It relaxed me,” she said. “I discovered, as I grew out of the depression, that jewelry can lift your spirits.”
As her moods brightened, she reached the point where she said she was able to forgive herself.
“It just got to be really fun, and I loved making things for my family and other people,” Francis said.
Less than a year ago, she began selling her work. Selling jewelry allows her to continue her hobby, and it is fulfilling to know someone likes her jewelry enough to buy it.
“Everybody needs to be appreciated,” Francis said.
She spends more time designing pieces than making them. She sometimes spends two or three days brainstorming a design for a necklace, but putting it together only takes a few hours.
The hobby isn’t as expensive as she thought it would be, she said. She does some repairs, but making designs for people is her specialty.
She recently started attending craft shows to display her jewelry. She set up a booth Sept. 19 at Art in the Park in Marion.
“It’s fun to get to meet people,” Francis said.
Anyone interested in her jewelry can make an appointment with Francis by phone, (620) 878-4391.