Jewelry design on target

Describe your business.

RusticKnitt is a fashion accessories line focused on bullets. The line offers necklaces, bracelets, earrings and scarves all made of or embellished with nickel and brass bullets.

How did you become interested in jewelry design?

My background is in video and photography, but I have always had an interest in fashion. My initial concept was to start off with a line of scarves and build my way up to a full fashion line.

Waking up to CNN every morning and constantly seeing the argument for the pros and cons of gun control, I got the idea to put bullets on a scarf. I was so pleased with the design that it led to the decision to jump in with both feet. I quit the job I had at the time and started dedicating all my time toward launching my collection. I neglected the small fact that I live in the desert; by the time I got everything going, it was mid-May and scarf weather was gone for the summer. I found myself with a lot of bullets and not a high demand for scarves. I decided to start playing around with making jewelry. Without having any prior jewelry experience, I started experimenting and learning a new skill.

Who are your customers?

The customer base is very eclectic and ranges from military and gun enthusiasts to hipsters and punk rockers.

One of the first events I did was First Friday. I was very worried about the reaction people would have, as everyone tends to be extremely passionate about guns and gun control. I was pleasantly surprised that the negative reaction was very limited.

What makes your business unique?

It is difficult to be unique in our society. All I can hope for is that I can offer a different perspective and make someone view something in a different light. Starting in June, I am pledging to donate part of our monthly profit from sales of the Bullet Collection to charities benefitting victims of gun violence. I would like to use the collection to provoke conversation about gun control in our country.

What’s the most important part of your job?

I really want to offer a unique perspective of the time that I’m living in. It is difficult to not draw inspiration from previous artists but I feel there can always be a different interpretation. It is not easy to start a business and mistakes can be costly. I have had to learn a lot of the administrative parts of doing business really quickly, and at times it becomes overwhelming.

What is the hardest part about doing business in Las Vegas?

The best place for any product in Las Vegas is in and around the Strip. Las Vegas Boulevard gives you access to the world. The difficult part has been trying to get into stores in the casinos. Most stores are corporate-owned, and it becomes a scavenger hunt to track down the person who makes the decisions.

What is the best part about doing business in Las Vegas?

I love that our town is constantly changing and evolving. Being in a tourist town motivates me that my work has the potential to travel the world.