Petaluma artisan pursues creative passion

Robindira Unsworth’s handmade jewelry glitters around the globe.|

Petaluman Robindira Unsworth discovered her love for crafting handmade creations when she taught herself to sew intricate favors for her wedding, tapping into a hidden creative desire that would later lead her to form a popular jewelry business in partnership with her husband.

She enrolled in a sewing class after the wedding to expand her skills, and she quickly found herself working to balance a career as a recreational therapist at St. Mary’s Medical Center with her newfound obsession.

“Every night I would come home from work and sew until two or three in the morning,” she said. “I made (bags) for friends and friends of friends, and local boutiques in San Francisco would ask, ‘Where did you get that bag?’”

She started selling her handbags to stores, experimenting to create evening bags with beaded handles and fringe. Soon, she expanded her operations to make beaded jewelry, later enrolling in a silver smithing class.

Her designs gained popularity, and with support from her husband, Robert Unsworth, she took a leap of faith, leaving her post as a social worker to chase her dream of creating jewelry in the early 2000s.

“A lot of people would’ve thought it was crazy to quit their full-time job and pursue a job making jewelry when that wasn’t what you had studied, but he always really believed in me,” said Robindira, who holds a degree in psychology from the University of Colorado Boulder.

Her ambition paid off, and now, her jewelry is sold in about 250 stores across the globe. The 46-year-old also operates a downtown Petaluma boutique where she offers her own jewelry along with shoes, clothes and accessories from a variety of designers, and the couple is discussing opening another store within the next year.

Robert, 49, who left a career in tech to go into business with his wife, said he’s grateful the couple has built “something we are both proud of.”

“It’s really nice to see we’re both so passionate about what we do, and it’s wonderful to share that passion,” he said.

The duo runs the store and the global retail operations, working with a team that handles everything from assisting with making jewelry to creating promotional materials and customer service. Robindira said there are unique challenges to operating a small business, adding that it’s all about finding balance.

“We’re always busy, there’s always a deadline and really everything is needed yesterday, so we’re always trying to keep up with the flow while keeping in mind that we create objects of beauty. For me, it’s crucial that everyone enjoys what they’re doing,” she said.

She designs four collections a year in her studio inside the Petaluma store, and a team of jewelry artisans work to reproduce the pieces for larger distribution, she said.

Currently, she’s working on her spring 2017 collection, creating necklaces with amazonite stones she recently sourced in small batches. The collection will also include long slinky pieces utilizing her current favorites: Australian Opal, moonstone and chrysocolla.

The inspiration for her creations originally came from her East Indian background and travels, but has expanded to include her Northern California roots.

“Jewelry is such a personal and precious gift,” she said. “When I started designing jewelry, and as I got into it, I really wanted to offer pieces that had a relaxed, luxurious feel but also pieces that one could feel really comfortable wearing every day that weren’t fussy, utilize the finest stones and metals and were made by hand with love.”

When she isn’t designing jewelry or merchandising her store, Robindira spends time working on her 156-year-old house on D Street, gardening with her daughter or exploring Petaluma with her friends and family. She’s also an active member of the W.H. Pepper Preschool board.

“We feel really fortunate to have landed here,” she said. “It has a great hometown feel, character, soul and there’s always different fundraisers that we help with. I feel like this is a really nurturing community, and I’m glad that we are here.”

For more details, visit robindira.com.

(Contact Nicole Santos at argus@arguscourier.com.)

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