Wednesday 9 October 2013

Interview with Kirsty from DiGgeek - jewellery for the fashion conscious archaeologist!


Nothing is more interesting than our human past.  Alright, that might not be a universal opinion...!  But really, what could better than combining a love of the past with a love of personal adornment, meaning archaeologically themed jewellery?? In my latest interview, I ask Kirsty from DiGgeek about her Etsy shop and business, and her fantastic, sometimes humerous, always original, pieces:

Cory: Please tell us a bit about yourself and DiGgeek.

Kirsty: I'm a bioarchaeologist having obtained (through ancient DNA, sweat and tears) my doctorate at Durham university a couple of years ago. I realised that the life of the pure academic was not for me though and started doing lots of outreach with the public - all about bones of course! I worked my way into the university museums and am now a full time learning officer on world heritage site, so I must be doing something right! 



C: How did you begin making and selling jewellery?


K: Not one for 'spare time' (not that the job gives me much!) and inspired by a colleague who makes jewellery, I thought it was time that we archaeologists had some stuff tailored specifically for us and thus DiGgeek was born.

C: Why archaeology?


K: Archaeology is awesome! I can't think of many things more exciting than being the first to touch something after, say 2000 years which I've had the privilege of doing. That's of course just the 'field' stuff, it was working with ancient humans themselves in the lab that really grabbed my attention - who better to learn from that the people who walked the earth themselves? It's all so exciting and archaeology lends itself really well to beautiful and quirky jewellery and gifts.

C: Some of your necklaces feature lego men - is a bit of fun and humour in what you sell important to you?

K: Humour is really important to me when I create things for DiGgeek. I think a lot of my things reflect my personality and the LEGO is a good example of that. My living room is full of Indiana Jones LEGO and being in the job I am, it's important to keep a sense of fun in everything you do and your approach to life in general, otherwise I would probably be really boring to listen to...

C: Where does your crafting fit into your life - is it a big part?

K: Crafting takes up probably more of my time than I can afford but people are responding really well to the products so I don't think I'll be stopping any time soon! I''ve also just massively expanded the range of stuff on offer (which will be listed soon!) but it's all quite labour intensive. I''ll keep going though and maybe one day I'll make my millions (I can't begin to tell you how unlikely this is for an archaeologist and museum professional!). It's all good fun though and my Mum's started helping out at fairs which is really nice as we don't get to spend a lot of time together usually.

DiGgeek reopens on the 24th of October, after Kirsty is back from doing amazing archaeological things! You can also like DiGgeek on Facebook and stay up to date with the goings on. I'm coveting the sterling silver trowel necklace, hopefully I can drop enough strong hints to the husband before Christmas...

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