Fascinated by the different colours and shapes of sea glass and having an interest in jewellery, Zoë Strong decided to merge her two passions and set up Agape by Zoë in 2019.
“I started making earrings for myself and my friends and eventually, I began selling my work,” said Zoë.
Utilising two methods to make her eye-catching jewellery – wire wrapping and setting the sea glass in silver – no two Agape by Zoë pieces are the same.
She said: “My style is very much influenced by the natural shapes of the glass and the sea.
“With every earring and necklace I make, I try to keep it simple so that the metal enhances the colours and shapes of the sea glass rather than overpowers it.”
Zoë says she’s inspired by the elements of the sea such as waves and tides, but also the symbolism of sea glass.
She explained: “The wonderful thing about sea glass is the transformative journey that it has taken.
“Broken glass takes years to be smoothed by the sea before it washes up on our beaches.
“When we wear jewellery made from sea glass, we become part of its story and it becomes part of ours.
“To me, this is a beautiful illustration of love and I try to encapsulate this in my work.”
Zoë thinks sea glass is a beautiful material to work with.
She added: “I like working with sea glass, especially because each piece of glass is completely unique.
“I can also spend a lot of my time at beaches and call it work.
“As much as I love being cosy at my workspace, there is nothing better than being out on a beach collecting sea glass.”
In addition to colourful sea glass, Zoë also works with wire and sheet silver.
She said: “Sheet silver, which I use for my Thala jewellery, is probably my favourite as it involves soldering – it is so satisfying to do.”
Zoë, who currently studies theology at Aberdeen University, enjoys having a creative outlet.
She said: “I love this balance of academic and creative work – it’s really fun to see how my skills from each area flow into each other.
“For example, I think my creativity causes me to see things in a more abstract way when I approach an academic topic.”
This is also the reason why she decided to offer jewellery-making kits, letting budding jewellery-makers create their own pieces.
She said: “I find so much joy in making jewellery and have always used my creativity to relieve stress and have fun.
“Because of my own experience, I’m so passionate about encouraging people to explore their own creativity so I created a product to allow people to do this.
“The kits have everything you need to make your own unique sea glass jewellery and the kit comes with a link to a tutorial.
“I’ve loved seeing how people have used the kits in different ways such as to make presents or others have ordered them as a group and made them together over Zoom.
“One customer ordered kits as something to do with their mum on Christmas Day as they were unable to have their usual celebrations.”
At the moment, Zoë creates all her jewellery and DIY kits from her parents’ home in Strichen in Aberdeenshire.
“When I moved home, I took over a little back room and I’m slowly making it my own,” said Zoë
Sustainability is at the heart of everything the talented jewellery-maker does.
She said: “Sustainability is very important to me, particularly when I’m very aware of the ethical issues within the metal industry.
“Not only does the industry use up a significant proportion of the world’s energy, but metal is also difficult to trace.
“I’m always trying to move my business as far away from this as possible.
“Most of the silver I use is EcoSilver which is 100% recycled, traceable and audited and my packaging is fully recyclable.
“However, this does not make my business fully sustainable, so I will always be looking for ways to be better.
“It is so important to me that as a small business I don’t just point the finger at bigger companies but reflect on myself and find ways that I can be better.”
Zoë sells her earrings, necklaces and DIY jewellery-making kits on Etsy and Instagram.
She said: “I like it when people buy through Instagram as I love to know who’s buying – it makes me feel like I have a relationship with my customers.
“I have a lot of customers who have been with me from the very beginning and are always supporting and encouraging me.
“I even have a few lovely ladies who regularly supply me with beautiful pieces of sea glass – they’re my favourites!”
Visit www.etsy.com/uk/shop/AgapeCraftsByZoe and www.instagram.com/agapebyzoe for more information on Agape by Zoë and to shop
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