Statements are made by people everywhere and every day.
Words flow from mouths like water from rivers —it’s a part of being human.
But not all statements are made verbally, some of the best ones are done by actions or even in what you wear.
Margaret Seruvatu makes a living by helping people make fashion statements.
She is the founder of the Vanami Clay Company and makes earrings for the bold.
Unlike others who make earrings, Margaret uses polymer clay as the base material for her wares.
Polymer clay is a polyvinyl chloride (PVC) based modelling clay.
While it contains no actual clay minerals it requires a liquid be added to it to achieve a gel-like texture and needs to be hardened in an oven.
Inspired by Pinterest boards, she got into making her jewellery when COVID-19 first gripped Fiji.
It started with a friend gifting her some of the clay and with all the time at home, she found the patience to try making her own.
“A friend bought me some polymer clay and during the first lockdown, in March 2020, I finally got around to crafting my designs,” she said.
She didn’t have all the proper tools for making jewellery with her material when she started so she improvised with soft drink cans and still cures the pieces in a regular kitchen oven.
“I started out with old aluminium cans, cut them up and formed circles and other shapes.”
“Old bits of cans were used to cut out shapes in the clay like cookie cutters, and after making some sales I had enough to buy proper tools.
“I started making earrings and sold them online under the name Vanami Clay.”
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The name was drawn from the names of her niece Sevena and nephew Mika, ‘Vana’ from Sevana and ‘mi’ from Mikaia, combining the two to make Venami.
Margaret said she was also job hunting, but her new found passion also provided the support for herself.
“I was looking for a job too and this business was a good source of income for me and I was able to fully support myself.
I have been selling online on a weekly basis, but then demand grew and it was hard to keep up with the orders.
“It takes quite a while to make the pieces with the polymer clay because it’s like blocks of plasticine and I mould it.”
One of the challenges of working with a material such as Polymer Clay in Fiji is sourcing it and getting it in regular supply.
Margaret says she gotten around this by focusing on earrings which use a lot less clay.
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“I’m sticking to the small stuff for now and when I can get it in regular supply and in larger quantities, and hopefully by then demand and production will increase, I’ll move into other accessories as well.”
Her jewellery collections are exactly what she says they are, statement pieces and they are unique both in terms of the craft and designs.
“I’m inspired a lot by my culture, my Fijian and PNG heritage, so I try to incorporate motifs from both my Fijian culture and my PNG culture.
“I try to incorporate masi motifs and different colours.”
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One of the staple pieces are the ibe earrings that she weaves out of clay strips.
“I feel like this sets me apart from other designers especially the other designers who are doing earrings. ”
A lot of my pieces are statement pieces and the people who buy my jewellery are out there to make a statement.”
You can find Venami Clay Co earrings on the shelves at the Duatani boutique on Victoria Pde in Suva.
