Building a Full-Time Jewellery Business After the Diploma with Alice Catherine (podcast episode)
What does it really take to build a full-time jewellery business from scratch?
In this inspiring episode of the Jewellers Academy podcast, Jessica Rose is joined by Alice Catherine to talk about her incredible journey from complete beginner during lockdown to running a successful jewellery business and shop on the Isle of Lewis in Scotland.
Alice shares how she discovered jewellery making in 2021, enrolled on the Diploma in Silver Jewellery with Jewellers Academy just days later and funded her studies through selling jewellery online while she learned. Since then, she has built a thriving jewellery brand inspired by the Scottish coastline, grown an online audience of over 50,000 followers and now creates ocean-inspired jewellery in silver, gold and gemstones.
She has also achieved something many jewellers dream about: building a successful bricks and mortar jewellery shop with her jeweller’s bench in the back, creating and selling her work from the same space, and growing the business to the point where she now employs staff and freelance support.
In this episode of the Jewellers Academy Podcast, Jessica Rose talks to Alice about how she went from complete beginner to full-time jeweller, how she funded her Diploma through selling jewellery, and why starting before you feel fully ready can sometimes be the best decision you make.
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KEY MOMENTS IN THIS EPISODE
00:00: Introduction
02:00: Introduction to Alice Catherine and her jewellery journey
03:16: Starting jewellery making during lockdown in 2021
04:10: Discovering Jewellers Academy and signing up for the Diploma
07:18: Funding the Diploma through jewellery sales
08:05: Balancing the Diploma alongside full-time work
08:45: Why online jewellery learning worked so well for Alice
11:43: The jewellery making skills Alice still uses every day
13:12: Revisiting Diploma tutorials years later
17:09: Moving to the Isle of Lewis and making jewellery in an attic workshop
19:07: Why you do not need the perfect workshop to start
20:07: Opening her jewellery shop in Stornoway
22:22: Learning about stock, casting and running a jewellery business
24:48: Creating a sustainable handmade jewellery brand
26:35: Growing an audience through Instagram and TikTok
27:45: Going viral on Instagram and growing to 50,000 followers
30:00: Why repeat customers matter more than follower numbers
31:18: Creating jewellery inspired by the ocean and Scottish islands
33:38: Building a team and balancing motherhood with business
35:14: Alice’s advice for new jewellery makers considering the Diploma
37:08: Where to find and follow Alice Catherine Jewellery
From Beginner to Jewellery Business Owner
Alice started making jewellery in January 2021 during the second lockdown. After trying a simple beading kit, she quickly realised she wanted to learn traditional jewellery making techniques including soldering and stone setting. Within days, she discovered Jewellers Academy and enrolled onto the Diploma in Silver Jewellery.
At the time, she was furloughed from work and looking for something creative and meaningful to focus on. Although the decision felt impulsive, it turned out to be life-changing.
One of the most inspiring parts of Alice’s story is that she funded her Diploma by selling jewellery as she learned. Using her background in social media marketing, she started sharing her work online and quickly began attracting customers.
Rather than waiting until she felt ‘ready,’ Alice used the Diploma as a catalyst to begin building her jewellery business immediately.
Learning Jewellery Making Online
For Alice, studying online made jewellery training possible.
Living remotely in Scotland and later moving to the Isle of Lewis, an in-person course simply wouldn’t have been practical. The flexible structure of the Diploma allowed her to fit learning around work and life, studying in evenings and weekends at her own pace.
She also found the video format invaluable:
Being able to pause and rewind demonstrations
Learning techniques step-by-step
Revisiting tutorials years later when needed
Exploring different tutors’ approaches to jewellery making
Alice shares how even now she still goes back to the course videos for refreshers on soldering, stone setting and technical processes.
Building a Jewellery Workshop in an Attic
After moving to the Isle of Lewis, Alice completed much of her Diploma from the attic space in her in-laws’ home. The workshop had no window and no running water, yet she still completed her final project there.
It is a powerful reminder that you do not need the perfect studio setup to begin.
Many jewellers start from:
Kitchen tables
Spare bedrooms
Garden sheds
Corners of living rooms
Temporary workspaces
What matters most is consistency, determination and building your skills over time.
Alice on the day her shop opened on the Isle of Lewis
Opening a Jewellery Shop
As Alice’s jewellery business grew, an opportunity arose to take over a small shop space in Stornoway. Although the idea initially felt daunting, she realised the monthly cost was manageable because she had already proven she could consistently make sales through her jewellery.
Rather than aiming for a huge retail operation, she approached the shop as:
A workshop space
A place to meet customers
A natural next step for the business
Over time, the business evolved organically.
Alice now creates ocean-inspired jewellery featuring silver, gold and gemstones, with many customers drawn to the connection between her work and the Scottish landscape.
Rings by Alice Catherine jewellery
Growing Through Social Media
Alice’s background in social media marketing helped her grow her jewellery brand online. A viral Instagram reel helped her audience jump from around 8,000 followers to over 50,000 in a matter of days.
However, one of the most important things she shares in this episode is that follower numbers are not everything.
Her business has grown through:
Repeat customers
Building trust
Sharing the journey
Creating meaningful jewellery
Staying connected to her audience
Alice also talks honestly about the reality of social media always changing and the importance of adapting over time rather than expecting instant success.
Creating Jewellery with Meaning
One of the reasons Alice’s jewellery resonates so deeply is because it is rooted in place and story.
Inspired by the Isle of Lewis and the surrounding ocean, her collections connect emotionally with customers who have ties to Scotland, the islands or the sea.
This is a valuable lesson for any jewellery business owner: people are not only buying jewellery, they are buying connection, meaning and emotion.
Advice for New Jewellery Makers
Alice’s advice for anyone considering the Diploma is simple: just start.
She shares that one of her biggest worries before joining was finding the time to complete the course alongside work and life. But in reality, studying a few evenings a week or at weekends was manageable and became something she genuinely looked forward to.
Her journey proves that you do not need:
A perfect workshop
Years of experience
Huge amounts of money
A detailed business plan
Complete confidence
You just need to begin.
Ready to Start Your Own Jewellery Journey?
Photos above are projects in the Diploma in Silver Jewellery
If Alice’s story has inspired you to take the next step in your jewellery making journey, enrolment for the Diploma in Silver Jewellery is now open.
Like Alice, you can:
Learn professional jewellery making techniques from home
Build your skills step-by-step
Create beautiful finished pieces
Receive support from expert jewellers
Study flexibly around your life and work
Begin building your jewellery business while you learn
Whether your dream is to sell your work online, open your own jewellery studio or simply develop your creativity, the Diploma can help you get there.
Because every jewellery business starts somewhere. Sometimes all it takes is saying yes to the first step.