The Story Behind the Squirrel

From our family to yours I’d like to welcome you to Holly Hill. Our name comes from the family farm tucked in the Ca foothills. It’s long gone but the memories remain. My husband told stories about his life growing up on his grampa’s ranch. Stories of peaches the size of softballs, tomatoes warm from the vine and a grama who carried love in one apron pocket and paddle in the other. From the love in those stories, Holly Hill was reborn.

It started by accident over 30 years ago and after selling for several years locally and in a few boutique retail locations I decided it was time to bring my brand to Etsy. So in 2018 we opened our storefront. What started as a way to pay for college books grew into handmade gifts for my girls school friends and eventually into a children’s jewelry line. Did you know kids can be VERY hard on beads??? It's why I only use hand crafted lampwork beads. Because their beads are properly kiln annealed. So what right? Well properly cooled beads keep from getting cold fractures, making them stronger. Still breakable if mistreated but not like those you get from a chain craft store.

Trial and error taught me to only use quality metal findings. Base metal cuts down on cost but also on quality. Using SS, gold filled, stainless and lead-free pewter causes less marking to your leather goods. Cheap metal can mark your skin and has the potential of doing the same to your notebooks.

Now that I’ve rambled on for far too long, come on in and sit for a spell. The lemonade is always fresh, the peaches ripe and the designs are always done with heart.