'Statement' jewelry and Native American inspiration at the heart of this Peoria business

Leslie Renken, Journal Star
Updated ·3 min read

PEORIA — A lifelong love for making jewelry led to a profession for Hannah Ingraham.

The 26-year-old East Peoria resident spends most days working in her studio at the Sunbeam Building in Peoria, her faithful canine companion, Suzy, at her side. Ingraham's business, Half Goose Silversmithing, has been in the Sunbeam Building since last November.

“I had been working in my attic for about eight years,” said Ingraham. “I do a lot of custom work, so I was meeting up with clients at my home and I just felt like I needed something a little bit more professional. Plus, I was craving the separation of home life and work life. I saw this space available and I was just thrilled about it. I started painting the walls that night and I think it took me a week to move in here. My grand opening was on Small Business Saturday.”

Lifelong creativity

Hannah Ingraham uses a torch to form the bezel to hold a stone in place for a piece of jewelry she's creating at her studio, Half Goose Silversmithing at the Sunbeam Building in Peoria.
Hannah Ingraham uses a torch to form the bezel to hold a stone in place for a piece of jewelry she's creating at her studio, Half Goose Silversmithing at the Sunbeam Building in Peoria.

Ingraham enjoyed handicrafts as a kid. She taught herself how to make jewelry with beads and macramé, which naturally advanced into wire wrapping, where intricate baubles are created by weaving and twisting long strands of wire and incorporating gemstones and beads. When she was 18 years old, Ingraham learned the basics of silversmithing, sawing metal and soldering by taking a class at the Peoria Art Guild. A year later she perfected her skills during a weeklong class at William Holland School of Lapidary Arts in the mountains of northern Georgia.

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“I really gained confidence in soldering and smithing, and got answers to a lot of questions that I’d built up over the past year,” she said. “That advanced me to the point where I felt confident leaving there and going home to smith on my own.”

As her skills grew, so did her client base.

“I was homeschooled for the majority of my life, and my mom really encouraged the arts and making a living off what you love to do. This has been my full-time job for almost two years,” she said.

Statement pieces

Silversmith Hannah Ingraham specializes in large, uniquely designed earrings and rings, like this one that looks like a painter's palette, at her studio Half Goose Silversmithing in the Sunbeam Building in Peoria. (Photo: MATT DAYHOFF/JOURNAL STAR)
Silversmith Hannah Ingraham specializes in large, uniquely designed earrings and rings, like this one that looks like a painter's palette, at her studio Half Goose Silversmithing in the Sunbeam Building in Peoria. (Photo: MATT DAYHOFF/JOURNAL STAR)

Ingraham's work is inspired by the classic designs of Native American jewelry.

“I use lots of turquoise and hand-stamped components. I call a lot of my rings doorknockers because your knuckles don’t really hit the door when you go to knock – so very large statement style rings,” she said.

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In addition to rings, Ingraham makes earrings, pendants and hair jewelry. Cabochons — slabs of interesting minerals cut into a variety of shapes and polished — are at the heart of Ingraham’s designs. Though she previously purchased cabochons, Ingraham recently started making them herself.

“I’m really passionate about rockhounding,” she said. “I’ve done a lot of rockhounding all over the country, from Maine to Utah.”

Ingraham scouts out sites with interesting mineral deposits where she can dig for a fee.

“Some sites are very remote, where you’re kind of going off word-of-mouth and some maps, and just going out there and digging in the dirt looking for whatever you can find. Sometimes you don’t come out with much, and other times I have strained myself loading backpacks full of rocks,” she said.

From silversmith to lapidarist

Hannah Ingraham's canine companion Suzy hangs out while she works in her studio Half Goose Silversmithing in the Sunbeam Building in Peoria.
Hannah Ingraham's canine companion Suzy hangs out while she works in her studio Half Goose Silversmithing in the Sunbeam Building in Peoria.

Ingraham has incorporated a few of her found fossils into her designs, and she plans to start cutting and polishing her own cabochons in the future.

"Last summer I took a class on cutting stones, and I’m currently saving up for the equipment," she said. "I’ll be able to cut my own stones right here in the studio. That will enable me to put my rockhounding love full circle into my jewelry."

Ingraham sells from her shop, which is open most weekdays and during the First Friday open house each month. She also sells jewelry online and at shows. Her next show will be the Peoria Heights Fine Art Fair on May 13. For more information, visit the Half Goose Silversmithing website and Facebook page.

Leslie Renken can be reached at (309) 370-5087 or lrenken@pjstar.com. Follow her on Facebook.com/leslie.renken.

This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Silversmith designs custom jewelry at Peoria, Illinois, studio