tanya rustigian.

I am beyond excited to share with you this amazing artist and jewelry designer! Having first  discovered her pieces when I was traveling on Martha's Vineyard this Summer, I was completely taken with the vintage and unique appeal each individual piece portrayed. No where in the world will you be able to find another exact key like the one around your neck, which makes each piece so special. Make sure to check out Tanya Rustigian's designs over at the Antique Key Jewelry's facebook page and stay tuned for what?...yep a GIVEAWAY!

What first inspired the creation of the Antique Key Jewelry Collection…

 The creation of the Antique Key Jewelry Collection came about in all the right ways. As my father is an antique dealer, I spent my weekends growing up at flea markets and working antique shows. I always thought old keys were so special and my dad let me keep whatever I wanted because he enjoyed seeing me enjoy his passion so much…we always shared a special bond through antiquing. I always had an excitement for rummaging, if there was a box of junk jewelry with spare earrings and mismatch brooches, I would be in my glory! Boxes of vintage buttons came straight to me before hitting the table at flea markets because Dad knew how much I loved them! My mom had me sorting button colors, shapes and sizes to keep me occupied as a toddler…it was all so meant to be! 

I collected a lot of goodies but always kept almost every key I found. I knew someday I wanted to do something with them but I didn’t put my finger on it until the summer of 2010. It was my first summer on the vineyard and I was working at a small boutique. I was asked if I wanted to sell jewelry at the shop as Citrine sells many local artwork and other nick-nacks from the island. I started creating designs out of the antique keys that always had a special place in my heart. I put a few designs in the shop and they sold right away. I kept creating, kept designing and my business took off! I’ve always enjoyed reusing and recycling old items into something new. I think it is a beautiful thing. Right now I am sipping coffee at my coffee table made out of a wooden electrical spool! So if I back track, the Antique Key Collection was inspired when I was just a tyke…I just didn’t know it. Props to my Dad...we will always share those memories!

Three words that describe your jewelry…

 Unique, Individuality (Each key is an individual, has their own story, their own secret past life and journey), Bohemian (Free spirited lifestyle in order to find your perfect key fit) 

My favorite Key…

I have so many keys that I automatically am attached to. I can’t even tell you what exactly it is I look for in my favorite keys. I have a couple I've kept that all have different meanings to them. It is definitely difficult to not keep all of the keys I love but I want other people I love to have special keys. When someone appreciates the uniqueness in a key its like a wave of admiration. I always try to pair up special keys with the special people in my life.  I have my grandfathers antique key on my actual keys. I thought about making it into a necklace but I chose to key it as a key chain. I use my keys much more consistently than I change my jewelry!! I wear a special baby key A LOT. Its so tiny and sweet I was instantly attracted to it. I pair it with a couple other charms and that is usually my go to necklace. I have another key I wear on a longer chain that is SO simple and I think that’s why I was instantly attached to it. It’s a brass, medium size key and if anyone looked at it they wouldn’t see anything special. Maybe it wouldn’t stand out as anything out of the ordinary to someone else but to me it did! In some things, being unordinary is a beautiful thing! 

Meaning you find from an Antique Key…

 The Antique Key Collection is more than just a business because each key means something so special. People wear these keys around their neck and the door or desk or chest or cabinet could be anywhere in the world and nobody knows where! That to me is the most unique part. The designs can be semi-replicated but each piece in the collection is irreplaceable because each key is one-of-a-kind! I rummage through all of these keys and I have no idea what they go to or where their match is. Each key has so much more meaning than people think about and that is what I like to display. There is a story attached to every single key and it’s a mysterious story because we don’t really know it. I love matching up keys to people or seeing what keys people pick out. I think you can connect a whole story to one key and then that story is attached to that person and their personality.