Photo credit — Lindsey Shorter
Today we meet Mini Hay Avant the designer behind the Goldbug Collection, the costume jewelry line featured at Croghan’s Jewel Box in Charleston, SC. The Palmetto Bug, as Mini explains is a polite name for one of the bugs that we often see here in the South. It’s also known as the cockroach.
Through her Goldbug Collection which includes her newest collection ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow’ featuring gemstone encrusted palmetto bugs inspired by the candy-colored jewelry of the 1930’s, Mini allows us to see palmetto bugs in a fashion forward way.
In this interview, Mini shares about when she first came up with the idea for the Goldbug Collection, the pieces she wears on a daily basis and how her personal style is reflected in the jewelry she designs.
When did you first come up with the idea for the Goldbug Collection?
I graduated from Clemson University in 2013 and moved to New York for the summer for an internship and was terribly homesick. So I asked my mom if I could move back to Charleston and work at our family jewelry store, Croghan’s Jewel Box. She said I could only work there if I promised to use my creativity and come up with a costume jewelry line that could be a tribute to Charleston and could be something that both locals and visitors enjoyed. So I moved home, hoping she would forget about the challenge she charged me with, which of course she didn’t. I was totally stumped, because everything “Charlestony” had already been done, the oyster, the crab, palmetto tree etc.
We live in an old Charleston house, that has its fair share of “unwelcome guests” aka cockroaches, and one night it came to me… Let’s do golden Cockroaches! (Or their much more polite name, Palmetto Bugs)
How did the Palmetto Bug serve as inspiration?
As much as we hate to admit it, Palmetto Bugs are part of life in the Lowcountry, so I decided to embrace them and make them pretty!
You created the Goldbug Collection with your sister Kathleen Hay Hagood. What was the first piece you designed for the collection?
My sister and I do the collection together, I am the creative one and she is the smart, organized one that makes sure we actually have inventory and everything important! Our first piece was a cross made out of tiny little Goldbugs. My dad initially thought it was sacrilegious but after I explained that in Charleston you look down and see Palmetto Bugs and look up and see steeples, so it was a marriage of the two, he came around to the idea. The Goldbug Cross is still in our collection and is one of our most loved styles!
Photo credit — Lindsey Shorter
Which of the pieces do you wear most often?
Usually the Love Train Cuff, but now I have shifted and wear the fish hook bracelet everyday! I love bracelets and always feel like the more the merrier!
How does the city of Charleston inspire you?
Charleston inspires every aspect of my creative process, the colors, flowers, buildings, streets, the local characters around town, its such a special and beautiful place to me, its not hard to look around and find inspiration.
How would you describe your personal style and how is it reflected in the designs you create?
My personal style is a weird mix between classic and funky. I seem to design things that I want to wear. I love layering and piling on lots of jewelry, so my goal is for all of our pieces to play well with others and want them to be the perfect addition to your existing collection. I love the way gold plays with the light and how warm it looks on the skin, so all of my pieces are yellow gold. Some are bold and chunky and make a statement and the rest are pieces that can be piled on with anything! I like to keep it lighthearted, considering it’s a brand of golden pests, so a lot of my pieces have fun stories of inspiration or are named after oldies songs.
Photo credit — Lindsey Shorter
What is the best part about working for a family run business?
We are really lucky and all get along so well. Everyone has their own strength and we spend most of the day laughing at each other. It’s so fun that most of the time, it doesn’t even feel like work.
What do you enjoy the most about hearing feedback from customers?
I love hearing feedback from customers, it brings a different perspective that I didn’t initially think of, and I always appreciate it!
After a recent trip to Charleston after several years, I was amazed at how many new places had popped up, including the Hotel Bennett and the delicious La Patisserie. Where are some of your favorite spots in your home city?
So many amazing new places!! I love the Bennett! Theres also a new fun bar/restaurant called Frannie and the Fox and I am also dying to try the newly reopened Post House Inn. My mom always says ‘its hard to be bored in Charleston’ and I agree! There is always somewhere new and exciting to explore!
Photo credit — Lindsey Shorter
Shop the newest arrivals and follow along via Instagram @goldbugcollection
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