Longtime Artist, Designer & "Old Soul", turns passion for the past into a successful upcycled jewelry & accessory company!
Key of A® , originally from St. Louis, is a handcrafted upcycled jewelry & accessories company established in 2008 specializing in the repurposing of vintage and re-found objects, as well as small antiquities, into new and trendy designs. Anne Jansen, Founder, is a 30+ year artisan and has always been a creative visionary when it comes to transforming the “old” into the “new.” Key of A® began with a single typewriter and has grown to be a leader in the upcycled jewelry arena in a few short years.
Born and raised in St. Louis, Anne’s childhood was steeped in entrepreneurial spirit, creative influence, and trash to treasure upbringing, all of which has played an integral role in the success of her business today.
Not only did Anne share her mother’s weekly routine of scouring garage sales, antique stores and flea markets, but she was raised in her parent’s floral business, sweeping the floors, learning floral design and observing the many aspects of running a small business. You could say that Anne’s entrepreneurial genes were kickstarted at an early age, laying the foundation for the future road ahead.
When Anne wasn’t tagging along with her mother to another flea market, she would be fishing with her father at their weekend river home or accompanying him on one of his many hunting trips. Anne’s interest in hunting and the outdoors was most likely sparked at her First Communion when she was only 8 years old. Donning her white communion dress and veil, lace socks, and black patent leather shoes, she proudly displayed her new Daisy® BB gun to family and friends, a gift from her father who would from that point forward affectionately call her “Annie Oakley”.
So it was only natural that this Annie Oakley of St. Louis, Missouri would later choose upcycling as her style of jewelry design for her company, Key of A®. But moreso, would weave those upcycling abilities into her new collection called SureShot™ Jewelry - Shotshell & Bullet Designs, so aptly named after the real Annie Oakley---that young, daring, exceptional sharpshooter and star of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show who was coined “Little Sureshot” by Chief Sitting Bull.
Want to know the story behind SureShot Jewelry? Read about it HERE: https://www.sureshotjewelry.com/pages/our-story
