REWORKSHOP CHANNELS AUTHENTICITY TO CREATE TIMELESS DESIGNS
CAFETERIA SITS DOWN WITH FOUNDER ALYX DORAN TO DISCUSS REWORKSHOP’S INCEPTION AND THE VALUE OF LIVED EXPERIENCE AS AN ARTIST.
In the fashion world, jewelry and accessories can often play a supporting role for clothing, keeping talented jewelry designers in the shadows.
Reworkshop, however, is making a name for itself by disrupting the industry’s age-old traditions and creating truly unique designs. After experimenting with upcycling clothing, fate had other plans for founder Alyx Doran as a box of old watches found at an estate sale changed the trajectory of her brand. Her iconic and inimitable art pieces effortlessly exude confidence as crop tops constructed of vintage watches, alongside commanding three-faced chokers and innovative timepieces make up her collection. “I create unique things that people are usually too shy to wear. It doesn't have to be that serious. You can wear what you want and whatever makes you feel good. Ultimately, what I set out to do is make people feel good in their own skin.”
This confidence is hard-won as Alyx attests to living life rather than grinding it away as the key to creativity. “It’s important to experience other things in the world and not grasp onto a concept.”
Continue scrolling to hear more about Reworkshop, Alyx’s journey as a designer and how to create fearlessly and authentically.
Why did you start ReworkSHOP? Have you always been a designer?
AD: I haven't always been a designer. I was a big athlete until college, but I stepped away from it to see what else was out there. I think with that period of exploration, I had the desire to create and that included making things that I saw and wanted, but couldn't afford. Rework was born out of asking, “How can I make it for myself?” Part of what I do as well is colliding the world of creativity and wanting to design things while also wanting to help the environment rather than hurt it. My designs are based on upcycling and sustainability.
How did you learn how to make jewelry?
AD: It's really as simple as I just started doing it. I started upcycling clothing when I first launched my brand. I didn't start doing jewelry until 2023, but I started my brand in 2021. I started learning how to make jewelry through trial and error and just taking it day by day.
What led you to choose jewelry and watches as your medium?
AD: I do work with other mediums, but watches are the main thing right now. Working with watches has been full circle because when I originally started my brand, I collaborated with and ultimately worked for this vintage shop. One of my jobs there was to source everything we sold at the shop, from vintage clothes and jewelry to furniture. That introduced me to the world of estate sales. A couple years later, I had moved away from Connecticut and when I came back here, I started going to estate sales again. The guy that ran this one sale in particular was like, “If you're interested in jewelry, I have a box” and it was full of watches. It was all very serendipitous.
Accessories are often positioned as supporting characters to clothing. What impact does jewelry have on fashion and one’s individual style?
AD: I feel like jewelry or accessories as a whole almost make an outfit. A lot of times I feel like somebody's jewelry in particular can tell a story. Anybody can put on the same outfit – t-shirt or white tank and jeans, but I think how you add to it really reflects your personal style. Often, we have meaningful jewelry that is either passed down from family or we purchased it when we were celebrating a big milestone or maybe traveling. What's really cool about jewelry is that it's smaller, but it can hold a lot more meaning.
Do you think jewelry designers get enough credit for what they do?
AD: No, they’re not. I feel like I've gotten a lot of recognition and I'm very grateful for that, at least locally so far. However, I will say when I sit and think about a jewelry designer, there's definitely not as many that come to mind that are as prominent as fashion designers. I’m personally exposed to the jewelry world, but there are not as many jewelers who are household names.
What are you trying to convey through your designs? Do you feel like watches have an inherent symbolism?
AD: Confidence is definitely something I try to convey through my designs. What innately happens when somebody sees a piece that I create and they feel connected to it, it just elevates their look. I might not intentionally design it that way, but I think that is just what happens by creating unique things that people would typically feel too shy to wear or feel like they need a certain place to go in. It doesn't have to be that serious. You can wear what you want and whatever makes you feel good. Ultimately, what I set out to do is make people feel good in their own skin.
Watches inherently have such an interesting meaning. A lot of my designs are timeless. It was once somebody’s junk and now I’m creating art out of it that we can appreciate.
What advice would you give to creatives and designers trying to pave their own path now, especially in a tough economy and fraught socio-political climate? Do you think there are barriers to entry for emerging designers?
AD: What really helped my creativity and helped me become authentically myself was moving away from everything I knew. I was upcycling clothing and wanted to have a brand for years, but it felt like there was always some resistance to that actually coming to fruition. That was partially due to inexperience and I don’t think there was as much opportunity now as there was when I started as a creative. Ultimately, taking a break from social media and trying other things, allowed me to know that designing is truly for me when I came back to it.
It’s important to experience other things in the world and not grasp onto a concept. Ironically, that period of time when I wasn’t creating in the typical sense, but I was just living, was what I needed to be creative. Looking outwards for inspiration all the time and constantly consuming can take away from our authentic creativity.
Do you have a favorite or most meaningful piece since launching your brand? Why?
AD: The first wearable art piece that I made was a top made all out of watches. It really showed me that as humans, we can do just about anything. I had no idea how I was going to do it, but I was determined to make a shirt out of watches and I did. That experience was very much a moment of growth for me.
What have you learned throughout your career and what do you envision for your future?
AD: I’ve learned not to put a ceiling on not only my creations, but my desires, my goals, my dreams – all of it. I feel like we as humans sort of live in our own little bubble. We have to remind ourselves that there is a whole world out there. There's just so much to see, do and experience. It's really important for me to move forward as someone who knows what they want, but is still open to any possibilities. Even though I'm a fashion designer, that doesn't mean that I have to be on the grind all the time, in the most typical high-end fashion shows or the most known designer. That’s not what would fill my cup right now. It’s more about utilizing my skills and my art to free up my time so that I can see the world and just keep learning.