Nestled on a shelf in Three Little Birds Cafe & Juice Bar on Middle Road are dozens of dangle earrings for sale of varying shapes and sizes: white flowers with silver sparkles, dark blue with large gold circles and, for the holidays, green and red charms.
The only clue that the trio behind B.E.H. Beads might be younger than typical jewelers is their logo, a pink unicorn wearing — fittingly — a purple dangle earring. Unicorns, like their earrings, are “one of a kind.”
Brenna Kaehly, 10, and Elizabeth Kreshon and Hattie Bacasa, both 9, started making jewelry last spring when they were in third grade at Central Elementary School in Hampton. They thought selling their creations was a good business idea, and, through working after school and on weekends, the now fourth-graders have sold upwards of 50 pairs of earrings.
To create the custom pieces, they buy eye-catching beads from Joann Craft Store or Crystal Bead Bazaar in Lawrenceville. After that, Brenna said, they “kind of wing it.”
“We have so many beads,” she said. “We put them together and we see, does that look good together, and if they don’t look good together, we don’t put them in an earring. But if they do, we would put them on a wire and then tie them and put a hook on them to make earrings.”
The girls are also focused on giving back to the community — a goal that inspired the business’s creation. The girls donated 20 pairs of earrings to sell at a fundraising event for the Kids Care Club at Central Elementary last spring. They also donated 10% of their earnings to UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh from selling earrings at a Holiday Extravaganza event in early December at Hampton High School.
“I think doing this extravaganza was definitely a big milestone for them. I was really proud of their commitment, because we didn’t have these earrings made. So it was like, let’s get together. So we had multiple gatherings, and I feel like they experienced where it could get a little tense or a little stressful,” said Hattie’s mom, Holly Bacasa.
She added that it’s been fun to see her daughter pick up jewelry making, something Holly did as a little girl.
“I was a big bead collector and I would love to make my own creations, so I just truly love that she’s carrying on some of that, and I actually had some of the stuff from when I was little still to pass on to her,” she said. “I just love that she’s getting together with her great friends and sharing their skills.
After pitching to the owner of Three Little Birds, Amy McGinley, the trio were able to place their designs in the store alongside other jewelry makers. People can also call 412-213-0164 to order custom pairs, which cost about $9 to $13.
Rose Kreshon, Elizabeth’s mom, also said she’s proud of how far the girls’ designs have progressed — growing from “youthful” to “beautiful” pieces. Her favorite is probably a pair of earrings featuring pink and white owls.
“They’re pieces that I would wear, and most of the people who have purchased the jewelry are very impressed,” she said. “They are very mature in the way they handle the business. They think about their costs and their expenses and the profits.”
