Yuba Woman's Button Jewelry Business Booms

YUBA (CBS13) - In this economy some are forced to get creative to earn extra cash.

One Yuba City woman used an item she had lying around the home to create custom jewelry.

For Lisa Shippelhoute, crafting used to just be a hobby.

"I started doing a little bit of crafting with my mom and grandma a long time ago," said Lisa.

But when hours at her job were cut and money wasn't flowing, she got to thinking.

"What can I do to make a little more money," said Lisa.

Lisa turned to something most of us own but would probably overlook, buttons, and she had a thousand of them.

"It was one of those things where if you can't find money, you have to find a place to sell things," said Lisa.

So she took her buttons and some crafting wire and headed up to a local fair.

"I thought maybe I'll just make some button ring," said Lisa.

And, she sold them for three dollars a piece.

Her husband was a little skeptical about her endeavor.

"I was like 'whatever it's not going to sell,' " said Donald Shippelhoute.

"I expected what my husband said that 'you're not going to do anything' but I decided to try," said Lisa.

It paid off. She made $500 that day and her new business venture was born.

"I was surprised she sold any at all," said Donald.

But now four years and thousands of button rings later, she's selling her custom jewelry in 11 stores from here to Wyoming.

"Right now, it's really a struggle to find extra jobs sometimes so we got to get a little creative I guess," said Lisa.

As a mother of two teenagers she says the extra cash has come in handy

"My daughter needs braces so yeah it helps," said Lisa.

Lisa says she believes people love her jewelry because every unique button has a back story.

"Everyone you pick up is something someone else was wearing at another time who had it," said Lisa.

Lisa says she likes recycling items in a new way, like taking soda cans and making aluminum earrings.