Elevating the Ordinary: How Sandra Bonazoli Turns Metal into Heirloom Housewares

Beehive Handmade creates metal housewares and gifts rooted in the American Studio Craft tradition. Founded by husband-and-wife team Sandra Bonazoli and Jim Dowd, the studio aims to bring intentional beauty to the objects we use every day. Read our interview with Sandra to discover how they do it.

What do you make, and what makes your approach distinctive?

Beehive crafts metal housewares and gifts rooted in the American Studio Craft tradition. We use both traditional and modern processes to produce and design our products. Our approach is based on expanding how a traditional craft can fit into contemporary lives and homes, which will have a familiar look but with an element of something new.

How did you come to this work?

My husband and I both went to art school, and we wanted to make objects that would bring beauty to people's everyday lives in their homes, instead of going into teaching.

How does your work connect to a community, tradition or set of values you care about?

We value honest, beautiful materials, elevating ordinary, useful things and gift-giving based on love and remembrance.

What are you working on now?

We made a new collection based on traditional pewter objects from Colonial America, which reminds the user to consider our fundamental values based on democracy and fairness for all.

What's something about running a creative business you wish more people understood?

We are trying our best, and our primary concern is making products as best we can. It's incredibly difficult.

What's the most useful piece of advice you'd give to someone just starting their creative business?

Know who you are making your products for, and base all decisions on that.

What brings you joy outside of your work?

Being with friends in a beautiful place.

What do you love about working in Rhode Island?

Being on the water makes every day feel like a vacation when you leave work!

Thanks, Sandra! You can find out more about Beehive Handmade at beehivehandmade.com.

Editor’s note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.