St. Petersburg artist makes jewelry out of recycled material, exposes kids in detention center to art

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - A collaboration between St. Petersburg Arts Alliance and the city of St. Pete is painting a brighter picture for the community.

As a child, art was a place of solitude for Tiffany Elliott.

"I think it was my, like, safe space," said Elliott. "It was kind of like my thing, too, to occupy my time and to kind of make me feel comfortable, like, work through my feelings and sense."

In middle school, Elliott started making jewelry out of recycled materials.

Elliot earned a $5k grant.

"I think it was just finding, like, a puzzle piece, just seeing something, turn it into something else. It became a puzzle," explained Elliott. "So bottle caps turned into earrings and cardboard turn like into bracelets."

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All that creativity earned Elliott $5,000 from the St. Petersburg Arts Alliance Individual Artist Grant Program. The goal is to support the arts and culture and get artists out into the community.

"So they're not only seeking the support to cultivate their own artistic growth, but also to cultivate, connections with the community and impact," said Tiffany Ford, St. Petersburg Arts Alliance. "And Tiffany's project is a perfect example of that impact."

Elliott's project is working with kids in the Pinellas County Juvenile Detention Center.

Elliot works with kids and exposes them to art.

"They're going to make jewelry out of polymer clay. And then I'm going to go ahead and turn it into metal jewelry we are casting and then add my touches via anomaly stone setting and just try to bring back that lovely, vibrant color to it," she shared. 

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She hopes exposing the teens to a little bit of art will lead them to make better life decisions.

"I think it's important, you know, these kids, they've gone through a lot, whether it's them living in group homes and unstable situations. I'm just hoping to bring a little bit of peace with my jewelry to them," Elliott explained.

This is the ninth year for the program. 

Elliott was one of four artists who received the grant. She also makes one of a kind jewelry pieces through her company Tee Sankey.

For more information about the artist, click here.