Short courses the first step to a new creative career

When Fairina Cheng enrolled in a short course in jewellery making, a change of career wasn’t on her radar. Back then the marketing professional “had absolutely no concept” of how a necklace or ring was made – she was just hoping the evening course would make her leave the office on time.

Fast forward a few years and Cheng is running Fairina Cheng Jewellery full-time from a workshop in her Sydney home, with dog Brooklyn by her side.

She says none of the career options she’d come across at high school or university “hit that lightbulb moment” she found with jewellery. “When I started thinking maybe jewellery design was that profession, it kind of felt really good.”

Changing careers is fairly common for Australians, with ABS figures showing more than half a million changed industry or occupation in the 12 months prior to February 2018.

For Cheng, though, it wasn’t easy to leave behind the consistent salary of the corporate world.

“I’m a person who needs to be very secure, and I think a lot of other people would’ve taken the leap a lot earlier.” Read more

Brigid Blackney - Brisbane Times - 11 Jan 2019