Today we’d like to introduce you to Michal McCausland
Hi Michal, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I’ve always been a creative and imaginative brain since I was 9 years old with my heart set on going to the Fashion Institute of Technology in NYC. Once I began my freshman year, I ‘accidentally’ found myself with the idea of combining textiles with Swarovski Crystals and semi precious stones which somehow turned into a line of jewelry that I would sell off my neck at work as a hostess at Rock Center Cafe in Rockefeller Center. It was an absolute shock. All while working toward my Bachelors degree in accessories design at F.I.T. I decided to see how far I could go with my work. I heard about an opportunity called ‘Open See’ held by the famous Henri Bendel in which designers from all over line up to pitch their designs (clothing, accessories, beauty products, etc) in hopes of being chosen to sell their work at the store. I was determined to be first in line for this so made sure I was there at 5:30am on the dot to be ready for an 8am start time and be the first in line. Low and behold I was. I was fortunate enough to be directed to the head buyer for Bendel’s and knew I only had 30 seconds to pitch my work-I pitched and was then picked to display my work and sell it at the store. I never felt so elated in my life!
Not too long after that door opened, my designs were chosen for editorial pieces in ELLE , Harper’s Bazaar and several local papers. This motivated me to further the course and was soon picked up by Bloomingdale’s flagship store.
In recreating my line in 2009, I took the textile and crystal design techniques of hand beading onto suede cord and implementing the age old technique of wire wrapping to create an elegant aesthetic fitting for every woman looking to feel her most poised and beautiful. The goal was always to create something different and pieces only they would own-never would I replicate a piece. It wasn’t how my brain worked anyway. I have all my materials around me and I just stare at it all until pieces are put together just right. I move on and try to create something different every time. That is something that has always set me apart. Custom pieces eventually became part of my repertoire as women would take a liking to something and want me to expand on it to make matching sets. It gave me the opportunity to build relationships with my customers which in turn brought them back year after year.
By this point I was 13 years into making my jewelry and building the line before eventually having my daughter. It was the peak of my career which made the postpartum depression I developed a detriment to my career flow. It crippled me…completely took over and the price was a complete disinterest in creating jewelry. It was almost like somebody or something stole that section of my brain that handled that and made it disappear. I tried and tried and TRIED to get that spark back but it wasn’t there no matter what Ii did. It was my whole world-my identity. It made it worse for me to cope to realize I lost my identity and couldn’t help myself. It took me almost 6 years to get any creativity of my own back and from that came inspiration and was making jewelry again. It was never the same though-I wasn’t living and breathing it like I was. Working 14 hour days to create, market, network, do spreadsheets, photographs, etc. In 2022 my sister passed away suddenly and it was a very hard time for me. I decided that every week for an entire year I would create a new floral arrangement for her to place next to my favorite picture of her and me as kids. After that I became enamored with flowers and was always taking the opportunity to create arrangements whether I had a reason to or not. The morning of February 9, 2024, I vividly remember saying to myself ‘I’m going to start a little flower business that stays within a 5 mile radius of where I live and market through word of mouth (since I could only handle so much). Petal & Chic WP was born that day and it’s done beautifully ever since.
When I create it’s never been about the money or to be somebody-it’s purely my outlet and brings me more joy than I could ever put into words. It also happens to be that there is a hole in the floral market of Winter Park-maybe even in general-where the big florists online charge you a fortune with fee’s and delivery on top of the arrangement only to get flowers you could have bought at the supermarket. I can’t tell you how many times I have sent someone flowers from one of these companies and been mortified at what was sent-calling to ensure I got my money back. Petal & Chic will only deliver locally without any delivery charge or any extra fees. The value of your order is the only thing you pay. My signature is using unique vessels that I find at boutiques, antique stores, and really anywhere I can find them. Vessels that you want to use for decoration in your home or display candies or more flowers. Not the cheap flimsy glass you collect and don’t know what to do with. The arrangements are organically designed meaning I am not picturing what it will look like in my head. I shop for flowers and sometimes spend 45 minutes just staring at them until the color, texture, shape and proportion combinations make sense in my head. I’ll take it home and just go. No technique, no formula, just go.
There is so much more I could say to elaborate on what I have done creatively and how one thing has always lead to another but there is only so much you can print. Basically, if I can’t create I am not me.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
The progression of my jewelry has been remarkably smooth as opportunities would just fall on my lap and I would be ‘selected’ to be a part of things time and again.
The challenge was that while in college I had no support around me especially since I was at a competetive environment at F.I.T. You tell them you are thriving in your field and they role their eyes and try to put you down. It’s sad but it never defeated me it just frustrated me that even my teachers would be as caddy as my peers. It was a struggle working as much as I did to make ends meet, go to school full time and pursue the jewelry. It got to a point, though, that the jewelry helped me pay for expenses and of course buy more materials to continue. After selling a lot of pieces at a trunk show for instance I remember treating myself to a cheap order of pad thai for $8 feeling like i was a queen! Meals usually consisted of $2.50 instant pad thai from CVS…good times.
NYC is a hard city to make ends meet but i did and feel like i got a taste of the american dream for a while.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
As far as the jewelry, I’m self taught at wire wrapping which gives you the freedom to manipulate the structure of a piece more than welding. I had no interest in jewelry or welding when I started so it really was a random career path. I’m most proud of the PR skills I’ve developed when I started out with all I have learned while interning at Jimmy Choo and Prada while in school. I knew I had to learn these things if I wanted to know how to promote and market my jewelry. That’s how I was able to make relationships with editors for both national and local publications and online outlets. What sets me apart would be the one of a kind aspect of my jewelry pieces and the sincere adoration and devotion i put into each piece. You can feel my joy when i describe the piece, what it’s made of and the process it involved.
What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
It never occured to me that I would live in Florida after growing up in NY and living the NYC fashion PR, designer life. It was how cut throat the industry became and the 16 hour days I would work with no hope of rest until the weekend, no time to eat and afraid to drink water as it would mean i had to take a break of time i couldn’t spare to go to the ladies room. It was the devil wears Prada in every sense of the word. If it wasn’t for that I would never have found Winter Park with my husband through a recomendation from a friend.
I adore Winter Park, it offers a quality life in a city that doesn’t feel like the Florida people think of. You can raise children here, make friends and balance work with real life outside of slaving away in an office. It’s beautiful and all around special to me. I feel super fortunate to have found it!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.michalyakar.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/petalandchic_wp/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556599674055
