joeyfivecents is a brand of storied jewelry and vintage style 

that features original vintage paper imagery & resin and mixed metals. every ‘joey’ design is one-of-a-kind and honors the integrity of the original materials used and reimagines them.

Susan Forker is a collector, curator & maker, but began her career as a film editor in New York and then Los Angeles after her graduation from Syracuse University. After moving to Bucks County, PA with her family in 2006, her background as a visual storyteller and interests as a vintage collector led her to create joeyfivecents, a brand of storied handmade jewelry and vintage style that repurposes antique ephemera and resin.

Drawing inspiration from her 150-year-old stone farmhouse and studio barn, Susan sources vintage nature & birding books, wallpaper remnants, obsolete antique dictionary illustrations and forgotten bits of ephemera from around the area. By only working with original vintage paper imagery, she focuses on finding the story in each handmade piece and honors the integrity of the materials that she layers under resin. Combined with a variety of mixed metals and vintage components, she creates one-of-a-kind designs that include a range of imagery from quirky vintage pulp book covers to gorgeous Victorian postcards. She explores themes that celebrate the beauty of asymmetry and imperfection found in the natural world through powerful black & white imagery and whimsical vintage graphics that always invite you to look closer.

Want to know more about my studio and process? I was honored to have been featured on etsy’s blog series ‘inspiring workspaces' - find the story here:

https://www.etsy.com/seller-handbook/article/inspiring-workspaces-joeyfivecents/38314649296

what’s in a name?

my shop name ‘joeyfivecents’ is borrowed from the 1977 film ‘annie hall’. there’s a scene involving ‘joey nichols’ and the main character as a boy. joey repeatedly reminds the boy about his last name which ends with a dramatic slapping of a nickel on his forehead proclaiming, ‘you can always remember my name, just think 'joeyfivecents’! It’s a silly and irreverent moment from that film, that always struck me as the perfect name for a business!