Clayton King is the designer and owner behind Inspired Chaos Studio, a gay-owned jewelry and home decor studio based in South Carolina. Working primarily in hand crafted jewelry, including earrings, bracelets, necklaces, and home decor items such as sun catchers and fan pulls, Clayton brings a lifelong love of creativity to each piece he makes.
Many in the area remember his former gallery, Artizan, where he showcased a large collection of art and jewelry, predominantly created by local artists. The Inspired Chaos brand was created and developed during the years Artizan was open. In fact, it was a customer-inspired endeavor. Someone who frequently visited our store once asked if he had any multi-strand beaded necklaces. None of the artists did that kind of work, except for multi-strand pearls.
After discussing what she was looking for, Clayton set about sourcing materials and components and made the first torsade under the Inspired Chaos label. From there, the collection grew! The store has since closed, of course, but he enjoys creating jewelry, and decided to continue it online. Clayton says, “This is largely because there is something therapeutic in this creative process. I currently have over a million beads. These and supplies are a passion (some might say condition), and I collect them from around the world to put the Inspired Chaos line together.”
The goal is steady and simple: to build a thoughtful, evolving collection—often two to three new pairs of earrings a night—that people are excited to wear, gift, and live with.
Clayton is also a performing artist, most notably singing in cabarets and on various Midlands stages. A Texas transplant, he pursues both jewelry and performing as a holdover from his major in Theatre Performance, as well as his years as a gallery owner. Both creative outlets are soul-feeding in different areas of creativity.
Years Experience
Suppliers Worldwide
Active Projects
Artistic Statement
My work lives at the intersection of fluid movement and intentional structure. Inspired Chaos began during my years running Artizan, an art and jewelry gallery where I first explored form through bespoke fan pulls and crystal sun catchers. Those early experiments in how light, weight, and motion interact naturally evolved into wearable art, and that practice continues to unfold today in Inspired Chaos Studio.
Each design is a balance between planning and play. There is a quiet rhythm to how a strand of beads drapes, how a crystal catches the sun, how metal holds a curve. I’m influenced by the subtle motion I see in nature—branches shifting in the wind, the arc of a wave—as well as by Gestalt principles that reveal how negative space can define form. I’m fascinated by how what isn’t there can give shape, depth, and meaning to what is.
Materials are big collaborators in this process. I work with a range of metals—copper, brass, sterling silver, Argentium, and stainless steel—paired with Czech and Austrian crystals, K9 glass, and Czech and Japanese seed beads.
And pearls! Pearls hold a particularly special place in my work. With years of experience in both freshwater and saltwater varieties, I choose each one for its individual luster, shape, and personality. Each component has its own voice, and much of my design process is listening closely enough to let those voices harmonize. More on materials further down.
