The Caravan Silversmith with Punk Roots: Meet Josh
- Creatives Do This
- May 29
- 6 min read
What if your dream studio was a caravan in the countryside?
For Joshua Chandler-Morris, that’s not a fantasy - it’s his carefully crafted, slow, daily life.
Trading under the name Harsh Realm Jewellery, Josh creates handcrafted silver and gold pieces inspired by punk, philosophy, and the wild outdoors - all from a static caravan on a small farm in Northamptonshire.
His path hasn’t been linear. From touring musician to silversmith, from full-time maker to vegetable delivery driver (and back again), Josh has built a creative career defined by integrity, adaptability, and moments of pure magic - like the time his bracelet appeared on a Grammy-nominated album cover.
In this interview, Josh shares the mindset shifts, pricing lessons, and quiet wins that made it all possible - without selling out or burning out.
If you’ve ever craved a slower, saner creative life - Josh is proof it can work.
Hello! Who are you, where are you based, what do you create, and what are you working on right now?
My name is Josh Chandler Morris and I trade under the name Harsh Realm Jewellery. I create unique, totally handcrafted silver and gold jewellery inspired by philosophy, literature and the great outdoors. I'm based on a small farm in the Northamptonshire countryside where I live with my family in a static caravan and create from my humble but cosy workshop.
How did you get started doing what you do?
I was touring in a band through much of my twenties, but could feel that life was moving in a different direction and felt I needed another creative outlet that I could fulfil from home. A good friend of mine Cherry from Rising Tides Jewellery gave me my first few lessons in silversmithing and I've been hammering and heating metal ever since.
When did you first try to turn your creativity into income, any flops or turning points?
Making money from my creative endeavours has been a continual process of learning and adaptation. I have been full-time and part-time at various points and currently make jewellery 3 days a week and have a delivery job for the other two. I have had moments that have felt like flops. At 30 I went full-time with jewellery and made it work for a couple of years, but when my daughter came along, I needed a little more financial security, so I got a part-time job delivering vegetables. At first, it felt like a defeat, but every moment like that has always led to a learning or adaptation, and every loss has compelled me to learn something new or change my business model to make my creativity more conducive to the life I want to lead.
How did you get your first paying customer or client? How did you decide how much to charge them?
Luckily I had lots of friends that wanted to (or at least said they wanted to!) buy my jewellery in the early days. I think I looked at sites like Etsy and saw what the general pricing was like and tried to follow something similar. The profit margin was pretty low back then but I was still learning my craft and was so happy to be being paid to hone my skills.
What does your creative income look like today?
In all honesty, it can be anywhere from way into the minus to around £1500 a month. Consistency has never come easily to me.
What income streams do you currently have?
I sell my jewellery on my wix website and Etsy as well as attending craft fairs. I also write on Medium and still occasionally make a little bit of money from music royalties or performance.
What’s the highest amount of money you’ve made from your creative work — in a day, week, month, or year? What were you offering or doing at the time? What made it so successful?
Christmas can be a really good time of the year for me and on good years I have sometimes been able to make several thousand in profit. I think it's all about finding the right craft fairs and reaching the right people.
What’s the most unexpected or amazing opportunity your creativity has led to?
In music I have been able to play with many of my favourite artists, including Chuck Ragan and Justin Townes Earle as well as many others. I have also been lucky enough to make jewellery for some musicians that have inspired me such as Nikki Lane and Courtney Marie Andrews. Courtney Marie Andrews even wore my bracelet on her album cover 'Old Flowers', which later won a Grammy, so that was quite a proud moment for me.
How has your pricing evolved over time? Why?
Over time I have had to adjust my pricing in order to honour the time and creative energy that goes into it. I still probably undercharge but I also like making pieces that are affordable as a special gift for people working within an ordinary budget.
Ever dealt with burnout, imposter syndrome, or self-doubt? How do you manage it?
I am currently attempting to recover from burnout. I took on more work in my day job to secure some financial stability, whilst also trying to keep my own business functioning and also taking care of my young family and poorly parents. It was too much and I'm still recovering from the physiological fallout. It's very difficult to understand the importance of rest and slowing down when necessary until you experience the consequence of falling out of balance. I think it's important to challenge the grind culture promoted in our culture and stress that the way to create a sustainable business is to also prioritise rest and recuperation.
I have also suffered from self-doubt. I have been lucky enough to socialise and share work with some of the world's best jewellers, which inspired me greatly but also left me feeling like my work was lacking. When in a healthier mindset, I am able to cast off comparisons, turning off social media helps with this, and just reconnect with my own creativity. In this state the only thing that becomes important is expressing the inner world and ideas that need to come to the fore for me to feel fulfilled. When I'm able to do this it almost always resonates with my customers, my best work is always my most authentic work.
What’s one surprising thing, hack or secret that helped grow your income or audience?
I've learned that attempts to create pieces that I think will sell well or are on trend rarely resonate with my audience. My audience tends to want to support me most when they can feel that I have put my whole being into a piece, no matter how strange or obscure the end result ends up being.
What’s a common piece of advice you disagree with — and what do you believe instead?
Any of the many masochistic sentiments that suggest that unless you are working 80 hours a week, you're not working hard enough. Creativity is cultivated by space and silence. There are times when we all have to burn the candle at both ends to finish a project or complete a piece of work, but it's not a sustainable way of living long term. Spend time with your family, sit in the garden with a good book and lock your phone in another room for a while, you will be more creative for it, and an easier person to be around.
What’s one piece of advice you’d give to a creative a few steps behind you?
Pursue what you love, not what you think will sell. A lifetime making something unfulfilling is no more rewarding than working a temp job you hate. Even if you only ever get to do the thing you love part time, those days will become sacred.
What’s THE big dream or goal you're working toward?
A life where I can wake up each day and pursue whichever creative idea I awake with.
Where can people find you?
Would a site like Creatives Do This have helped you earlier in your journey?
I think it would, I think honest conversations about the creative pursuit and what people are really doing behind the facade of Instagram would have been very helpful.
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