Process

Woman in studio wearing silver rings and a white apron wrapping turquoise stones in silver bezels on a wooden bench pin attached to a marble slab.

My process is slow and methodical. I fully embrace the art of slow fashion and enjoy focusing my attention on a single piece, or handful of pieces, at a time. Rather than planning out designs in detail, I often create directly from my soul and what I envision when I sit down or by just letting the creative flow spontaneously take over. Time flies when I'm in "the zone" in my studio!

The leather crafting process does not happen in a day. Patience is definitely a virtue of all leather workers. Here is a quick overview of how most leather products are crafted in my shop. I like to create my own patterns. After tracing the pattern and cutting the leather to spec, I clean up the edges and tool the design. After the tooling is complete, the stain is applied. After the stain thoroughly dries, a protective seal is layered onto the piece. Once dry, the item is buffed to a matte shine with a soft cloth and a wax conditioner is worked into the item. Finally, the hardware is fastened and the piece is ready to be worn or used. The process takes a few days from start to finish!

Metalsmithing also involves many steps and often takes place over a period of multiple bench sessions. The process and time involved depend on the overall design, and I always take the time to ensure all components are securely soldered, stones are snug in their bezels, and edges are clean.

Handmade art is perfectly imperfect. Even pieces replicated from the same design won't be exactly alike. Because these items are handcrafted by me and not machine, there may be minor imperfections that you won't see in mass-manufactured jewelry. Those special characteristics do not affect the quality of the jewelry and are unique hallmarks of authentic handcrafted jewelry that many people find endearing, but may not be for everyone (and that's perfectly OK!). My focus is always giving you my best quality work.

Find out more about the quality Materials I use in your pieces.