You started your business by making jewelry for your bridesmaids since you didn’t like anything you were finding in stores. What did you think was lacking?
When I was looking for jewelry for my bridesmaids, I noticed that the only two options were fine jewelry, which was outside my budget, and cheap mass-produced accessories made with plated metals and glued-on rhinestones. I wanted to give my bridesmaids something that would last without breaking the bank, so I opted to make each woman a set of sterling silver earrings and necklaces featuring freshwater pearls and sea glass. They matched the bridesmaids’ dresses and my wedding colors perfectly and I knew my loved ones would have jewelry they could continue to wear for years to come. This was the focus of my jewelry business for many years in the beginning: handmade wedding jewelry that bridged the gap between fine and costume jewelry.
© Elis Llinares
How did you become a jeweler?
In a way, it was accidental. I’d been working as a study abroad coordinator at a university, but my move to Maryland happened during the Great Recession, and I wasn’t able to find work in my field. Since I was on a tight budget, I began making my friends jewelry in lieu of purchasing wedding gifts. One of my friends built me an online shop, and I launched J’Adorn Designs part-time in 2012. In 2016, I made the move to being a full-time jeweler.
What jewelry-making experience did you have when you started your business? How do you hone and expand your skills?
When I first started my jewelry business, I was completely self-taught using books from the library! At the beginning, I was mostly doing beadwork and assembling pre-designed components, but as time went on I began to have bigger ideas that I knew I’d need new skills to bring to life. About 5 years into my business, I began taking metalsmithing classes at the Baltimore Jewelry Center to learn skills like traditional fabrication, stone setting, and lost wax casting. I’ve continued to take classes at BJC over the years to refine my skills and learn new tricks of the trade from different teachers. I always recommend them as a great resource to local aspiring jewelry designers.
© Elis Llinares
Which part of jewelry-making do you enjoy the most?
My favorite method of jewelry making is lost wax casting, in which I sculpt a design in wax first before transforming the piece into metal. I love making jewelry this way because it enables me to create intricate textures and fluid-looking effects in metal in a way that I can’t when working with metal sheet and wire. For me, it’s a very intuitive way to create jewelry and the design will often unfold as I’m carving the wax rather than following a plan that I’ve laid out ahead of time.
A basic breakdown of the process is:
The wax sculpture goes inside a plaster mold, which is placed in a furnace for several hours until the wax piece has melted away completely. Once the wax has vanished, I pour molten metal into the plaster mold to fill the space where the wax piece used to be, leaving a metal version of the wax sculpture.
Much of your jewelry has a touch of nature. Why is that?
Nature is an endless source of inspiration for me! I love the organic curves, intricate textures, and vibrant colors that can be found in the natural world. It will probably come as no surprise that I’m an avid gardener. Some of my fondest memories from growing up are from helping my mom and grandmother work in their gardens. And much like the process of making jewelry, gardening requires patience and dedication to eventually result in something beautiful.
Why Savage Mill?
Before moving to Savage Mill, I had a small studio in the heart of Catonsville that I shared with a friend’s hair and makeup studio. When that building went up for sale, I was looking for a space where I could continue to create my jewelry while safely using tools like my jeweler’s torch, casting equipment, and various chemicals. Savage Mill’s history as an industrial space proved to be exactly what I was looking for, and I have continued to call it my business’s home for nearly 4 years now!
What aspects of Savage Mill have proven particularly beneficial to J’Adorn Designs?
The community focus at Savage Mill is something that has benefited me greatly! I’ve made so many friends with my neighbors who own the other Mill businesses, and the staff at Savage Mill is always so supportive and ready to help. I also particularly love the tradition of Girls Night Out, which has given me the chance to meet members of the community and gain new customers. I look forward to seeing my “regulars” at every GNO, and to meeting new folks who are visiting for the first time!
What skills have you had to develop to help your business grow and thrive?
From the very beginning of my business, I’ve been the one at the helm. I had to learn virtually every role that goes into running a modern business. As a jeweler, I’ve had to continually expand my skillset to bring my ideas to life and keep offering fresh new products to my customer base. Tastes change, and I need to keep my work fresh and relevant. As a business owner, I’ve had to develop skills in areas like marketing, financial management, retail design, sales, research & development, and product design, to name just a few.
I’d say one of the biggest strengths a person can have is being adaptable. The 2020 pandemic was a challenge to my new business, as it was to many others. About half of my sales come from craft shows, and when those were cancelled, my income dropped dramatically. I took a job working for another jeweler for 1 1/2 years to augment my income.
For a number of years, I led the local branch of a creative networking group called The Rising Tide Society, which supported collaboration between small businesses. I organized monthly educational gatherings and built symbiotic connections and friendships with many businesses and individuals with similar values, such as wedding planners and photographers. Here at Savage Mill, I nourish relationships with other small business owners such as my neighbor Hannah with Raven and Rose Studios.
What are some of the occasions that people purchase your jewelry for?
One of the slogans I’ve adopted for my business is, “Jewelry for life’s biggest moments, and the little ones in between.” In this spirit, I make heirloom quality jewelry for people from all walks of life to honor the things they love and value the most. I’ve made jewelry for weddings, engagements, graduations, Mother’s Day, Christmas and Hanukkah, birthdays, and to honor big moments like a work promotion, coming out, or cancer diagnosis. Whatever the occasion, it’s my joy and honor to make a tangible piece of art that I know someone will enjoy for years to come and maybe even pass on to the next generation.
What is your favorite piece?
One of the pieces I felt most honored to make for a customer was an orange sapphire and yellow gold ring that I made for a woman named Gabbie. She had just been diagnosed with leukemia and told me that she wanted a ring with an orange stone (the color of the leukemia awareness ribbon) to serve as a reminder of her strength and resilience while she was going through treatments. I worked with Gabbie to create a beautiful ring with a brilliant oval orange sapphire and my signature “bubble” texture on the sides as accents. She loved her ring and continues to wear it to this day!
What is a goal you’re aspiring to as a business owner?
One goal I’m working toward right now is creating a line of fine jewelry – primarily in yellow gold, with colorful gemstones and my signature organic aesthetic. Currently I have a few gold pieces in my collection and I have offered fine jewelry primarily as an option for custom commissions, but I am hoping to expand my ready-made options in the next year or so.
You also run a website called “Impurity Culture”. What is that about?
Impurity Culture is my passion project, where I create rings, earrings, and necklaces meant to be symbols of empowerment for women who grew up in purity culture. From pre-designed pieces to custom work made from melting a client’s old purity ring, each piece is one of a kind.
What do you do to keep yourself inspired, grounded, and rejuvenated?
Heirlooms are important to me. I love making things that will become family heirlooms. In that same vein, I surround myself with items that have significance to me. I transplanted my grandmother’s bright pink rose bush to right outside my front door, as it was in the house where I grew up. Each day I walk by it and feel connected to her. Similarly, I’ve transplanted my mother’s peonies, daisies, and tigerliles to my front yard. I also grow some fruits and vegetables in my backyard, including raspberries, figs, and tomatoes. In my home, I cherish my two pet bunnies. And I gain inspiration from new experiences, such as my upcoming 15th anniversary wedding trip to Italy this October!