I have always had a creative bent which I inherited from my talented mother who was a floral designer, a quilter and most importantly a jeweler. My own interests were always centered in the areas of fashion and interior design but ultimately, I received my BS from The University of Michigan in architecture.
Early in my career, I worked with renowned architect and artist Louis Redstone in Detroit. He encouraged my artistic endeavors and along with my husband, I became an avid collector of art.
Without abandoning my creativity, I moved into education, and along with writing curriculum, taught mathematics for 19 years before rekindling my artistic flame through the creation of hand-made jewelry. When my mother passed away, I picked up her jewelry tools and supplies and started to create.
I continued working in education on a part-time basis for several years but always taking class upon class and learning the techniques to make the jewelry designs swirling in my head. Upon retiring, I decided a “hobby” wasn’t enough and set out to create a business.
The name of my company Tres Elegante Designs has a funny story behind it. When I went to register my company with the state, they informed me that the name I had chosen “Elegante Designs” was too close to another, so I had to come up with something on the spot. I picked Tres to add to the front only, I had it in my head that it was to be Spanish meaning to me “three- or three-times elegant designs”. No one really gets that though and most think it translates in French to “very elegant designs”. I say however anyone wants to translate this is fine with me!
My favorite jewelry technique is reticulation. I love working with a torch and I call it “controlled chaos”. Reticulation refers to a surface-finishing method that involves multiple applications of localized heating and cooling to the surface of sterling silver sheet metal resulting in an incredibly dramatic texture of wrinkling, rippling, and curling. I wrote a Blog post about reticulation back in May 2023 that you may find interesting.
The vision I have for Tres Elegante Designs is to create jewelry that you will adore and wear every day. Whether it is casually with a T-shirt and jeans, or more formally with a little black dress, I believe that jewelry should be unique to the wearer, part of their personal statement. My friends and customers describe my jewelry as elegant and organic without being heavy. The focus of my designs revolves around creating a completely distinctive piece of jewelry making it possible for the wearer to confidently add it to their collection as a form of self-expression that is impossible to achieve with mass-produced pieces. I am committed to creating jewelry that is eye catching yet refined.
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