Metalsmith an Jewelry Artisan: Lauren Blais

Sterling Silver Earrings, Necklace & Ring

As future metalsmith and jewelry artisan Lauren Blais grew up in Rhode Island, she became hooked on fashion and design. With the goal of becoming a fashion designer in her sights, she took several courses at the Rhode Island School of Design to achieve it.  However, when Balis took a Beginning Jewelry course her plans slowly changed and by the time she worked with Providence artist Boris Bally; jewelry became her career goal. 

After RISD, she enrolled at the Massachusetts College of Art to study small metals and how to be a metalsmith. After graduating in 2008, Blais opened her own studio. The jewelry she makes is influenced by Victorian Mourning jewelry worn by Queen Victoria of England upon the death of her beloved husband Albert.  She wore black dresses and jewelry to match often made from jet or another dark material like tortoise shell.  This spurred others in the country and across Europe to want their own mourning jewelry to celebrate loved ones they lost too.  

 The mourning jewelry of the time was intricate in detail and held great beauty some pieces were made from the same elements as Queen Victoria’s and others were created from human hair, featured photos of a loved one, or a carved cameo likeness set in gold or silver. Blais wants her jewelry to have the same feel and to tell a story. Only she wants the story to continue beyond creation but keep going as the jewelry passes from one customer to another family member and then to another and so forth each generation.

The materials Blais uses are leather, fur, silver, raw gemstones, and gold – often pairing two or more of these elements together into a piece or pieces of jewelry.  She also makes each component of the jewelry as much as possible by hand whether it is the links that create a necklace chain or the clasp of a bracelet. Blais strives overall to ensure her jewelry blends the old and new together to create unique pieces of jewelry.  

Last year I found Lauren Blais jewelry in a happy accident surfing the Internet and I knew I had to add her pieces to the cliptomania.com website.  You can see them by clicking on Gemstones and choosing the sub category Jewelry Sets.

Tomorrow's Heirlooms @ Cliptomania.com

Tomorrow's Heirlooms @ Cliptomania.com

Katherine's Tiger's Eye Clip on Drop Earrings

Cattails Non-pierced Drop Earrings

Chipita Non-pierced Earrings #621

Fleur De Lis & Pearl Clip on Drop Earrings

Chipita Clip On Earrings #230

Cubist Guitar Clip On Earrings

Paisley Crystal Drop Clip-on Earrings

Michal Golan's Icy Dream Clip-on Drop Earrings

Tourmaline Clip on Hoops

Golden AOI Leaf Non-pierced Earrings

Patina Button Clip On Dangle Earrings

Teardrop Sea Glass & Pearls Clip on Earrings

Gemstones @ Cliptomania.com

A taste of our wide selection of gemstone non-pierced earrings with either sterling silver or 14K gold.

Gem162

Gem150

FWP64

Gem161

GemAD48

Gem168

EC8

Fancy & Glitter @ Cliptomania.com

A sampling of our Fancy & Glitter non-pierced earrings@cliptomania.com

Crystal Accented Drop Hoop Clio on Earrings

Sparklin' Oval Clip on Earrings

Butterfly Wing Sterling Clip-on Drop Earrings

Comma Shaped Magnetic Earrings

Glittering Petal Drops Clip on Earrings

2-Tone Non-pierced CZ Button Earrings

David Howell & Company

Minton X & O Non-pierced Drop Earrings

Since David Howell, founder of the New York company which bears his name, was a boy he had a great desire to make things.  He would take apart various household items, alarm clocks, toys, and even a car to understand how all of them were made and how the parts worked individually and together.  David would then put these items back together as if he had never touched them in the first place.  This taught him that he couldn’t make everything himself.  Ultimately David learned it takes collaboration and other creative voices to design and produce great items, something he believes in to this day.

David’s initial inspiration most often comes from a place he or someone he knows has visited.  If the latter, and permission is needed, like he received for the CMA Music Festival in 2013, he will acquire it then take a camera and start exploring, snapping pictures, asking questions and making drawings.

His design influences not only come from places, but also history. David has created book marks of past presidents like Eisenhower and other historical figures like Ben Franklin.  He has made earrings influenced by architects like Frank Lloyd Wright and sculptures like the Thinker by Rodin.  Other influences include nature, faith, ancient cultures, literature and more. His designs are put on bookmarks, pendants, business card cases, letter openers, pins, earrings and more.  Worth noting also is that everything his company makes is made in the United States under environmentally friendly standards; an issue that is playing a major role in changing many business practices worldwide.

Click here to see other David Howell & Co. Non-pierced Earrings

 

Mahony Window Clip On Earrings

Cliptomania.com began purchasing from David Howell and Company early in 2007.  We used pre-made clip tops, ordered from another vendor, to turn his pierced earrings into clip-on earrings.  Three years later, thanks to the buyer from the Carnegie Museum of Art telling David that many of his designs were well suited for clip tops, he agreed. Cliptomania no longer had to discard the pierced tops.  Co-owner of Cliptomania, Candy Santo, is grateful for the change as she has said, “It wounded my Scottish soul to waste perfectly good fishhooks.”  Since then a majority of David’s earrings on the open market can be purchased as pierced or clip. His clip tops are simple clips that are round and flat faced and allow the design to hang below.

Some of David Howell and Company’s clip-on earrings are featured in our Tomorrow’s Heirloom section in a subcategory under his name. More of his designed earrings are on order and include themes like Diamond Wave Non-pierced Drop Earrings, Punk Works Clip On Dangle Earrings, Acanthus Clip On Dangle Earrings and numerous others.

May's Flowers

Plumeria Blossom Clip On Earrings

May’s flowers are out in force! I have seen phlox, dogwoods, roses, azaleas, clematis, anemone, and more in bloom.  It only seems appropriate for cliptomania.com to get into the spirit of Spring Flowers!  There is no reason to just put flowers in a vase when you can also adorn your ears with flowers too! So why not stop by the #1 site for clip on earrings and get a pair of more of flower clip on earrings to show express your appreciation or love of flowers!

The Outdoors is Alive Again

Multi-color Amber Flower Clip On Earrings

Daffodils are in bloom and the trees and bushes are budding. Most lawns have been cut already and temperatures are holding in the fifties and sixties during the day.   

Plumeria Blossoms Clip On Earrings

Cliptomania.com has three sections to meet your spring clip earrings need! We have a Something Special section with Animals where you can view La Contessa’s Primavera Bunny Clip on Drop Earrings and other cute creatures. Then there is our Flower section for those customers who love flower’s beauty and lastly we have a Holiday section which is specific to either a season or holiday. Visit cliptomania.com today!