Behind the Scenes

The life of a jewelry designer is fun and creative, as well as quite a bit messy, and frequently stressful. But it is at this intersection I find myself very much at ease, reveling in the feeling of creating something from nothing, with my own two hands, a free spirit and a glass of wine or two as I see fit.

I love to share my passion and process with fellow jewelry designers, both established and aspiring, and delight in learning in turn from others. It is with this spirit Melani Wilson Designs is evolving into a new phase, one I can’t wait to share with you soon…

Wedding Work

Doing work for someone’s wedding is one of the greatest honors in my jewelry making life. I’ve had brides approach me to do gifts for their wedding party, create signature earrings to be worn in the wedding, and create gifts for their mothers and soon-to-be mother in laws. I’ve worked with long time friends and strangers. Recently, I had the complete and utter honor to create individual jewelry pieces for the wedding party, including flower girl, and the mother of the bride, plus earrings for the bride’s rehearsal dinner, for a dear bride that I’ve known since she was a child.

What made this project so fun was the bride’s desire to have pieces that really reflected the personalities of her bridal party. She sent an email with descriptions of personalities and styles with links to some photos of my existing designs. From that, I made a number of pieces—I always make extra choices. I emailed the photos, we chatted via email, and then I made a few more pieces. Her mom also sent me a photo of her amazing MOB dress and we texted about how she would wear her hair, what kind of stones she likes, and price points. I created 3 different choices for her as well.

The best moments are finally getting together a few days before the wedding and figuring out the winning pieces. I must confess there was a little bit of sparkling something being consumed as bride and MOB decided what was going to work. So fun and so fulfilling for me! I thank this sweet bride and all those that came before for trusting me with such a special moment.