Welcome to the podcast.

Hi, guys.

So today I'm excited to feature five jewelry brands that I've really been eyeing lately, ones that I think bring a lot of value and artisan ship Thio, you know, standard jewelry making.

And so it's nice to be able to think about that from this perspective of the creators who are making this.

So the companies that I'm featuring today are ones that you know, are are more small scale, I would say for the majority of it.

And also it's just really fascinating to hear about their eye and they're processed and where they came from and all of those things.

So I want to start with the 5th 1 and I'm just gonna work my way through it.

And the first one that won't talk about is loyal Lombardi.

Lombardi is, ah, secret name in this household because Zach is like a huge Packers fan.

But I don't think that they're related at all.

Um, only the people who are fascinated by the Packers will even probably know what I'm talking about there.

But I've digressed.

Lara Lombardi is somebody who creates jewelry based off of her roots, which were based in New York City as well as Italy.

And so in New York City she has, like more of a raw and industrial style.

And then when she pairs that with her Italian roots, she also has more of a classical art in sculptural.

Feel to it, and you can really see that through some of her pieces.

She creates a lot of different gold hoops.

She designs that with both earrings and with chain belts and, like just crazy stuff as well as like necklaces and includes I really like her anklets like, I haven't worn an inkling in years, but I think that moving into spring and summer, I think it would be a really fun thing to do and a way to class up an outfit as well.

Her prices, I would say, are around like 1 30 toe 1 55 is what I'm looking at right now with Ian quit.

So I know that sometimes people are looking for things that are you last $100 when it comes to jewelry.

One thing to note with the ones that I mentioned today that some of them are below 100 so I'll point that out later.

But then others are more like heirloom pieces or just things that will hold their value.

So just keep that in mind.

It might be something for me, like for me, for instance, when I've looked at jewelry as I've updated my personal style, I've thought about jewelry as a way to to to wear something several 1,000,000 times.

So for necklaces, I'm going to wear them like these ones I've wearing, you know, just especially the Nakia one.

I probably worn it 100 times, and so it's nice to be ableto Just think of it as far as like how many times you'll wear it or how well it will maintain, and you'll keep it forever, and you'll keep it as an heirloom.

These are all just thought processes that go into the price as well as the artists and ship behind it.

So Lara Lombardi uses raw and recycled materials whenever she's making thes things, and it comes a lot back to her interest in things like fine arts and sculpture, assemblage, mixed media.

So she was just into all of these realms, and she was able to then make this fashion or this jewelry line out of it, which is so amazing, One pair in particular of her gold hoop earrings that I think are really fascinating are the A Neema.

I'm not sure I'm pronouncing that right, but what's really cool about them is like she took what would essentially be a gold hoop earring and it looks kind of twisted, like it was melted in fire and and just kind of like morphing into something more sculptural.

And it's really fascinating.

It would definitely catch somebody's eye.

And just the fact that it's also lightweight is really cool.

So I never wear heavy earrings.

I just can't like I've literally had one of my ears were pierced and, like, I won't go into the details of that because it's not pretty.

Um, but I just am so averse to wearing heavy earrings.

So something like this, if it truly is lightweight like it's a hollow hoop earring, that would be a good option for me.

So I'm definitely keeping an eye out, and I like the idea of having something like this one, which is bigger.

I would say It's like the size of half dollar.

Yeah, I would say it's definitely bigger than 1/4 so this is definitely something.

I would try these and see if they were like two big on me.

But having something that's a little bit more of a statement piece wouldn't be bad, either, especially something as beautiful as gold as this one.

So I'll be sure to link everything that I mentioned in the show Notes slash description bar whatever you guys want to call it, Um, but I'll be sure to just get every all my links together for if you're interested in any of the pieces that I mentioned.

But Laura Lombardi is somebody that she's been featured in several articles.

I like the ones by the Cut by L and Refinery 29.

They all have featured her, and it's just so cool to see how you know, whenever an artist in is like, lifted up and featured, I think it's just so empowering and really goes back to the roots of the art behind it and the creator behind it.

Number four on my Top five countdown would have to be so co SoCo is a place that I have shopped for before, and I've been so impressed with just the beauty and uniqueness that I've had in the bracelets that I've gotten in the past.

So what's really neat about SOCO is that they are trying to help artisans in Africa, mostly who are, um, a lot of them.

This is just like what they described it as so a lot of people in Africa mainly used their phone.

So on their mobile phone, they're able to connect with the SOCO marketplace.

So people who have been generationally making jewelry and these trades have been passed down from generation to generation are now able to sell their jewelry worldwide through SOCO.

So SoCo means marketplace, and it's really neat because then they just have this warehouse.

So whenever you order something from SOCO, it won't take forever to ship or anything like everything's right there in their warehouse and they just ship it out from there.

But it's sustaining a lot of these artists who wouldn't be able to sell this at this global level and then also because everything's just roam run through a mobile phone.

It's cutting out like the middleman that is, that would take away money from the artisan.

So all of this is like much more direct to consumer, and it's just like this hob this warehouse that then sends out the products.

So I am really fascinated by the whole idea and in the past, Like I said, like I've loved my SOCO bracelets.

In fact, I've got a little bag here that says SoCo and I just love it so much because I just keep that little bag and that's like where I put all my bracelets.

And and so whenever I look for a bracelet in my address, er than I know that that's where, like my bracelets are, and it's just something I've kept forever.

Another really cool thing about their products is that everything has more of a classic and timeless feel that I think would be universal.

Like wherever SoCo sells their products.

I think that it would be something that would meet what people are expecting for jewelry.

So this one that I'm looking at is a mini, bold hoop earring.

So it's again, you're gonna get a lot of hoop earrings in this video because I'm really on the market for that.

But what's great about them is that they're small, so if you don't want something that's over, like overstated or anything.

It's It's something that would be tasteful and unique and still very like sophisticated and classy.

And so it comes in a couple of colors, both brass and silver.

So, yeah, I just really need to see that.

But then, if you wanted something that was, Ah, little bit more on trend, I would say they have something that looks more tortoiseshell.

And that one's It's a hoop earring that is made out of hornets, ethically made out of horn.

So it says here it's handcrafted in ethically sourced horn by artisans in Kenya.

So again, it's a lot of the same trades that people have done for generations, and then it's just adapting the culture to meet that need.

And also a lot of the artisans are, you know, generally speaking like they're a lot of women who are making the jewelry that year, then, like directly impacting their income.

So I just like that model.

It's not like every single brand that I find it meets all of these standards.

But whenever I find a brand like so go, I just love it.

I want to tell everybody about it.

OK, so number three is Wolf Circus.

And I was really fascinated by this one line about them, which is a line of Demi fine jewelry.

And that means, like, you know, not ultra luxe, expensive, but more affordable.

But the word dummy fine.

Just kind of made me chuckle because of, like what if, like, after a date, you know, you're asked like, you know, How was it?

It was like Demi.

Fine, Sorry.

I don't know what it is about this Mike, but it just allows me to tell all of the worst jokes.

Okay, So what's really cool about where Wolf Circus is that it's just a team that's all women, which they said was like not an intentional decision, but just something that happened organically.

And so they really just have a great time working together.

And it's fun to be able to, you know, I'm gonna keep going back to this.

What's fun to be able to be a part of whenever there's artisans or when there's a small team like your purchase goes so much further in that small team.

So the ways that Wolf Circus really keeps down prices, I would say is it's a lot more about, you know, having gold plating so you might have something that's 14 karat gold, but it is gold plated, so that'll keep the cost down because gold is super expensive.

But at the same time, it is something that they're using like is something that is going to be more affordable.

And then also, if they're not using that, then they've also got, like, recycled bronze recycled sterling silver.

And so they're really keeping the cost down as much as they can.

So, for example, some studs that they have their so gorgeous their gold baby dune studs is what they're called.

And so there's $65 for gold stud earrings, so there's still like their dummy.

Fine, you know, like they're not like forever 21 cheap with does not what I'm going for with this video.

This is something that still is not going to make your ears, like, get all itchy and stuff.

This is something that's quality, and I just love it so much.

I love it because two, I'm a real fan of the dress ling.

I find a lot of like these artisans are featured over there.

Um, so definitely Look over there If you want to see, like, just brands you've never heard off Small scale, that type of thing.

Uh, she also has, ah, gold pendant necklace that has a little shell on it.

And I just love that it's called Marcel for anybody out there who's seen them.

Marcel The Shell videos on YouTube.

I think there's like the top video is like 30 million views.

But I watched those women.

They first came out, and I was just obsessed.

Jenkins is just this cute, adorable little shell, and his name is Marcel, and I don't know.

You have to watch it.

It's not everybody's humor, but I just thought it was the funniest little thing I think another perk to having the shell necklace, besides the fact that is called Marcel, is that there are a lot of articles out there that are featuring heavily shelled jewelry.

And so this is a way to where shell necklaces without it being like the coral necklaces from yonder past.

Um, but I do like the fact, too, that she also has some jewelry with pearls, so she has some gorgeous earrings.

They're called the small pearl hoops and gold.

And I'm just like, I really like those a lot because it's got just a giant pearl on the end of a hoop.

And so it's got not only the hoop, but then the pearl, and it's just like the combination is just so beautiful.

That's really cool.

It was need to hear about the owner of that company.

Fiona, I believe yeah, for Una when we go to her instagram real quick.

So Wolf Circus on Instagram is wolf under square Circus, and it's really cool to see, like how she's styling a lot of these pieces.

Um, I think that's really beautiful to like.

Those pearl earrings look so amazing on here, and it's also need to just see how people are wearing them with everyday outfits.

Everything.

So, anyways, I digress.

I think that is just so beautiful.

She was featured in Teen Vogue and also Primary and Why and Be re collect, actually switching between her Instagram and then referencing this old article that I read on Teen Vogue.

She says she's inspired by her grandma's old jewelry, which is like, Oh, that's exactly me.

I so relate to that This is something about, like vintage jewelry and how your grandmother war.

There's just something to that.

Um, also street style, she says, inspires her as well as her friends, confident women painters, sculptors and architects.

I would say that, Ah, lot of artisans that I've been reading about like this they all say that their whole goal about making jewelry is to inspire confidence.

And I would say that that is so true, Like the times where I'm not wearing my jewelry and I'm outside like my house.

I just feel a little bit like, different.

I can't really describe it.

It's just I don't know.

I think jewelry does give you a confidence boost that you otherwise didn't have, and it's also just, always go back to.

It's a form of manners when you dress well and accessories are a great way to do that, going back to confidence, that is something that I love to speak about on this channel.

I find that it's the one thing that determines whether I do wear something or not, because something could look amazing on me.

But if I feel like embarrassed or awkward about it, you know, and people have actually written make like, can you talk about this?

So let me just take a moment and talk about confidence because it is something that is elusive.

I think that even people who who, like, say that they're super confident they have their Probably not that confident that you they're probably just like puffing themselves up as armor so that there there's self esteem issues aren't there.

But I would say that it is really nice to be able to wear something that you're confident in because, like I was saying earlier, if you're wearing something that doesn't bring you 100% confidence, no matter how amazing you look, it's gonna take a lot to bring you out of that shell going back to the Marcel the shell.

Okay, So, um, to bring you out of that shell and just make you excited for your day and like you have, you're on the right foot.

If that makes sense, I feel like whenever I go in for a handshake to somebody, I'm just meeting for the first time and I feel confident, not arrogant, but just like confident my own skin.

I feel like I can win that day like I can.

I can do whatever I set out to Dio.