What you'll learn in this episode:

• How Gabriela produces jewelry in Mexico, manages her business from Montreal, and sells her jewelry worldwide.
• Gabriela's favorite stone to work with, and how she chooses and sources gems for her colorful jewelry.
• How moving from Mexico to Canada (and experiencing seasons for the first time) influenced Gabriela's work.
• What it means for jewelry to be slow made.
• Why COVID prompted Gabriela to transition from packaging design to jewelry design, and how she overcame her hesitation to call herself a jewelry maker.

About Gabriela Sierra

Gaby, designer and creator of Gabriela Sierra jewelry, is anything but a minimalist. Unafraid of color, she plays with bold shapes, textures and asymmetry. Her meticulously crafted pieces are meant to be conversation starters.

With a background in Industrial Design followed by a variety of courses at Alchimia Contemporary Jewellery School, Gabriela Sierra merges design and fashion to create unique sculptural jewelry. The brand seeks to reflect the spirit of the slowmade process (quality over quantity). Founded in 2021, Gabriela Sierra is committed to good design by focusing on quality materials and the revaluation of craftsmanship.

Her work has been shown at different worldwide exhibitions:

• "Todo es Diseño" Queretaro, Mexico 2021
• "The Fab" Milano Jewelry Week 2022
• "Cluster Contemporary Jewelry", London 2022
• "The Earring Show", Vancouver, Canada 2023
• "Earrings Galore 2023 - 2024", United States

 

• Additional Resources:
• Website
• Instagram
• Facebook

Photos available on TheJewelryJourney.com

Transcript:

Expertly combining bold colors and shapes in her jewelry, it's clear that Gabriela Sierra has an eye for design. Beginning her career in furniture and packaging design, Gabriela made her lifelong dream of becoming a jewelry maker come true in 2021, when she opened Gabriela Sierra Jewelry. She joined the Jewelry Journey Podcast to talk about how her upbringing in Mexico and her current home in Montreal influence her work; why her business follows "slow made" principles; and how she became more confident about calling herself a jewelry designer. Read the episode transcript here.

 

Welcome to the Jewelry Journey, exploring the hidden world of art around you. Because every piece of art has a story, and jewelry is no exception.

Sharon: Hello, everyone. Welcome to the Jewelry Journey Podcast. This is the second part of a two-part episode. If you haven't heard part one, please head to TheJewelryJourney.com.

Today, I'm talking with Gabriela Sierra of Gabriela Sierra Jewelry. Welcome back.

So, everything might not be handcrafted, but you have chosen those individual stones to go together or the kind of stone to work with. For instance, will you choose a faceted stone to work with? Could you have a combination of a faceted stone with a cabochon with a smooth curve?

Gabriela: Yes. I already have some designs before combining these different types of cuts. Yes, for sure. I'm not like, "I'm just going to work with cabochon and that's it." No. I think t I'm open to work with different kinds of cuts. I like to work with cuts that are not the traditional ones. I just create new cuts and new cuts, and then as I mentioned, I make an order with my suppliers to have a sample to see if it really works, because in my mind everything works perfectly. I need to see the real thing physically, here with me in my hands, to see if everything is okay.

Sharon: Do you go to the Tucson Show in Arizona to choose stones?

Gabriela: No, I haven't had a chance to go. I see the videos and I see that all the jewelers I follow go there. I do wish to go there, but I just recently received my American visa. That was one of the reasons why I didn't go to the Tucson Show. But I would love to have the opportunity to go. Maybe next year. For sure, I want to go. Next year it's easier.

Here in Montreal there's also a gem show, a smaller version. It was last year. I think it's here every year. I went there last year, and it was very good. Of course, to a new person it's just huge. There are a lot of suppliers from everywhere, from every part of the world, so I really wanted to go.

Sharon: How do you decide if it's a good quality stone versus one that's not as good? Is it just by eye, or do you look through a loupe?

Gabriela: I don't have a lot of knowledge. I'm not trained to really recognize if a stone is a very good quality stone. I think I just need to love the stone and see that it's without any breakage, it's not with a hole or some kind of damage. I need to love the stone, and it needs to be a good cut in my opinion. I'm not an expert gemologist, so I cannot tell if it's perfectly cut. I just need to see the stone and if it's love at first sight. If I love the stone, it's perfect.

Sharon: Does it have to fit a certain bezel or do you make the bezel to fit the stone? Most of your gems seem to be bezel set.

Gabriela: At the beginning, when I first chose the stones and then designed, yes, I based my design on the gemstone. I created the bezel around it. But after that, when I had a clear concept, I designed first and then chose the stone. When I order the stones, they need to be the size that I need because I cannot change the design. But yes, basically all my gemstones are with a bezel.

Sharon: Do you have a studio outside your home, or a place inside your apartment or home where you design your jewelry?

Gabriela: In Mexico, my studio is in my house in Querétaro. Querétaro is the city where I live. It's in my house. The first floor is all my studio. Now Samantha is working there. But now here in Montréal, last year, last October, I found a place that rents a space for jewelers. I'm a resident there and I work from there. I have all the necessary things because it's an atelier. The atelier is called Artéfact. A lot of jewelers from Montreal rent their space and work there to create their pieces.

Sharon: Can you go any time, or do you have to sign up for certain times?

Gabriela: No, because I'm a resident, I can go if I want to go. During the night I can go. Any time I want. They give classes there also, but it doesn't matter if they are giving classes. I can go whenever I want.

In Montreal it's a little bit different. It's difficult to have a studio in your house or apartment. You need a permit because you're working with gas, with fire, with chemicals. It's different. In Mexico we don't need permits to have a gas tank in our house. Here it's a little bit different.

Sharon: Do you ever get nervous working with fire and chemicals? Does that make you nervous?

Gabriela: At the beginning, yes. Yes, of course. Because you're working with gas, if you're not careful enough, there could be an accident. Also, because my studio is in my house, I was worried at the beginning that I needed to be very careful because this is my house. My husband lives here. My stuff is here. So, yeah, I need to be careful. I was nervous at the beginning because I was working with fire. But you just need to follow the steps. That's it. If you work carefully and follow the precautions, you are good.

Sharon: And you have a pet. Do they keep you company in the studio? Where do they keep you company?

Gabriela: Yes, I have a dog. Her name is Jude Right now, she is in Mexico, but I will bring her here very soon because I miss her so much. She was the one reminding me every day, "Hey, Gabi, it's time to go home. I'm hungry. Let's go home." Home for her was the second floor of our house. I miss her so much. It's more than love for me and for my husband.

Sharon: Does she comfort you? If you're having a bad day with the stones, do you get comfort from her?

Gabriela: Yes. I don't know what dogs have, but they know if you are feeling bad or you are sad or you are happy. They just know. She approaches every time I feel bad or sad, or I break a bezel or I break a gemstone. She knows. Also because I scream a lot and I'm saying bad words.

Sharon: I want to talk to you a little bit about starting the business, deciding to start the business and keeping it going. You're newer in your making journey than some of the people I've talked to on the podcast. What made you decide that it was time to leave?

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