Episode 223 Part 1: How Gabriela Sierra Made the Jump from Packaging Design to Jewelry Design

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.

Sharon: Hello, everyone. Welcome to the Jewelry Journey Podcast. This is the first part of a two-part episode. Please make sure you subscribe so you can hear part two as soon as it's released later this week.

Today, I'm talking with Gabriela Sierra of Gabriela Sierra Jewelry. Her Mexican heritage shines through because of the bold colors in her jewelry. You will immediately see that when you look at her jewelry. I'm talking to her today, and she's in Canada, where she travels.

She specializes in earrings. She uses recycled silver, and the stones she uses come from small, independent mines or mines that are located in Mexico. She believes in slow made. Her jewelry is meticulously crafted, and she does not have any inventory on hand. Almost everything is made to order at somebody’s request. Today, Gabriela will tell us about her business and how it works. Gabriela, welcome to the program.

Gabriela: I'm so excited to be here, Sharon. Thank you so much for inviting me.

Sharon: Can you tell us how you decided on jewelry as a profession?

Gabriela: Yes, sure. Well, I have always been drawn to jewelry since I was a kid. I was influenced by my mom and my grandmother. I remember her presence was always announced by the clicking of her bangles and her bold earrings.

I studied industrial design, and during university I took a jewelry class. That