|
|
|
|
|
|
Jan Palmer’s fascination with adornment goes as far back as she can remember. From playing dress-up covered in her mother’s jewels, then window-shopping and fantasizing about the gem laden trinkets on display in the stores of Beverly Hills, to her very first course in silversmithing during her college years living in Berkeley. Jan had one passion: the designing and handcrafting of fine jewelry. As an apprentice with local craftsmen, she mastered the “lost-wax” method of casting precious metals. She eventually moved to Charleston, South Carolina in 1975, where she owned and operated her first retail store, selling her original designs. She later enrolled in the Gemology Institute of America, and upon completing the courses, worked in gold factories in Los Angeles, learning the ins and outs of high-volume manufacturing. She soon became the manager and buyer for the gem department at J.G.L. Inc., then assistant designer for Terrell & Co. Her work could be seen in such prestigious outlets as Harry Winston, Fred's and Van Cleef & Arpel’s in Beverly Hills. |
|
By the mid-eighties, her talent and experience in the field brought her into the fashion world when she was sent throughout the Orient, including the Philippines and India, where she experimented with a wide variety of materials, such as bone, wood, brass, and resins for the costume jewelry industry. In the latter part of the ‘90s, she opened a factory in Mexico where she manufactured pewter jewelry that was sold in many chain and department stores, and some of which served as rock concert souvenirs for the likes of Bob Dylan and Mariah Carey. She moved to New York in 2001, becoming head designer for a fashion house. By the end of 2004, Jan decided that it was time to return to her first love--designing fine quality jewelry of the kind that lasts a lifetime, and Jewelry for Life came into being. Jan presently resides in Southern California where she continues to create sculpture and new jewelry designs. |