Lorraine West's Jewelry Line Is an Example of Ideas Taking Wing

Who are fans of Lorraine West's custom jewelry line? Erykah Badu, for one. Lizzo, for another. Find out how West went from plastic beads to diamonds of the first order.

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In 1997, I was studying illustration at FIT [Fashion Institute of Technology]. One day, I walked into a store in Midtown, admiring the beads, materials, and tools—and walked out with fine wire, cutters, and beads. I had no intention of starting a business. I wanted to create something three-dimensional. My mom had a very beautiful curated jewelry box of brooches and rings and necklaces, and I loved to play with it. As a teenager, in the ’90s, I was very inspired by Afrocentric design, but I also loved clean lines and asymmetry. Colors, shapes, negative space—my inspiration was broad. So as I started creating, people started expressing their interest, and I sold my first piece shortly after beginning.

To design wearable, creative pieces that could bring my clients joy and allow them to feel beautiful and powerful. That's been my mission from the beginning. From the everyday clients to the biggest celebrities on the planet.

I sold in the streets of SoHo. I sold to boutiques. The first boutique I got into was in 1999 with Patricia Field, and my leather cuffs sold out. Back then the buyers were right there. By 2014, I’d created a website. Now I’m doing fine jewelry and selling to wholesale luxury retailers.

What makes me a little different is that I started with fashion jewelry, and every year, I pushed myself to learn more. If I had a creative idea, even if I didn't know how to do it, I would just go for it. For instance, I got commissioned by Erykah Badu to create brass wings as bracelets. She sent me a text, probably at 2 a.m.—I had already worked with her for many years—saying, "I want wings." I created a paper pattern for myself. I’d had experience soldering but had never done something on such a big scale. So I had to figure out the engineering before I started. It took a couple of tests, but the outcome was incredible. It's still one of the greatest pieces I’ve done.

In June 2020, after George Floyd, all of a sudden, everybody was like, "Support Black designers." It's terrible that it came out of such a devastating situation, but it did shine a light on many of us. I believe it's a part of the ancestor work that George Floyd started doing to help change things. At the time, my website was a supplement to my main business of custom work—I’m still one person managing mostly everything. So when I started getting all these orders—tons of orders, back-to-back—which I had never gotten in this capacity, I didn't recognize how much work and time it was going to take to do this. I never had to make that much jewelry in such a short time—so it was really stressful. For the most part, clients were really patient, because we were in pandemic. But there were some clients who were not very nice. I did get everything done eventually. But that was one of the most difficult times I ever had to face, even though I had this huge blessing of sales. Eventually, people were very happy. And maybe some of the customers even learned for themselves about how handmade things are created.

The first time I sold something. I started when I was 19. I had locs at the time, so some of the first things I ever made were loc rings. I was actually working a part-time job in a health food store. I would carry my little tan velvet box. I showed a customer my work because I thought she was very fashion-forward. She bought one, and that was it. I was like, I’m going to start selling this stuff. I had no clue, but I just kept working to improve.

I’ve continued to grow my business. I also started doing custom bridal jewelry after a friend asked me to help him. And I was invited to join a project called the Radiance by Couture in collaboration with De Beers, where they supplied sustainable diamonds that are traced from the rough until the final goods. Working with those diamonds was very special because they’re sustainable diamonds from Botswana, and I was invited to visit Botswana with De Beers. It was full circle—coming from working with plastic beads to now, 20-plus years later, working with 18kt gold, platinum, and diamonds of the highest value is just amazing. But I know I can do more. I can push more. I can innovate more. I’ve done a lot of great work, but I know there's more in me to express and to experiment with techniques, materials, and execution.

To learn more about earrings worn by Beyoncé, Zendaya, and Mary J. Blige, her open heart ring, and other pieces, visit lorrainewestjewelry.com.

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