Press Releases

Jewelry Designer Brings Her Knowledge to NYJDI

Published

7 years ago

February 16, 2017

INSTORE Staff

She’ll teach a four-session course.

(Press Release) Fine jewelry designer Kristin Hanson will be teaching a four-session course curated for jewelry designers at the New York Jewelry Design Institute.

Putting the spotlight on students looking to develop their own signature collection of fine jewelry, Hanson’s class will help identify the source of inspiration needed to make a trademark style. Through concept development, by means of art, structure and form, the lessons will explore the design process. Finding the right materials, defining inspiration and storytelling through a portfolio while elementally standing out will all be explored.

“Become a jewelry architect. Learn techniques that will generate your next trend setting collection by focusing on the art of your own style. Create a portfolio that will become the blueprints of your brand,” Hanson said.

She added, “I am very excited to bring this new educational program to the jewelry industry. Students will have the opportunity discover their own creative potential while learning fun specialized techniques.”

Born in Montclair, NJ, Hanson ventured to Colorado at age 17. Tucked away in the Rocky Mountains, she studied one-on-one with master jeweler Harold O’Connor and later moved to the Alchimia contemporary jewelry school in Florence, Italy. There, she apprenticed with Giampaulo Babetto and learned a foundational approach while curating her own contemporary signature forms, learning to preserve classical European goldsmith techniques while accentuating the innate beauty of rare, naturally colored diamonds. Over the years, Hanson’s jewelry, and dedicated work as an educator and diamond specialist, evolved, and she has received international recognition as a leader in the fine jewelry industry. Today, her collections are available in Neiman Marcus department stores across the country.

In this class students will work with a number of mediums, including drawing, painting, photography, collage, video and sculpture.
Jenine Lepera Izzi, creative director of NYJDI, said, “Kristin adds a layer of sophistication to designing jewelry. She brings expansive knowledge to our classroom, and our students will greatly benefit from her worldly experience as an award winning jewelry designer, teacher and entrepreneur.”

Create Your Own Signature Collection, with Hanson, is a four-session course that will take place every Tuesday from March 28 through April 18 from 6-9 p.m. at NYJDI.

For more information about the courses, contact NYJDI at 212-951-1314 or info@nyjdi.com.

When There’s No Succession Plan, Call Wilkerson

Bob Wesley, owner of Robert C. Wesley Jewelers in Scottsdale, Ariz., was a third-generation jeweler. When it was time to enjoy life on the other side of the counter, he weighed his options. His lease was nearing renewal time and with no succession plan, he decided it was time to call Wilkerson. There was plenty of inventory to sell and at first, says Wesley, he thought he might try to manage a sale himself. But he’s glad he didn’t. “There’s no way I could have done this as well as Wilkerson,” he says. Wilkerson took responsibility for the entire event, with every detail — from advertising to accounting — done, dusted and managed by the Wilkerson team. “It’s the complete package,” he says of the Wilkerson method of helping jewelers to easily go on to the next phase of their lives. “There’s no way any retailer can duplicate what they’ve done.”