Jewelry designer lets her lifelong love of art lead the way

Amanda Jaron Composing sculptures made of diamonds, pearls and precious metals. That was designer Amanda Jaron’s inspired notion when she began creating jewelry more than two decades ago. Now the owner of her own line of designer gems, Ms. Jaron authors pieces that combine the most compelling elements of both fashion and art with a casual elegance that makes them as appropriate for the catwalk as for the boardwalk — and every place in between.

Since she opened her jewelry company, A.Jaron, in 2004 — the same year she and her husband Steve moved to Naples from Manhattan — Ms. Jaron’s styles have attracted the attention of fashion experts worldwide, along with an A-list following that includes celebrities and fashionistas such as Sela Ward, Melissa Joan Hart, Angela Basset, Rachael Ray and Tori Spelling, plus legions of everyday women who have an eye for style.

The designer says she was lucky enough to discover her passion very early in life. “When I was young, reading and math were very difficult for me,” she says. “I was diagnosed with a learning disability (most likely dyslexia) and put in SLD (slow learning and development) classes. At the same time, my I.Q. scores were very high, and so for the second half of the day I was put in to the gifted, enhanced learning program.

“It was very confusing for me, but I realized even then, that out of my whole day, the only class I really enjoyed and truly excelled in was art.”

By the time she was ready for high school, a magnet school for the creative and performing arts had opened in her northern Florida school district. “My art teacher suggested that I put a portfolio together and apply,” she says. “I was accepted, and from then on, art has been the focus of my life.”

As part of her art studies, she learned to create sculpture from paper and craft materials. On a lark, she took a jewelrymaking class at the same time. “It suddenly occurred to me that instead of using paper and cardboard to create works of art, I could actually use precious stones and metals to fabricate wearable ‘sculptures.’” That was her “a-ha!” moment, and she’s never looked back.

After high school, she earned a bachelor’s degree in fine art, jewelry and metal smithing from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. “Even then, I hoped to have my own jewelry line some day,” she says, “but I still needed a great deal more business and manufacturing experience.”

She worked as an assistant designer for a Philadelphia jeweler and for a costumejewelry manufacturer before going to work at Avon, which she acknowledges as the place where she learned to design jewelry that’s both fun to wear and affordable for the average woman.

“It’s very easy to make beautiful pieces that incorporate tons of gold and diamonds,” she says. “That’s not hard at all. What’s difficult is creating something unique and of high quality that’s also reasonably priced.”

She honed her merchandising and global marketing skills further by creating jewelry designs for Givinchy, Tommy Hilfiger, Jones New York, and other major retailers.

“Art can be very selfish,” she says. “It can be completely about what the artist wants. But working for the large retailers taught me to put the needs and desires of the customer first and to use my knowledge of art and manufacturing to satisfy their criterion rather than just mine.”

The A.Jaron line includes seasonal styles as well as custom and semi-custom pieces. Semi-custom means that if someone likes a design but wants sapphires and platinum (or silver) instead of yellow gold and diamonds, she fabricates it for them.

Although they average from $500 to $600, A.Jaron jewelry pieces range from $200 to more than $30,000. Pieces in her line developed recently for the Home Shopping Network cost from $50 to $200.

The designer also uses her expertise to aid local charities. She recently designed and donated a Christmas ornament for the Education Foundation of Collier County and its Take Stock In Children program.

“The foundation asked me to come up with an ornament design that the Take Stock kids could partially assemble themselves and then sell to raise money for the program,” she explains. During a recent dinner and workshop at the Naples Grande, Ms. Jaron helped about 20 Take Stock kids and their mentors put the ornaments together and package them for sale. “It was a very rewarding project for me,” she says. “I always enjoy the chance to work with kids.”

That might be because she gets plenty of practice at it, as the mother of 5-yearold twins — Willem Michael and Alanna Jewel.

“Because of my own experiences, I am raising my children to take responsibility for their lives and to follow their dreams,” she says. “Living by those principles helped me to create joy in my life, and I hope my kids are just as lucky some day.” 