Local jewelry company handed the key to success

It’s a golden opportunity that came straight out of nowhere.

Nominees for upcoming Emmy and Golden Globe awards will walk the red carpet with hand-crafted necklaces from Winnipeg-based company Jillian Leigh Jewelry, but exactly how award organizers found out about the local gold jewelry brand remains a mystery.

“We still don’t know how they found us, but we’re really happy they did,” says co-founder and jeweler Velia Amador. “It means a lot to us to be able to participate in an event of this magnitude because it will help us gain some international visibility.”

Velia Amador is a self-taught jewelry designer and co-founder of Jillian Leigh.

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“And if one of the celebrities liked our pieces and ordered something from us, I think I would die,” said Jillian Sheedy, the other half of the company and a self-proclaimed celebrity enthusiast. Before becoming business partners, women worked in a corporate office. They created Jillian Leigh together in 2018 after Amador – who had been forging jewelry as a hobby for more than a decade – offered to make personalized bracelets for Sheedy’s wedding.

“We decided it could be a good partnership because we really enjoyed working together,” says Amador, who makes the jewelry while Sheedy takes care of the designs, photography and marketing. “I don’t have any formal training, he’s just self-taught … I really improved my skill level and challenged myself to learn more so that we could run some of our collections.”

Together they specialize in delicate and minimalist earrings, necklaces, bracelets, rings and anklets.

“It has the same properties as solid gold; it’s just a little more affordable, ”says Sheedy, who decided last year to focus on the business and her career as a full-time photographer.

online sales

amid the pandemic.

“In fact, we had an amazing year last year, considering the fact,” Amador says. “We’ve been able to build momentum through our website… and that momentum has continued throughout this year, with the added benefit that we can actually rebuild markets. ”

The award opportunities should take things to the next level.

Amador, who still works 9 to 5, has been busy making 250 of the personalized necklaces in her home studio.