CYNTHIA SERRANO

24 Gold Plated Brass Upsala Volcano
Pendant Necklace

Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, or Los Cabos, is a premier tourist attraction where breathtaking natural scenery and sumptuous cuisine are major highlights.

Located on the Baja California Peninsula visitors can enjoy whale watching, snorkeling, sunbathing and parasailing.  Mexico is also home to featured jewelry designer Cynthia Serrano.

ANA SALDANA | REJOICE THE HANDS

Dreamcatcher Quill Necklace
with Vintage Concho & Natural Porcupine
Quills

Playa de Carmen, Mexico is perhaps a best-kept secret.  Just forty-five minutes away from Cancun, a tourist hot spot, this coastal locale boasts agreeable crowds, and fun activities rivaling activities in Cancun: windsurfing, snorkeling and swimming with dolphins.  

Mexico is also the ancestral home to featured jewelry designer Ana Saldana.

VANESSA MONTIEL

22K Gold Vermeil Love Savage Cuff Bracelet
with Swarovski Crystals and Drury Stone

Located in the Chihuahua State of Mexico is the remarkable Copper Canyon.  

Formed by six rivers that drain in the Sierra Tarahumara mountain range, Copper Canyon is four times the size of the U.S. Grand Canyon. 

Mexico is also the ancestral home of featured jewelry designer Vanessa Montiel.

GABRIELA RAMIREZ MICHEL | G.M.R.

Spring and Summer Ring

Calakmul, Mexico is among one of the largest ancient Maya cities.  With an expanse of nearly 2 million acres the site holds over 100 limestone obelisks, and murals.  Mexico is also home to featured jewelry designer Gabriela Ramirez Michel.

EMILIA CASTILLO

Sterling Silver Zebra Necklace

Guadalajara, Mexico has something for everyone including mariachi bands, free concerts and exciting roller coaster rides at the local theme park.  

The Planetarium and Historic Center provide a more cerebral experience.  Mexico is also home to featured jewelry designer Emilia Castillo.

JOAQUIN AND JOSEFINA

Model Wears .950 Silver Lush Foliage
Pendant Necklace

The municipality of Guanajuato, located in central Mexico, was named a World Heritage Site twenty-five years ago and for good reason.

Known for its silver mines, most notably the La Valenciana mine, during the pre-colonial period the city produced two-thirds of the world’s silver.  Mexico is also home to featured design team Joaquin and the late Josefina.

GABRIELA ARTIGAS

14K Gold Filled Link Chain Necklace with Horn

There are plenty of things to do and see when visiting Playa del Carmen, Mexico.

Situated along the Mayan Riviera, this exotic locale offers fun beach activities including sailing, scuba diving and swimming.

Mexico is also home to featured jewelry designer Gabriela Artigas.

PHOEBE and ANNETTE STEPHENS | ANNDRA NEEN

Brass Braid Cuff Bracelet from  Brass Collection

Cabo San Lucas, Mexico is a beautiful coastal city that offers invigorating water activities including para sailing, snorkeling or surfing.  

At night you can wind down or up patronizing such eateries like Villa Serena and Arrecifes.

Mexico is also the birthplace of featured sibling design duo Phoebe and Annette Stephens.

AFRICA BARRERA

Sterling Silver Dazzle Chain Necklace

It is flanked by a cathedral, a palace, and federal district buildings and it is among the world’s largest city squares. 

This square is known as the Zócalo located in “the heart” of Mexico City, Mexico.  Mexico is also home to featured jewelry designer Africa Barrera.

DANIEL ESPINOSA | DANIEL ESPINOSA JEWELRY

18-Karat Rose and White Gold Bellisma
Double Sphere Ring with Diamonds

The Mexican city of Ixtapa, located northwest of Acapulco, Mexico, is a beautiful beach resort that boasts long stretches of sand and water activities such as snorkeling and swimming.  Mexico is also home to featured jewelry designer Daniel Espinosa.

CITLAL CASTILLO

The beaches of Cancun and Cabo are just a few of the attractions in Mexico. For the history buff Mexico also offers the National Museum of Anthropology that holds artifacts from Mayan and Aztec civilizations. Mexico is also home to featured jewelry designer Citlal Castillo.

GURMAN and ROMERO

Today is one of those rare occasions where we visit two locales. Our first stop is the sacred Mexican region of Teotihuacán that holds ancient pyramids, ceremonial objects and fine pottery.

We will next visit the scenic Lake District of Argentina consisting of twenty lakes; the largest being Nahuel Huapi. This time of year is great for fishing, kayaking, and hiking.

Though Mexico is home to featured husband-wife design team Debora Gurman and Marco Romero, Gurman is originally from Argentina.

ERICK GOMEZ

Many colonial towns still exist in Mexico, and the 16th century town of San Miguel de Allende is among them.

With a newly restored mural by American artist Eleanor Coen, as well as the town’s prestigious film festival, it has become a popular location for Mexican, Canadian, and American tourists. Mexico is also the home of featured jewelry designer Erick Gomez.

CARLOS and CYNTHIA RENDON

The ancient Maya site known as Calakmul is surrounded by a dense jungle region in the Mexican state of Campeche.

It holds over one hundred obelisks that represent ancient rulers and their spouses. Mexico is also home to brother-sister design team Carlos and Cynthia Rendon.

JUAN CARLOS CEBALLOS

The spirit of long gone Mayan civilizations is alive and well in the Mexican state of Yucatan. Ancient and complex Mayan structures, such as the Governor’s Palace and the Pyramid of the Dwarf, still stand in the city of Uxmal. Mexico is also home to featured jewelry designer Juan Carlos Ceballos.

I have commented before that I am partial to gold jewelry and have found myself seeking out its soft, fiery glow while perusing affordable pieces of costume jewelry at the local mall.

However, as I have viewed the incredible designer jewelry from Thailand, Mexico, Indonesia and the American Southwest, I have found myself succumbing to the cool, sleek tones of sterling silver jewelry.

Even Danish designer Georg Jensen had fallen prey to silver jewelry’s seductive appeal comparing its white luster to the glow of the moon. Though there is only a small sampling of Ceballos’ jewelry pieces featured on his Novica page, I really like the alternately modern, chic and dainty outlines he sculpts.

Having developed computer systems for companies like IBM, Hewlett Packard, and Citibank, Ceballos is someone who understands the complex mechanics of creating. This propensity for cultivating layered patterns and formulas lent itself to his budding interest in jewelry design.

“In 2002, I ventured into the field of jewelry, and the Tec de Monterrey University offered a course in Spain on the internationalization of business,” says Ceballos. “I also took a course in fashion and design taught by Richard Domingo. He was a great help and a huge influence in defining the company’s image.”

While I cannot speak to the scope of Ceballos’ aesthetic, his Novica page highlights his deftness at creating minimalist sterling silver necklaces, cuff bracelets, and silver pendants.

A clear homage to centuries-old Mexican architecture, his Cathedral Window Pendant subtly mixes the colors of green peridot, amber and amethyst while his Enchanted Cuff Bracelet is a chic, modern jewelry item highlighting the contrast of high polished and oxidized silver. In his necklaces, he juxtaposes the delicate forms of silver flowers with edgy, twined black leather cords.

Like the moon, understated yet striking seems to be the definitive quality of silver metal. It can take on any jewelry style regardless of how intricate without seeming garish or overdone.

Silver can exude casual and laid-back or fluid sophistication, and from what I have seen Ceballos more than adequately covers those bases.
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Photo 1 (top right): Sterling Silver Cathedral Window Pendant with Amber, Peridot and Amethyst
Photo 2 (bottom left): Sterling Silver Enchanted Cuff Bracelet with Rose Quartz

ROSANNA TREJO

The Mexican state of Oaxaca is a great location for finding intact structures built during Pre-Columbian times. One such place to visit is the sleepy town of San Pablo Villa de Mitla. Mexico is also home to featured jewelry designer Rosanna Trejo.

Perhaps best known for silver production, and silversmiths like Antonio Pineda, Mexico is also an area known for its varied and colorful ceramic earthenware.

Pre-Columbian cultures including the Teotihuacans, the Olmecs, and the Aztecs highly influence the techniques and styles of modern ceramic pottery.

Trejo revisits time-honored ceramic handicrafts enlisting the ancient techniques to cultivate fun, festive designer jewelry. Those with inhibitions need not apply as watermelon slices, Mexican mugs, apples, and chili peppers are a few items immortalized in vivid, ceramic jewelry that is accented with wood and glass beads.

The former pre-school teacher embarked on a jewelry making career 32-years ago choosing to “feature regional elements like fruits, exotic birds, and Frida Kahlo” into her distinctive handmade jewelry designs.




Jewelry is all about personality; that of the designer and the wearer. This is not classic jewelry; it is playful and quirky.

It ultimately requires a certain mind-set; a personality that appreciates humor and a sense of frivolity. Cloris Leachman’s blithe and uproariously eccentric antics are a perfect fit with the bold colors, and dead-on replications.

I love the play of colors—the greens, reds, yellow—and the arrangement of the life-like shapes. I have not seen a lot of fruit-inspired jewelry done in this way.

Trejo foregoes the simple, strawberry pendant necklace instead creating beautiful lei-like necklaces and charm bracelets drenched with ceramic fruit.

“I love the handicrafts from my beloved Mexico,” says Trejo, “My collections are influenced by Mexican attires, and varied details of my country’s culture.”
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Photo 1 (top right): Ceramic Watermelon Chic Bracelet
Photo 2 (center): Ceramic and Pearl Frida’s Little Deer Jewelry Set
Photo 3 (bottom left): Ceramic Tropical Cocktail Jewelry Set

TANYA MOSS

You have your pick of subtropical or alpine climates when exploring the Copper Canyon located in Mexico’s state of Chihuahua.

Touted as over three times the size of the United States’ Grand Canyon, hiking, driving and horseback riding are suggested ways to view this unique region. Mexico is also home to featured jewelry designer Tanya Moss.

ANTONIO PINEDA

Located in Mexico City, Mexico stands the majestic Palacio Nacional (National Palace) building. At over four centuries old, the structure serves as a government building and highlights the beautiful yet foreboding baroque architectural style. Mexico is also home to the late jewelry designer Antonio Pineda.

CARLOS CABRAL

Even after Spain's conquest of the Aztec empire, during the early 16th century, the mysterious grandeur of the Templo Mayor temple could not be fully quelled. More than four centuries after the temple's destruction, a major excavation took place in Mexico City uncovering well-preserved artifacts. Mexico is also the home of featured jewelry designer Carlos Cabral.


Jewelry is born through the unification of instinct and intellect, while the ultimate creation is a hands-on, sensory endeavor.

It is a play of touch, exploration, and a seeming transference between the creator and his or her materials.

"I studied a variety of courses in jewelry design and silversmithing in order to discover the intricacies of metal work," says the former med student. "I learned how to work metals without hurrying the process--I learned to listen to the metal."

When designing his pieces, Cabral also takes cures from the natural environment. "Nature is the guiding principle behind my jewelry designs. I observe flowers and feathers. I study the contours of rocks, or the texture of a tree trunk. I'd say my designs emulate Mother Nature rather than imitate."

Cabral's sterling silver bijouterie is alternately coarse, organic, irregular, sleek, and sculptural. He contrasts white and patinated metal, high polish with texture adding accents of reconstituted turquoise, opals from Jalisco's Magdalena mines or a single black pearl.

His more streamlined pieces, featured on Novica.com, incorporate Aztecan motifs, and interpretations of a thread spool, and open book.

Although I love the look of elegant jewelry its fluidity, and smoothness of form, I also love the distinctive, hand-sculpted look of his organic items.

Some shapes are crinkled like loosely balled up pieces of paper, others are beaten up, rough-hewn resembling unearthed relics.

Each design is cultivated through numerous techniques including anticlastic raising, hammering, repoussé, and high relief.

Overall, the jewelry is earthy, and sensual a visual language of delicate femininity and quiet strength.

"I worked in graphic communications for over 20 years. I designed jewelry on the side until I realized my greatest pleasure came from three-dimensional shapes as well as working with metals and gemstones.

I derive great pleasure when I see people wearing my designs and see them happy with my products."
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Photo 1 (top right): Hammered Sterling Silver Tara Pendant
Photo 2 (bottom left): Sterling Silver Puno Bracelet

CESAR GODOY

The waters of Lake Chapala surround the Isla de los Alacranes, an island near Jalisco, Mexico. Though mired in controversy regarding contamination, the lake provides a habitat for innumerable indigenous animals and plants.

For this reason, the local Audubon Society rallies to preserve the habitat. Mexico is also the home of featured jewelry designer Cesar Godoy.