Today we’d like to introduce you to Leslie de la Mora.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Leslie. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
It is kind of wild how I got started. I have always loved stones and love the properties that they hold. My daughter started making jewelry in middle school and when I would take her to the bead store, I would buy stones for myself, typically whatever stone I felt I needed for the day. I sat down at my kitchen table one night and just started making a few things. I had no idea what I was doing (YouTube was my friend), but I had a vision and I wanted to see if I could bring it to life. I remember the first time I wore a stack of bracelets that I had made. I had about 30 orders from people that I barely knew. I was amazed. At the time, I owned a pilates studio and never ever thought I had a creative bone in my body. That was about five years ago and I feel very blessed and grateful that it has turned into a full time business for me.
Has it been a smooth road?
Oh, Heck, no! When I started making jewelry, I owned a pilates studio. As my jewelry business started to grow, it would take time away from my clients and the studio. I started losing clients because I would take days off to do jewelry shows, work on jewelry orders, etc. At the beginning, my jewelry shows were so sporadic so with losing pilates clients, I was having a hard time paying my bills. It was very stressful. Someone gave me some wise words years ago… whatever you put your energy into grows. I finally listened and knew I had to let go of one of the two to be successful. Plus, I was a complete mess trying to juggle two businesses that weren’t growing because I was exhausted trying to split my time. I decided to close my studio and jump into my jewelry business with both feet. Which was so frightening because I have two daughters to feed and I was letting go of all I had known as an income. But I am so happy that I did.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Delamora Designs story. Tell us more about the business.
I design and make jewelry that fuses a bohemian spirit with a mountain edge. I love natural materials, such as wood, precious and semi-precious stones, bone, leather, gold, and more. My pieces are designed to be worn alone or layered together. I am mostly known for my Silk knotted Ox Bone Horn necklaces which can be worn long, but most wear them short. I design and make everything at my kitchen table. I make sure every bead is perfect. People often ask me why I don’t hire people to make my jewelry but I have a high standard of quality and I have to make sure that every bead is perfect. As a company, I am most proud of my clients and my repeat customers. I have met a lot of great people on this journey. I am also proud of myself for jumping into the unknown.
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
I am not quite sure where I see the industry going. I honestly don’t follow trends. I love fashion and design whatever feels good for me and mostly what will look good on other people.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.etsy.com/shop/delamoradesigns
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/delamora_designs/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/delamoradesigns/
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