Like our other collections, the Canto Collection began with ideas sketched over time into designer Betsy's notebook. These pen-and-paper sketches are then translated to AI vector drawings and manipulated to help create cohesion between the ideas.
(Barrie hard at work developing Illustrator drafts).
Next, Betsy and Barrie, Betsy's Design Assistant, worked to translate the drawings into jewelry prototypes, fleshing out each idea with trial and error.
(Handwritten sketches & notes! Can you see some finished products in there?)
One of the ways we live our core value of collaboration is by involving every production team member in the design process. Each Maker is given a design to prototype and develop. They're asked to work through design challenges with Betsy and the rest of team and to be creative with solutions. Art is full of trial and error, and some designs had to be scrapped or largely manipulated until they were just right.
(Some prototypes that didn't make the final cut)
Once the designs have taken their final form, it's time for the pieces to be cut. This ensures they’re uniform and everyone knows what they’re getting when they buy something!
Now we have the cut sheets, so we have to remove all the pieces.
(The Ocaso earrings coming out of the sheet.)
Then comes the making part: arc-welding jump rings, soldering posts, dapping focal pieces, forming cuffs, tumbling everything, polishing, etc. etc. etc!
Did you know we hand spin fiber threads to make the rope for our jewelry? It's how we get such gorgeous pieces like the Soltura Necklace!
Did we buy a brand new tool just to execute our Caderas and Nilos to perfection? Yes, yes we did. And it was so worth it.
(Before and after dapping our Caderas studs!)
(Filing & putting earwire on our Salta focal pieces.)
We hand-solder posts onto every one of our stud earrings like all the teeny tiny Ritmos and Nilos.
(Maker Spencer soldering some Ritmo studs(top), and a pile of them ready to be cleaned with a pickling solution (bottom).)
(Spencer soldering again, this time the Nilo studs! Then they're added to the Ritmo pile).
We also do some arc welding, which is a way to fuse metal together. The arc welder makes a super bright, quick flash when it fires that we can sometimes see from Retail or the office. 
(Some Ocasos enjoying the dramatic lighting of the arc welder as they wait for their posts to be attached.)
Some of the pieces have to be formed, like rings and cuffs. They start out flat and are shaped first by hand, and then hammered around a mandril to get the perfect shape.
(The Zaca ring pre- and post-forming.)
(Taylor forming the Canto cuff.)
Eventually, the pieces are polished and ready to go. We put them out on the sales floor and online, and wait for them to be adopted into brand new loving families.
