We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Julia D’Antonio. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Julia below.

Julia, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

I learned quite literally everything I know from the people around me, my professors, mentors, classmates, and my boss while I was a student and shop monitor at SCAD. I didn’t begin in jewelry right away, I came in studying fashion with a jewelry minor, but over time it became clear where my focus naturally wanted to be, and I shifted into it fully.

I don’t really believe in speeding up the learning process with this kind of work. It’s something that unfolds slowly, and I’m still very much in it. I’m surrounded by people who have been practicing for decades and are still learning, which makes it feel less like something to “figure out” quickly and more like something you grow into over time. If anything, I might have asked for more guidance earlier on, but I also think there’s value in learning through experience and repetition.

Being a shop monitor was probably the most formative part of my education. It asked me to be more present, not just in my own work, but in how I supported others. I learned how to communicate processes, navigate shared spaces, and think through problems in real time. Those skills aren’t always visible, but they’ve shaped the way I move through my practice in a lasting way.

One of the biggest challenges was losing access to in-person learning during COVID, which happened during my final year. Jewelry really depends on physical presence, and there’s a lot I missed in that time that I thought would push my work further. In some ways I still feel like I’m catching up. Learning has just taken a different form through the experiences I’ve had since, leading me to where I am now.

Julia, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I’m a jewelry artist and designer based in Brooklyn, and my work comes from a deep appreciation for historical forms, architecture, and ornament. I studied at SCAD, but my path into jewelry felt gradual. I initially went in for fashion, but kept finding my way back to metal and small-scale objects, until it felt natural to shift my focus fully.

I make pieces that are meant to feel personal and lasting. A lot of my work is influenced by ancient and classical design, arches, wreaths, and structural details that hold a sense of history, but I like to reinterpret them in a way that feels present. There’s often a boldness to the forms and a strong visual presence, but also a sense of permanence. I think of many of the pieces as future heirlooms, something that can live with someone over time.

I move between one-of-a-kind pieces and more distilled versions of larger designs, which feels really important to me. I care a lot about creating unique objects for the wearer, but I also like the idea of smaller pieces that can be collected over time, each one still connected to a bigger idea. My work also sits in a space that blends gender, it’s really about whoever feels drawn to it.

There’s a lot of attention to detail and handwork in what I do, but also to how something actually exists on the body. I like the balance of making pieces that can feel like a statement, while also becoming part of someone’s everyday rhythm. I’ve never been interested in making things that feel purely like production, it’s more about building a practice that stays thoughtful and intentional.

What I’m most proud of is creating something that feels honest to me. It took time to find my own language and to step into doing this on my own, and it’s still evolving in a way that feels really important.

I think more than anything, I’d want people to know that everything I make is considered. There’s a care for how it looks, how it feels, and who it becomes a part of. I want the work to feel lasting, something you return to over time.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

I’m actually in the middle of what feels like the biggest pivot in my career right now.

In May 2025, I made the decision to leave my job and go fully independent, while also leaving the jewelry studio I had been part of for two years to start fresh in a new space. Leading up to that, I had worked across a range of roles in the jewelry industry after graduating, including as a bench jeweler, on a design team for a large corporate jewelry brand, as a designer and production assistant for a small startup, and as a jewelry specialist in retail. I felt like I had experienced different corners of the industry, but none of those roles felt fully aligned with me long term.

What consistently stayed true was my own work, which I was developing outside of my jobs in the evenings and on weekends. That became the only space where I felt fully engaged, and eventually I made the decision to stop waiting for the “right time” and commit to it completely.

Since then, I’ve been learning what it actually means to build something on my own in real time. I’m an artist, jeweler, designer, and in many ways also handling photography, website management, production, and everything in between. It’s a lot to navigate, but it has also clarified what my work actually is.

Even in its uncertainty, this has been the most fulfilling direction I’ve taken. I’m still in the process of defining it, but that feels like part of the work.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

For me, the most rewarding part of being an artist has been finding a community I really feel like I belong to.

Jewelry feels like a kind of technical language that not everyone speaks, which makes it really special when you find other people who understand it, or when someone connects with a piece without needing it fully explained. There’s a shared understanding that exists through material, process, and detail, and I really value that.

It’s made the work feel very relational. Whether it’s other artists, collaborators, or the people who wear the pieces, there’s a quiet exchange that happens through the work itself.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.juliadantonio.com
• Instagram: @meinthestudio
• Other: tik tok: @juliiaguliia

Image Credits

All product photos taken by myself, Personal photo of me is by Henry Johnson