We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Dana Schwimmer a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Dana, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What was it like going from idea to execution? Can you share some of the backstory and some of the major steps or milestones?

I studied interior design in college and always appreciated architecture. Designing concrete jewelry was an idea I had once, many years ago. I always loved the way exposed concrete looked inside a house, but didn’t have enough time for it. When I moved to the US I decided I don’t want to pursue interior design and started thinking again about jewelry design. For me it is really quick from the idea to a 3D model. I started to 3D design and in the same time to test concrete mixes checking to see what can hold and not break as a small piece. I then 3D printed the jewelry tests to see how I feel about the designs. Designing molds and creating them is something I learned in college, so I used that technique for casting the concrete and testing the design in the actual material. The first thing I do after testing any design and casting the concrete is to drop it on the floor and see if it breaks. It is very important for me to keep the jewelry sturdy enough and not too delicate. I launched my business with my first collection – PENTA, that combined metals and concrete.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My name is Dana and I am the owner and designer of Lily Toya – architecture-inspired concrete jewelry

Staying true to my minimalist style, I fuse concrete with bold colored metals to re-imagine geometry for fashion. Inspired by architecture elements, each piece in my collections is designed with simple aesthetics, yet disrupts the traditional expectation of the material, expressing a fresh perspective on fashion jewelry.
In my latest collection I showcases powder coated metals peeking out from concrete to convey a presence trying to “burst out” while maintaining balance obeying the rules within its housed geometric shape. My previous collections combined different metals with concrete, creating a nice balance between the delicate and the hard

My lightweight pieces come necklaces designs and earrings designs

Inspired by architecture and construction sites, inspecting the way steel and iron embedded into concrete: “How can I transform this into a meaningful aesthetic?” Herein lies her creative journey and process.

I was born and raised in Israel and lived in New York for the past six
years. Lily and Toya were my grandmothers who taught me a lot of crafts when I was young.
I started my relationship with architecture as an interior design student and soon became fascinated with the composite material concrete. As I became an expert in digital design and fabrication, re-imagining concrete became my creative focus and passion.

My jewelry creation process is wholly owned – starting with the simple sketch, that is later translated to 3D computerized design and eventually tested with 3D printed molds. Finally, a custom concrete mix is casted yielding exquisite craftsmanship pieces.

How’d you think through whether to sell directly on your own site or through a platform like Amazon, Etsy, Cratejoy, etc.

I have a website that I designed on Wix platform: www.lilytoya.com after two years selling only through my website, I decided it wasn’t enough and opened an Etsy shop. I feel like the customers are different, but I get clients from all over the world and that is very important.
In addition I started contacting different desgin websites that are selling my items as well

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

The best source for new clients for my business was approaching galleries. I sent and keep sending items to galleries and museums around the world. I think that when you visit a museum or gallery you are more inspired and when you go by their store you will probably purchase one item as a memory of that day.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.lilytoya.com
• Instagram: @_lilytoya_

Image Credits
Lily Toya_2: by Michal Minster-Tal Lily Toya Verge_Diatomi: by Roy Rochlin Lily Toya_Verge Tessera: by Roy Rochlin Platera_D85_1325: by Roy Rochlin