It’s not a stretch to say that Lauren Harwell Godfrey has cast a spell on the jewelry industry, gaining recognition not only for her signature designs but also her enthusiasm for what jewelry can do for the wearer.
That’s one of the many reasons why Rachel Skelly, cofounder and chief creative officer for Cast, wanted to work with Godfrey at her designer-forward collective. The result is Spellbound, Godfrey’s new collaboration with San Francisco–based Cast, which debuts Tuesday.
The fine jewelry collection highlights turquoise, Canadian pavé diamonds, and round blue zircons, all in 14k gold settings. Godfrey and Skelly chose these stones for the way they connect to the wearer, bringing about feelings of hope, tranquility, and healing.
“The biggest compliment I can receive around my work is that it’s clearly recognizable as mine, and I definitely thoughtfully consider how to interpret jewelry with the Harwell Godfrey language attached to it,” Godfrey says in an email interview with JCK. “Triangles and hexagons have always been part of my designs from the beginning, and for most of the pieces there’s a maximalist geometric pattern play that feels unique to my work. Scale is another important consideration, and I like to go bold.”
“I had the pleasure of meeting Lauren a few years back and even spent some time with her at the gem show in Tucson. She is the queen of gemstones and color, and I love her passion and depth of knowledge around the properties and power of stones,” Skelly says. “I had been wanting to collaborate with her on a collection for some time and was just waiting for the right one—I knew this was it and I was hopeful she’d agree. I think I might have called her up the very next day.”
Skelly’s Cast also includes notable female jewelry designers including Kristy Ford, Alice Cicolini, and Francesca Villa. Skelly says working with Godfrey was exciting because she feels connected to her personally as well as professionally.
“Given my roots in graphic design, when I came across Lauren’s work, I was, of course, immediately obsessed,” Skelly says. “I was so taken by her use of geometric shape and pattern and her rich use of color and juicy stones. Her sense of scale and bold style just felt so right for Cast and what I wanted to create.”
Skelly says Godfrey is Cast’s first local Bay Area designer.
“She just radiates California cool, and her aesthetic is so distinct and like no other,” Skelly says. “Obviously, she was a perfect fit.”
The Bay Area, its recent history, and the color blue were also important touchstones of the color story in the Spellbound collection, Skelly says.
“During the massive fires that took place all around the Bay Area back in September 2020, there was one day where we woke up to an orange sky. It was ominous, eerie, and getting darker and more brooding by the hour. I felt a deep sense of dread and panic and desperately felt the need to flee in search of blue sky and clarity,” Skelly says. “We packed up and hit the road headed for Tahoe. I told my husband not to stop until we saw blue.
“To distract myself from the craziness outside my window I started researching the color blue and blue stones and the properties and power they bring,” Skelly says. “I was so intrigued reading about the many calming, clarifying, and balancing benefits of turquoise. Even just looking at images of those fresh blue stones was already creating a sense of peace in me.”
Canadian diamonds also felt like the right fit for the Spellbound collection, Skelly says, because of the country’s high standards for mining and sourcing.
“Sustainability and mindful practices are incredibly important to Cast, so when we established our standards around stone sourcing, we knew we wanted to work exclusively with Canadian-sourced diamonds. We also work exclusively with 100% reclaimed gold and silver in our signature alloys,” Skelly says.
Top: Cast and Lauren Harwell Godfrey collaborated for a new collection called Spellbound, which features the Max Matrix ring ($4,800). It’s made in 14k gold with turquoise, blue zircon, and 0.15 ct. t.w. diamonds (photos courtesy of Cast).
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