Lauren Collignon’s affinity for design came long before she ever entered an art studio.
The art history alumna developed a keen fascination in deconstructing and rebuilding things as a child and often indulged herself by disassembling household items, including her grandfather’s phone.
Now, as her experimentation has matured to an expertise, Collignon channels her childhood hobby into her career as a jewelry designer.
The owner of Collignon Designs creates and sells custom, handcrafted jewelry using a variety of materials – from acrylic textile to sterling silver to rubies.
Collignon said each jewelry piece requires a specific creation process, but the most difficult one comes with her high-end pieces since they usually involve metal.
She said a metal-based ring, for instance, starts as scraps of metal that she laser cuts, hammers and solders into a single unit. But she said an acrylic cutout piece may only require her to drill holes.
Regardless of the difficulty of the process, Collignon said no two pieces of jewelry are ever alike. She said this spontaneity is what makes her line unique.
“That’s the reason I love it,” she said. “I can do something different every time.”
When designing, Collignon said her biggest inspiration is her natural instinct. Initially, she said she made the mistake of designing jewelry to cater to certain groups, but found she wasn’t making the impact she wanted.
“The day I decided to make what I wanted to wear – things changed,” she said.
Now, Collignon said she feels her brand appeals to everyone from conservative mothers to a younger crowd covered in tattoos.
The Baton Rouge native said the backdrop of the Red Stick city also inspires her to be more creative as the city’s art scene becomes increasingly apparent. She said she mostly enjoys the energy indigenous to college towns.
When she was in college, Collignon said two of her creative outlets were University art classes, which sometimes involved jewelry making, and her job at a local craft shop. She said her time at the now-closed store heavily influenced her to pursue a career in jewelry design.
“I really got wrapped up in that world at that time,” she said. “I saw people were actually doing this for a living.”
Even though Collignon was excited to be a designer at the time, her confidence in jewelry making as a full-time career eventually wavered.
After graduating, she moved to Texas and worked as sales representative for a real estate company. But after an epiphany during wisdom teeth surgery, her career goals changed.
“I thought to myself, I would rather get my wisdom tooth pulled again than to go back to that job,” she said.
Collignon bought an art studio and has been producing jewelry ever since. She said she started with simple, beaded jewelry until she made enough profit to buy more tools.
At this point, she said stores are seeking locally made jewelry and contacting her to sell her designs. She said she is planning to launch a new line of earring designs and hire more workers at the company.
Collignon said she is grateful for her success and happy to be pursuing her passion.
“I think I’m going to just ride the wave,” she said as she ran her fingers across her handmade necklace.
