By Jessica Jones
Jewelry designer and founder of Golden Thread jewelry, Jennifer Welker, debuted a new collection of jewelry April 11 at Saks at The Summit.
While Welker is now well-known as a jewelry designer, she didn’t start out with dreams of becoming one. Before she began her business, she was a neonatal nurse, and while it wasn’t the career path she initially set out on, her previous career helped prepare her for her next endeavor.
“The two careers I’ve had (nursing and fashion) are actually stark opposites and one has nothing to do with the other,” Welker said. “However, I’ve tapped into my type-A, high-energy, adrenaline-junkie-ICU nurse-personality to help me move forward into launching my dream and my business. Once I had the idea to make necklaces, I spent hours doing online research. I heard the word “no” a lot and ran into quite a few dead ends, but eventually I ended up connecting with the right people. I may not have known everything about the ins and outs of the jewelry business, but I worked hard, studied and asked others for help! I was used to working with really tiny, one pound babies, using my hands to start IVs on tiny little veins. This required me to utilize small tools extremely accurately, which helped jewelry designing be a natural progression for me. I’m completely self-taught.”
Welker has early memories of her imaginative spirit, but she didn’t expect it to lead to being the founder of her own business.
“My passion for the creative has always been present,” she said. “I remember dressing up in my mother’s pearls, bangles and clip on earrings since the age of three. I never imagined I’d have the amazing opportunity to live out my dreams though. That has definitely been the most fun part! Desire fulfilled is a tree of life!”
Welker decided to quit her job and pursue jewelry design four months after starting her business. It certainly took faith in her vision to make such a drastic career change, but it was well worth the risk, Welker said.
“It was very intimidating starting my own line and taking the leap from one career to the next, especially as I’m not classically trained in business, but I absolutely could never have dreamed my life would turn out this way,” she said. “It has filled a void in my life I have had for a long time. I get to do what I truly love. I have to pinch myself sometimes because I can’t believe I get to do this everyday. I can’t wait for the day I can share this with my daughter and help her believe she can truly do anything.”
About a year and a half after she began selling and designing jewelry, she decided to take another chance that would change her life. Welker mailed one of her pieces to Buckingham Palace for Pippa Middleton, whose fashion sense Welker said she’s always admired, hoping she’d like the piece.
“I took a risk and sent Pippa Middleton one of the monogrammed pendant necklaces. I knew there was a 99 percent chance she wouldn’t even receive it, but there was the 1 percent chance she may. I saw her in the necklace and couldn’t believe it.”
Soon Pippa was photographed wearing Welker’s necklace and Welker received the rights to those images and often uses the image of Pippa holding a cup of coffee for advertising. That one act of faith has allowed Welker to see a notifiable increase in her popularity as a designer.
The designs that have made Welker so well known range from monograms to birthstones.
“I founded Golden Thread to redefine classic monogrammed jewelry, with a focus on quality, innovation, sophistication and affordable style,” Welker said. “It actually appeals to all generations. It’s amazing! It seems that we’ve discovered the treasure chest for 10-year-old girls, to very established women in their 80s. The collection really does have something for everyone, from timeless classics, to trend-forward pieces.”
The new collection that was featured at Saks included “personalized bracelets, necklaces and earrings in rose, white and gold, with black diamond and gemstone detailing,” Welker said. “I’d love to expand the line further, but of course maintaining the same style aesthetic. We know what we do, and do it well. I will always remain true to classic pieces designed with everyday wear in mind.”
A frequent traveler who’s constantly on the lookout for new and exciting things to add to her collections, Welker said she finds inspiration from around the world.
“My husband Ellis and I traveled everywhere before I had children and we still try and make it a priority! We travel to London quite a few times a year and I’m always so enamored by the architecture. Same goes for Paris. Seeing some of the most iconic and influential architecture is actually where I draw the majority of my inspiration from in addition to historical pieces, adding a fresh appeal. For example, my maiden name is McKenzie which dates back to Scotland. We have a family crest and we introduced a crest to the line. The clover shape that’s seen in the charms on our new bangles and earrings is timeless, and was actually inspired by Big Ben (in London) and The Louvre (in Paris), as the clover shape is seen in this historic architecture.”
As a native of Huston, Texas, Welker said she has also found inspiration in the South and also draws from Southern customs.
“The South has also had a big part in shaping who I am and what I design throughout my collection,” she said. “It’s who I am, through and through…manners and etiquette, ladylike and traditional values. I wouldn’t be who I am today without my thoroughbred Southern upbringing! My collection has that traditional southern charm and personalization but incorporates edgy and timeless trends too. Even though each piece is designed and created in the South, the collection is popular worldwide as well…from Pippa Middleton in London to fashionistas in Manhattan. There really is something for everyone and we love that!”
Even though she doesn’t have a favorite piece from the new collection, there’s a particular piece that Welker loves for sentimental reasons.
“I don’t like to play favorites, but I am in love with our signature diamond bangle,” she said. “It’s a pricier piece, but it is a piece I never take off and will eventually pass down! It’s such a meaningful and heirloom quality piece. It’s the only piece I wear that has my husband’s and our two kids initials on it all in one place.”
