Bird by Bird: Four Days at Silmo
I'm home and still sitting with the last four days at Silmo, and with all the love we felt in Paris.
27 years. How does that happen? Day by day. Anne Lamott tells a story about her brother as a boy, sitting at the kitchen table close to tears over a report on birds he had put off for months. Her father sat down beside him and said, "Bird by bird, buddy. Just take it bird by bird." I think about that line often. Nobody builds a company in one move. You build it in small, stubborn steps, with people you trust.
The original
What I heard again and again over the weekend is that there is no one like LA LOOP.
We are the original, invented in New York in 1999, and after 27 years there is still no other jewelry collection quite like it.
It starts with the loop itself. Our magical hinges rotate in every direction, so your glasses stay securely in the loop while the necklace moves freely with you. The loop never opens, and it never needs to.
Then comes the craft. Our leather comes from a fifth generation family mill in Padova, Italy. Every piece is designed in our Los Angeles studio and strung by hand. Our artisans care about the weight of a chain and the finish on a clasp as much as we do. None of it is fast, and that's the point.
It started at a table in May
We began designing this collection in May and worked through each prototype one at a time. Some afternoons we sat around the table frustrated because a clasp didn't look right, wondering how to pull it all together. We'd put it down, pick it back up and try again.
And then there were the other days. When the Maasai mookaite came in, we looked at each other and started jumping up and down. The Tonne Duets gave us the same feeling. They're so chic.
It takes a village
So many people shaped this collection. Our team knew which pieces our longtime accounts would love and where they wanted more gold. Our partners in Germany asked for silver. Our partners in Benelux suggested a men's collection kit to make it easier to share LA LOOP with their beautiful accounts, and we built it, along with new displays and a holiday gift box program.
Our craftsmen didn't disappoint. New samples arrived just days before we left for Paris.
The charms
Our collaboration with Shá Parlé brings porcelain charms to LA LOOP, and I'm a little obsessed with the cowboy boot. So were our visitors. Boutiques in France and Japan signed on over the weekend, and we'll ship to them this month.
LA LOOP is jewelry
Our booth was inspired by a jewelry boutique in Paris. That felt right, because that's what LA LOOP has always been: jewelry that's understated, chic and so practical.
Thank you
Thank you to everyone who came by our booth, held the pieces, shared a coffee and a story with us, and made this weekend so special. We felt every bit of your love.
Brick by brick
This is small business, built brick by brick and bird by bird. It's slow and personal, and it's what I love.
After 27 years, I'm so proud and so grateful to our village and our family.
