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Wednesday, August 20, 2008

08/20/08 Lee calls her earrings "Ear Candy." They are made out of 14-karat gold or white gold and ornamented with diamonds and semiprecious stones


Karen Lee of Greenwich started designing her own jewelry line in 2006, which includes necklaces, bracelets, rings and earrings, ranging from $150 to $2,500. Last month, her collection, Jewelry by Karen Lee, was picked up by Winnetu Oceanside Resort on Martha's Vineyard as her first retail location.
(Paul Desmarais/ Norwalk Advocate Staff photo)

Designer creates 'affordable luxury'
Norwalk Advocate

By Harold Davis
Special Correspondent

Karen Lee of Greenwich never anticipated that making her own jewelry would turn into a business, but it did. Frustrated with the price of jewelry, she decided to design something on her own.

"What happened was I was flipping through a magazine, and I saw a pair earrings that I liked. I wasn't going to spend an exorbitant amount of money on them. I never intended to have a business, but it just happened," said Lee, who started Jewelry by Karen Lee in March of 2006.

Lee did some research and consulted with her father, a 50-year veteran of the diamond industry. After making a few pieces for herself, people around town began taking notice of the jewelry she was wearing.

Lee got a big break last month through a chance meeting while vacationing at Winnetu Oceanside Resort on Martha's Vineyard. That encounter spawned a retail partnership with the resort....

...Matlins said that many jewelers are selling direct to consumers online, something that Lee is considering doing through her Web site: www.jewelrybykarenlee.com. Selling online, as opposed to retail, returns better profit, she said, but she added that striking up relationships with hotels or resorts can be good for a jeweler.

"It's is an attractive approach to marketing and promoting. Being at a resort adds a celebrity element to it," Matlins said.

PLEASE ALSO SEE:

08/17/08 Greenwich Jewelery Designer Starts Retail Partnership With Luxury Resort

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