What you’ll learn in this episode: Why much of Cynthia’s jewelry has an old-world, Renaissance feel Cynthia’s advice for aspiring jewelry designers How Cynthia designs her pieces around her customers’ style Why creativity is the driving force behind change How understanding jewelry history can help designers find new forms of expression About Cynthia Bach Cynthia Bach has been a jewelry designer for more than four decades. After studying art in Munich, Germany, Cynthia received her BFA degree in art and jewelry making from McMurry University in Abilene, Texas, where she met and apprenticed bench jewelry making with master jeweler Jim Matthews. In 1989 Jim and Cynthia were recruited by Van Cleef & Arpels in Beverly Hills to run design and fabrication of the jewelry department. In 1991 Cynthia launched her own collection with Neiman Marcus nationwide.  She has been the recipient of numerous awards from the jewelry industry including the coveted International Platinum Guild Award, the Spectrum Award, and the Couture Award. Her designs have been recognized and awarded by the American Gem Trade Association. She is internationally known and respected and in 2014 was invited to Idar-Oberstein, Germany to judge the New Designer Contest. In 2015 her work was part of the international traveling exhibition “The Nature of Diamonds” organized by the American Museum of Natural History and sponsored by DeBeers. An important piece of her work resides in the permanent collection of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. In 2019 Cynthia’s jewelry was featured in Juliet de la Rochefoucauld’s “Women Jewellery Designers”, a magnum opus book of women jewelry designers throughout history. Additional Resources: Website  Instagram Twitter Facebook Pintrest Photos: 18 karat yellow gold Crown Collection maltese cross crown ring with rubies, emeralds, sapphires, and diamonds 18 karat yellow gold Flower Bouquet Collection flower hoop earrings with multi-colored gemstones 18 karat yellow gold Gitan Collection, filigree paisley's with diamonds and rubies 18 karat yellow gold Royal Charm Bracelet  Transcript: Cynthia Bach has loved jewelry for as long as she can remember. That enthusiasm is what helped her land an apprenticeship with master jeweler (and later, her husband) Jim Matthews, scored her a 25-year partnership with Nieman Marcus, and continues to fuel her desire to create timeless yet innovative designs today. She joined the Jewelry Journey Podcast to talk about the old-world techniques that inspire her designs; her experience working with Van Cleef & Arpels, Neiman Marcus, and red-carpet stylists; and her advice for budding jewelry designers. Read the episode transcript here.  Sharon: That’s interesting. I’m thinking about a few things. First of all, that Fabergé and Schlumberger had an eye, whether it was for a shape or they were just extremely creative. What do you feel you have an eye for? Cynthia: I have an eye for shapes. My jewelry designing is classical and lyrical. I’m not doing post-modern shapes like the wearable art exhibit we saw. I think of my designs as more refined. I love to design jewelry for women. When I’m designing for them, I see what their style is and I want to design around their style, which is not necessarily the normal thing to do. When I design a piece of jewelry, I usually design something I want to wear. Having worked with Nieman Marcus for 25 years, after starting my collection with them, there was always fashion. Every season, I would follow the fashions that so that even though my designs are very classical, they would also be very now. What are the girls wearing now? What are the trends now? But I still wanted it to be timeless and able to be worn a hundred years from today.  Sharon: Have you ever found yourself altering your designs or pieces because you’ve sketched something out and you say, “Oh, that’s too small or too large for what people want today. That’s not what people want”?  Cynthia: I k