Lucy Delius
To time with our trunk show in Verbier, Switzerland this week, we are pleased to spotlight our latest Marfa Muse Lucy Delius.
Founder of her namesake brand Lucy Delius Jewellery - a modern reinterpretation and celebration of vintage jewellery silhouettes. Her pieces are classic but remarkable, in solid recycled gold with ethically sourced diamond and precious gemstones. Lucy makes her pieces in India and Thailand, as well as being able to offer a bespoke, handmade service in London.
Lucy wears the Patchwork Quilt in cobalt in size S with the Aviator collar in natural, orange and the Parachute Vest in cobalt in size S.
#marfamuse
Tell us about your background
I’m originally from Edinburgh in Scotland. We moved around quite a bit when I was younger, ending up in Vancouver, Canada for a number of years before returning to Edinburgh for my teens. I went to Trinity College in Dublin for four years when I was 19 to study Spanish and Sociology.
Talk us through your career journey so far
I had NO idea what I wanted to do when I left university - my first job was in skiing recruitment as I was determined not to be one of those people who lived for the weekend. I wasn’t ready to be a serious person yet!I fell into a job at DTC (the Diamond Trading Company - the rough diamond side of De Beers). I don’t think I ever actually saw a diamond the whole time I was there but it was a great lesson in the inner workings of the corporate world. From there I went to work at Missoma - I was Marisa Hordern’s first employee and we were based in a storage unit in Chelsea. I’d say this was probably my most formative year career-wise. We worked on everything together - I saw how a start up brand really worked and what it took to put the foundations in place for a luxury brand. From there I moved to another start up jewellery brand, focussing solely on PR before going agency side and working with a number of fine jewellery brands, accessory and womenswear.After having my first son in 2015 I decided to take some time off to recalibrate and figure out what I really wanted to do. I had spent a lot of my career feeling that I’d moved around a bit and I still wasn’t really sure what exactly I was looking for career wise. It slightly felt like I’d been going through the motions for years.
After a while I starting consulting for start up luxury brands and being around other founders again made me realise how much experience I had. But I was helping other people build their brands and feel fulfilled in their careers whilst at the same time I wasn’t feeling fulfilled or building anything for myself. It was hard!Around the same time I started looking for jewellery to invest in for myself, I wanted solid gold pieces to hand down to my kids that weren’t birthstones or letter pendants - I felt really uninspired by what was on offer. Fine jewellery had got SO expensive and all the pieces I could afford (at the entry level) were, to put it frankly, boring - everything felt generic. I had always loved Victorian watch chains to wear as bracelets and necklaces but it’s quite a heavy gold look - it lacks a certain refinement. There was one - the Trombone link and I just thought, why don’t I make it for myself. It was my first piece and it’s become a signature for my brand - I added the diamond connection link and the diamond T-bar pendant and it just was such a wow moment. What I’ve created is basically the most personal jewellery collection for me to share with other women who are looking for the same thing - modern, wearable, unique but not avant-guard or attention grabbing. Pieces that make a subtle statement, they are feminine but not remotely girlie. You are meant to wear them with pieces you own already, they are created to be stacked, layered, worn and loved.
What are you most proud of?
Can I say starting my brand? It took so much courage, from worrying what everyone would say to that moment when you hand over a huge sum of your own money to make samples and you wonder if you’ve lost your mind. It’s been terrifying but I haven’t looked back or regretted it once.The last 2 years have been the most crazy journey - I can’t believe how far I’ve come, how hard I’ve worked and it’s only the beginning but it’s the most wonderful, crazy ride. I’m a different and 100% a better person because of what I’ve done.My kids are great too…
What advice do you have for fellow female entrepreneurs?
Just. Do. It - it will be hard, you will cry, you will doubt yourself, you will reach the highest highs and the lowest lows but it will all be worth it because it will be yours and yours alone.Just Ask - how many times do we tell ourselves that something is impossible or someone won’t want to help us or work with us. Just ask the question - no matter how big or small or how silly you think it is, you’ll often find yourself surprised by the answer.Get a good accountant and friends who are financially literate. I have an amazing accountant and two other friends who are in the finance sector who I text at 7am to ask the most random questions but they have saved my life on a number of occasions and most importantly they never make me feel silly.
How do you style your Marfa Stance pieces and why do you like the brand?
I am OBSESSED with Marfa Stance! I love how much thought goes into each and every item - being able to create so many different looks from a handful of pieces is so important. Us women wear so many hats - mum, business founder, friend, wife and I want to look stylish and unique when I’m doing all these things. It’s a conversation starter - I can’t tell you how many times I get stopped and people always want to know more!I wear my patchwork quilt all the time - at the weekend it’s the perfect piece to lift my leggings/boots/pitch side with kids/walking the dog look. I wear it during the week with jeans and a great cashmere knit. The Aviator collar adds such a cool factor with the pop of orange.My parachute vest again is SO versatile - it’s a great layering piece, I wear it when I need functional clothing - like when I’m ski touring or when I go to the pub for lunch with my family and need a light layering piece. And of course they work so well together.I’ve already got another 3 pieces ear marked to add to my collection.
Find out more about our debut trunk show in partnership with Lucy Delius Jewellery HERE.
Photographer: Zac Frackelton