This Is Me: Jewelry That Celebrates Who You Truly Are
Jewelry
is one of the most personal ways we tell the world who we are — not because it shouts, but because it whispers.
Meant for Me
When my Aunt Lynn passed away in 2022, I was gifted some of her jewelry. She had a bold, quirky, utterly confident style — unapologetically herself. Her pieces were vibrant, eclectic, sometimes unexpected, but always unmistakably her. At first I wasn't sure I could wear them. They felt so much like her that I worried I wouldn't do them justice.
But then I thought about what she would've said: "Wear the earrings. They're meant for you now."
So I did. I matched a pair of her silver drops — blue gemstone, simple and striking — with a plain outfit one ordinary afternoon, and I felt her with me. Her creativity, her delight in standing out, her refusal to be anyone but herself. Now I wear those pieces when I need courage. When I want to channel her design sense. When I just want to feel close to her.
That experience changed how I think about what jewelry actually is.
The Transformation
Before I started Anam Cara, my own jewelry style was more muted. Safer. I didn't always feel like it reflected who I actually was — I just couldn't name what was missing. But as I started making pieces with my own hands, something shifted. The colors I reached for without thinking. The playful textures. The quirky combinations that made me smile before I even knew why.
I was making what I actually loved, and in doing that, I was finding out who I was.
One afternoon I looked at everything spread out on my studio table and realized: I had found my fingerprint. Not the version of myself I'd been performing, or the one trying to stay on trend — but the one who genuinely lights up at a pair of bright turquoise half-moons with antique gold accents and thinks, maybe this is too much, and then puts them in the display anyway.
Those are always the ones someone picks up at a market and says, "I don't know what it is about these — but I love them."
The pieces I was most unsure about turned out to be the most true. That's still the best lesson my studio has taught me.
It’s Personal
Jewelry is one of the most personal ways we tell the world who we are — not because it shouts, but because it whispers. A color that brings you joy. A shape that just feels right. Something you bought to mark a moment, or inherited from someone whose spirit you want to carry with you.
That's what I hear from customers all the time. "This pair reminds me of my mom." "I'm giving these to my best friend to celebrate her new job." "I needed something to mark this moment, and these felt like me." It turns out the earrings I make don't just match an outfit — they match a moment. A memory in the making.
I think about that every time I sit down at the studio table. The person who will eventually wear this piece — what will she need it to say for her? What part of her is asking to be seen?
This is Me
There's a song from The Greatest Showman that I come back to again and again: "This Is Me." What gets me every time isn't just the melody — it's the permission in it. The unapologetic declaration that you are allowed to take up space. That you don't have to shrink or sand down your edges or wait until you're more polished, more certain, more whatever the world seems to be asking for.
You can just show up. As yourself. Right now.
That's what I hope every piece from Anam Cara offers in some small way — not a costume, but a mirror. Something that reflects back the part of you that already knows who you are, even on the days you forget.
So here’s my invitation…
the next time you reach for jewelry, ask yourself — does this feel like me? Not the me I'm trying to be, or the me other people expect. The actual me. The one with opinions about color and a soft spot for something slightly unexpected.
That person deserves to be dressed accordingly.
I’d love to know…
What's a piece of jewelry you own that feels most like you — or someone you love? I'd genuinely love to hear the story behind it. Come find me on Instagram or drop a comment below.