We’re looking forward to introducing you to Veronique Gautherot. Check out our conversation below.
Good morning Veronique , we’re so happy to have you here with us and we’d love to explore your story and how you think about life and legacy and so much more. So let’s start with a question we often ask: What is something outside of work that is bringing you joy lately?
I love going on walks with my family, enjoying the beauty and power of Nature and soaking the energy of the Sun.
The simple things that heal and make me feel so good.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Veronique Gautherot, the founder of Veronique Designs, a jewelry Company focusing on the treasures of Nature, mainly Crystals.
Véronique, Jewellery Designer, was born in Paris from a Mauritanian father (West Africa) and a French mother in 1961, at a time when “ethnicity” was a silent concept.
The search for my identity, as a mixed heritage young girl, living in a mainly White French environment, has been sometimes painful.
My journey to London, opened my world. Jewellery is what I always considered the most significant element in terms of the expression of who we are essentially. The introduction of raw materials in their natural form land the art of assembling them with harmony give birth to a unique and sensitive piece of Jewellery.
My work talks to your “heart”.
It is in London that I found the strength and the inspiration to freely create a wide range of Jewellery with carefully chosen materials. I started using shells, wood, bone, ceramic beads and then evolved in the world of stones and precious metals. I discovered different textures, different minerals, rough and polished. The more I discovered, the more excited and creative I became. Then I really found myself when I put together different materials and created a concept that became a success all over the world.
Then Love has brought me to California, Los Angeles.
This feels like a third life where I am reaching a new level.
I became a member of a Lapidary Club which allowed me to learn how to cut my stones, shape them, polish them…
I spent a few years at the Club, learning the lapidary skills and preparing my crystal for my jewelry making. Now my studio has been equipped with machinery which allows me to produce all my work from my space. I design, prepare the material and create my pieces. Those new facilities allow me to fully express myself through the wonderful process involved in working with crystals.d
I have also been exploring, during COVID the silversmithing skills I acquired on a course in London in 2000. The pandemic has allowed me to experiment and refine my metal work.
Every day is giving me a new opportunity to master my skills and create pieces of Art which present the world with a unique emotional experience because each piece of Jewelry is the reflection of my Life experiences, my emotions and my depth. Through my Artist and designer’s Life, the spontaneous reaction of some of my clients (smile, tears………) has been and still is a testimony to the meaning of my work.
With my creations, I want to touch the world and spread a new concept of adornment with meaning, power and beauty.
A little bit about my brand :
I am on this earth to spread LOVE and bring forward the spiritual and mental mirrors of Nature at a time of damaging confusion. Nature is a metaphor for the human mind, bringing back reason and faith.
Nature is a conductor of divinity.
I am drawn to Nature, its beauty, innocence and authenticity.
My brand is about statement Jewelry with big crystals, raw and polished. My designs are the product of my mixed heritage, the French elegance and the African dignity and Power.
A fusion between the Soul of Africa and the Parisian elegance that screams in each piece, the desperate pride. The richness of my heritage shines through the glow of a precious and timeless piece of art, as in each piece of Jewelry.
Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. What did you believe about yourself as a child that you no longer believe?
As a child, despite my Mother”s constant efforts to build confidence in myself, I had doubt about my place in the world as I was different.
I was performing very well at school with high results but yet I knew I was different and my so called friend at the time were making fun of my features. I was joining them at my own expense.
I desperately wanted to fit in at the time but now I take proud in being different and unique. My work is a reflection of my constant search for originality.
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
There was a time when I started giving up.
Being mixed race in a white French world in the 60’s has not always been an easy and pleasant experience although my Mum has provided my brother and I with a cosy, loving home with strong foundations.
We were in regular touch with my African family in Paris so I understood who I was but the weight of a double heritage could be overwhelming sometimes.
The notion of belonging was very unclear and I could barely touch it.
In my white surrounding, I was seen as black and in my African family, I was not quite like them. My Dad was not present in our upbringing but knowing my African family has been very important for the knowledge of who I am. I only understood that in my adult life.
I can say that I never belonged to any group. I was always a stranger and although it was uncomfortable when I was growing up, it became my strength as an adult trying to find my place in the world.
At 21, I was still at University but I started dropping, following the wrong crowd as I was looking for my roots and fell into the trap of drugs. I wasted a few years of my Life, knowing that I could do better and that I would do better at some point.
Then with the support of my family, I came back to my senses and grabbed my second chance.
Every struggles made me stronger and made the person I am today, wise, resilient, grateful, proactive,fearless……
Sure, so let’s go deeper into your values and how you think. Is the public version of you the real you?
Yes I think that the public version of me and the reflection of who I am.
I am very transparent so I appear to the world as I really am.
I am real and do not need to pretend I am who I am not.
My weaknesses, my strength are the making of ME and I believe sharing them is a source of empowerment for others too.
I find freedom in being my authentic self.
Okay, we’ve made it essentially to the end. One last question before you go. If you retired tomorrow, what would your customers miss most?
Jewelry with Soul
If I was to retire tomorrow, my customers would miss the dynamic of our relashionship, they would miss my creations.
I give a lot of time to my customers, creating a safe space for them to share and heal.
My work is not only about Jewelry, it is about healing by listening, giving advice, sharing…
So the time I am spending with my customers is very valuable and comforting for some of them, all around a piece of Jewelry. Veronique Designs offers an experience, enabling men and women to see something new in themselves with that piece of Jewelry. The interaction between my work, my customers and myself turn into a rich exchange with revelations, discovery… almost a magical space my customers look forward to come into.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.veroniquedesigns.com
- Instagram: veronique_designs
- Facebook: Veronique Gautherot
Image Credits
Photographer :
Tristan Bagoas Caron
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
