{Giveaway} Hand-Embroidered Bead Bracelet

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Don’t want to wait to win it?  Buy it in the FOF Shop now!

Tricia Milaneze, owner of Lavish Jewelry, is giving away this colorful, hand-crocheted bracelet. Enter to win by answering in the comments below: What do you wear on your wrists?

Tricia Milaneze recalls a time several years ago when she almost abandoned her jewelry business entirely. A single mother to two children on the autistic spectrum, Tricia, age 36, was also working a demanding “day job” as an immigration attorney. “I had a good position at the law firm, a good salary and insurance. But my jewelry orders started to get bigger and my clients started to complain because they couldn’t reach me. I couldn’t do both things well. I had a feeling I’d lose what I had built with the jewelry business if I didn’t dedicate myself to it full time. So, I left my law job.”

Her chutzpah has paid off…in 2011 she made more than a million dollars in sales, and her beaded baubles were featured in InStyle and Lucky. Plus, Tricia’s jewelry is now for sale in the FOF Shop!

We spoke to Tricia about how she and her team create Lavish’s unique designs.

Your jewelry is handmade in Brazil, but you operate your business out of Miami. How does that work?
I’m originally from Brazil, but in 2000 I moved just north of Miami, where I operate Lavish. Each piece is designed by me and crocheted by artisans in Brazil. I still visit Brazil often, but it helps that my brother lives there–he is my business partner.

Tell me about the creative process when producing your jewelry.
We start with an idea on a piece of paper, but because we work with wire, a lot of the pieces end up looking different then the original drawings. We have to see how the wire is going to behave. We change a little here, a little there…the creative process is very dynamic. We make a few pieces first, and from those we develop a whole collection.

What materials do you use?
Copper wire–because it’s very flexible–and glass beads.

Where do you sell your pieces?
I sell in the U.S. and also internationally–Japan, London and Italy–mostly in boutiques, catalogs and a few department stores. I am also now selling my jewelry in the FOF Shop. I’m hustling it.

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Enter to win this hand-embroidered bracelet by answering in the comments below: What do you wear on your wrist: a bracelet, a watch, both, or nothing at all?

One FOF will win. (See all our past winners, here.) (See official rules, here.) Contest closes March 1, 2012 at midnight E.S.T.

Thank you for entering. This contest is now closed.