The Joy of Living:
Lauren Harwell Godfrey Stays Sparkling

Do you live to work? Work to live? Do you work hard and play hard? These questions pervade the discussion about the elusive work-life balance. What if there’s another way? Lauren Harwell Godfrey offers a master class on how every day presents an opportunity to take inspiration from the quotidian. She invited Only Natural Diamonds to spend a day in her life in Marin, California, and shared how every moment informs her work as a designer and human. 

The path to jewelry design was not a straight line for the creative. She previously worked in some of the Bay Area’s top restaurants, such as Bar Tartine and Chez Panisse, followed a career in advertising. Each chapter provided lessons. Godfrey observes, “I feel like my work is autobiographical. There are little nods to my world throughout my work; the saltshaker is a new one, for example. I went to culinary school, and I feel that the key to good cooking is salt. And I was like, ‘Wait, what if we made diamonds into salt?’ I make caviar pendants and a honey bear pendant, too. These are all things that I just love.”

When asked to describe how she brings her skills in the kitchen to jewelry design, she explains, “I think with anything creative, we all have a finite set of ingredients that we are working with, and it’s how we put our spin on them that makes them different. How do you take these things that we are all playing with and manipulate them to be unique and an expression of you? There are also sharp objects in both my lines of work [laughs]”.

Lauren Harwell Godfrey’s jewelry pulls off a hat trick possessing singularity, approachability, and luxury. Godfrey’s internal barometer and design boundaries help her maintain a clear vision. “I don’t like doing redundant things,” she says. “If they already exist, what’s the point? I’m always asking, ‘How can I surprise people?’ I think the 11:11 watch [which debuted at the 2024 Couture show] is my surprise moment this year.” She was inspired by the mystical time 11:11, which many see as a message from the universe to be optimistic. Godfrey was surprised, but not overly so, at how much this resonated with her clients and fans. “Some people see the watch and they just freak out saying, ‘You’re in my brain!’ she laughs. “But I think there’s a part of us that wants to connect to the magic of the universe. It’s that energy of manifestation that I want to tap into.”

 As she develops the brand, she continually challenges herself to stretch what Harwell Godfrey jewelry can be. She views it as a design universe and maintains a balance between surprising herself and her clients while remaining true to her brand identity. She holds that this constant internal push forward is a surefire way to stay engaged and authentic. “I think the rules for what you can wear are out, which I love,” she says. “I think part of this is how much vintage and upcycled jewelry everyone incorporates into their lives. It’s less about trends and more about finding who we are to define our personal style.” She boldly mixes metals and has recently embraced platinum, especially for everyday pieces. “I just love how platinum amplifies diamonds in this incredible way,” she says.

Her only regret is that she hadn’t worn a tennis necklace in platinum with a yellow gold clasp the day we met. But every day is a new day for self-expression. Surprisingly, for a designer well known for her maximalist style—she wears seven bangles, seven rings, two necklaces, eight pairs of earrings, and a watch during our rendezvous—she starts each day afresh. “I will not sleep in it. And it’s a lot of pieces,” she laughs. “But I think it’s good practice because it keeps my brain working on how I style myself every day. Often, this is how I discover there’s a hole in the collection. What is this thing that I want?” This was how a new collection of diamond ear cuffs came to be, launched in September. “If I want ear cuffs, somebody else is gonna want ear cuffs.” Godfrey likes the word “eclectic” and dislikes matching. Layering is a key to her personal style. “I feel like more jewelry reads more casual than less jewelry, which feels more dressed up, more special occasion if you will. I’m kind of more is more. There are a lot of layers happening here.” 

Lauren Harwell Godfrey remains her own best client and touchstone, saying, “I do consider myself a big muse for the work. To me, realness is not asking, ‘What do I think someone is going to buy?’ The question is about what I think is interesting. What do I like? If it’s something I truly love, maybe someone else will love it, too. I’d rather come from the heart than from a place of pure profit. Maybe that’s part of a bigger question mark about the kind of businessperson I am.” Market research doesn’t play into the equation for her, but she does think a lot about what people are wearing or what is missing from her own jewelry wardrobe. Jewelry serves an emotional and a stylistic purpose, but the emotional connection must come first. 

Retail has expanded her ability to hear from her clients first-hand. She recently moved her office to the space above her first eponymous store in the Marin Country Mart, where her “neighbors” are more like family. She puts it succinctly, saying, “It’s my local, and it’s really fun. There’s a lovely energy here, and there’s a sense of community. Sometimes, it’s hard to get work done because everyone’s here – the gang’s all here! I’ve been hosting a happy hour every month and have met some great new people but there are also a lot of familiar faces.” 

Godfrey lives 10 minutes away and has always been a customer at the celebrated arcade. A tiny, 100 square-foot space had always called to her, and she promised that if it ever became available, she would “throw her hat in the ring.” She further stipulated that she would only open a store if that exact space became available. One day, she noticed the store was vacant, so she reached out to the owner—a friend of a friend—and the rest, as they say, is history. A new jewel box opened with her shingle out front. For decoration, the power of kismet continued, as existing custom brass cabinets seamlessly integrated into her design aesthetic. She installed a rainbow chandelier, and with a fresh coat of dark eggplant paint to contrast a new gold leaf ceiling, she felt right at home. She explains, “I knew going in that I wanted to do something very different. In Northern California, we have a bit of a hippie vibe, which is cool, but that’s not what I do.”

The store is a bit of a laboratory, based on what clients are asking for, but also serves, perhaps, as jewelry therapy. Lauren Harwell Godfrey’s personal style and confidence grant people permission to experiment and have fun. She describes the conversations with clients, saying, “I tell people not to be afraid to wear jewelry, don’t be afraid to pile it on and layer all those pieces. I encourage people to try things and break out of their comfort zone a little.” Many clients are shopping for themselves to celebrate or to find jewelry that becomes their signature. What is most notable is that shoppers are looking for something they don’t see on everyone else. They have found themselves in the right place and with the right guide.

Above the store is the studio where Godfrey designs each collection. A collection of African handicrafts adorns the walls and shelves, many of which she collected during a trip to Botswana. This is more than décor, she explains, “This is what I want to live with, in my home and my office. It infuses my work naturally. I love patterns, I love texture. I feel like my work is informed by my life.” These traditional handicrafts inspired a recent collection of natural diamond jewelry called ‘Masego’, which means “good fortune” in Setswana. However, as this is Harwell Godfrey, the designs are not literal but capture the essence of the inspiration. Godfrey explains, “I didn’t go out to make a literal basket in jewelry, but there was something about the intricate shapes that led me to do a detailed engraving in diamonds which just felt like Botswana to me, but my own interpretation.” 

Her journey through Botswana did more than motivate a collection of jewelry. Godfrey expounds, “It showed me the impact that a resource can have on the world. Part of what makes me nervous about lab-grown diamonds is that these economies can be impacted in such a devastating way. To see Botswana do such a beautiful job of mining responsibly and using that resource to give back so much to its people makes me proud to support natural diamonds.” This reminds Lauren Harwell Godfrey how precious life is and how the natural diamonds she works with deserve her respect. “Jewelry is just different, and I think people need to connect with it. As a fan of other designers and their jewelry, the pieces that resonate for me are those when I can tell a lot of thought and care went into making them.”

To see Botswana do such a beautiful job of mining responsibly and using that resource to give back so much to its people makes me proud to support natural diamonds.

The newest collection ‘Supernova’ takes the magic of the universe as a starting point. One of the masterpieces of the collection is a unicorn horn because, as Godfrey says, “What is more magical than a unicorn? But how can I create a pendant that doesn’t look like it’s made for a 10-year-old? I like to give myself briefs. How do I make this piece where you still get unicorn, and I want to wear it too.” This one-of-a-kind piece is the most complex she has made. It took several rounds through CAD to get it right. It presented such a challenge in setting the diamonds. The most important part of the design, however, was emotional. “I love how it turned out. It makes me really happy. I love a talismanic piece of jewelry. I feel like there are people among us who have magical vibes. I was channeling some of those people close to me. I think there is a spirit for people who get it, and it’s been fun to see people react to [the unicorn pendant]. I think there is this part of us as adults who still want to connect to the magic of the universe, and it’s important to us.” The universe of Lauren Harwell Godfrey is charmed, that much is sure.