Seashell
Gemstone Jewelry
The Siren Collection
Seashell Jewelry
One-of-a-kind seashell jewelry, real shells and natural coral set with gemstones and freshwater pearls, handmade in my Denver studio.
Somewhere between the shoreline and the deep
Seashell jewelry is handmade jewelry built around real shells and natural coral. There is a pull to it that is hard to name, and this is my collection: real shells and natural coral, set with gemstones and freshwater pearls, and made one at a time in my Denver studio. Each piece keeps something of where it came from, the tide line, the slow work of water and time, the shell you could not help but pick up and carry home.
I photographed these on a mermaid, a model in the water, because that is where the collection lives in my mind, somewhere between the shoreline and the deep. Seashell jewelry is for the woman who feels most herself near the ocean and wants to carry a little of it with her on the days she is nowhere near the water.
The Lookbook
The Siren shoot, in shell and coral.
Where the Shells Come From
Every seashell piece starts with a real shell, and finding them is half the story. Andrea doesn’t order shells in bulk from a supplier. The natural coral comes from a small shop in Taos, New Mexico, and from the Tucson Gem Show, chosen by hand a piece at a time. The shells themselves often come from the people in her life.
This is why Andrea can’t reproduce a sold seashell piece, even when someone asks. The shell that made it was one of a kind, and the design was built for that specific shell. Making it “again” would be a different piece pretending to be the same one. If you love one that has sold, she can make you something similar through the custom shop.
At the bench
Working with real shells and natural coral is its own kind of problem-solving. You cannot take a torch to a shell, a piece of coral, or a pearl without ruining it, so almost everything here is set with cold connection, wired and riveted by hand rather than soldered. Every shell arrives a different shape, so nothing can be planned in advance the way a metal piece can: I fabricate a setting to each one, then cluster gemstones and freshwater pearls around it, building the piece outward from whatever the shell wanted to be. Because the materials are natural, no two are alike, and none could be made twice even if I tried.
Pieces from $250
The Pieces
Each one one-of-a-kind. When it sells, it is gone.
For the woman who wants the ocean at her throat
Seashell Necklaces
A seashell necklace carries a real piece of the sea at the collarbone: natural shells and coral, wired into clusters of gemstones and freshwater pearls and built into a one-of-a-kind centerpiece. These are for the woman who feels most herself near the water and wants to keep a little of it close.
For the woman who wants the sea at her ears
Seashell Earrings
Seashell earrings bring the shore up to the face, from carved shell drops to clusters of coral, pearl, and gemstone that catch the light like water. Each pair is one-of-a-kind, for the woman who wants something with movement and a little salt in its story.
For the woman who wants the tide on her wrist
Seashell Bracelets & Cuffs
A seashell cuff or bracelet is a reef you can wear: branches of coral and natural shell built up with gemstones and freshwater pearls into something substantial and sculptural. Each one is one-of-a-kind, for the woman who likes a piece of the ocean she can see all day on her own wrist.
What Makes Andrea Li Different
There are three tiers of “handmade” jewelry in the market. Where Andrea Li sits explains why the work looks, feels, and lasts the way it does.
Marketplace Handmade
A shell drilled and strung on a stock chain, or a bit of coral glued to a finding. Assembled in minutes, sold by hundreds of sellers. “Handmade” means hand-assembled.
Production Studio
Original designs cast from molds and reproduced in batches. Better materials, but the same design exists in dozens or hundreds of copies.
Andrea Li
Built by hand around a real natural shell, set entirely by cold connection so no heat touches the shell or the pearls. One piece exists. When it sells, the page comes down.
Andrea has been designing one-of-a-kind jewelry in Denver for 18 years. She runs a one-woman studio and handles every step herself, from choosing the shell to the final finishing. There is no team, no production assistant, no outsourced labor.
The models who wear Andrea’s pieces for editorial shoots tell her they feel different in her jewelry, that it brings out a confidence that’s obvious and visceral. That is what happens when someone wears something made with a kind of intention mass production can’t replicate.
How to Care for Seashell Jewelry
Real shells, coral, and freshwater pearls are natural, organic, and softer than gemstones. A few gentle habits keep your piece looking the way it did the day it arrived.
Keep it away from water and chemicals
Shells, coral, and pearls are porous and organic. Perfume, lotion, hairspray, sunscreen, chlorine, and salt water can dull or damage them over time. Put your piece on last, after everything else, and take it off before swimming, showering, or exercising.
Store it separately
Keep each piece in its own soft pouch or compartment. Shell, coral, and pearl scratch and chip easily against harder gemstones and metal. The pouch your piece arrives in is made for this, so use it.
Clean it gently
Wipe your piece with a soft, dry cloth after wearing. If it needs more, use a barely damp cloth and dry it right away. Never use ultrasonic cleaners, steam cleaners, or any commercial jewelry cleaner. Those will damage shell, coral, and pearl.
About the silver
The fine and Argentium sterling silver resists tarnish, so the metal needs very little upkeep. If it ever dulls, a soft silver polishing cloth brings back the shine. Keep polish away from the shell, coral, and pearls.
Repairs happen
Handmade jewelry is repairable, which is one of its advantages over mass-produced pieces. If a setting loosens or a piece needs attention, Andrea handles repairs on her own work. Reach out through the custom shop to start.
Questions
What is seashell jewelry?
Seashell jewelry is jewelry made with real shells, often paired with coral, gemstones, and pearls. In my studio, each piece is fabricated by hand around natural shells I have chosen one at a time, so no two are ever alike.
Are the shells and coral real?
Yes. These pieces use real seashells and natural coral, set with gemstones and freshwater pearls. Because the materials are natural, every shape is a little different, and every piece is one-of-a-kind.
Are these pieces one-of-a-kind?
Yes. Each piece is fabricated and assembled by hand in my Denver studio, built once around the shell it started with, and never reproduced. When one sells, it is gone.
How do I care for seashell and coral jewelry?
Keep it dry and away from perfume, lotion, and swimming, since real shells, coral, and freshwater pearls are porous and natural. Store each piece separately in a soft pouch and wipe it gently with a dry cloth. Treated kindly, a natural shell piece lasts for many years.
Can I wear seashell jewelry in the water?
I would keep it out of the pool and the ocean. The shoot was done in water for the images, but real shells, coral, and freshwater pearls are porous, so chlorine and salt water can dull or damage them over time. These pieces are made to evoke the sea, not to be submerged in it.
What do they cost, and can I commission one?
Pieces start at $250. Because each is one-of-a-kind, if the one you love has already sold I am glad to discuss a commission in the same spirit. Just reach out.
Find your piece
Not sure where to start? The style quiz points you to the pieces most likely to feel like yours.
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