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Rachel Leslie and Ali Hurwitz had been making their own jewelry for years before they met and decided to go into business together. From that, Designs by Rali was born, and for the last four years they've been selling at private shows such as the one they hosted at Upper Crust Bakery & Café on Tuesday.
"What we like to do is create jewelry that is fun and fashionable at a moderate price," Leslie said at the show. Each piece is made from all natural gemstones and silver- or gold-plated chains. "Everything is custom made, so you're not getting something that everybody else has."
Based out of Stamford, the two sell exclusively at private shows, as well as hosting jewelry parties in people's homes. They also do charity events and donate their profits to the charity. Leslie said the two women design and make all of the jewelry themselves, without any outside manufacturing or help.
"We actually like making it all ourselves. It helps keeps us small," Leslie said. That's why it's so important for the women sell their materials directly to the people who will be wearing it.
"People like knowing that the people they are buying it from are the people who made it. It helps form a better connection to our work. And if somebody needs something altered or resized, we can do it right here, right now. We couldn't do that if we had somebody else running our booth."
Both women are self-taught in their craft and love following fashion. They stay up to date on the latest trends and strive to bring their customers fun and interesting jewelry that nobody else has.
Do you own any Designs by Rali jewelry pieces? Tell us what you think in the comments below, on Facebook and on Twitter.
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