Ethical Silver Jewellery

Claudia Lira

Born in Lima on April 1, 1973, Claudia Lira studied gold/silversmithing at the world -famous  Holland’s TSU – Vakschool Schoonhoven School. She has specialised in all jewellery genres and taught her skills since 1992. Her work is an expression of art and design. Through her desire to promote the  natural resources and materials of her native land, Claudia dedicated herself to handcrafting  designs in Silver 925 and 18k Gold jewellery, incorporating predominantly  Peruvian  semi-precious  and natural stones like Andean Opal,  Amazonite, Chrysocolla and Spondyllus; and jungle seeds like Huayruro or Achira. She playfully combines Silver 925 and semi precious gemstones striving to transmit freshness and joviality, daring to express her feelings creating a cleaner and more modern style than traditionally used in the Peruvian sterling silver jewellery industry.

Her greatest challenge is to adapt her contemporary jewellery design to a global market while maintaining her own workshop and boutique in Lima.

Like Claudia her sister Marlis studied silversmithing in Holland. Following the completion of a business degree and managing a Peruvian silversmithing company for 3 years in Venezuela, she returned to Peru in 2003 and helped Claudia to set up C&M Lira Joyas in Lima. Marlis’ entrepreneurial flair and Claudia’s creative talents are the perfect combination and are complemented by the Out of Peru team and brand who are helping this outstanding designer find market share in the UK.

Claudia had twins in 2005 which she says has bought her endless happiness and at the same time have given her strength and inspiration. “I like to play with metal shapes; things that I find amusing. I am very attracted to the simple and pure shapes that exist in the Earth, like the circle”. This inspiration is notable in many of her designs. Marlis is a mother of two and says this combined with running a business is one of her greatest challenges.

Silversmithing Techniques

All of Claudia Lira’s work is handcrafted and although much of her contemporary designs are inspired from traditional Peruvian and South American influences the traditional Peruvian silversmithing techniques are too rough and imprecise to achieve her modern and fashionable designs. The artisans in the workshop are all Peruvian and have inherited their skills, learned making small items of jewellery or have attended jewellery school in Peru. The latter is becoming more and more common.

Materials

Claudia Lira works to the strictest ethical policies only using ethically mined silver and minerals from formal mines. Please see our ethics section for more information. The most common semi precious gemstones used in her designs include: Amethyst, Andean Opal, Chrysocolla, Spondyllus and Peruvian Amazonite.  Claudia says Amethyst is her favourite stone to work with.