WHO IS KIRSTY LIEF?
I’m Kirsty Lief - well Kirsty Lee, but my grandmother always used to call me Kirsty Lief which is Afrikaans for love, so it just felt like the right name for this thing I’m doing. I’m hands + heart behind each and every piece of jewellery. A part of me is connected to everything I make and my work is truly a labour of love. My style is very organic, whilst leaning toward simplicity, which creates an elegant everyday piece that, upon closer inspection, has a unique one of a kind feel to it.
After a highschool project uncovered a passion for making wearable art, and revealed a family history of metalsmithing, I totally ignored all of that and pursued a career in graphic design. But a desire to use my hands to create rather than a computer saw me eventually return to metalsmithing, and after taking a few courses, hours of trawling the internet and lots of practising the craft, I have finally found my true calling: being a jeweller. I live on the Surf Coast in Victoria, with my husband and 2 kids, and it's here, in my small garage studio, that I hand make jewellery. Many of my pieces start hand crafted wax pieces, and become beautiful silver and gold works of art.
I may have no fingerprints left, but I still begin each project with as big a smile as my first day in metalsmithing class. My hope is that my jewellery serves as a reminder of sweet moments and captured memories.
