Meet Shirley

The Heart & Hands Behind Shirley’s Designs

Hello, I'm Shirley Martinez, the founder, designer, and artisan behind Shirley’s Designs Handcrafted Jewelry.

Born and raised in Riverside, California, I'm a Cali girl at heart. Creativity, fashion, color, and beautiful details have been part of who I am for as long as I can remember.

It Started With My Mother's Jewelry Box

As a little girl, I loved exploring my mother's vintage jewelry. I would take pieces and reimagine them into tiny creations for my dolls, fascinated by the colors, shapes, textures, and details.

There was something magical about taking something that already had a story and giving it a new one. Looking back, I can see the beginning of the artisan I would eventually become.

Creativity Has Always Been Part of My Story

My love of design eventually took me from Southern California to San Francisco, where I studied Visual Communication and Space Design at the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising (FIDM).

After school, I spent time in fashion, retail, and visual merchandising. Eventually, I found myself creating with my hands again—this time with natural gemstones spread across my table.

Shirley’s Designs Was Born

I began creating jewelry for friends and family, teaching myself techniques along the way and allowing the gemstones themselves to inspire me.

I loved that no two stones were exactly alike. Their colors, markings, textures, and natural variations gave each one its own character.

Soon, people were asking me to create pieces for birthdays, loved ones, milestones, memories, and special moments. They wanted names engraved, dates remembered, birthstones included, and colors chosen because they represented someone.

Jewelry with meaning.

Growing the Dream

Building Shirley’s Designs has been a journey of creativity, learning, faith, determination, and growth.

Along the way, I've had the opportunity to learn alongside other women entrepreneurs through both Wells Fargo's entrepreneurship programming and the Milestone Circle.

But some of my most important lessons have come from my customers—the stories behind their purchases, engravings, gifts, and meaningful moments.

Why I Still Create by Hand

Today, my worktable is filled with natural gemstones, metals, charms, engraving tools, and pieces waiting to become someone's keepsake.

Some designs are quiet and minimal. Some are bold. Some begin with a gemstone. Others begin with a story. But every finished piece should feel personal.

A bracelet can carry the birthstones of your children. A necklace can hold a date you'll never forget. An engraved charm can carry the name of someone you want close. A gemstone can be chosen for its color, natural character, birth month, or personal connection to your story.

From My Hands to Yours

When you choose Shirley’s Designs, there's a real person behind your jewelry.

Me.

I'm selecting the gemstones, considering how the colors work together, creating the design, personalizing your piece when requested, checking the details, and preparing something that will eventually leave my hands and become part of your life.

What begins at my worktable becomes your gift, your memory, your celebration, your reminder, and your story.

Thank you for supporting an independent woman-owned artisan business and allowing something created from my heart and my hands to become a small part of your story.

With gratitude,

Shirley Martinez
Founder • Designer • Artisan
Shirley’s Designs Handcrafted Jewelry

Jewelry with meaning. Created by hand, from the heart.

Your story. Your bespoke.