A Jewelry Tour of Taxco, Mexico
Recently, the designer Daniel Espinosa invited me to his beautiful hometown (about a two-hour drive from Mexico City) to see his jewelry factory and learn how some of his beautiful creations are hand-crafted. Here are some notes from my trip.
I fell in love with the all-white buildings of Taxco, which match the town’s white Volkswagen beetle taxis.
After our road trip, I went to a silver factory, where I watched these tiny, pure silver balls melt under a blowtorch into a liquid. In a matter of seconds, I was able to hold a solid bar of silver in my hands.
Each gold bead is hammered by hand.
One of my favorite parts of the factory was the bead room. It was full of endless colors—from black onyx to white pearls—in all shapes and sizes.
Dyed chains hanging in factory in Taxco, Mexico.
I made a quick stop at the Museo Nacional de Anthropologia, where I was entranced by the jade death masks. Morbid, yes, but the gem lover in me could not help it!
I couldn’t go to Mexico City and not stop by the Frida Kahlo museum; Casa Azul was beautiful.
When I first saw this giant chandelier, I thought about the silversmiths in Taxco who had handmade each silver chain. I was almost instantly distracted by the jewelry, though, and began trying it on.
On my last night, I attended Daniel’s store opening and dinner at Saks Fifth Avenue and I couldn’t help snapping a quick pic of the pretty purple flower arrangements and a sneak peek at the seating arrangement.
Daniel Espinosa.
