On my way to meet Nancy D’Onofrio, I realize I’m not wearing any jewelry. I mean not even a speck of anything. No thin chain necklace, no tiny ring, no earrings…nothing. Normally, this wouldn’t rank high on my give-a-shit o’meter but today is different. As the owner of Cocoa Jewelry, Nancy designs, distributes and sources all kinds of chic jewelry across Canada.

I think for the quickest of seconds that maybe I could duck into a store, buy a small (read: cheap) trinket and still make it in time for our 11 a.m. interview. However, thanks to an early morning conniption fit, I’m already behind schedule.

Lucky for me Nancy (who, for the record, wore a necklace, earrings, bracelet and a huge ring) couldn’t care less about my naked collarbones. She greets me with a huge smile and even laughs when I apologize for my lack of adornments.

“Feel free to try on as much as you want,” she says gesturing to two tables full of colourful baubles. Hello candy shop…the kid has arrived. (Before you envision me piling on jewels while she talks behind me, I was a professional and waited until after the interview to play dress up.)

We were supposed to meet in her design studio but that was before I realized it’s all the way in Pickering so she’s been kind enough to schlep her products to Lotus Leaf Communications on King West.  We chat in what I deem “The Magical Room” of Lotus Leaf’s pink office; samples of Doc Martens, Mukluks, makeup and clothes from countless labels pack shelves and cover the glass tables.  

I dump my bag on the couch and barely have enough time to turn on my recorder before Nancy starts talking about her pieces. Today she’s walking me through her Spring collection and right away I’m loving the lush turquoise shades and rose gold materials – the alloy de jour. 

“I basically try to see what the major designers are doing in their own jewelry collections, taking those ideas and making it affordable for people,” Nancy says of her business. “Not everyone can afford a five hundred dollar statement piece. So we try to still offer those trends but for a fraction of the cost.”

And she’s not kidding about that last part. As I look over the assortment of pieces (rings, dangly earrings, brooches and bib necklaces) I ask about the price range of her collections and am literally stunned when I hear the answer.

“Anywhere between twenty and fifty dollars,” she answers, ignoring my dropped jaw. “We have a bridal collection too which retails for more. But a necklace and earring set will go as high as seventy-five.”

Nancy drops another bomb and mentions that her spring line will be available at Shoppers Drug Mart beauty boutiques. Information that forces me to say “Wait…Shoppers? Like where I buy $3 nailpolish?” Yes, that Shoppers. While her brilliantly white bridal collection (described by Nancy as ‘perfect for that Kim Kardashian bride’ but we’ll let that pass) sells at Sears, the most recent pieces can be found (right now!) at Shoppers that have the aforementioned beauty boutiques. So…the fancier ones I guess.

In between designing affordable jewelry, sourcing materials from Asia, dealing with custom orders from brides all over Canada and maintaining her showroom, Nancy (with her business partner husband) is raising her two young children, a girl (5) and a boy (2). 

“Obviously, it’s not easy,” she says with a laugh that says Yea I exist on less than four hours of sleep. “But at the end of the day I’m so passionate about being a mom as well as this company, so I put effort into both. Working from home is always a great day.”

It wasn’t until she was on mat leave that this sassy woman starting throwing at home jewelry parties. The kind of parties I never attend because I always feel obligated into purchasing pieces but luckily for Nancy, she was a success. Selling mostly sourced jewelry from overseas she gained so much exposure that Shoppers asked her to bring her unique gems to their beauty boutique. After a few years Nancy started manufactoring and selling her own designs and has even taken it a step further by offering buyers both spring and summer collections.

“Who wants to wear the same pieces for an entire season?”

With the mantra of ‘more is more’ Nancy’s designs and sourced samples are definitely attention grabbing. Brightly coloured, layered looks are all the rage in the newest collection. But when it comes to style schedules, designers are constantly thinking ahead. We may be looking forward to picking up her spring and summer looks bu,t naturally, she’s already planning out her fall collection. 

“Leather is definitely going to make an appearance. Chunky collared necklaces, stacked bracelets, obscene amounts of studs…they’re all going to be a part of my fall line.”

Is it too soon to wish fall would come back? Don’t answer that.

As I’m about to walk out, Nancy tosses me a casual “Do you want to take something?” and everything professional and dignified about myself says no. However nothing will silence the inner me who demands I take one and do it quickly in case she changes her mind. But rest assured, this poised designing mom would have gotten the same written piece even if she had asked me to kindly stop touching everything. Which has happened in the past.

You can check out Nancy and her jewelry at http://www.cocoajewelry.com/. 

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Bianca Teixeira is Toronto Standard’s style editor. Follow her on Twitter at @BeeIsTheNewBlog.

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