It was during the summer of 2010 that Stephanie Kantis found herself in the heart of a small Mexican village embarking on her unexpected, next big adventure, jewelry designer. After nearly two decades were spent as an interior designer growing her eponymous design firm and retail stores in Dallas, Texas, it was this pivotal point in the mountains of central Mexico that would change everything.
With a strong desire for both exploration and a life change that would enable her to go back to her artisan roots, Stephanie and her husband put a halt on her next big interiors project, planned an escape from the day to day management of her business, and agreed to high-tail it to Mexico for the summer to immerse themselves in another culture.
With the beauty of the historic, Spanish colonial town, and the romance of a village moving at a pace where one can still celebrate life's daily moments, they ended up finding themselves caught up in the romantic lifestyle and lived there for nearly two years. Stephanie filled her days with exploring the village, Mexican cooking classes, art classes, and ceramics, but it was in sculpture classes, while working with bronze, that it became obvious that her smaller creations were unique, and to her delight were invitingly wearable. Loving nature, she began to embellish her pieces with the earth's assortment of semi-previous stones, and began dipping the bronze in gold. As her focus became clear, a jewelry collection was born.
Less than 6 months into making the wearable, "artisan sculptures," an opportunity for a modest debut in 2011 with Neiman Marcus proved to be a big hit from the onset. Now, back in the U.S., this Palm Beach-based jewelry collection’s popularity has skyrocketed within five short years to over one hundred retail locations nationwide.
Stephanie is passionate about infusing diversity and culture into her brand. She is constantly challenging herself to evolve her collections to reflect her ever-changing reality. Traveling the world and discovering new techniques and materials that reflect the people who inhabit it, makes for much of her design inspirations.
Stephanie Kantis jewelry has been featured among the editorial pages of Vogue, W, Harper’s Bazaar, Town & Country, Allure, O Magazine, Glamour and InStyle. The brand is honored to have a celebrity following as well as numerous loyal clients around the world.
In a continued response to her clients request around the world, stephanie kantis launched Kantis Fine Jewelry and Kantis Couture Gems in the Fall 2017 marking a now more elevated level of design work entailing solid 18K Gold as well as Sterling Silver and Precious Gems.