Factory Tours
Whimsy Jewelry
When Virginie Dyvorne moved from Paris to New York, she didn’t just change cities—she reinvented herself. Originally trained as an engineer in physics and chemistry, Virginie had always felt an unshakable pull toward working with her hands and began crafting jewelry in 2005. “I realized a little bit late that I was completely in love with making jewelry,” she says. “But in France, it was really weird to start a jewelry business when you have the degrees I have. People would say, ‘Wouldn’t you want to have a real job instead of your cute little thing?’”
That skepticism became her motivation. After relocating to New York in 2010 with her husband, Virginie embraced the freedom of starting over. She took more silversmithing classes at the 92nd Street Y, bought her own tools, and began selling at outdoor craft fairs across the city. Instead of making jewelry on the side, it became her fulltime passion. “Moving here, I felt free to claim whoever I actually wanted to be from the get-go,” she recalls. Her business name, however, was a bit difficult for English speakers (Virginie Millefiori), so an update was needed. “People kept saying, ‘Your pieces are so playful, colorful, happy. You have a sense of whimsy.’ So after hearing it for years, I thought, ‘I’ll just be Whimsy Jewelry.’”
Today, Virginie’s studio reflects the best of New York’s maker ecosystem: a blend of precision, collaboration, and personal storytelling. Her pieces—figurative, minimal, and enamel-rich—bridge the gap between art and engineering. “You need to know the process, the physics,” she explains. “When you want a finished piece, you kind of reverse-engineer the steps.” While she handcrafts much of her jewelry herself, she also partners with long-time casters, polishers, and setters in the Diamond District. “If it’s beyond my ability, I know who to go to,” she says. “I don’t need to say I did it all myself—I just want to deliver something perfectly, artfully, and skillfully finished.”
Her work is deeply shaped by interaction. At Chelsea Market, where she has vended at pop-ups for over a decade, Virginie observes customers trying on her designs and takes notes on what works. “That feedback directly informs my next pieces,” she says. “Many of my designs come from those moments of conversation.” Whether a butterfly necklace or a personalized enamel charm, each creation carries a story—often tied to a person, place, or emotion. “Most of my pieces are figurative,” she explains, “reminding people about a special event or a special person. That connection is what sets me apart.”
Still, operating a jewelry brand in New York comes with challenges: rising material costs, thin margins, and mass-market comparisons. “Tourists see three pairs of earrings for $2.99 and wonder why mine cost $58,” Virginie laughs. “It’s hard to explain the difference—but it’s the craft, the material, the time.” Even so, she finds strength in her surroundings. “New York is the place to make jewelry,” she says. “It’s a concentration of knowledge and skills that’s disappearing. I feel lucky to be part of it.”
Looking ahead, Virginie wants to nurture the next generation of makers and preserve traditional jewelry techniques before they vanish. “All the skills are in the hands of old white guys,” she says. “I would love a makerspace run by women—where people could access tools, learn engraving, stone setting, 3D printing. I want people to fall in love with using their hands again.”
From physics equations to finely enameled pendants, Virginie has turned precision into joy. For her, Whimsy Jewelry isn’t just a brand name—it’s a philosophy: a belief that craftsmanship, color, and curiosity still matter.
Shop Virginie’s creations on her website.