Steelz & Mantraz principal Lashawndla Bailey-Miller knew she had made a special item for Catherine,The Duchess of Cambridge. There was no guarantee, however, that she’d like what was dispatched or indeed wear it.

Bailey-Miller would soon realise that not only did the Duchess like it, but would step out from the Royal Air Force Voyager with it securely fastened to her wrist.

As soon as the calls started rolling in that Tuesday afternoon, Lashawndla Bailey-Miller knew she was on the cusp of the biggest moment of her career.

“I was in a class, checked my phone and saw a message, ‘How can I get the bracelet seen on the Duchess of Cambridge?’ It’s the stuff of dreams. I was so confused and shocked that I ignored the requests,” shared Bailey-Miller with Tuesday Style Fashion (TSF) .

“My phone started blowing up. I was getting tagged by Instagram accounts like @royalfashionpolice. I knew something was happening… Then I started seeing the pictures online, and I was like, okay, she actually selected the bracelet,” she continued.

This was the afternoon of Tuesday, March 22, moments after the The Duchess of Cambridge arrived in Jamaica wearing a cheerful yellow dress by Roksanda, Aquazurra heels, and a Steelz and Mantraz She’s Royal Bracelet — two weeks to the date Bailey-Miller was first contacted by a local team searching for gifts for the ‘Senior’ Royal.

The bracelet forms part of Bailey-Miller’s small, locally based boutique jewellery line, called Steelz and Mantraz. She has been, since 2016, designing and producing custom pieces, with sales coming mostly via word of mouth, social media and participation in local craft fairs.

Bailey-Miller, as a result of seeing growth in her business had increased production. But an endorsement from a style icon like the Duchess of Cambridge has predictably caused sales to skyrocket. Each piece is custom-made, with production turnaround of two to three days.

The surge in demand for yet another of the brand’s delicate pieces: The Happy Pearl Bracelet prompted the educator-cum-jeweller to make frantic calls that Wednesday evening to her suppliers.

“On day two, one of the persons that had purchased the She’s Royal bracelet the day before, sent me a message saying ‘I think the Duchess is wearing another of your bracelets,” shared Bailey-Miller. The Duchess had indeed paired the Happy Pearl Bracelet with the She’s Royal Bracelet while honouring engagements on day two of the Royal Visit.

Bailey-Miller started producing the Happy Pearl Bracelet last year for The Collection MoDA’s Let’s Get Elf’ed Up Holiday Pop-Up Shop held November 29 – December 24 at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel. The bracelet, a highly polished stainless steel bangle plated in 18K gold, is customisable and can be engraved with letters and numbers. The jewellery engraving machine she uses was financed through a grant from The Jamaica National Foundation (JN Foundation) and The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Social Enterprise Boost Initiative (SEBI) in 2018.

The Garth Sanguinetti-trained artisan credits her career in jewellery-making as the perfect antidote since severe depression forced her to leave a career in education. “My jewellery serves as a reminder to people to find something to be happy about,” she shares.

With #TeamSteelz&Mantraz — Bailey-Miller and her husband Kevin Miller — now in overdrive and more raw material in transit, the artisan hopes to fulfil all back orders this week, all while working on new designs.

For those wanting to nab the bracelets worn by The Duchess, the Happy Bracelet has predictably sold out (blame the Kate effect) but the She’s Royal Bracelet is in stock and ready for personalisation.

Steelz & Mantraz

IG: @steelzandmantraz

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