Refined Origami Jewelry by Jurate Grossman of Lucky Origami

While I absolutely admire each piece of origami jewelry that Jurate Grossman creates, it was the eye-catching photography and stylish packaging that first drew me in when I came upon her Instagram feed. And then I read the story she relates about what prompted her to launch an origami jewelry line and knew that I would feature her in the Artist Spotlight.

Welcome, Jurate. Your shop, Lucky Origami, is filled with elegant paper earrings and necklaces. You must spend hours and hours making perfectly folded lilies, boats, butterflies, even tiny elephants, but especially paper cranes. Please tell us about yourself, your handcrafting pursuits, and your decision to make origami jewelry.

"I was raised in Lithuania, a country steeped in the tradition of handcrafted jewelry and textiles, deeply rooted in nature and spiritualism. Having graduated with a degree in graphic design, I worked as a designer for media, architecture and engineering companies before making the bold decision to go off on my own and dedicate myself to designing and crafting my own line of handmade jewelry. 

 

 

"Paper boats symbolize a belief that we can carry our hopes anywhere we want and can achieve our highest aspirations."

 

 

My collections, while diverse, share a common aesthetic—clean lines that create ideal frames for colors and textures that are as alive and full of emotion as they are disciplined. I take painstaking care to maintain this balance when beading bracelets or folding origami earrings.

 

 

Lithuania was the last pagan country in Europe to be Christianized. Our given names are predominantly associated with nature or pagan spirits who oversaw various aspects of nature. My own name Jurate is derived from the Lithuanian word “'jūra”, which means “sea”, and Jūrate was the goddess of the Baltic Sea. Other common names mean “wind”, or “sun”, or “morning dew”, etc. Traditional Lithuanian clothing and handcrafts use colors that represent nature and shapes that have spiritual significance.

 

 

Though life experiences and travels have taken me to faraway places and expanded my palate, I’ve never abandoned those core design principles. It’s more that I now seek ever new inspirations through the substrates I work with—be they paper or beads or threads. 

 

 

I want to create jewelry that helps people express their emotions, connect with others, or to celebrate or memorialize the most significant moments and people in their lives.

 

 

I moved with my husband and son to The Netherlands nearly three ago. We are thriving and thoroughly enjoying a wonderfully tolerate, cultured and highly educated community which has a great sense of humor. This environment has inspired me greatly. When I entered the country by car on the day of our big move, the first animal I spotted was a crane standing on the banks of a canal. 

 

 

As a child I tearfully read the story of the Japanese girl Sadako, a survivor of the bombing of Hiroshima. Sadako, who later developed leukemia, was inspired by the story of the Thousand Cranes. She had gathered hundreds of sheets of paper and began to fold cranes hoping for a miracle if she reached 1,000. The process of folding and concentrating on her goal gave her spirits a needed lift and a purpose to her life. 

 

 

Some say when she died at ten years of age she did not quite make it to 1,000 but her goal was reached with the help of friends and strangers. When I saw that crane that day, I knew I would make origami crane earrings. And that would be my purpose--to give hope and good spirits to others through my origami designs. I started with cranes and have added other animals and flowers since then.” 

 

 

Jurate's classic origami jewelry is created with high quality, sustainable paper. She describes the folding process as delicate and focused. Watch her make an origami lily on Instagram where she is @lucky_origami. 

 

Each figure is treated with a sealant that makes it more durable and water resistant, and then it is finished with sterling silver or 18K gold plated sterling silver findings.

 

 

Her handmade holiday wreath cards are a thoughtful accompaniment to an origami jewelry gift. 

Jurate Grossman

Visit the Lucky Origami website. Customers receive 10% off their first order by signing up for emails that announce new collections and exclusive offers. Jurate also has an Etsy shop, LuckyOrigamiJewelry, where delivery is free to the U.S. 

 

She has two additional Etsy shops where you can see her beaded jewelry, MINTUCHI, and NatureWishJewelry, that features Morse Code jewelry for men and women.