Meet Our Maker – Lyndsey Cavanagh from One Dame Lane
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Inspired by her study of jewellery design and her spiritual practices in Reiki and Seichim, founder and designer of One Dame Lane Lyndsey Cavanagh creates precious modern day heirlooms.

Mega One Dame Lane fans coming through here at The White & Gold ! The passion Lyndsey pours into her designs is almost tangible. Whether you are seeking modern, minimal, daring or demure jewellery, Lyndsey has got you covered! I could not count the amount of our brides who have perfected and elevated their bridal look with a statement piece from ODL. Dress collections in-store are a favourite part of my job – we have our brides in their perfect dress – now it’s time to get accessorising! I love the unique textures, the quality in the Irish craftswomanship and the absolute elegance of design in Lyndsey’s creations. I am so lucky to stock a huge selection of ODL pieces in TW&G and on our e-shop,  and in GOLD – our new accessories store.  Whether shooting at home or abroad in Paris or NYC, ODL is my go to when packing accessories to style our looks.  Above all, I grateful that my bridal loft and a mutual love of design has brought an inspiring friend like Lyndsey into my life. I have interviewed the lovely Lyndsey below and hope you enjoy reading a little insight into her magical, mystical world of design.

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How did One Dame Lane come to exist? Please fill us in on your exciting background:

I started my career as a brand ambassador for beauty and cosmetic brands which involved working on video shoots, tv shows and glamorous events. I lived in Spain for 5 years and had my own beauty school. I did makeup for lots of brides and wedding parties there which was  great and really opened my eyes as I was exposed to lots of different styles as the Spanish typically would wear a lot more colours than we would here in Ireland. It was in Spain that I first started making jewellery. I loved the idea of using my hands to make something practical. I felt like I needed a new challenge and applied for a Gold Smith course in Ireland. I was absolutely shocked when I was offered a place on the course. I moved to Kilkenny to start the course and really loved living there. There are so many creative people there. After a few years I opened my store, One Dame Lane in Dublin City Centre, and now we are beginning our next exciting chapter and re-locating to Greystones.

We would love to hear how you were first drawn to jewellery design, and since those initial designs where do you now seek your inspiration?

Jewellery has always been something that fascinates me. It makes people feel good and it holds emotion. If you wear a piece of jewellery every day, it becomes a part of you; an extension of you. The pieces hold a lot of feeling and memories for the wearer. In terms of design I never need to look for inspiration. It just comes to me. The mood and the feeling you are trying to convey inspires the end result for me when I am creating pieces that are sold for enjoyment. When I am designing commissioned pieces for individuals, they are the inspiration.

What is your fave ever piece that you have created?

Well that is like asking a mother about her fave child! I actually cannot choose a piece. My favourite things are the stones I use. They are so beautiful and I literally talk to them – jade, tiger’s eye, pink amethyst – stones that are so natural and have been formed in the earth manifesting themselves over thousands of years to create these beautiful colours and textures. I am in awe of the beauty of nature and the stones we can work with and create jewellery with – there’s something very sacred in that as stones hold a lot of energy.

As a designer, what feelings are you hoping to awaken in those that wear your pieces?

The feeling I infuse in my pieces is love. Love can simply be self-acceptance and self-love. Our logo actually says “self love is the first romance” so that people know when they treat themselves to something I have created that they are worthy of it and they deserve it and that the love for themselves is where love only really begins because then they can share it with other people.  The focus at One Dame Lane is divine beauty. We only use natural pearls and a lot of our new pieces carry precious stones as they really hold that divine energy. I am a trained Reiki Master and I also went on to study Seichim which is another form of sacred healing. In sacred times stones and jewels were used to adorn and protect people. Jewellery was associated with that regal, high priestess, goddess energy which we all need a bit of.  Dublin is where a lot of the pieces are finished and where my precious stones are stored.  We ask customers to go to the pieces that they are drawn to intuitively. We don’t try to over-guide people as generally if people are drawn to something it is that stone or that style which they need. I like to make people feel cared for when they come into my store. I want the wearer to feel love and worthiness and to feel uplifted when they put on my pieces.

As someone who brings joy to others with your creations, what makes you happy?

Opening emails and messages with beautiful feedback from customers really does make me happy. I usually read them at a time when I am exhausted and wondering what I am doing and they give me clarity and make me realise how much I love what I do.

We’d love to know what tracks you play on repeat, what scent you might burn, and the person you have in mind while working?

It is generally old school tunes playing for me spanning from 60’s soul to 70’s country – anything from Fats Domino and Otis Redding to the classics from Frank Sinatra mixed with a bit of reggae. We burn incense all the time in the store – anything woody and healing such as White Sage, Sandalwood and Patchouli. The person I am thinking about when creating new pieces is my little girl Tallulah. I am always under pressure to get back to her when I am working. She is the centre of love in my universe. 

 

If you could visit one place in the world, where would it be and why?

I would love to travel through Africa on a motorbike – the beauty of nature, the colours, the smells, the food and of course the stones. They have such beautiful stones there – African jewellery is incredible. 

If you could have one celebrity cruising around rocking your beautiful jewellery who would it be?

I would love to see American model and influencer Rocky Barnes rocking one of my pieces. She is the epitome of style, fierceness and sexiness. I just love her style and sass.

Any tips for our lovely brides when it comes to choosing their wedding jewellery?

I find that brides can find choosing their wedding accessories and jewellery quite overwhelming. They have spent too much time online and created too many moodboards and feel like they need all the accessories. My advice to brides is to strip it all back and to really look at your gown and neckline, to consider what you are doing with your makeup and hair and take it from there. Do not over-accessorise.  You want to take a viewer’s eye through your whole look with ease and flow with everything paired together perfectly. The most important element of your styling is the gown and then the accessories. I feel so strongly about a bride not being over-accessorised that I have done myself out of many sales. The evening is the time for the fun stuff – statement earrings and a red lip are always a winner. I am all about the evening accessories for brides to change up your look.

Thank you Lyndsey, I thoroughly enjoyed this insight into your creative world of magical beauty and hope our readers will too. We look forward to styling all this year’s brides in ODL  and meeting all the customers popping into Gold to treat themselves to a special piece. 

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