Lillian Ismail is based in Saudi Arabia and is the founder and designer of Lilian Ismail Jewellery. Her designs are one-of-a kind pieces that she uses to express concepts from her culture and background. Each pice and collection has a different story to tell!
Tell us about your company. What does it do and what does your role entail?
Lillian Ismail jewelry blends contemporary elements with Islamic inspired concepts in one-of-a-kind designs. My “artwork”, as I refer to my designs, are used as a medium to express concepts from my culture and background. Each collection and piece tell a unique story of its own representing the designer and the individual wearing it. As one of the very few trained female Saudi bench jewelers and makers, I believe that the soul of the designer is reflected throughout the piece, giving it a different feel when handcrafted. A religious relationship of a different kind raises between the artisan and the material. My goal is to encourage the rise of artisans in my home country, especially in the field of jewelry that lacks the female hand in the production process. The modernist jewelry movement in the 1940s profoundly influenced my insistence on raising the awareness of craftsmanship and the importance of jewelry as a form of wearable art.
What did you study at university (and which university)? Did it help towards your job role now?
I completed my Bachelor of Fine Arts in Jewelry Design at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, NYC. I was a trained as an Art Jeweller at Pratt leaving it with a strong belief that jewelry is not only a commodity bought or worn for its materialistic value. It is a piece of art worn to express who we are as an individual. It is a medium of expression the designer uses to tell a story. It is a piece of art that echoes the soul of the maker, who built a strong relationship with the material. That is precisely how it did come about. A huge shift in my perception of jewelry, leaving me with a lot of questions, such as: “what is jewelry?” As a designer, I was able to apply what I learned and bring my creativity into everyday designs and creations to sell.
The quality of great education also helped me understand the field from all aspects. I left with great knowledge I can share as I teach my courses and classes. With a strong foundation In the field, I was able to participate in multiple consultancy projects to support the field in my home country.
Tell us about your first internship. What did you? What is helpful and why?
As I started senior year, I decided to apply for internships around the city, and I got the chance to intern at Oscar de la Renta as a designer assistant intern. Interning at a prestigious brand name like Oscar was on the top of my NYC checklist. I had the privilege to work alongside Alex, their head jewelry designer. She exposed me to the field of Fashion Jewelry and helped me understand a big part of the business world and jewelry. It helped me be part of the corporate world, which is different than attending art school.
Tell us about your first-ever job. What did you do? How long did you stay and the role and why did you decide to move on?
As soon as I moved back home from New York I got a job offer at Raffles Design Institute in Riyadh as a part-time instructor. My job interview was a 1-minute phone call with the Institute Director. I worked as a fresh graduate, teaching 2 basic subjects in the 1st term, after that, I taught almost the full range of subjects offered in the program. I was young and very close in age to my students. I supervised my students in everything starting from creating design briefs to the actual production and presentation at the end. I designed the JD department studio and selected all the machinery and equipment needed for in house production and projects. During my second year at Raffles, I was recommended to hold the position of program director by Singapore headquarters and held the position of acting program director until I left mid-2020. I decided to move on when I realized that full-time teaching was taking a bigger part of my energy and time while I was not able to focus on my brand and business.
Do you remember what you wore for your first job interview? How important is the way you dress for work and why?
I remember dressing up very nicely and stylishly for my Oscar de la Renta internship interview. I wore fancy white pants and a top with a baby-blue vest attached to it one of my Junior year brooch projects inspired by the movement of a ballerina made out of silver. I completed my look with both Valentino heels and a Purse. It was very important for me to look good every day I worked at a fashion house. Everyone looked so good around me, so I had to look as fashionable as other designers were around.
Top 3 skills/characteristics you need to do your job?
The top 3 skills or characteristics to be a jewelry designer, maker, and entrepreneur are patience, risk-taking, and creativity.
What is the best professional advice you’ve ever been given?
The best professional advice I have ever been given is that as a young entrepreneur I must take risks, otherwise, I will never climb the ladder to reach my goals. And I have been doing that ever since, and I can say I am very satisfied with my risky decisions.
Top tip(s) to using social media to improve your professional profile?
As we all know social media is considered the leading name in marketing nowadays. People put aside newspapers and magazines and are focusing on proving their online existence by using social media platforms such as Instagram and Snapchat. As we all know, Instagram is now a global platform that has helped millions of brands gain visibility. Social platforms help connecting brands with their customers, increase awareness, and boost your leads and sales. Try to create a brand image that identifies you as a brand from colors, to photography style, and most importantly creating strong content.
Top tip(s) for facing rejection?
I do not accept rejection easily. But we got to believe that whatever happens is meant to be, and everything happens for a reason. Sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together.
What was the hardest job interview question you’ve ever been asked and what did you answer?
For my Oscar de la Renta internship interview, which I consider the most important, I showed up with my best gouache and watercolor renderings to show off and impress their head jewelry designer who interviewed me. I was told that they use photoshop to render their designs digitally and she asked me if I had the skills to render jewelry using photoshop. At the time, I was skilled at photoshop but had no clue how to apply it to jewelry designing and rendering. I had to say that I do it in school all the time to get the job, even though I had no clue and I had to figure it out on the first day of my internship.
How do you make a good impression?
I think being yourself the best way to make a good impression.
How important are mentors? Do you have any and how have they helped you?
Mentors are very important to guide you every once in a while or at least help refresh your creativity and skills. My instructors at Pratt were very important to me while I developed my skills and honed my aesthetic at that time. They pushed me to think outside of the box and think of jewelry differently. They always advised me to think of jewelry as a form of wearable art and step away from the “cliché diamond and gold appreciation”. I thank them for giving me B’s for not thinking creatively in designing my projects, even though I spent so much time and effort in production. Because that pushed me to challenge myself and step out of my comfort, try something new, and then go back to my comfort zone but with a higher creativity level. And since I have no background in business, I always seek advice from my sister for major business decisions, so I can say she is my mentor when it comes to running my business.
One piece of advice you’d give to a young girl wanting to follow the same career path as yours?
My advice to a young girl wanting to follow the same career path as mine is that she needs to educate herself in the field she wishes to peruse. A strong academic foundation will help you master it and understand it from all different aspects. Educate yourself, know more about, and enrich your knowledge.
Photos in lead image taken by Bayan AlSadiq