Mad Jewels is a Fort Worth-based jewelry company whose pieces I fell in love with at first sight! Founder Madison Patrylick creates versatile and vibrant accessories made of high quality materials, such as natural and semi-precious stones. The affordable baubles can be worn for a multitude of occasions – from everyday casual to a formal event.

Madison inherited her love of jewelry at an early age from her mother. By the time she was eight years old, she re-created a complicated safety-pin designed bracelet for her grandparents, copied from a UNESCO catalog cover. This self-taught effort began her life-long passion of making handcrafted accessories. Since then, beautiful beads, gorgeous gemstones and other semi-precious materials have consumed Madison’s world. In 2011, her passion for creating stunning jewelry for everyday wear culminated in the launch of Mad Jewels.

This Texas entrepreneur tells us about taking the leap to start her own business, how Texas influences her designs and which pieces we just can’t live without!

Jewelry was always a hobby for you. How did you know you were ready to launch a business?

I was working in the Oil & Gas Industry and I liked it, and did well; but I realized I was not fully satisfied. I felt I was at a stalemate and not growing at the rate I wanted to within my career and found myself bored on occasion. At 23, I decided I might as well take a leap of faith and try to launch a career in something that I was truly passionate about. Worst case scenario, it wouldn’t go as planned and I would find something else to make a career out of. My dad always instilled in me that in order to live a happy life, I had to wake up and be excited about whatever it was I was doing and love it. So, I decided to take the leap, and here I am!

How did you make the transition to being an entrepreneur?

A LOT of help and support from my family and now husband. I could not have done it without them. It’s very scary to go from financial security to taking a risk every day and not knowing when you’ll have money in the bank. It’s also very scary to put yourself out there and hope for the best. I honestly don’t know that it was a “transition.” It was more of a jump. I decided to go for it and started researching and working constantly so that I could figure out how to succeed. It was a very sudden change for me.

What inspired your summer line? What do you love most about it?

I wanted our summer line, “La Dulce Vida,” to make you feel like you were on vacation when you put the jewelry on. Each piece is brightly colored and each one reminded me of a far away, coastal place. When I was creating the pieces, I envisioned sitting in Italy on a dock eating gelato or scuba diving in the Cayman Islands and being inspired by all of the bright coral reefs. I began designing the line back in January, so it was still very cold at the time. I wanted to be transported anywhere else in my imagination and turn that into something wearable.

Is Texas style/culture reflected in your designs?

I would definitely say so! I LOVE turquoise, which I don’t think can be any more Texan. Our “Celine” Necklace is a bestseller and a blogger favorite. It has huge chunks of free form turquoise slabs on a long necklace and makes a huge statement to a white tee and jeans or an LBD. I love that necklace because you can still layer it with shorter, daintier chains and rock it with some cowboy boots. I know layering and delicate pieces are in at the moment, but I still love a good statement piece. I feel like our line as a whole has a great balance of both and often times for me, bigger is better–which I feel is a true Texas motto.

What are your best selling pieces?

Our best selling necklaces are our Celine, Sonja in White Turquoise, and our Hunstress Arrowhead Pendant, all in our Signature collection. Our favorite earrings for summer have definitely been the Bali Hoops. They come in a plethora of colors and have been seen in Life & Style Magazine, People StyleWatch and Redbook, so they are definitely an editor favorite, as well. Our best selling bracelets this summer has been our Jade Stalactite and Mermaid bracelets. They’re awesome to layer and very whimsical – and affordable!

Any upcoming news to share?

If you are in the Dallas area, we will be participating in the FIG Finale (August 27-29) where you can shop brands and boutiques at 50-90% off as they clear their inventory to make way for upcoming seasons. We will have TONS of gems for $5, $10, $15, and $20. You can snag tickets at FashionIndustryGallery.com.

We are also working on a “Mini Me” collection which will debut this fall. It’s inspired by my daughter, who is always into our stock room stacking on bracelets as fast as she can get them on her arm! You can visit ShopMadJewels.com and subscribe to our email list to be the first to know about new collections.

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Mad Jewels donates a portion of the proceeds to non-profit organizations such as the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, The Trevor Project and Operation Kindness.

By Elaine Krackau