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Designer Irene Cleofas for The Cleo Collection its acclaimed because of her technological innovations with her latest “Truly Embraced” bridal lines. She describes the response to her clever designs as tremendous. She humbly notes to those who view her as an overnight success that it actually has taken her 35 years of passion, dedication, and a lot of prayer to reach this point.

As the name “Truly Embraced” implies, Cleofas has designed a series of bridal sets where the perfect engagement ring is literally embraced by the perfect wedding band, creating a seamless fit that many manufacturers have been trying to achieve for years in the ideal wedding duo.

Cleofas feels blessed with all this recognition, recalling how she began in the industry 35 years ago. Her entrée into the trade came at the age of 16 when one of her sisters who worked at a casting company in Los Angeles, introduced her to a manufacturer named Irvin Cherr. Cleofas purchased a gold “Love” ring from him in 1969 for $10, which she turned around and sold to a friend who fell in love with it.

“This happened about five more times and Irvin said to me, ‘I hope you’re selling it for more than $10,’ to which I said, no,” Cleofas recalls. “He told me he was selling me the rings for wholesale. What’s wholesale? From then on, Irvin took me under his wing and taught me how to sell. Years later, when I was moving to Las Vegas, he told me he had a commission for me for all the jewelry I sold for him, and would I like it in cash or jewelry. I took the jewelry, and used it to open a small booth in a clothing store. Irvin supplied me with jewelry for years, and helped me to find other suppliers.”

Back in California in 1978, Cleofas started two successful jewelry stores, and in the years following managed and consulted with other jewelers to strengthen their sales. She also discovered her natural talent as a designer and goldsmith making custom pieces for private clients. She says that an apprenticeship under master jeweler, Orlando Ferriosi de Roma in Carmel gave her a true appreciation of fine jewelry craftsmanship. “I would design pieces and he would execute them so beautifully it would make me cry,” she says. Her experiences, as well as many courses at GIA, also groomed her skills as a gemologist and appraiser.

Cleofas says her faith in God and her son, Steven Moses, now 27, has been her inspiration to continue developing her craft to create beautiful and meaningful designs. “We’re all given gifts that we should use to honor Him,” she believes, noting the tagline to her company is “Jewelry Divinely Inspired.” She hopes her spiritual journey and divinely inspired jewelry bring joy to the lives she touches.

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