Ep 101: Leora Coronel - Cutting River Stones & Making Jewelry with a Sense of Place
Leora Coronel is a jewelry and lapidary artist in Northern California whose work is deeply connected to the Yuba River. She lovingly collects stones from the river, cuts them herself, and transforms them into jewelry that carries a strong sense of place.
In this conversation, Leora shares the long, winding path that led her into metal and stone, from collecting rocks as a child to making feather earrings, learning metalsmithing, and eventually falling in love with lapidary work.
We talk about the creative pull of found materials, the satisfaction of transforming something ordinary into something meaningful, and the way place can shape an artist’s work over time. We also get into the very real parts of creative life, including self-trust, imposter syndrome, teaching, slow sales, rising silver prices, and the push and pull between making what excites us and making what sells.
This is a beautiful conversation about stone, metal, place, and the creative path that reveals itself one step at a time.
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