“My pieces are the kind you put on and never take off,” says local jewelry designer and master craftsman Almut Belote. She recently opened her second location, a beautiful boutique on Park Avenue. Her original studio is near Thornton Park in Orlando, and it is also her work studio. Belote designs and makes every piece she sells. “I’ve been handmaking jewelry for over 35 years,” she says. She was trained by a European master in Austria, her native country.
 
“My style is influenced by my European background. It’s European and minimal but bold. Not over-adorned,” she explains. Belote moved to Orlando 25 years ago, after she met her husband while living and designing jewelry in the Virgin Islands. They decided to settle in his hometown.
 
Belote met her husband while living and designing jewelry in the Virgin Islands and then moved to Orlando, his hometown, 25 years ago. Belote does a lot of custom work as well, and nothing is sent out of her studio to be fabricated. “My own hands are making it versus other designers who design but then send it off to be made,” she says. “I trained all of my craftsmen to the exact same standards that I was trained in Europe. I’m a perfectionist and want them to work exactly like me,” she says. “I’ve had a few appraisers actually call me and tell me that it is the most well-made jewelry they have every seen,” Belote says.
 
In addition to the exemplary quality and craftsmanship, by crafting pieces in-house Belote is able to control every aspect of a custom order. “When I do a custom order, I talk directly to the customer. There’s no middleman and nothing gets lost in translation,” she says. Her most popular pieces are her bracelets because she has designed her own unique snap closure that clients love.
 
“It’s important to me that clients understand we are not just another jewelry retailer. We are our own brand, and I will always keep it that way. I will never dilute my brand by purchasing someone else’s pieces to sell,” she says. You can watch her making her jewelry on her Instagram page @almutbelotejewelry. Her new retail boutique is at 216 N. Park Ave., Suite K, in the alcove by Tabla restaurant. Belote is hosting a grand opening party Wednesday, May 10, from 5-8 p.m. One lucky guest will win a free pair of gold earrings.