Life, Values & Legacy: Our Chat with Laurel Stachon Mills

Laurel Stachon Mills shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.

Laurel, really appreciate you sharing your stories and insights with us. The world would have so much more understanding and empathy if we all were a bit more open about our stories and how they have helped shaped our journey and worldview. Let’s jump in with a fun one: What do you think is misunderstood about your business? 
Jewelry is an investment. Well made precious metal pieces will never decrease in value. What we are seeing in todays metals market is an unprecedented rise in prices on everything from silver to gold and even copper at its highest value in my lifetime let alone generations before me. Making the choice to purchase from a small business, a high quality item of jewelry that can be passed down generation to generation not only helps out the maker you are buying from but also you are investing in your own/family/friends future.

Often potential customers are surprised by the seemingly high prices of my work however what isn’t always considered is how much time and care goes into making each piece.
Now more than ever metal working as an art form is important for the continuation of skillsets that would otherwise be forgotten, replaced by machine made mass produced work.

Purchasing hand made jewelry from a small business such as my own helps your community directly by keeping money flowing close to home as apposed to buying from big companies who acquire products from sweatshops overseas where labor is cheep and conditions for workers are often dangerous.

Asking ourself a few simple questions before purchasing can make all of the difference in the world.
First off – Can I see myself wearing this piece more than once?
Does this help a small business/my community member?
And finally – Will the value and quality of my purchase continue to appreciate in sentiment and value over time?

My belief is if the answer is YES, the purchase is well worth it. Jewelry can be saved up for, if made with integrity it is always worth while to invest in. Additionally there is the added joy of having a story about the interaction and circumstance of how you came to buy your unique treasure.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Laurel, I am the soul owner & metalsmith for L.A.M. Jewelry. I have had the privilege to call a few different cities and a small town or two in Michigan my home for the 38 years I’ve been around. I’ve been a maker my whole life settling on a carrier in 2012.

I strive to have as many sustainable practices within my jewelry business as I can. Ever increasing and improving on that front. The environment is a gift, my craft is often counter to benefiting our natural world, any way I can make changes to clean up my practice and help this green planet, I do.
In 2025 I was able to purchase and outfit a new studio space on our maple ridge here in Interlochen, MI. L.A.M. studio now resides in a well insulated 10 by 26 building a few long strides away from our home! Having a separate work space is a game changer for many reasons, not least of all having the fuel tanks for torches away from the house is a relief.

My plan is to offer small scale workshops starting in 2026 to share and teach my skillset to others. Classes that will allow students to create a unique piece of jewelry to take home and knowledge of how humans have been creating adornment for centuries before us.

Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. What’s a moment that really shaped how you see the world?
I would have to say walking into my first metals class at university. My original major was ceramics, I wanted to follow in the footsteps of a family friend I admire for her artistry and zeal for life. Much of her influence still flows through my day to day but once I had my hands on a piece of silver and a jewelers saw I was hooked. I adore the versatility of metal. More importantly and as I mentioned before I love the sustainability of it. What I mean by this is metal is virtually always able to be recycled and used again. In the field of ceramics, once a piece is fired the molecular structure is permanently changed, it can never go back to being workable clay. Metal can be processed, annealed, smelted and reborn into a different alloy or separated into its base element once more. To me that makes metal forgiving as a material to work with, I like that.
When I walked into the metals studio at NMU in Marquette it felt like I had found my outlet for creative expression.

If you could say one kind thing to your younger self, what would it be?
I would give myself a huge hug, look into little Laurels eyes and say “trust yourself my girl! none of this matters as much as you think it does!”
As the “weird kid” growing up in rural Upper Peninsula I always wanted to just fit in. Everyone I wanted to be like lived in town, played sports and got lunchables packed for them. I on the other hand was a competitive highland dancer, living on a lake at the end of a dirt road, who had the privilege of a badass mom who packed homemade bread PB&J’s for the ungrateful yours truly.
Little did I knowhow much I would miss that bread years later but more importantly just how little sway the opinions of classmates/childhood friends would have on my life today.

Next, maybe we can discuss some of your foundational philosophies and views? Is the public version of you the real you?
Yes and no. I definitely bring more energy into my sales personality than in everyday living. Interactions with customers are so special that I’m not sure I would want it any different. If my “battery” is low for a show or I am distracted I feel like the public version of myself isn’t giving enough to the art form. I like to allow the energetic, story telling, listener side of my personality to shine when I am selling my work. This way the introverted quiet parts of myself charge like a solar panel while I am alone in the studio creating.

Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. What is the story you hope people tell about you when you’re gone?
I hope that people will remember me for having a really good time, that my friends and family were many and all important to me, and that I had great taste in jewelry.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://lamhandmadearts.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/l.a.m.handmadearts
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/l.a.m.handmadearts