Meltdown Studio, Albuquerque

Art and travel go hand in hand for Meltdown Studio's owner Lauren Tobey. The accomplished jewelry designer has explored lush, vibrant locales, including Spain and Costa Rica, where her search for inspiration turned up in natural materials such as twigs, seeds, and tree frogs donning tiny diamond engagement rings. Returning to New Mexico—the place she first unearthed her desire to make jewelry—Tobey established Meltdown Studio as both a school and a creative space for other artists to teach, share techniques, and invent distinctive, wearable art.