Emily Armenta came from a family of artists and was introduced to beautiful works of art at a very young age. As a result, she began designing, sketching and working with stones as a young girl, but didn’t realize her passion would become a reality until she began the MBA program at Rice University. Armenta was given an assignment to create a fictitious company and write a business plan. She chose to focus on designing jewelry. Today, Armenta’s studio is her source of inspiration. You should be able to see the Spanish influence in Armenta’s jewelry, but you should also be able to feel it. The Texas-based designer is influenced, more than anything, by the work of 20th-century Spanish poet-playwright Federico García Lorca and his idea of duende: “a power and not a behavior…the struggle that one must endure to create something of greatness.” Armenta has been creating her own totems of greatness for more than a decade—ornate oxidized silver and 18k gold pieces set with diamonds and richly colored gemstones.We can’t promise they’ll help you find your duende, but perhaps they’ll inspire you to try.