Editor’s Note
**Editor’s Note:** This piece highlights designer María de LaFuente’s latest creation—a necklace inspired by Almería’s iconic ‘El Indalo’ symbol. Crafted with noble materials like silver and gold plating, the design reflects her commitment to quality and longevity.
Art
Designer María de LaFuente has created a necklace design centered around the iconic and well-known symbol of Almería, ‘El Indalo’.
She always emphasizes the use of noble materials and precious metals.
“You shouldn’t use things that contain nickel or brass. You shouldn’t use copper. I use silver and plate it in gold. So of course it lasts a lifetime. It can oxidize, but we can clean it or re-plate it, but it’s forever.”
María de LaFuente, from Almería, surprises again with her great creative capacity in jewelry design and has just launched ‘El Indalo’. Two years ago, she started the project ‘El Jardín de las Joyas’ in Almería, her hometown, after 20 years living and working in Madrid.
In 2023, she launched a collection centered around the ‘pita’ (agave) motif.
“I gave my style to the pita. When a design works well, it’s because you’ve given your style to something that already exists. After the pita, new things came out. I’m always releasing new models, like corals, and last summer I released abalones, which are shells.”
“Last year I released an abalone collection that went very well, because you always have to refresh so that people who already have your pieces continue to see something new,” she states.
Recently, she has been focused on designing ‘El Indalo’.
“It’s an Indalo like the pita, I have to give it my style, because the Indalo is a challenge, because everyone knows it. When you see an Indalo, you already have a fixed idea of the Indalo,” the designer explains.
María de LaFuente is very excited about the Indalo.
“Right now I have it in gold plate. It’s only a necklace and I think it’s very me. It’s very recognizable, I would wear it myself,” she affirms.
After her years in Madrid, María has returned to her homeland with excellent creative capacity. First the pita and now the Indalo.
“When you return and realize how good it is to be here, you start to value things much more from a mature perspective. I am here because I want to be here, which is not the same as someone who never left. Now I value being here more and I continue to value it. And then, my main clientele is Almería, which has received my product incredibly well. I sell online, and I sell a lot in Madrid, Valencia, Barcelona, but the people who come looking for me, who go to stores asking for De LaFuente, are from here.”
“In fact, I produce and sell in Almería, and if I can produce more, I sell outside. I prefer that people from here buy from me. The girls here really like the Indalo, they wear it a lot. So it makes sense to have made this Indalo,” she states.
When creating a design, De LaFuente is clear that
“within your style, everything is always similar, because it’s your style. I’m not going to suddenly make a super modern and super extravagant piece of jewelry. I have my style, so, within my style, making it innovative still requires effort. And you always have to innovate, of course, because you can’t make all necklaces the same.”
“My product is an artisanal thing. I don’t focus on the season, because I don’t follow fashion that much. I think I try to separate myself a bit from that, because in the end, my product is for an audience that doesn’t follow this fast fashion trend so much. Fast fashion is buying 15 things that you’ll throw away next year. I step away from that a bit,” she points out.
The designer is in a great creative moment and her products have her unmistakable stamp.
“De LaFuente has been very well received in Almería. I think I’ve carved out a niche of clientele that corresponds to me, it fits very well. People really like giving a De LaFuente as a gift in Almería. So it takes a little more effort to make, but when you do, it’s very loyal and goes very well. In that sense, I can’t complain.”
María de LaFuente feels great satisfaction when she sees her jewelry being worn on the street.
“I see people who are completely wearing my pieces and it gives me a thrill. The other day I went to a concert and there were two very pretty girls wearing my entire collection. That feels really good, honestly.”
The Creator Who Had Art in Her Veins
María de LaFuente is the daughter of Carlos Lafuente, well-known in Almería for his decoration studio, who passed away in June 2022. She studied at Las Jesuitinas and as a child wasn’t sure what she wanted to do.
“The world of art attracted me a lot. I studied fashion in Madrid, because there was nothing in Andalusia. Everything has changed for the better.”
At just 18 years old, she left her native Almería to study a Higher Degree in Fashion Design in Madrid. With her creativity and drive, boosted by several awards, she had the opportunity to travel to Germany representing Spain. She has worked in film costume design and as a designer for major multinational fashion companies. She later completed her training with higher studies in Artistic Jewelry Design, and before returning to Almería, she dedicated her time to leading and directing the jewelry department of a well-known company as a designer and workshop manager. She spent 20 years in Madrid until she returned to Almería.
“My daughter Gala and a major pandemic at that time brought me back to Almería. On May 2, 2020, I gave birth to my daughter Gala. Perhaps that pandemic made us stop and I started to value many things. In the end, I decided I wanted to return to Almería.”
