Swedish Born. Goldsmith. Designer. Mother of two.
About Formia Design; Creating and designing has always been a huge part of Mia’s life. Owning her own jewelry business specializing in designing custom jewelry has allowed for Mia to fulfill her passion for creativity. Trained by the most respected masters in Sweden, Mia’s technical knowledge is vast. And her modern design aesthetic is sure to please any client interested in updated and current trends in jewelry. Mia’s work is truly one of a kind and timeless.
Redesign and repairs;
In addition to designing and making custom jewelry. Mia is also experienced in jewelry repairs, redesigns, and reconstruction of pieces from clients’ heirloom jewels. Mia also replicates any of her designs you fall in love with on the website. Whether you are looking for a brand new piece or would like to redesign and update your heirloom jewelry. You can rest assured that your experience at Formia Design will be positive. And your custom designed jewelry will be elegant and breathtaking!
Worldwide;
Every day is a new day for learning new things in her second language and new ways to run her business. Like any mother, Mia is still working on getting her work and business in perfect harmony with raising two small children. She enjoys the responsibilities of being a mother to both her kids and business. She is excited to see what the future has in store for Formia Design in the USA.
Education and Experience:
- 1988-1991 Jewelry School in Sweden, Dackeskolan in Mjolby
- 1992 Journeyman Diploma
- 1996 Goldsmith Master’s Degree
- 1997 Degree in Design at College of Arts in Linkoping
- 2001 Set up my own business Formia Design in Stockholm, Sweden
- 2004 Received Best New Designer of the Year award at Stockholm Jewelry Show
- 2004 Established Formia Design LLC in Virginia, USA
Store & Studio – Down Town Mall in Charlottesville 420 E. Main St.
“Mia is a certified master goldsmith trained in the traditional jewelry making techniques of Europe. Through a labor-intensive process using hand tools, she captures the warmth and detail of the original artwork, while also ensuring the piece is structurally strong — guaranteed to last a lifetime. She uses only solid precious metals and genuine gemstones in her pieces. We are able to hand make a totally custom, high quality piece and mail it from our Virginia-based studio in under two weeks.”
How the kid’s art as jewelry Started…
The idea of using children’s drawings to make jewelry was born in 2008 when Mia van Beek was trying to think of a gift for her daughter’s preschool teacher. Being a master goldsmith, making a piece of jewelry was an obvious choice for Mia, but she also wanted that gift to involve her daughter. She asked her three-year-old to sit down and draw a nice picture that Mommy could make into earrings for the teacher. Moments later the little girl proudly held up her paper exclaiming, “There! Pretty earrings for Ms. Sharon.” Mia took the pencil scribbles and transformed them into sterling silver earrings, which Ms. Sharon is still wearing, 14 years later.
Reaction from parents of the other preschoolers was so positive that Mia decided to make a prototype titanium key chain from another drawing and submit it to Cool Mom Picks, a website featuring special, fun products for parents. The key chain was featured in their Father’s Day issue, and the rest is history!
We have since been featured on the Today Show, the DIY Network, and in various magazines and online publications. Our products have expanded from pendants and keychains into a wide variety of jewelry types and metal keepsakes. But we still take pains to make each piece totally perfect; our handmade process is a time-consuming labor of love. It is truly our privilege to make special gifts from your children’s artwork.
See more Videos: VIRTUAL MOMENTS WITH MIA