Artist Lindsey Gann lives on the Oregon Coast with her husband Greg and their four children. She is the founder of Bold & Bloom, a handcrafted jewelry brand that celebrates strength, beauty, and the ability to bloom through every season of life. After walking through depression and loss, Lindsey found healing through art, shaping delicate petals from clay as a way to process pain and rediscover herself. Every petal she shapes carries a piece of her healing — and a message to other women that they, too, can rise and bloom again.
Lindsey, Bold & Bloom began as something deeply personal. Take us back to that moment when you first realized that sculpting polymer clay flowers was becoming more than a hobby.
Lindsey Gann: When my kids all moved out, I felt completely lost. I’ve struggled with depression throughout my life, but this time it felt different — it felt deeper, more consuming. I was first married at 19 and a mom by the time I was 21. I’d spent so many years taking care of everyone else that I didn’t know who I was without that role. Don’t get me wrong, I love my husband, and we have a wonderful life. But the house was quiet now without the kids, the days felt long, and I couldn’t shake the question of what my purpose was now that they were gone.
I started working with clay just to fill my time and quiet the silence. At first, I had no idea what I was doing — my early creations were honestly a little embarrassing. But the more I learned, the more I started to feel something again. It became a kind of therapy for me — helping to ground me, calm my thoughts, and give me a sense of focus I hadn’t felt in a long time.
Over time, that spark grew. Seeing women’s reactions at shows — the way their faces lit up when they found the perfect pair, the way they connected with my designs, that brought me back to life. It made me realize my work could make people feel something, just like it’d done for me. It pulled me out of my shell and reminded me that I still had something to give.
That’s when I knew this wasn’t just a hobby anymore. It was healing. It was purpose. It was me finding my way back to myself.
The name Bold & Bloom feels both strong and soft at once. What does it mean to you?
Lindsey Gann: To me, Bold & Bloom represents the duality of being a woman — strength and softness, courage and vulnerability. “Bold” is about stepping into your power, even when you’re scared. “Bloom” is about giving yourself permission to grow, even in imperfect soil. Together, they reflect what I’ve lived through: the resilience to rebuild and the grace to keep growing when life doesn’t look the way you imagined it would. It’s a reminder that we can be both tender and unstoppable at once.
I’ve always appeared to be strong and independent, maybe even a little closed off. But inside, I was terrified of what people thought of me. I can be bold and loud with my friends but standing in front of strangers was never me. Before Bold & Bloom, I never would’ve imagined myself doing shows or putting myself out there online. And I definitely wouldn’t of had the strength to show complete strangers my creations.
When I started sculpting flowers, I saw myself in them — delicate but resilient, beautiful yet shaped by the seasons they’ve survived. And like real flowers, they aren’t perfect; each petal has tiny flaws, slight differences, and that’s what makes them real. Every imperfection tells a story. Each one reminds me that growth doesn’t have to be flawless to be beautiful.
Bold & Bloom has become more than a name — it’s a reflection of who I’m becoming: someone learning to be seen, to embrace imperfection, and to bloom boldly through every season.
After losing your son Eli, you found meaning through your craft. How do you honor his memory through your work today?
Lindsey Gann: Losing Eli rocked our whole family. You don’t expect to lose a child at 23 — he had his whole life ahead of him. Like most moms, I felt like I had to be the strong one, holding everything together for everyone else. But inside, I was falling apart too. And I still am at times. There’s so much anger and confusion when you lose a child in an accident. I couldn’t understand why this happened, and I still struggle to make sense of it all.
I turned to clay to quiet those thoughts — to find even a moment of peace when everything felt unbearable. Creating gave me a way to release the anger I was feeling, to focus on something that felt healing instead of destructive. It became my outlet, my way of breathing again when the grief was too heavy.
All of my kids have been incredible supporters of my work, and I truly wouldn’t be where I am without my entire family. Each of them, in their own way, has encouraged me to keep going — to keep creating, to keep finding beauty, and to keep blooming, even when it hurts.
Eli believed in me long before I believed in myself, and in many ways, he’ll always be a part of what I create. After losing him, I designed the Resilience Collection in his honor — a line inspired by transformation, strength, and the ability to find beauty in the pain. The pieces blend deep purples, muted blues, and soft creams — colors that reflect both loss and healing for me. Some rest on dark backdrops with bright florals, like hope breaking through the grief, while others are framed in ivory to symbolize calm and remembrance.
I keep pushing myself outside my comfort zone because I want to make him — and my other kids — proud of me. I want them to see that even when life feels unbearable, when it would be easier to give up, you keep going. You keep dreaming. You keep finding ways to grow through it.
How do you personally define beauty now, after walking through such deep challenges?
Lindsey Gann: I used to think beauty was about perfection — flawless makeup, a clean home, a life that looked “put together.” But after everything I’ve been through, I see beauty in an entirely different way now. To me, beauty lives in the things that survive — in the cracks, the scars, and the stories that shape us. It’s in the woman who keeps showing up, even when she’s falling apart inside. It’s in quiet strength, in grace born from pain, and in the courage to start again when everything feels broken.
Working with clay taught me that lesson. When a petal cracks or a design doesn’t turn out the way I planned, I don’t throw it away. I reshape it, soften the edges, and let its imperfections become part of the piece. That’s what beauty feels like to me now — not flawless, but honest.
That’s the heart of Bold & Bloom. Every flower I sculpt carries those same imperfections — small reminders that beauty doesn’t fade in hardship; it grows through it. Real beauty is what survives the storm, and that’s what I try to capture in every piece I make.
What message do you hope women take away when they wear Bold & Bloom beyond aesthetics and into the heart of your mission?
Lindsey Gann: So many of us spend years taking care of everyone else — our families, our careers, our homes — until one day we realize we’ve forgotten who we are underneath it all. I’ve been there. That’s why my jewelry isn’t just about style; it’s about reclaiming a piece of yourself.
When women wear Bold & Bloom, I want them to feel something deeper than “these are beautiful earrings.” I want them to feel seen — to remember that they’re still capable of growth and transformation, even after everything they’ve been through.
Each design is sculpted petal by petal as a reminder of strength, renewal, and resilience. I want women to put on my jewelry and feel grounded in their story — proud of what they’ve survived and confident in who they’re becoming.
At its heart, Bold & Bloom is a celebration of women who rise, rebuild, and keep blooming — a reminder that even in the messiest, most uncertain seasons, you are still becoming — still radiant in your own imperfect way.
Your jewelry often symbolizes growth after hardship. How do you continue to nurture your own growth as both an artist and a human being?
Lindsey Gann: Growth is something I have to choose every single day. It doesn’t come easily or naturally, especially after loss. But I’ve learned that healing and growing aren’t one-time moments — they’re a constant process of showing up, even when it’s hard.
As an artist, I nurture my growth by giving myself permission to create without pressure — to explore, to fail, to start again. I remind myself that not every piece has to be perfect to have meaning. Some of my favorite designs have come from moments where I messed up and had to rework an idea. It’s a lesson that’s mirrored in life: growth doesn’t come from what goes right, but from how we respond when things fall apart.
Personally, I try to surround myself with things that ground me — time with my family, quiet mornings, nature, and the act of creating itself. Art helps me process what I’m feeling and reminds me that growth doesn’t always look like progress. Sometimes it’s quiet, sometimes it’s messy — but it’s still growth. And that’s enough.
If you could speak to the version of yourself who first picked up a piece of clay, what would you tell her now?
Lindsey Gann: If I could talk to the version of myself who first picked up a piece of clay, I’d tell her I know how heavy it feels — that ache in her chest, that emptiness she can’t put into words. I’d tell her she doesn’t have to hold it all together or pretend she’s okay. She’s allowed to fall apart. She’s allowed to rest.
Those quiet hours at the kitchen table — shaping tiny petals just to make it through the day — are doing more than she realizes. She’s not just creating something with her hands; she’s slowly piecing herself back together.
The road ahead won’t be easy, but she’ll find purpose in the pieces. Her work will one day help other women see their own strength in the middle of their pain.
And one day, she’ll look back and realize that this moment — the one that felt like it broke her — was actually where she began to bloom.
Finally, if one woman—feeling lost, exhausted, or unseen—found your jewelry and it helped her feel beautiful again, what would that mean to you?
Lindsey Gann: If even one woman found my jewelry and it helped her feel beautiful again, it would mean everything to me. That’s the heart of Bold & Bloom — it’s why I keep going.
I know what it feels like to be lost, to look in the mirror and not recognize the person staring back at you. Grief and exhaustion can strip away your sense of self until you feel completely invisible. So if one woman puts on a pair of my earrings and, even for a moment, sees herself again — stands a little taller, feels a little lighter, or remembers her own worth — then that’s everything.
My jewelry isn’t just about beauty; it’s about connection. It’s a way of saying, you’re not alone. You can still find light in the dark. You can still grow through it. If my work helps a woman see herself with the same love and hope I’ve fought to find again, then every piece I’ve ever made has done exactly what it was meant to do.
