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As the year comes to a close, I’ve been sitting with a deep sense of gratitude and reflection. 2025 was a full year creatively, emotionally, and energetically. It stretched me, grounded me, challenged me, and ultimately reminded me why I chose this path all those years ago. I’m dedicating this year to the 26-year-old woman who had the courage to start an artistic venture, believing she could make anything happen. I’m so beyond proud of her.
CMD has never been just about jewelry. It’s about connection, growth, and honoring the seasons of life, and this year felt like a powerful chapter in that ongoing story.
Here’s a look back at what 2025 brought to CMD.
The biggest headline of the year? CMD turned 20. Twenty years of designing, making, stacking, soldering, learning, and evolving. That number still feels surreal. What started at a tiny desk in San Francisco has grown into a small-but-mighty, woman-run business rooted in craft and community.
Celebrating this milestone wasn’t only about longevity. It gave me a chance to look back at the people, risks, decisions, and relationships that carried CMD here. I reflected on 20 lessons I’ve learned in business, revisited one of the early risks that changed everything, and created The Big Two-Oh Collection as a love letter to the first two decades of this wild journey.
Our 20th Anniversary Celebration in Asbury Park in October was one of the most meaningful nights of my career. Our whole team was together, surrounded by longtime customers, friends, family, and people who have supported CMD through so many different chapters. It reminded me once again that metal may be my medium, but connection is my craft.
Creatively, 2025 was incredibly fulfilling. We introduced new designs that pushed CMD forward while staying deeply rooted in our aesthetic: clean lines, mixed metals, strong geometry, and pieces designed to become part of your everyday life.
We launched the Square Armor Ring, added new shape and size variations to the Framework Ring, introduced new Special Occasion Stack Sets, and continued building out our collection of signature stacks.
We also introduced more customizable and hand-stamped jewelry, including the reimagined Cancerian Keepsake Ring, and ended the year with The Big Two-Oh Collection. Each of those anniversary pieces was designed not only to be wearable, but to become something worth keeping.
One of the most rewarding parts of 2025 was watching Custom and Reconstruction work become an even more meaningful part of CMD.
We helped clients reimagine family diamonds, transform old wedding sets, and turn sentimental stones into pieces that could become part of everyday life again. Those projects reinforced something I’ve always believed: jewelry can carry history without being trapped in the past.
Being trusted with someone’s heirlooms, family stories, marriages, milestones, and memories is an honor I don’t take lightly. Every project is different, but the most meaningful ones tend to begin the same way: with a conversation about what matters and what someone wants to carry forward.
2025 brought so many opportunities for real connection. I brought The Ring Bar to pop-ups on both coasts, welcomed people into The CMD Shop during Open Hours, and met with clients through both virtual and in-person appointments.
Our online community grew too. Instagram and TikTok became places to share the design process, answer questions, show jewelry being made and worn, and welcome so many new faces into the CMD universe. Seeing longtime clients share pieces they’ve worn for years and hearing someone say, “I found you online and knew I had to come see you,” never gets old.
None of this happens without the women behind CMD. Ary and Sam in our Upstate New York production studio, Kelsey holding down the digital world, and me bouncing between the bench, the shop, appointments, and the road. This year reminded me again how special our small-but-mighty team really is.
We worked hard, supported one another through the busy seasons, solved problems together, and stayed committed to quality, craft, and integrity. I’m endlessly grateful for this crew.
2025 also asked me to slow down. Time out west, time on the road, time off-grid, time at the beach, and time in the bathtub weren’t distractions from the work. They were essential to it.
Creativity needs room to breathe. Twenty years into running this business, I’m learning that rest, perspective, and making space for the rest of my life aren’t things I earn after the work is finished. They’re part of what allows me to keep creating at all.
As I look back on 2025, the feeling that rises above everything else is gratitude.
Thank you for supporting a woman-owned, handmade jewelry business. Thank you for choosing thoughtful design and pieces made to last. Thank you for trusting us with meaningful stories, sharing CMD with your friends, showing up at events, ordering jewelry, sending messages, commenting, and cheering us on.
You are the reason CMD continues to grow thoughtfully, intentionally, and with heart. Twenty years in, I’m still excited by what we’ve built, and maybe even more excited by what we haven’t created yet.
Here’s to everything 2025 gave us, and everything still to come.
With so much love and appreciation,
xo, Colleen 💛
© Colleen Mauer Designs. All rights reserved.
Published: December 26, 2025
Updated: August 26, 2026
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