Designing American Jewelry: From City Rhythms to Western Dreams is both personal memoir and compelling retrospective showcasing the life’s work of the award-winning fine jewelry designer, Ellie Thompson. The book describes her vision as a contemporary American designer, including why jewelry matters, as well as the sense of meaning and connection it confers on those who wear it.   From her humble beginnings as a teenage shop girl in New Haven, CT, Thompson tells the tale of her career as a highly regarded gemologist and designer in Chicago and beyond. Designing American Jewelry highlights the myriad inspirations for her work, reflects on the influence of people and places along the way, and is a testament to living a life of curiosity. The beautifully designed book includes more than 150 color photographs illustrating this remarkable American designers’ quarter century of design, ambition and resilience.