President, Dené Jewelry
As a member of the jewelry industry for 20 years Michelle Dene has a broad range of career experiences. Working her way up from luxury retail sales, moving into management, and onto apprenticing with a renowned international jewelry designer, Michelle Dene became recognized herself, as one of the country’s leading jewelry designers, founding her jewelry design gallery, Dené Jewelry. Her showroom gallery is located on Michigan Avenue, in Chicago’s historic Willoughby Tower, overlooking Lake Michigan and latest tourist attraction, Millennium Park.

Michelle Dene is an artist, welding outdoor kinetic sculptures that are sold to both private and public collectors, including a public installation in front of the library of the National College of Chiropractic, in DuPage county, Illinois. As an award winning artist and trained sculptor, Michelle Dene creates jewelry for “art’s sake”.  From conception to fruition, within a framework of principles of design, Michelle Dene uses precious colored gemstones and diamonds to create one-of-a-kind and limited-edition designs. Fair Trade precious colored gemstones are used in her True Colors collection. Beautiful colored diamonds accent her bridal line and Dené also has a fashion line of celestial inspired, right-hand diamond rings. Her clients enjoy the unique experience of custom design, where they can view rare loose gemstones or diamonds in a private, intimate setting.

Michelle Dene is dedicated to Fair Trade manufacturing protocol using reclaimed gold, Kimberly Processes diamonds, and fair trade gemstones. With an understanding that their piece is made with integrity and with a positive impact in every aspect of the jewelry making process, the customer can truly appreciates a rare and precious possession. Manufacturing with Fair Trade principles insures that the consumer is educated to understand the fair value of their purchase by including as much information as possible from the wonders of the people and culture where their precious colored gemstone was mined to the journey around the world that it traveled in the marketplace to finally reach the customer. Dené is dedicated to seeking, to the highest degree possible, suppliers who can trace and document their sources to origin, in order to insure fair labor conditions - where workers are treated fairly and benefit from their labor, to insure environmental protection - to restore and replant mine sites when they are depleted, and also to insure full disclosure of any enhancement treatments the stone has undergone.

Dené jewelry has been featured on local news: WGN News on “Trends in Designer Jewelry - Colored Diamonds”, Fox News on “Bridal Jewelry”, and frequently in jewelry trade publications such as National Jeweler and JCK. Dené is recognized as one of JQ Magazine's “Designers of the 21st Century”. In addition Platinum Television produced a feature story on Dené, airing nationally on E, Style, Oxygen, PAXX TV and Women’s Entertainment.

A firm believer in service to the community and the industry, Michelle Dené dedicated four years to charity work for Chicago Abused Woman Coalition, facilitating the annual gala, hosted by WJA Midwest. She led an incredible team of Chairs and committee members to raise over $80,000.00 in donations. Dené subsidized costs for Chicago’s inner-city, children’s football league, Humbolt Park’s Trojans for championship rings and Dené was the exclusive Chicago jeweler donating at the highest level for community supported, Shed Aquarium at the 2006 prestigious Shark Ball. Dené has volunteered in the industry as past president of Women’s Jewelry Association - Midwest chapter, and Midwest representative for the WJA National board of directors, as well as serving on the WJA National nominating committee for the national board of directors. Dené is a founding member of the Fair Trade Diamond and Jewelry Association, an organization to help enable and educated the jewelry industry on ethical manufacturing practices.

Michelle Dene strives to have a positive influence in all aspects of her career from her volunteering in the industry and community to design and manufacturing principles, in order to produce the highest quality product with the most ethical methods to create pieces that are truly alive with positive quintessence, where the focus of its appeal is directed to the educated, conscientious consumer.