Ali A Lee
Ali grew up on the Big Sur coast, the son of Karl Lee — painter, potter, and goldsmith. Their cabin sat high on Partington Ridge, rough and wind-beaten, looking out to the Pacific. Before Karl moved in, Henry Miller lived there for a time, before finding a more comfortable place a quarter mile up the ridge.
In those days, Big Sur was still wild and hard to reach. The road ended often, and the people who stayed did so by choice. Writers, painters, and wanderers came and went — Miller, Richard Brautigan, Emile Norman, and others who built their lives by hand.
Karl worked the way the land demanded — with patience and craft. Clay, metal, and paint shared the same workbench. The air smelled of woodsmoke, oil, and salt. Ali learned by watching. How things were made. How a life could be shaped the same way — slow, deliberate, and true.
Now Ali carries that forward. He makes hand-forged fine jewelry in the same tradition — to honor the craft, to feed his family, and to live outside the usual lines.
Each piece is built to last. Honest work. Clean design. The mark of the maker in every surface. Jewelry shaped by sea air and fire — and by a way of life that still holds steady on the Big Sur coast.
New from the studio
