Growing up between Colorado and California, surrounded by the magnificence of nature, Baylee’s reverence for the environment is intricately linked to her intrinsic appreciation for beauty. From a young age, she loved fashion and admired its capacity to make a statement, and she developed a keen eye for the nuances of personal style.

In college, she became interested in photography and reveled in the art form’s ability to capture her visual perspective. The combined interests in fashion and photography led her to a successful pursuit of fashion photography and, moving to New York City, she held coveted positions at both Glamour and Allure.

Though it was an exciting time in her life, and satisfying in many ways, she felt drawn to a deeper exploration of her continual drive to design. Additionally, and vital to her character, the sense of protectiveness of the planet that she’d fostered as a child took on greater urgency within the context of certain aspects of the fashion industry. Deciding to consider other career paths, she took a job at a fair trade, non-profit organization in Guatemala, and it was there, while living on Lake Atitlán, where her life’s work became evident.

On the hunt to find a jeweler that could bring to life a ring she’d been dreaming of designing, she found a jeweler who suggested she make the ring herself. Guiding her throughout the production of that first piece, Baylee began apprenticing with the master craftsman, gaining hands on experience that ignited an unquenchable desire to immerse herself in the craft.

Returning to the states, Baylee took a job at the popular social enterprise, Tom’s, that afforded her time to begin building her company on evenings and weekends. She was also bolstered by the business ethos of her employer, which confirmed her belief in the possibility of a creating a brand with integrity.

After years of development, in 2015, Baylee launched ĀZLEE. Through fluid forms and the incorporation of ancient relics and ancestral motifs, the jewelry conveys Baylee’s lifelong fascination with ancient civilizations. She balances the tension between masculine and feminine forms with the use of bold, architectural lines and dynamic plays of light and shadow that are both illustrative of the lens through which she instinctively sees the world and evocative of elements of Art Deco design.

Choosing to work with master jewelers in Downtown LA, Baylee takes great joy in working in an industry where it’s possible to produce in the United States, at a scale and at an impeccable level of craftsmanship. She credits her lasting relationships with these skilled artisans with the ongoing evolution of her brand, and she sits side by side with her jewelers, working in quiet collaboration through multiple iterations of a single design to bring her ideas into tangible form.

A proud supporter of multiple organizations that safeguard oceans and sea life, ĀZLEE donates a portion of each sale to non-profits like the Marine Mammal Center, Surfrider Foundation, Heal the Bay, Oceana and Sea Legacy. An avid surfer and scuba diver, Baylee’s love for the ocean has also driven her to sponsor beach cleanup events, where she personally works among other likeminded individuals to remove trash from the beaches, demonstrating her commitment to be the change she wants to see in the world by leading by example.