The new Lobo Spirit Jewelry Collection designed by Lois Wagner is now available at the UNM Bookstore and on the website. Wagner said the line was inspired during a basketball game at the Pit, when she observed fans shaping their hands into a wolf symbol and “woofing.” She believed that UNM fans would enjoy displaying their school spirit by wearing jewelry that featured the school mascot.

“It feels great to take something everyone recognizes and recreate it in a unique way, like a necklace, for instance,” Wagner said. “My daughter, who attends UNM, wears it on campus and when people see it they say it’s cool, and want to know where they can get one.”

Wagner attended Mount Mary an all-girl’s college in Milwaukee, Wisc. She graduated with a double major in fine arts and business. “It seems my entire career has been a combining of art with the matching elements of business,” she said. For years, Wagner worked as a merchandising officer for Shubes, where she designed jewelry from concept to product, based on customer need which included the right price. She has been a jewelry designer for over 20 years. Many of her designs have appeared in major catalogs such as Coldwater Creek Signals, Sundance, Silpada, and Marshall Fields, and she’s sold on QVC as well.

“When I was a little girl and people would ask me what I wanted to be when I grow up, my answer was always the same, an artist. That was my wish, and it came true.”

Wagner is proud to say that the jewelry is cast and assembled in Albuquerque. “UNM brings so much to our community and I am honored to create jewelry for a university that is so important to our family. Go Lobos!”

For more pictures, visit Lobo Jewelry