Danielle Miele never felt like a traditional career path was right for her.

After moving to a new city, unemployed, Danielle found herself spending hours browsing the internet for jewelry instead of looking for a new job. She realized she was on to something.

Danielle channeled her passion for jewelery into her own blog, GemGossip.com and has been influential in the jewlery industry ever since. Danielle has a pulse on the latest trends in jewelry and even started the hashtag #showmeyourrings, which boasts over 80,000 posts to date. Needless to say, those years of raiding her mother’s jewelry box paid off.

We caught up with Danielle, who is currently on a jewelry road trip around the United States, to learn more about why she started Gem Gossip and her tips for anyone looking to share their passion with others.

Tell us a little bit about yourself.

I’m a jewelry enthusiast, collector, appraiser and historian who has been blogging about jewelry since 2008. I’ve written over 1200 articles about jewelry and own about 300 rings which are mostly antique and vintage, including some new designer pieces. Lately I’ve been focusing on a project called #JewelryRoadTrip where I visit jewelry stores and designers across the US and report on them. Currently en route to San Francisco!

What made you fall in love with jewelry?

I feel like my love for jewelry has been with me since I was born! I’ve always had a love for sparkly things, especially gemstones and jewelry. Whether it was staring at pictures of diamonds in my family’s encyclopedia when I was four years old or raiding my mom’s jewelry box from a very early age, it has always been apparent.  It just took me awhile to read all the signs and piece together my passion in order to turn it into a career.

Do you have a favorite piece of jewelry? What makes it so special?

I’m very sentimental when it comes to jewelry, so easily my favorite piece of jewelry I own has a special meaning. My grandparents’ wedding bands are my favorite—each one is inscribed with their initials and their wedding date, October 21, 1956. They were married in Italy, immigrated to America separately and have a beautiful love story.  I wore both bands on my wedding day, which I shared with my grandparents—October 21, 2015.

What are your favorite jewelry trends for spring?

So many great trends happening in jewelry right now that I love! Earring stacks are a favorite—I just worked on an earring story using trendy studs and styling them to create a cool look. Things like ear cuffs are being created so you can achieve that multiple ear-pierced look without actually getting it done.

What inspired you to start Gem Gossip?

I started Gem Gossip at a transitioning point in my life—I had just moved for the first time in my entire life 11 hours away from where I grew up, away from everything I’ve ever known. I didn’t know anyone in my new city (except for my parents and sisters who I moved with), had no job lined up, and really began to feel as though the career path I had chosen wasn’t right for me. Being unemployed can actually be incredibly inspiring and lead to so much creative thinking. All the free time I had I used browsing the Internet for jewelry and realized there weren’t too many places on the web which talked about jewelry. That’s when my mind’s lightbulb lit up!

Do you have an advice for others who want to share their passion or love for something online?

First, find that passion and then explore what kind of content or resources are out there right now on the Internet and social media outlets that focus on that particular subject. See how you can fit into the equation—how can you be different? What’s your point of view? It’s important to stand out and bring something different to the table.

What do you point people to in your Spotlight? Why is that important to you?

I point people to my website, GemGossip.com because it is the most important aspect of what I do. There you can find over a thousand articles I’ve written, all my social media channels, and where people can reach out if they would like via a contact page.

What do you like about your about.me page?
I came across not too long ago via Twitter. I love how the platform acts as a virtual business card where I can not only show off my profile and what I do, but find others who are enthusiastic and inspiring. Everything is visually appealing, concise and to the point.

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Zoë Björnson is an Editorial + Social Media Coordinator with about.me. She is a graduate of Tulane University. You can find her on Twitter @kzoeb.