Article featured in Rock & Vine Magazine Spring 2020 issue - Written by Sallie Lewis
Inside
Clint Orms Engravers and Silversmiths, a small team of
craftsmen huddle over their
benches, surrounded by tools and lamplight.
Throughout the workshop, steer horns
protrude from the walls flanked by framed
magazine articles and glossy photos of
engraved silver buckles.
Over the years, Clint Orms has built a
sterling reputation for his classic designs
and heirloom-quality handiwork. The softspoken designer is best known for his handcrafted belt buckles and silver jewelry, all
of which is worn and collected by notable
clientele, such as Lyle Lovett, Sylvester
Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and
Queen Noor of Jordan, to name a few.
Orms grew up in Wichita Falls and got
his start making hand-tooled belts in high
school. “I’ve always been making stuff,” he
shared. He went on to apprentice under a
handful of silver designers across the west,
lured by the timelessness and longevity of
the medium.
For the past seventeen
years, his store in The
Old Ingram Loop
Shopping District has
been a revered, under the-radar boutique
in this humble Hill
Country community,
and a place frequented
by the state’s most discerning shoppers. The
street-front showroom is stocked with fine
leather belts and a trove of hand-engraved
buckles, bracelets, money clips, and bolo
ties, all of which gleam inside glass displays.
Orms’ designs are made to be passed
down over generations. His buckles in
particular – each named after Texas counties
– are laden with symbolism and can be
customized per the client’s unique wishes
and specifications. Commissioned items
are all about telling stories, and Orms
enjoys marking them in metal through ranch
brands, initials, alma maters, and special
motifs like hummingbirds and bluebonnets.
Buckles can take anywhere from fifteen to
eighty hours on average to make, depending on the detail involved. And while they may be his
most popular item, Orms has worked with clients
on a diversity of goods, from custom ball markers
for golf enthusiasts to tiny pillboxes for storing
dried chile pequins. “The sky is the limit,” he
shared of his customer’s requests. “We just want to
make something that’s going to be a part of their
family.”
Behind the storefront, customers can watch as
Orms’ team works with grit and grace in their
intimate workshop. “Everyone has their own
style,” he said of his engravers adding, “We train
each other.” Collectively, their skill and attention
to detail imbues the work with a depth of character
that’s unique to the industry.
Part of that depth stems from the myriad materials
that go into Orms’ designs. Long cabinets with
thin drawers conceal precious gemstones along
with sheets of sterling silver and gold. One custom
silver buckle might feature golden cactus with
prickly pears made of rubies. Another might
have sterling silver flowers with sapphire
centers. The designer’s own buckle boasts a
diamond “C.”
The elevated yet tasteful nature of the collection
makes Orms’ work a fine complement to
lifestyles both on and off the ranch. Each piece
is made with an appreciation for hard work and
Western values. The designs are both nostalgic
and on-trend, a timeless weaving of past and
present. Slipping a Clint Orms’ cuff around
your wrist or buckling a hand-engraved belt
around your waist, one can feel the weight of
its maker. It is an homage to the craft and the
craftsmen who made it, and the life it will live
for generations to come.
RV Article excerpt (pg. 12 -16)