McKenzie Blaine is an American scientist and jeweler whose work explores the intersection of environmental science, engineering, and public health. She is currently a PhD student at Northeastern University studying Civil and Environmental Engineering and holds a Masters degree from Yale School of the Environment and a Bachelor's degree from the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University in Minnesota. She is a designer of heirloom jewelry which incorporates symbolic temporal and geographic elements to every piece. She is the founder and owner of Kay Blaine Co.
A survivor of stage-three thyroid cancer, McKenzie began making jewelry during treatment as a way to create beauty in a time of uncertainty. That experience continues to shape her work today. As a researcher studying environmental health, she works towards scientific discoveries which illuminate hidden causes of disease and strives to prevent future health challenges.
Each jewelry piece she creates celebrates beauty in the natural world: ripples of water on the ocean, material typologies, geometric designs of shells, and natural objects altered by the environment over time that are then shaped, crafted, refined for explicit elegance. Through Kay Blaine Co., she seeks to design jewelry that invites reflection on our relationship with the natural world and celebrates the potential for healthy and resilient futures.