Designers turn their stories into bling
August 8, 2010, Sunday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
THE stories and experiences behind the fashion designers usually influence their concepts in designing, which is also true of jewelry designers. Adding their splendid ideas to colorful gems, gold, silver and precious stones, they offer jewelry collectors marvelous pieces, a feast for the eyes and a favorite around your fingers, wrist or neck. Eternally Etername
Etername made its debut in 2007 with Sarah Besnainou as the creative force behind the Paris-based concern. Three years later, with business growing and entry into the US market planned for fall, Besnainou is making her presence known.
The collection began with a pair of sapphire and gold cuff links, engraved with the word etername, which she created for a former fiance after a memorable night at a charity dinner. "The word means 'make me eternal in Greek," she explains. "I wanted him to remember (the evening) we spent together."
The relationship didn't last, but for Besnainou, the impulse to make jewelry did.
Etername offers three collections: ready-to-wear offerings (US$900 to US$5,000 at retail), couture (US$2,700 to US$29,000) and haute couture (US$10,000 to US$200,000). What connects them is Besnainou's eye for the ultraglamorous yet modern, be they amethyst cuffs or turquoise earrings embedded with tiny diamonds. Nicky Hilton
Nicky Hilton is not only the younger, less controversial Hilton sister, she also is a fashion designer.
Since first entering the design sector with a collection of handbags for the Japanese label Samantha Thavasa at age 17, Hilton, now 26, has launched a clothing line called Chic by Nicky Hilton and is on to her next project: affordable Nicky Hilton costume jewelry for fall.
"I'm a crazy jewelry collector," says Hilton. "I've always known since I was a teenager that I wanted to do a line. Whenever I bought something, whether at a flea market in Paris or a bazaar in India, I've been collecting pieces." She says her vision is "high quality without the high price tags.Lyes for bold women
"I need a vacation." After hearing this from New York women far too often, Lisidolly Estrella-Savaglia, a personal stylist and avid traveler, decided to offer her clients an escape, at least fashion-wise, with her designs.
For spring, she launched Lyes, her collection of bracelets inspired by her travels to sunny locales such as Bali, Saint-Tropez and Sicily. The python bracelets are boldly embellished with flora and fauna, including starfish and gem-encrusted butterflies.
"I design for the woman who is not afraid to show off," says Estrella-Savaglia, who uses onyx, coral, precious stones and trinkets to decorate her one-of-a-kind pieces. Each item in the collection, called The Trips, is inspired by and named for a different destination. The bracelets retail for US$550 and are sold exclusively on charmandchain.com. Marissa Alperin
When she was a child, Marissa Alperin's jewelry designs included plastic beaded baubles, friendship bracelets and safety pin bangles. In 2002, after studying at the Fashion Institute of Technology, she launched her first grown-up collection, setting up shop -- literally, both studio and store -- in a Cobble Hill building in New York owned by her grandparents.
Alperin has quietly built a reputation for colorful, ultra-feminine jewelry, ranging from US$80 for silver studs to US$10,000 for a platinum, diamond and sapphire bracelet. Now she's expanding into wholesale Sweet Pea necklaces with a personal touch, inspired by a peapod charm she created for her son. Other items, such as sea urchin cuff links, are inspired by vacations.
Etername made its debut in 2007 with Sarah Besnainou as the creative force behind the Paris-based concern. Three years later, with business growing and entry into the US market planned for fall, Besnainou is making her presence known.
The collection began with a pair of sapphire and gold cuff links, engraved with the word etername, which she created for a former fiance after a memorable night at a charity dinner. "The word means 'make me eternal in Greek," she explains. "I wanted him to remember (the evening) we spent together."
The relationship didn't last, but for Besnainou, the impulse to make jewelry did.
Etername offers three collections: ready-to-wear offerings (US$900 to US$5,000 at retail), couture (US$2,700 to US$29,000) and haute couture (US$10,000 to US$200,000). What connects them is Besnainou's eye for the ultraglamorous yet modern, be they amethyst cuffs or turquoise earrings embedded with tiny diamonds. Nicky Hilton
Nicky Hilton is not only the younger, less controversial Hilton sister, she also is a fashion designer.
Since first entering the design sector with a collection of handbags for the Japanese label Samantha Thavasa at age 17, Hilton, now 26, has launched a clothing line called Chic by Nicky Hilton and is on to her next project: affordable Nicky Hilton costume jewelry for fall.
"I'm a crazy jewelry collector," says Hilton. "I've always known since I was a teenager that I wanted to do a line. Whenever I bought something, whether at a flea market in Paris or a bazaar in India, I've been collecting pieces." She says her vision is "high quality without the high price tags.Lyes for bold women
"I need a vacation." After hearing this from New York women far too often, Lisidolly Estrella-Savaglia, a personal stylist and avid traveler, decided to offer her clients an escape, at least fashion-wise, with her designs.
For spring, she launched Lyes, her collection of bracelets inspired by her travels to sunny locales such as Bali, Saint-Tropez and Sicily. The python bracelets are boldly embellished with flora and fauna, including starfish and gem-encrusted butterflies.
"I design for the woman who is not afraid to show off," says Estrella-Savaglia, who uses onyx, coral, precious stones and trinkets to decorate her one-of-a-kind pieces. Each item in the collection, called The Trips, is inspired by and named for a different destination. The bracelets retail for US$550 and are sold exclusively on charmandchain.com. Marissa Alperin
When she was a child, Marissa Alperin's jewelry designs included plastic beaded baubles, friendship bracelets and safety pin bangles. In 2002, after studying at the Fashion Institute of Technology, she launched her first grown-up collection, setting up shop -- literally, both studio and store -- in a Cobble Hill building in New York owned by her grandparents.
Alperin has quietly built a reputation for colorful, ultra-feminine jewelry, ranging from US$80 for silver studs to US$10,000 for a platinum, diamond and sapphire bracelet. Now she's expanding into wholesale Sweet Pea necklaces with a personal touch, inspired by a peapod charm she created for her son. Other items, such as sea urchin cuff links, are inspired by vacations.
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