Yeats Was Right

William Butler Yeats and jewelry designer Sevan Bicakci have not walked the same paths in Instanbul, and yet Yeats' epic poem, "Byzantium," describes ever so gently the way I felt when viewing this Turkish artist's one-of-a-kind pieces for the first time: "Miracle, bird or golden handiwork, More miracle than bird or handiwork, Planted on the star-lit golden bough, Can like the cocks of Hades crow, Or, by the moon embittered, scorn aloud, In glory of changeless metal, Common bird or petal, And all complexities of mire or blood."
I'll say!
Unlike Yeats, the glories of this craftsman leave me speechless, a rare occurrence for mois, who likes to speak volumes about things she loves.
Sevan, I heart you. And your jewelry, too.

I heart you, Sevan. Kisses.

Sevan Bicakci
Istanbul, Turkey
90-212-520-4516-17
www.sevanbicakci.com

Nature Girl

If you don't love summer, you may move now to Alaska.
Immediately.
Or the South Pole. You know, a nice, cool place where you don't have to worry about jewelry or accessories. You have never enjoyed a good sweat. Polar Fleece is your fashion statement.
For the 99.9% of the population that comes alive in warm weather, however, we know it's our time of year. Light summer tans. Sheer dresses. Big earrings.
What's nice about Annette Ferdinandsen's jewelry collection is her references to nature. Schooled at the Rhode Island School of Design, Ferdinandsen's jewelry is fresh, focused and most importantly, fun.

Silver earrings by Annette Ferdinandsen. Inspiration by coral, peacock features and other assorted bits of nature.

Annette Ferdinandsen
Available at Barney's New York
www.barneys.com

Word Perfect

The jewelry of Aurora Lopez-Mejia is simple. In a word, it relies on words. Old ones.

Drawing inspiration from 18th century dictionaries, Lopez-Mejia's spiritually-centering collection features simple pieces of precious metal stamped with lovely archaic definitions. She is gaining popularity among the Jet Set (and the rest of us) who need a little something to remind us of the important things in life.


Aurora Lopez-Mejia
Talavera
145 Avenue of the Americas
Loft 2A
New York, NY 10013
(212) 213-0050
wwww.auroralopezmejia.com

Chernobyl Chic

You have to love Eugene Hutz, the creative spirit behind the NYC-based Gypsy punk band Gogol Bordello. Not only has Hutz' frenetic on-stage (and off-stage) style been cited as the inspiration for the January 2008 Gucci mensware show in Milan, how can you not love a man who served as a template for the lead character in, "Wristcutters, A Love Story," or headed up two other bands with the names Flying Fuck and The Fags?

With his coin-laced scarves and multiple earrings, Hutz is certainly on my best dressed list.

Vintage Gypsy coin jewelry

Eugene, in a quiet moment. Sigh.

Gogol Bordello

Friday June 20
McCarren Pool
Brooklyn, NY

Saturday June 21
Popped Festival
Philadelphia, PA

Saturday August 9
Virgin Festival
Baltimore, MD
www.gogolbordello.com

Bugging Out

As a child, I owned an insect collection. It belonged to my brother, who spent many hours searching for beetles, bees and cockroaches and inserting straight pins into their wiggling, tragically beautiful bodies.
He went on to enter the field of dentistry (of course). I grew up to love bugs and jewelry.
There is a connection here.
I kept that bug collection under my bed for years, mesmerized as I was (and still am) by insects of all types: as long as they're not crawling up my neck or biting me, I find their make-up absolutely fascinating.

So, apparently, do a number of jewelry designers who have, through the ages, drawn inspiration from any variety of these nimble creatures. Dragon flies. Bees. Lady bugs. Although I have yet to find a piece of jewelry inspired by cockroaches, I'm sure they do exist.
Leila Tai uses gold and enamel to create an array of gorgeous adornments, some inspired by nature as below.

Chaumet, now a part of LVMH but once the official jewelers to Mapoleon, use the bumble bee as their symbol and have deftly crafted insect jewelry for centuries.

My brother's insect collection is long gone destined, no doubt, for the trash bin once I discovered more interesting life challenges. Like boys.
Insects, unlike boys, will always be a part of my life.

Leila Tai Jewelry
Available at the Aaron Faber Gallery
NYC
www.leilataidesign.com

Cameo Appearance

They're back.
Cameos, those time-honored, hand-carved conch shell specialties, have been rediscovered by the Web 2.0 generation.
Grandmother might be hit with a brief spell of neurasthenia to see the darlings of the 19th Century clipped to black leather bustiers but such is the price of progress.

Cameos: Not just for your average white girls any more

Naples-based M&M Scognamiglio is the largest cameo producer in Italy (translation: the world) and the company's Amedeo Collection (pictured below) place hand-carved peach-hued cameos in gold, silver and ebony settings. A hot seller on Home Shopping Network, they won't break the bank, either.
Grandmother's delicate condition is another question.

M+M Scognamiglio
Via Agnano 11
Torre Del Greco
Italy
www.mmscognamiglio.it
www.hsn.com

Good Girls, Bad Girls

While recently playing word association games with a group of friends (true, I have no life), the terms "good girl, bad girl" produced some interesting results:
Good Girl: Audrey Hepburn
Bad Girl: Blaze Starr
Good Girl: Mother Theresa
Bad Girl(s): The Slits
Good Girl (this is debatable): Martha Stewart
Bad Girl: Vivienne Westwood
There is one thing they can call claim as common ground.
Tassels.

Equally adored by burlesque queens, recent high school graduates, rosary bead-lovin' nuns and now jewelry designers, tassel earrings and necklaces are the darlings of Seventh Avenue this season whether they be made from gold, pearls, diamonds, silver or a combination of all of the above.
Vera Wang (Good Girl) uses them extensively in her clothing and accessory collections as well as her recent fine jewelry collaboration with Philip Crangi.
Martha Stewart's web site (www.marthastewart.com) shows you how to manufacture a tasteful pair of shoulder dusters from leftover curtain ties. Myriad burlesque web sites will teach you how to twirl them for a private audience (I was bored.)

Vera Wang Diamond Tassel Earrings

Martha Stewart's Curtain Tassel Earrings

It's refreshing to see tassels return as they've long been a staple of costume and fine jewelry designers for many years. See the ever-lovely Ava Gardner (Bad Girl) below.


Vera Wang
991 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10021
212-628-3400
www.verawang.com