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

Good Night, Sweet Prince

Clothing came first--but that was only the beginning. Yves Saint Laurent, who died last week at age 71, left his mark on everything from fragrances (despite its sickeningly sweet aroma, who can forget the ads for Opium?) to accessories for both men and women.

Catherine+Yves=4-Ever

One of my favorite pieces (below): A newish bracelet, the "Address Cuff," in gold tone or silver.

SWAK to YSL

Yves Saint Laurent New York
Three East 57th Street
New York, NY 10022
212-980-2970
www.ysl.com

Your Inner Napoleon

Men normally don't dress like Napoleon any longer (outside of a few Bay Area hot spots), but they can plug in to a wee bit of his bombastic style with the latest male must-have, the signet ring.

The exiled monarch was known to gift his favorite commanders du jour with diamond-studded signet rings bearing--natch--the letter "N." You can view the only remaining example in the "Treasures of Napoleon" exhibit through August 3rd at the Louisiana State University Museum in New Orleans.

To Hans du Bruyre, Love, Napoleon

For those who want to write a little Napoleonic code of their own, De Beers offers the Talisman Collection of signet rings, featuring 18k gold and assorted white and fancy colored diamonds.
No need to keep hand in pocket.

From the De Beers' Talisman Collection

De Beers LV
703 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10022
800-929-0889
www.debeers.com

God Save the Queen

I miss them. I really do, although there might be no need: Every 10 years or so an entirely new generation of prepubescent youths seem to discover what it means to be punk all over again.
It's really rather charming.
But two old-school Londoners (by way of Detroit and Manhattan), Vicki Beamon and Karen Erickson, have kept punk alive and well in a unique jewelry collection that's just a little cheeky and pretty as hell. The Erickson Beamon "God Save the Queen" necklace features gunmetal chains, jet beads, tartan roses and a few delicate safety pins thrown in for good measure.
Johnny would be proud.

Erickson Beamon's "God Save the Queen" necklace

Erickson Beamon
38 Elizabeth Street
London SW1GNZ
England
www.ericksonbeamon.co.uk

Bake-Off

Since the East Coast resembles nothing more than a gas oven this weekend, it got me thinking about things that bake. Baking makes me think of Bakelite, that wonderful petroleum by-product that was the darling of the Woolworth set in the 1930s and '40s. And that got me thinking about bracelets, Bakelite bracelets to be exact. Nothing is more perfect to wear on a hot summer night than an armful of these little puppies.
I have spent many a night at my computer, giving up sleep on a mission to swipe the perfect Bakelite piece from that annoying eBay collector who seems to follow my every move. She always wins. Damn her.
Doesn't matter: There are plenty of Bakelite (and Bakelite wannabe) bracelets to go around. Bochic is a modern New York-based company that mixes Bakelite with diamonds and other precious gems in a glorious new collection.

Thanks a lot, Andy: Mr. Warhola was perhaps the first to obsess over Bakelite. Many more have followed. Some of his collection (at right).

Bochic's black Bakelite cuff with diamonds and something pink.

Bochic
730 Fifth Avenue, Ninth Floor
New York, NY 10019
212-873-0707
www.bochicdiamonds.com

You Have To Love This

Online jewelry auctions are nothing new, but a recently launched site found an ingenious way to sell old stuff with a twist. With the simple positioning statement, "You Don't Want It. He Can't Have It Back," Exboyfriendjewelry.com lets women buy, sell and blog about the jewelry (and relationships) they might no longer want but still need to talk about.
No surcharge for a broken heart.


Even they broke up: Liz sold some of her gems at Christie's. Now every woman can at www.exboyfriendjewelry.com

www.exboyfriendjewelry.com

Just in Time

Justin Giunta is a Manhattan-based painter and designer who uses old and found objects to create new art including jewelry, chandeliers and lots of other fun and sometimes silly stuff. His company, Subversive Jewelry, is catching lots of attention (The New York Times recently sang his praises) and with good reason: The looks are fresh, brash and, in lieu of finding other adjectives that end in "sh," absolutely authentic.



Above: Topaz Planetary Necklace with vintage chain, turquoise and pearls; Crater Cuff bracelet.

Justin Giunta/Subversive Jewelry
57 West 28th St., Suite 5
New York, NY 10001
212-679-0453
www.subversivejewelry.com

Not Quite Dead Yet

Edie Sedgewick may be the only person--alive or not--who could get away with wearing chandelier earrings the size of, well, chandeliers.



Though studs are the current season's reigning champs and a renewed emphasis on the neck might make one eschew statement-making earrings, chandeliers can still be a light-hearted and lovely look especially as the weather warms.
Pictured below: A delicate yellow gold, diamond and pearl openwork design from a favorite, Erica Courtney.


Erica Courtney
7465 Beverly Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90036
323-938-2373
www.ericacourtney.com

Culture Clash

To say that Italian jewelry designer Paola Ferro mixes cultures is putting it mildly. This Milan-based designer is best known for mixing collected precious fragments--both ethnic and ancient--into graceful and sometimes one-of-a-kind designs.
Pictured here: 24k gold beaded cuff accented with rubies and antique white jade carving.



Paola Ferro S.R.L.
Via Elba 5 20144 Milan
Italy
39-02-48110-659
www.paolaferro.com

Ugly As Ever

Unlike a Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren Roadster, a vintage Avanti or even a Smart Car, Rolex Watches continue to bore me to tears--especially since so many glorious designs from lesser-known brands are introduced at BaselWorld (the watch and jewelry industry's equivalent of Cannes) each year.
Clunky, tedious and worn mostly by Republicans, I give you the latest Oyster Perpetual Cosmograph Daytona: 18k white gold, diamonds, automatic movement, leather strap, sapphire crystal, water-resistance to 1,000 meters and a price tag equal to the GNP of some developing nations. Oh, and your choice of black or pink mother-of-pearl face.
John McCain probably wears one.


Rolex Watch U.S.A.
665 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY
212-758-7700
www.rolex.com

Collar These Cuffs

Need something a little different for the man in your life, or a light-'em-up accessory for those $500 starched white Egyptian cotton shirts? These cufflinks from New York-based Gurhan will surely do the trick, and are some of the most original we've seen in years. Looking a bit like linoleum carvings, we applaud their primitive styling and brash black colorings. They're from Gurhan, one of the best designers in high-karat gold I know.



Gurhan
New York, Los Angeles, London, Istanbul
646-230-1120
www.gurhan.com

Jewelry by a True Artist

Every once in a while, you meet someone in life who touches your heart. Chi Galatea Huynh, a jewelry designer from the Los Angeles area, is one of those people. The son of one of South Viet Nam's best known jewelers, Huynh learned his craft at his father's bench. The war (or, conflict, as we like to call it) sent his father to prison and Chi and his siblings scurrying to foreign lands for safety. Nearly killed by pirates as his boat languished in the sea of Thailand, Chi lost his fear and found his spiritual side. He was 12 years old.
He communicated in his new-found land by drawing pictures for the boys and girls in his middle school. He still draws today, and paints and writes poetry and, oh yes, designs jewelry.
Exceptional jewelry. Jewelry with, for lack of a better word, soul.
But there is tremendous genius there as well. Chi is the creator of the Diamond in a Pearl. Setting a diamond in a South Sea pearl might seem a no-brainer. But the level of craftsmanship needed to do such fine work is extraordinary. Working with small drills (like the kind your dentist uses to excavate your cavity-ridden teeth), he and his team of craftsmen drill a tiny hole in the pearl and fill it with a setting that holds--what else?--a small yet brilliant diamond. Note that the pearls are also carved with designs that range from flowers or waves. His latest venture? Working with the Vietnamese government (yes, he returned) to culture pearls enucleated with colored gemstone beads.

Stay tuned.


Diamond in a Pearl
by Chi Galatea Huynh

Galatea
Jewelry by Artist
548 W. Bonita Avenue
San Dimas, CA 91773
800-609-6888
www.diamondinapearl.com

My Main Man

Pedro. Pedro Boregaard. The best, most imaginative jeweler in the world is someone I will be posting about frequently on my blog. His website--www.boregaard.com--will leave you wondering, "where's the jewelry?" Since he has been ripped off so frequently by other designers, he dares not show his newest creations.
You will find them here. Oh yes. You will find them here. I leave you with one, an older one, yellow gold with a crocodile motif.



Pedro Boregaard
The Art Jeweler
P.O. Box 62
Narrowsburg, NY 12764
845-252-3827
www.boregaard.com

All That's Precious

"Why jewelry," you might ask.
"Why not?" I would most likely reply, since I've been writing about fine jewelry for more years than I care to admit.
I write about jewelry because jewelry is one of the few things that might actually outlive me. Because jewelry is one of the few categories that can include stories about love, lure, history, romance, finance, betrayal and fashion. Because jewelry is confusing as hell and there's a lot of misinformation out there. Because I'll NEVER run out of stories.
Over the course of this blog, I plan on writing snippets about some of the best, most fascinating or bizarre jewelry in the world, so please plan on reviewing this blog on a daily basis.
It is, after all, your Jewelry Du Jour.
So glad you've found me!