Sunday, March 18, 2007

What's Your Jewelry Style?

Harper's Bazaar had an article a few months back about jewelry personality. Just as we all tend to fit into a certain fashion category, we wear our jewelry the same way. Some of us will match our jewelry to our outfit, some will match the outfit to the jewelry, some will wear whatever the hell they want and some can't be bothered so they eat, live and breathe in the same pair of earrings.

Harper's broke down jewelry personalities into four categories: the Adventurist, the Exhibitionist, the Minimalist and the Traditionalist.

The adventurists will take a piece of jewelry and make it their own.
They'll buy a long chain and wrap it around their wrist - never using it for the intended purpose. They don't care about price - they're likely to mix a diamond with a vintage bakelite bracelet. They can buy a bunch of hippie necklaces at a tourist trap and make them look incredibly chic.



The Minimalist has just a few pieces and is very selective about her choices. The simpler the better. Miminalists love Calvin Klein and sushi. Less is More is their mantra.




The Tradionalist, as the name implies, likes tried and true jewelry designs. They can be simple or ornate, but not in the least trendy. She loves Jewels with a capital J. The more carats the better. Elizabeth Taylor, the Queen of England and the Duchess of Windsor are all traditionalists. Since I don't have diamonds, rubies or emeralds in my collection, so this Art Deco piece will have to do as an example.



The Exhibitionst loves art jewelry. She can't stand the thought of anyone else having the same piece. She likes showstopping, large pieces. She considers jewelry an art form - wearable sculpture. She is strong, confident and brash.

Sunday, March 11, 2007

Inspiration

I'm no fashionista. As a matter of fact, I'm what you'd call a "uniform dresser". I tend to dress the same way, depending on the situation. When at shows, I'm usually in black or wear jeans with a white shirt. I call this my background outfit - it puts the focus on my jewelry - whether the jewelry is on me or on my displays. I absolutely hate shopping for clothes.

Nevertheless, my art and my business is jewelry design/fabrication and I have to keep up with current styles. I subscribe to W and Harper's Bazaar and read them as I would a trade journal. I'm also rather systematic when designing my new lines.

One of my favorite sources of inspiration is to take a designer piece that speaks to me and design around it. This spring, I was particularly taken by Jil Sander's stark charcoal grey suit with chartreuse shirt. The menswear influence is prevalent this season, and I like its severity and sleek lines.




I mixed the same colors in polymer and created earrings with an abstract design and contemporary lines.










And a bracelet with a primitive/ethnic motif.