Tracking A Jewel's Journey

Having been a fashion editor for nearly a decade, I've heard countless designers speak about their inspirations, visited many factories here and overseas, and seen a heck of a lot of jewelry. But on Friday, I had the chance to be part of a JCK story that takes a look at jewelry design–from the first step to the last.

The story, conceived by JCK's senior editor and chief idea generator Jennifer Heebner, follows designer Marya Dabrowski from Tucson, where she chose gems for her spring collection, back to Rhode Island, where she uses the gems to create her signature colorful jewels. Jen trailed Marya in Arizona and I took the Rhode Island leg of the journey.

Feeling a bit like a mail carrier (neither rain, nor sleet, nor…), I braved what felt like a monsoon on the four hour drive from New York.

The tension from the drive dissipated quickly though in the company of Marya, her infectious enthusiasm, and the trays of candy-color gems at her studio in Pawtucket, RI (a tip from my coach on New England accents: to sound like a local, drop the "w" and pronounce it Puhtuckit).

Marya graciously spent two hours explaining to me how these green, blue and purple stones inspired her to create her new line. The process is at time scientific (mathmatics come into play), at times sheer fashion (nothing is created without a mirror nearby) but, mostly, amazing artistic vision.

Not to give away any more of the story, I'll simply say that buyers are in for a pleasant surprise this spring when the full collection launches, and readers interested in the creative process that goes into jewelry design are promised a similar treat when this story is published in the June issue of JCK (I'll have to check with the local linguist, but I believe that's, Jewelah's Circulah Keystone, for those in the Puhtuckit area?)