Fresh Flair: 10 Up-and-Coming Jewelry Designers



Need ­something bold, ­something new? These ­artists have all the right jewels.

Get to know their names—and their inventive jewelry designs—before they really break out. And trust us, they will.

Crow’s Nest Jewels

London-based Daniel Belevitch and Julian Koegel debuted their boho-chic 18k gold line in 2011. The creative director and managing partner, respectively, use liberal amounts of diamond pavé to illustrate natural themes like leaves and insects, as well as the occasional quirky safety pin. Belevitch’s favorite stone—a pear-shape tsavorite—finds its way into every piece. “We create ­mystical designs…that capture feelings, emotions, and dreams,” says Belevitch (pictured), who began designing at age 15. Today, the 20-something has his digital renderings created in Salzburg, Austria. A vermeil line is nearing completion.
Starting retail price: $1,500 in vermeil, $2,500 in 18k gold
Accounts: Three in the United States, including Fragments in New York City; five abroad
Trade fairs: Couture in Las Vegas
Retailer buy-in: About 15 pieces
Contact: Crow’s Nest Jewels at Fragments, NYC; 212-226-8878; fragments.com

Who Needs a Rose ring in 18k gold with 1.94 cts. t.w. diamonds and 0.08 ct. tsavorite; $6,390

Mociun

Caitlin Mociun added jewelry to her women’s clothing line in 2009, using petite geometric pieces to complement her Bauhaus-inspired prints. The Brooklyn, N.Y., designer favors turquoise, sapphires, and repurposed diamonds set into minimalist, asymmetric 14k styles. “Our customers really respond to the unusual nature of these pieces,” she says. Mociun, who lacks formal training, works closely with local bench jewelers to make her line.  
Starting retail price: $185 in sterling silver, $250 in 14k gold
Accounts: 38 in the United States, including Roseark in West Hollywood, Calif.; nine abroad
Trade fairs: Capsule New York Women’s and JCK Las Vegas
Retailer buy-in: $3,000
Contact: Mociun, Brooklyn, N.Y.; 718-387-3731; mociun.com

Notched wedding band in 14k gold with 1.05 cts. t.w. antique diamonds, $1,392; mega triangle ring in 14k gold with turquoise and 0.24 ct. t.w. antique diamonds, $2,277

Alison Lou

Onetime Finn and House of Waris intern Alison Chemla debuted her whimsical, cyber-communication–inspired Emoticon collection of 14k gold jewelry in 2012. “When I came up with the idea for emoticon faces, the rest of the collection just came together,” says the New York City–based designer. Chemla sketches pieces with meaning—such as Heart U and Apple of My Eye styles—while local manufacturers bring them to life. Each piece bears a cartoony stone silhouette logo set with a diamond. Colored stones adorn many styles. “I work with sapphires, emeralds, citrines…anything that is pleasing to my eye!” she says.
Starting retail price: $350 in 14k gold
Accounts: 15 in the United States, including TwistOnline.com with stores in Seattle and Portland, Ore.; eight abroad
Trade fairs: Couture
Retailer buy-in: $15,000
Contact: Alison Lou, NYC; sales@alisonlou.com; alisonlou.com

Bar ring in 14k gold with rhodium-plated lips with 0.33 ct. t.w. rubies; $2,680

Dionea Orcini Fine Jewelry

Dionea Orcini abandoned a career in costume and interior design to acquire her G.G. from the GIA and become a certified jewelry technician and stone setter at Miami Jewelry School in her home city. Now, she fashions symbolism—Celtic signs, Kabbalah seals, mandala, and more—into delicate but statement-making pavé-dusted pieces with negative space and the occasional colored stone. She debuted her line—which is made in Hong Kong, New York City, and Paris—in October 2013. Her proudest accomplishment thus far: clasps that work via button. “No struggling or need for eyeglasses!” she exclaims.
Starting retail price: $2,250 in 18k gold
Accounts: Five in the United States, including V.A.U.L.T. in Miami Beach, Fla.; none abroad
Trade fairs: None to date
Retailer buy-in: $25,000
Contact: Dionea Orcini Fine Jewelry, Miami Beach, Fla.; 305-982-8227; dioneaorcini.com

Jaipur cuff in 18k gold with 4.25 cts. t.w. black diamonds, 2.47 ct. pear-shape morganite, and concealed healing magnets; $32,940

Djula

Alexandre Corrot has been making ­vintage-, lace-, and geometric-inspired diamond pieces in Paris since 1994, but has come stateside only in the past year. Styles are light and delicate but also modern, thanks to blackened 18k gold effects; all of his cast jewels are designed in his atelier with production assistance in the Far East. Diamonds dominate the looks, and his own retail sales—which he began at age 18 while running a fashion jewelry store—help define best-selling pieces for other merchants. “I learned what customers loved,” he explains.
Starting retail price: $268 Accounts: Nine in the United States, including London Jewelers
in Manhasset, N.Y.; 73 abroad
Trade fairs: Couture, Baselworld, and the ­September Hong Kong ­Jewellery & Gem Fair
Retailer buy-in: $25,000
Contact: Djula at Fragments, NYC; 212-226-8878; fragments.com

Ring in 18k gold with heart motifs and 1.17 cts. t.w. diamonds; $5,393

Heather Henry Design

Six years ago, while Heather Hahn Henry’s husband studied for his MBA in Mexico City, she took metalsmithing classes. When the couple moved to Lubbock, Texas, Henry studied with a goldsmith, and her hobby became a business that debuted in 2013. She now designs redefined bohemian ­jewels favoring marquise cuts and sharp angles, sending her handmade models to a New York City workshop to manufacture. Styles are made of silver or 18k gold, with gemstones in what she describes as “rich deep colors,” often with “unique variations.”
Starting retail price: $150 in silver, $800 in 18k gold
Accounts: Six in the United States, including Malouf’s in Lubbock; none abroad
Trade fairs: None to date
Retailer buy-in: Seven to 10 pieces
Contact: Heather Henry Design at The RJM Group, NYC; 212-265-2047; heatherhenrydesign.com

Bracelet in oxidized sterling silver with 11.48 ct. marquise-cut rock crystal quartz and 0.25 ct. t.w. diamonds; $1,400

Sophie Bille Brahe

After Sophie Bille Brahe earned a goldsmithing degree from Copenhagen Technical College, she headed to London’s Royal College of Art to study design. She collaborated with clothiers and made pieces for their shows, eventually defining her minimalist aesthetic of yellow gold crescent motifs and modern earring and ear cuff combinations that debuted in 2011. Small, brightly colored, round-cut sapphires (“I’m fascinated with rainbows,” she says) and diamond pavé accent the Denmark- and Hong Kong–made gold pieces. A signature look: Croissant de Lune earrings with a comet-like trail of graduated-size gems.
Starting retail price: €400 ($540) in 14k gold, €800 ($1,080) in 18k gold
Accounts: Four in the United States, including Net-a-Porter.com; 20 abroad
Trade fairs: Copenhagen Fashion Week and Paris Fashion Week
Retailer buy-in: None to date
Contact: Sophie Bille Brahe, ­Copenhagen; 45-3131-8285; ­sophiebillebrahe.com

Croissant de Perle brooch in 18k gold with freshwater pearls; €1,800 ($2,435)

Monika Knutsson

A Parisian transplant who once designed textiles for Isabel Marant, Knutsson now pays homage to vintage craftsmanship by ­creating intricate pieces “from old and forgotten lace…made by very skilled women,” says the designer, who debuted her collection in New York City in 2010. Limited ­edition silver- and ­vermeil-dipped pieces are signed, numbered, and accompanied by a story and an original lace sample (typically sourced at flea markets in Paris, Berlin, and New York City). Knutsson uses cabochons as well; they remind her, she explains, of the ­“buttons that go well with lace.”
Starting retail price: $250 for 24k gold-dipped lace
Accounts: 10 in the United States, including the No Roses Gallery in Los Angeles; one abroad
Trade fairs: None to date
Retailer buy-in: $1,500
Contact: Monika Knutsson, NYC; 212-217-0679; ­monikaknutsson.com

Leopoldine earrings made from French Calais lace circa 1920s in 24k gold-dipped lace fabric; $310

Melanie Georgacopoulos

London-based Melanie ­Georgacopoulos debuted her line in 2010, determined, she says, to “challenge existing preconceptions about pearls and introduce innovative pearl jewelry to a younger audience.” The French-Greek graduate of Edinburgh College of Art coupled a sculpting degree with a master’s in jewelry from London’s Royal College of Art to turn out cool, modern pearl pieces: Graduated trails hug bangles and bands, and caged numbers offer well-protected peeks at their lustrous captives. All jewelry is made in the United Kingdom, save a collaboration with Japanese pearler Tasaki.
Starting retail price: $900 in 18k gold
Accounts: Five in the United States, including The Webster Miami; 28 abroad
Trade fairs: Couture; London and Paris 2014 fashion weeks
Retailer buy-in: 15 pieces
Contact: ­Melanie ­Georgacopoulos, ­London; 44-207-837-4151; ­melaniegeorgacopoulos.com

Bangle in 18k gold with freshwater pearl; $5,000

Sabine G.

Sabine Ghanem’s vintage-inspired ­jewels are the perfect blend of sweet and smart. Heart motifs, rose gold, and negative space make up her medievalesque line dubbed Relic, which debuted in 2012; her subsequent Harlequin collection, meanwhile, takes inspiration from the Art Deco era, using tiny colorless diamond baguettes fused with pink and yellow sapphires in darling geometric layouts. “There is always an antique feel to all the pieces I create as if they were passed through generations,” says ­Ghanem. This London-based, GIA-educated designer—who has lived in Beirut, Geneva, and New York City—draws from Eastern and Western cultures and now enlists craftsmen in Florence, Italy, to fabricate her gold jewels.
Starting retail price: $800 in 18k gold
Accounts: Two in the United States, including Bergdorf ­Goodman; two abroad
Trade fairs: None to date
Retailer buy-in: Eight pieces
Contact: Sabine G. at the RCK Group, Irving, Texas; 214-226-0502; sabineg.com

Ring in 18k gold with 0.64 ct. t.w. yellow sapphires and 0.2 ct. t.w. diamonds; $5,152

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