The skull has been done to death in jewelry, but Erica Courtney is the only one who’s made the motif sexy. Courtney’s Dia de los Gorgeous collection debuted quietly last year, but is picking up steam in 2016 with more pendants, bracelets, pins, and cufflinks. Pieces are made in 18k gold, and all the coins are authentic and intact though altered by a skilled carver who gave original figures a skeletal update complete with fancy headpieces and carefully curled hairdos. At JCK LUXURY 2016, the collection garnered a lot of attention.

“People thought it was super creative,” explains a spokesperson. “They love the fact that they are all original coins that are hand carved here in the U.S.”

The starting retail price for styles is $4,400, and buy-in for Dia de los Gorgeous is $25,000.

Dollar Coin choker necklace with an authentic original coin circa 1921 that has been hand carved with a skull motif and has 0.12 ct. t.w. diamonds, $12,200 as shown

Mercury Dime Key necklace in 18k gold with an authentic original coin circa 1945 with 1.36 cts. t.w. diamonds on an 18k gold rose gold chain with 0.95 ct. t.w. bezel-set diamonds, $28,400 as shown

Sandy coin necklace in 18k gold with a one-of-a-kind hand-carved original coin with 5.7 cts. t.w. diamonds on an oval chain with a heart clasp featuring 0.26 ct. t.w. diamonds, $57,500 as shown

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