Fashion designer Diva Pittala, founder of cerebral apparel lines Pleasure Principle and People Used to Dream About the Future—the latter of which was well-known within fashion circles—has pivoted to creating fine jewelry with a high-fashion edge.
Pittala recently debuted Dust, a small collection of 18k gold pieces that utilizes colorful enamel in innovative ways.
The collection’s central design, the Untitled ring, is a rounded band that’s been carved out to create free-form pockets, which are then filled in with red, white, and teal enamel. The Untitled Carved ring, perhaps my favorite in the collection (see it below), leaves the hollowed portions empty, creating a band with a unique texture that’s akin to that of a piece of driftwood—pleasingly craggy, with smoothed curves.
The designer, who lives in New York City but was born and raised in Rome, where she attended the Koefia International Academy of Haute Couture and Art of the Costume, says she’s inspired by “contemporary art, New York City streets,” and “random shapes and textures that I feel instinctively are harmonious with something I am trying to express.”
She adds that her switch to jewelry has brought a welcome change of pace to her life: “Getting out of fashion, for me, also meant getting out of the frenzy of seasons and overproduction. I would like to have a slower pace with Dust that’s more in tune with a more sustainable way of life. I worked in fashion design for two decades, and jewelry seemed the natural step forward toward a more quiet, intimate, and freer approach to design. And I loved the idea of challenging myself to apply a creative process to something completely new, in terms of materials and techniques.”
The collection’s name is a nod to new beginnings. “The name Dust, for me, signifies the state of beginning, when things are not yet touched and still contain infinite possibilities,” Pittala says.
Dust is currently available on the brand’s website, but Pittala hopes to also move into wholesale by partnering with like-minded retailers (Dover Street Market is on her dream list).
In the short term, the designer plans to leverage her educated fashion eye and outsider status to challenge jewelry design’s status quo, noting, “I feel there’s a space in the jewelry market for more experimentation and rule-breaking ideas.”
Top: Untitled ring in 18k gold with black enamel, $1,190; Dust (all photos courtesy of Dust)
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