Natalie O. Channels Venice’s Winter Mystery in La Serenissima

By Victoria Gomelsky | September 23, 2026

The magical city of Venice, Italy, lends its nickname to the new La Serenissima collection from Natalie O., a fine jewelry brand founded in 2021 by Natalie Katz O’Brien. But the Venice that inspired O’Brien is unlike the city that most visitors see.

“Venice to me is very mysterious, maybe not in July-August, but if you go in January, it’s empty, damp, quiet—it transports me to another time,” O’Brien tells JCK. “And that’s what I wanted to bring out in the pieces I made. It was a monied city, so I’ve used gems and rich colors in the collection. We created a Serenissima finish—this muted antiquey delicious Serenissima gold.”

Natalie O. La Serenissima-cross — *Small Marchesa Cross enhancer pendant in 18k yellow gold with 0.18 ct. t.w. diamonds and 0.95 ct. t.w. emeralds, $9,000*

Composed of 28 pieces, all in 18k gold, the collection ranges in price from the $2,750 Chiara ring to the $46,750 Cathedral earrings set with more than 4 cts. each of diamonds and emeralds. The line is O’Brien’s sophomore offering. A year ago, she introduced Café Society, her first cohesive collection. Inspired by Parisian life circa the 1920s, the line emerged from sketches she made during a visit to Paris with her family.

Natalie O. La Serenissima Cathedral earrings — *Cathedral earrings in 18k yellow gold with 4.66 cts. t.w. diamonds and 4.03 cts. t.w. emeralds, $46,750*

O’Brien, who is based in Long Island, N.Y., came to jewelry from an oblique angle. A Parsons graduate, she worked in the family real estate business until she stepped away to raise her three children. On a trip to St. Barts around 2012, she saw a necklace of black pearls and leather and returned home determined to create her own version.

Natalie O. La Serenissima set — Gold Chiara ring in 18k gold, $2,750; Diamond Chiara ring in 18k gold with 0.66 ct. t.w. diamonds, $4,750; Gold Chiara bangle in 18k gold, $15,250; Diamond Chiara bangle in 18k gold with 1.77 cts. t.w. diamonds, $24,500

For years, making jewelry served as a creative outlet. Only when her kids were ready to fly the coop did she begin to consider a more formal commitment. “I thought to myself, ‘What am I going to do?’ I’m not a country club girl,” O’Brien recalls. “I was making pieces on a higher level with somebody I knew. And they suggested I think about starting a business. That relationship got me going.”

Natalie O. La Serenissima earrings — *Alba stud earrings in 18k yellow gold with 0.32 ct. t.w. diamonds and 0.8 ct. t.w. rubies, $4,250*

Now in the sales and marketing phase of brand-building, O’Brien is exploring wholesale. She sells her work at Donna Karan’s Urban Zen in Sag Harbor, N.Y., and Palm Beach, Fla. She’s also planning to do pop-ups in chic vacation destinations such as Aspen, Colo. “My collection will never be in a department store or all over the place,” O’Brien says. “It’s more of a hidden gem.”

Top: Imperiale ring in 18k yellow gold with 0.86 ct. t.w. diamonds, and 2.78 cts. t.w. emeralds and rainbow moonstones, $27,000; Natalie O.