Italian jeweler Roberto Coin is a must-see at every show because he’s a prolific designer as well as one adapts to change. A case in point: he added silver, gold plate, and wood to his mix last year in the Capri collection in an effort to offer less-expensive merchandise. This was a good move for the times as well as an unexpected one for this famously tony goldsmith, and Capri is definitely my fav collection right now because it has such a great range of styles and price points, and the look and inspiration are easy to like. For this show, he’s expanded that collection by creating slimmer versions of the designs–such as the hinged stacking bangles–that start at less than $1,000 retail.
Coin has also beefed up offerings in colored stones with a multitude of yummy cocktail rings, a new Geometric collection of fun flat cuts of colored stones, and additions to the Ipanema collection. Word is that the addition of colored stones to Italian jewelry is helping to keep jewelry prices more manageable, though it remains to be seen if someone in the market for that Brazilian look–oversize cuts of colored stones in a rainbow of colors–would buy it from an Italian (Coin’s Ipanema) and not Brazilian designers, especially when much of the raw materials come from the source and labor costs less in Brazil. What do you think?
Meanwhile, bold gold gets a boost in Coin’s new Pallina collection of 18k gold beads that are electroformed to keep costs down while giving a big look. And for the sentimental, Coin has got you covered: Love Plus is a sweet mix of simple styles stamped ‘I love you’ in eight different languages. Of course, Italian is among them.
Another item of note from the Coin camp: Coin appears to be ignoring the poor economy since he upped his offerings at this show to more than 1,000 new items.
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I let him explain why in the attached video.
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