Ladies Night Art Crawl

Fall is my favorite time of year for several reason;, scarves, foliage, spiced cider, but most of all craft fairs.

My pumpkin spice fiance and I decided to enjoy the newly crisp fall air by moseying through the Ladies Night Art Crawl.  The event consisted of a string of predominantly female owned studio spaces opening their doors to the public to come look, touch, and buy made in Philly art.

Scrawled below is the map distributed by the vendors, the starting point being The Common Room , a creative space to curate woman created art.

There I came across two new artists to follow.  The first being Sadie Francis of Only in the Forest.  Francis has worked in the environmental field for 15 years, in doing so she carried her hobby over to shareable wearable art.  The flowers she encases in resin are found during long daily walks through Philadelphia’s expansive park system. I’ve seen this type of jewelry before, so what really makes these pieces poignant is knowing they’re local and made by someone who deeply cares about sustaining nature.  They’re not just flowers, they’re flowers from our community.

The second artist I came across was MEO-C.28  who created an exciting take on the necklace bib. She paints exaggerated baubles onto re-purposed fabric to create the look of a bib without the heft of it.  Light weight and handcrafted, these works give new life to a tired trend.

Last but not least is always a favorite of mine, Forge and Finish.  A trio of Temple ladies working together to handcraft jeweled treasures.  My current favorite collection is Talo, jeweled with a tasty bluish green tourmaline.  Forge and Finish does an excellent job of echoing shape between collections allowing a wearer to mix and match between collections. Each piece is a work of art with a slight edge that sets it aside from it’s peers. Very wearable while still making a statement.

 

Artemis and Apollo, the world's most expensive earrings

In Greek mythos Apollo and Artemis are the twin offspring of Zeus and Leto.

Artemis is revered as the Greek goddess of the Hunt, her brother Apollo is revered as the Greek god of medicine and healing, also known to bring illness and plague.

In the gem world the twins Apollo and Artemis are known as the world’s most expensive earrings, selling for $57.4 million at the Sotheby’s 2017 Magnificent Jewels and Noble Jewels auction held in Geneva on May 16th.

The pair was originally estimated to sell for around $70 million and were believed to be sold off separately.  However a private buyer preserved the romanticism of the twin earrings by purchasing them as set.

Artemis is 16ct VVS2 pink pear diamond that was purchased for $15.3million while her brother Apollo, a flawless 14.54ct pear, sold for much more at $42.1 million.  This is because Apollo has a rarer deep vivid blue coloring caused by its exposure to the element boron during formation.

Adding to Apollo’s legacy it is documented to have been sourced from the famed Cullinan Mine in South Africa.  Yes, the same mine responsible for the British Crown Jewels.

Since the pair went to a private buyer, they are unlikely to be seen for some time, so hopefully those able to attend the auction were able to revel in their cosmically named brilliance.

Sources:

https://www.gemkonnect.com/news/diamond-earrings-fetch-record-574m-sotheby’s-geneva-auction

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Charlize Theron wearing "Garden of Kalahari"

Charlize Theron elevated her pleated gold Dior dress with showstopping asymmetrical diamond drop earrings from Chopard’s “Garden of Kalahari” collection.

Crafted using fairmined 18 karat white gold and weighing in at 59.9 carats, the earrings are the definition of dripping in diamonds.

Twenty-three diamonds form the “Garden of Kalahari” collection, all cut from a single 342 carat rough diamond dubbed “The Queen of Kalahari”.

The designs are the brainchild of artisan Caroline Scheufele, who masterfully created an enchanted garden scene depicted by these breathtaking jewels.

The neckpiece is the focal point of the collection but was not worn by Theron.  It can be worn four different ways to drape the neckline in a whimsical garden theme.   

Two of the pendants of the necklace can detach and be worn as the earrings as shown on Theron.

The modified earrings mesmerize as the mismatched pear and heart stones are both graded a D in color and are flawless in clarity.  The heart is slightly heavier at 26 carats while the pear weighs in at 25 carats. The dazzling stones are accentuated by 4.35 carats worth of brilliant cut diamonds.

Charlize Theron’s choice in jewelry demonstrated that timeless craft can captivate when artfully showcased for the world to see, enrapturing with it’s unique brilliance.

Source:

http://www.chopard.com/intl/diary/the-garden-of-kalahari/

Rashida Jones' New Jewelry Line Iconery

My hair inspiration Rashida Jones just launched her own jewelry collection, Iconery, in time for the upcoming Holiday season. See Her line here.

The color palette is high contrasting yellow gold and black stones with the core design concepts of protection and life.

Historically gems and jewelry were viewed as talismans with mythical powers, so it’s fun seeing Iconery playing with those ancient roots even being clever with the name itself.  The brand uses two prevalent portrayals from ancient religious iconography.

One motif used in the line is the Ankh, an Egyptian symbol meaning life. In Latin it is referred to as crux ansata “cross with a handle”. Ancient Egyptians believed we were to spend this life preparing for the next eternal life.  A concept that other cultures adopted and transformed into newer religions. Egyptian gods were often pictured holding the Ankh by its handle or holding it whilst crossing their arms across their chest.  

The other icon used is a Hamsa. Arabic/Hebrew in roots, it is a depiction of an open right palm. The Arabic work Khamsah translates to “five”, but could also mean “the five fingers of the hand”.  The Hamsa is believed to be a symbol of protection, often worn in jewelry or used as decor in the home. It is heavily associated with the evil eye, the curse of a malevolent glare.

The line is easy to stylishly layer as it has basic pieces to go along with the more symbolic pieces. The gold tone invokes the ancient roots of the iconography used. The price range is incredibly reasonable to give as a gift or to treat yourself. Overall I can see it doing well and hope to see her elaborate more on this empowering idea.

Source:

http://www.iconery.com/collections/rashida-jones

Favorite Jewels at NY Fashion Week

This past week the style savvy lurked online seeing the new trends to look for to reign in fall and spring.  Glossing over cold shoulder blouses, velvet dresses, suede skirts, and mixed patterns galore.  But no outfit is complete without the perfect accessories to compliment the style story being created. Taking a look at what was accessorizing the runway, I picked a few of my favorites.

First up is Tory Burch accessorizing skeletal fish pieces.  Whimsical, fun, but not distracting.  In fact the bronze earring was a great bold shape complementing the model’s hair and face, but the neutral color blended into the look instead of taking away from it.

Next Altuzarra smartly utilized boldly colored hoops to emphasize their pieces.  The design is simple, a large twisted hoop that was used throughout the entirety of the show. The size was perfect, not large enough to distract but large enough to give a pop of color from a distance and really round a look.

Tibi went with emphasis on one ear, creating a torqued of kilter energy to the models walk.  Having the earring dangle on a thin wire gave the illusion an amorphous metallic shape floating above the model’s shoulder.  It was an interesting decision to add heaviness to that area of the body, but one that really worked. The earring really elevated the looks of the show by subtly setting a mood. The earring itself appears to be fold formed metal which gives off a feel of liquid metal, setting the tone for the model’s walk, fluid and with intention.

Rodarte styled beaded headpieces to complement lace looks. Once again there was a lot of emphasis on one side of the head but this this time beaded strands strung along below the chin to connect to the other ear.  The draped strands swayed rhythmically to the models walk feeding into the energy of the show.  The headpiece created a regal look reminiscent of Hindu wedding jewelry making it by far one of the more romantic jewelry choices used this year.

Source:

http://www.elle.com/fashion/trend-reports/g28724/spring-2017-jewelry-trends/?slide=2