In case you missed it, here’s what was on the blog this week. Tuesday, May 1: Snakeskin is back, and I have to dig up a photo of my shiny snake-pattern pants from the late 1990s. Wednesday, May 2: In this week’s YouTube video, I talked about how I changed my career and what you…
Jewelry
Byron Lars and My Met Gala Dream Look
My designing friend Stacy Lomman teaches at the famous Fashion Institute of Technology, her own alma mater. Every year, during the final semester for graduating students, the school brings in designers to mentor the students as they work on their final projects in the categories of intimate apparel, special occasion, knitwear, children’s wear, and sportswear….
Jewel of the Month: ANZA PURE Charm Ring
Because the rough-gemstone jewelry of my ANZA PURE x Wendy Brandes collection generated a bit of excitement recently, I’ve decided that my newest ANZA PURE piece should be April’s Jewel of the Month. It’s an 18K yellow gold charm ring set with a large, rough grossular garnet, modeled by ANZA Gems founder Monica Stephenson in…
Wednesday’s Video: Wendy Brandes Silver
This week’s featured YouTube video is about my Wendy Brandes Silver collection. In it, I describe how I originally tried to do less expensive versions of my intricate gold designs in silver, and I explain why the silver line ultimately developed its own aesthetic. This completes the video series about my three metal-inspired collections: Wendy…
A Long and Shady Business Story, Part 1
The Coachella music festival starts tomorrow in Indio, Calif. I’m excited to go for the third year in a row. At the same time, I’m dreading it a little, because I know I will be spending about 10 hours standing in the sun, cheek-by-jowl with kids as young as 13, in order to secure a…
Wednesday’s Video: Wendy Brandes Platinum
Last week, I introduced the first two videos in a series about my new Wendy Brandes Gold, Wendy Brandes Platinum, and Wendy Brandes Silver collections. I’m adding to those with this week’s featured YouTube video about my platinum collection. If you prefer watching/hearing me talk about platinum while I’m outside, you can check out this…
Two ANZA Rings Are Even Better Than One
Image consultant and jewelry expert Amy Roseveare interviewed ANZA Gems founder Monica Stephenson about what inspired Monica to launch her company in 2014. Because I work with ANZA gemstones, I’ve described ANZA’s mission a number of times, but I think you’ll be interested in how Monica herself tells the story. CLICK HERE FOR THE INTERVIEW….
Wednesday’s Videos: My New Collections
I finally feel secure enough to get back to writing about my new website. Whew! The homepage currently features model Tricia Akello. Isn’t she stunning? The photos were styled by the fabulous Shannon Stokes, whom we met through a 2016 Paper Magazine shoot. They were shot by Emmanuel Sanchez Monsalve, with hair by Gonn Kinoshita…
“Do Not Be So Presumptuous”: A Note From Richard Kimball
In my last post, I redacted the name of a jeweler who publicly criticized my ANZA PURE x Wendy Brandes collaboration because I didn’t want to create undue trouble for him even though I was like … I figured it was one thing for me to write about his mean-boy comment, but another thing for…
Mean Boys and Rough Jewelry
One of the great things about the jewelry business — in my 13 years of experience, at least — is the dearth of mean girls. via GIPHY The majority of the women I’ve encountered in the industry have been friendly, collaborative, and supportive. Their encouragement has often kept me going through challenging times. But, to…