RAPAPORT...
The American Jewelry Design Council has selected Leila Tai as the grand-prize winner of the 2009 New Talent Contest. She will showcase her limited-edition collection at the New Designer Gallery during the JA New York Summer Show, July 26 through July 29. Tai was selected for her use of the fifteenth-century technique of plique-a-jour enameling, through which she creates butterflies, grasshoppers, leaves and other naturalistic forms.
A native of Beirut, Lebanon, Tai studied at the American University of Beirut and the University of Wisconsin in Madison. She later moved to New York City where she worked for several design houses, including Gemveto and Van Cleef & Arpels. In addition to creating a jewelry collection, Tai teaches at the Pratt Institute and the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT).
Canine lovers everywhere will appreciate the Heart U BackTM jewelry collection, with a percentage of the purchase price benefitting the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA). Inspired by living across the street from the ASPCA while growing up in New York City, Heart U Back founder Gavin Kovacs was moved to help the organization with its work with animals, so he developed the collection with a promise to donate a minimum of $125,000 to the cause.
Heart U Back includes sterling silver or gold bangles and cufflinks depicting several of the most popular dog breeds, each with diamond eyes. The collection also features a fashionable friendship bracelet that is a stack of Fido’s favorite treat — doggy bones — bound together by cords in an assortment of colors. Lastly, a cuff-style bracelet of stylized bones is an elegant way of saying “I care about our four-legged friends.” For more information, go to heartuback.com.
Known throughout the jewelry industry for adorning some of the most glamorous women on the red carpet in precious jewels from Harry Winston and other famed jewelers, Carol Brodie now brings her luxurious take on jewelry to every woman, at a price that’s easy on the pocketbook. Brodie has teamed up with HSN to offer Rarities: Fine Jewelry with Carol Brodie, a collection of affordable fine jewelry. On the show, which debuted in June, Brodie shared her knowledge on how to build a jewelry wardrobe on any budget with viewers. Paying close attention to the details, the jewels showcased on Rarities are inspired by some of the most famous and sought-after styles in the world today, rendered in colored gemstones with diamond accents. Following the launch, Brodie will appear on HSN monthly with new additions to the collection.
Article from the Rapaport Magazine - July 2009. To subscribe click here.