Welcome back to my day-by-day breakdown of the 2023 edition of The COUTURE Show, which recently returned to the Wynn Convention Center.  Here are my notes and takeaways from Day 2, during which I had appointments with Jade Ruzzo, Harwell Godfrey, Retrouvai, and MATEO (held in the cossetted comfort of the Wynn Fairway Villa that served as the For/Future/Reference showroom during COUTURE 2023), Lotus Arts de Vivre, Studio Renn, and Saboo Fine Jewels (back on the floor of the Wynn Convention Center, in the Rock House salon, conveniently located across from the mid-floor lounge and its bars), Andreoli, and Maison Alix Dumas, Joaillerie.  Enjoy!

Friday, June 02: Day 2 (Noon – 6pm)

FOR/FUTURE/REFERENCE:  Sometimes a brand (or a designer establishing a brand) needs a boost, whether with publicity and marketing, with wholesale sales, or with advice on how to stand out in the very crowded luxury marketplace.  For/Future/Reference, the bi-coastal brand development agency founded by the respected editor, curator, industry executive, and author of A Girl’s Guide to Buying Diamonds, Randi Molofsky, is all of that and more to its collective designers; with Molofsky also serving as a cheerleader, emotional support totem, sounding board, gal-pal, and super-stylish surrogate mom.  What she does for buyers and editors is curate a collection of designers who while unique from each other, might who share a similar ethos, or whose designs might be worn by similar customers and therefore be of interest to the same retail partners.

JADE RUZZO:  I’m still not quite certain how Jade Ruzzo’s life journey led her to design fine jewelry, but I’m rather glad it has.  Her Percussion collection, inspired by the cymbal of the bass drum played by Gene Krupa—who, thanks in good part to his collaborations with Zildjian cymbals and Slingerland drums, was dubbed the ‘founding father of the modern drum set’ by Modern Drummer—is both easy to wear (for men and women, alike) and infused with cool, with the Large Cymbal Pendant with Diamond and Brazilian Rosewood and the Drum Head Ring with Engraved Initial both resonating with me.  Her Tennessee collection has fun with fringe and is perfect whether you’re looking to channel Stevie Nicks or your inner lipstick lesbian from Laguna.  Meanwhile, her Nina collection, a collaboration with Muzo Emeralds, features gorgeously green Colombian Emeralds paired with Tahitian Pearls in peacock hues, all set in 18kt Gold and Blackened 18kt Gold, to dazzling effect.

HARWELL GODFREY:  Back in 2021, I was struck by the use of patterns, beadwork, and inlay, in the Harwell Godfrey pieces I was shown, as well as Lauren Harwell Godfrey’s interpretations of tribalism, and how her designs tend to be exquisite representations of maximalism (Cleopatra’s Vault and Stardust) and minimalism (Between the Lines) with no time wasted on what falls in between.  As we wrapped up that first meeting I told her that while I couldn’t quite quantify it, there was something incredibly special about her designs and that she should be very proud of them.  The following day, Harwell Godfrey won ‘Best in Colored Gemstones Below $20,000’ at the 2021 COUTURE Design Awards.  Last year I clapped with glee upon seeing her whimsical collection of pendants, including Caviar Tins in brown diamonds and enamel with tiny mother-of-pearl spoons, Scarabs, and one absolutely sensational Dragonfly, as well as a platinum version of her Chunky Stardust Ring.  This year, Harwell Godfrey presented the ‘We Are Seeds’ collection, drawing from the phrase, “They tried to bury us: They didn’t know we were seeds.” A couplet by the Greek poet Dinos Christianopolis (née Konstantinos Dimitriadis) that roughly translates from the original Greek to “what didn’t you do to bury me / but you forgot I was a seed,” the contemporary Westernized version has been used in this century by Mexican activists in support of the Ayotzinapa 43 (the 43 students taken in a 2014 mass-kidnapping from the Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers’ College in Iguala, Mexico), and more recently by those protesting the Trump administration’s policy of separating immigrant children from their parents (as well as by singer/songwriter Julian Taylor as the basis for his 2022 single, “Seeds”).  To Lauren Harwell Godfrey, the words speak to the resiliency we find when faced with the cycle of heartbreak and healing and inspired her ‘We Are Seeds’ collection’s bold figural flowers (including some scintillating Anthuriums with totem-like spadices), bright snails, and bejeweled bees.  And while cute has never been my bag when it comes to jewelry, there’s just no denying that the figural ‘Honey Bear’ pendants of hand-carved Mexican Fire Opal are as cool as they are adorable.

RETROUVAI:  Over the past few years, I’ve developed an appreciation for the way many of Retrouvai’s collections—most notably Compass, Talisman, and Yin Yang—are at once smile-inducing, wearable, and manage to be fresh while invoking a warm sense of nostalgia; which is very much intentional on designer Kirsty Stone’s part, as Retrouvai is a derivation of ‘retrouvailles’ from the French proverb “les retrouvailles sont hors du temps,” which refers to the joy one feels when reunited with a long-lost friend (or object).  Last year, I really connected with the Magna collection (especially the OOAK Godmother Diamond Baguette Magna Ring with Jade, Coral, Turquoise, and Amethyst, while the PGI Platinum and Diamond Magna Collar which won ‘Best in Platinum’ at the 2022 COUTURE Design Awards).  This year, I was drawn to the new Domino collection which, in true Retrouvai fashion, features an immediately recognizable talisman that is so easy to wear, it’s gonna become a great everyday part of so many peoples’ wardrobes.  And while Stone wasn’t able to attend COUTURE 2023, as she was giving birth to her third child, when Retrouvai’s Loop Ring won ‘Best in Bridal’ at the 2023 COUTURE Design Awards, FFR’s Molofsky ably took to the stage and accepted the award in her honor.  It was Retrouvai’s second win in the category, having also won in 2021.

MATEO:  Sculptural.  It’s the word that comes to mind when I’m looking at pieces by MATEO (think: bold, angular, strong, clean lines…  You get the idea.)  It’s also the word I’d use to describe MATEO's designer, Matthew Harris, but that’s another article for another day.  This year was a big year for earrings at Mateo New York, in the forms of hoops, bars, waves, crescent moons, and more.  Many with pearls, some with diamonds, and others with malachite that really popped; while art-world inspirations include a painting by Wassily Kandinsky as well as a mobile by Alexander Calder.  Some were even convertible, making them perfect for today’s woman on the go.  And while the earrings were particularly well-designed, it was a ring that drew me in, as if by a tractor beam.  A hollowed cube of gold, with a circle cut out of the sides and bottom, featuring a Cultured Freshwater Pearl topped with a Diamond, on the top; the Pearl Cube Ring is elegant for its simplicity, and is a statement piece that can (and should) be worn all the time; especially considering that, like all Mateo New York pieces, it is crafted from 14k Gold, putting it at a far more accessible price-point than you might assume.

ROCK HOUSE:  Different showrooms and agencies specialize in different things.  In the case of Rock House, founder Tony Goldsberry provides an opportunity for designers based abroad (think: Thailand, India, and Hong Kong) to have a foothold in the US for publicity and marketing as well as for wholesale sales, which comes in particularly handy for American editors and buyers.

LOTUS ARTS DE VIVRE:  I’d been a fan of Lotus Arts de Vivre’s fabulous housewares for a couple of decades, prior to learning that the multigenerational Bangkok, Thailand-based company founded by Helen and Rolf von Bueren, that’s now run by their sons Sri and Nicki, also creates some particularly eye-catching jewelry.  Winners of the 2021 COUTURE Design Award in the ‘Haute Couture' category for their exquisite Hand-painted Antique Japanese Fan Necklace, their collections in the Rock House salon at COUTURE 2023 included forays into some established Lotus motifs (figural animals including elephants, crocodiles, geckos, peacocks and turtles, as well as many from the Chinese zodiac, such as rabbits, roosters, tigers, and snakes/nagas), and materials (from coconut shells, seashells, and scarab/beetle wings to ebony, bamboo, and nuts).  Favorites included the Chalcedony Rabbit Ring with Diamonds and Rubies, the Baroque Freshwater Pearl Rabbit Earrings with Pink Tourmaline, the two Bird in Flight Rings with Diamonds, Sapphires, and Rubies (one featuring wings of carved jade and the other with wings of carved cinnabar lacquer), and the delightful Jadeite Praying Tiger Ring with Tsavorites, Diamonds, and Sapphires, as well as their ever-new and creative ways of using beetle wings in fine jewelry, and a pair of striking cocktail rings, the Endless Iridescence Abalone Shell Peacock Ring (featuring a shank of black wood that’s been carved into a figural blooming flower topped with hand-cut Mexican abalone shell embellished with one of Lotus’s signature peacocks set with tsavorites, diamonds, pearls, and a ruby), and the Polished Black Wood Pāua Shell Ring (featuring a fine oval-shaped example of the rare variety of New Zealand abalone shell referred to as pāua by the indigenous Māori tribe, in a setting of blackened Sterling Silver and 9kt Gold that’s been set with diamonds and tsavorites, on a twisting shank of polished black wood).

STUDIO RENN:  The designs by Mumbai, India-based Studio Renn are so innovative that I’m convinced the process of gaining access to the titular studio involves an entire Mission Impossible-esque scenario, wherein one must enter an unmarked elevator that requires a retina scan before descending 15 stories to some underground bunker, whereupon co-founders Roshni and Rahul Jhaveri greet you with a white lab coat and protective eyewear, before ushering you into their design laboratory.  This might all sound very farfetched until you see the state-of-the-art designs they conceive and execute so meticulously.  This year, Studio Renn expanded many of their collections, such as the award-winning Concrete collection (the Strangler Ring won the ‘Best in Innovative’ category at the 2021 COUTURE Design Awards); their signature Cacti and Seed-Leaf collections; their incredibly cool Puffball collection (which features the Puffball Void Sphere Bracelet that was the runner-up in the ‘Editors’ Choice’ category at the 2022 COUTURE Design Awards); and the curving, pointed bi- and tri-color Yellow Gilled collection.  And while all of their designs are utterly modern and can often double as wearable weaponry, each piece feels incredibly good on the body, caressing the ear, finger, neck, or wrist. This paragraph will self-destruct in five seconds…

SABOO FINE JEWELS:  Drawing inspiration from nature and architecture, Surendra Saboo and his brother Rajendra have built Saboo Fine Jewels into one of the world’s most coveted high jewelry houses.  From their Hong Kong headquarters, the Saboos believe the journey for any of their jewels begins with the selection of the gemstone and continues until it finds a home.  I enjoyed meeting them at COUTURE 2022 and was quite rightly pleased when I learned that they were showing a collection in the Rock House salon, since last year’s Saboo necklace of indicolite tourmaline rods suspended from a chain of teal titanium had taken up residence in my brain.  This year’s fantastical confections were highlighted by three pairs of earrings, including the Diamond Slice and Emerald Earrings, a pair of 18k white gold and titanium drops in which each features an irregularly-shaped diamond-slice of more than 7cts over a pave of more than 5cts of diamonds, suspended from a trio of emeralds and fifteen pear-shaped diamonds; the Burmese Ruby and Conch Pearl Earrings of 18kt White Gold set with a small and a large no-heat Burmese ruby totaling nearly 7cts, that have been cut to mirror the small and a large Conch pearl opposite each, with the whole thing surrounded by diamond beads; and the Mexican Fire Opal, Diamond, and Titanium Earrings, that were companions to the trio of Mexican Fire Opal, Diamond, and Titanium Chains, each featuring more than 60cts of Mexican fire opals and more than 3.5cts of diamonds woven into a 60” chain of titanium.  Enjoy living rent-free in my head, until next year, chains!  

ANDREOLI FINE JEWELRY:  Fusing its Italian heritage with its American identity, Andreoli Fine Jewelry’s creative director, Caroline Hadjibay serves up a delicious mix of what most non-industry folks might refer to as “old” and “new,” but which we in the world of precious jewelry editorialize as themes both ‘classic’ and ‘contemporary.’  To wit, the stately  Coral, Emerald, and Onyx Ring and the elegant Coral, Onyx, and Diamond Brooch are both modern interpretations of Art Deco design; while the Titanium, Gold, and Diamond ‘Anthurium’ Cuff is simply modern.  Meanwhile, the Maison’s high jewelry pieces, including the 24ct Cabochon Emerald Ring with hemispheres of Diamonds in 18kt White Gold and Yellow Sapphires in 18kt Gold; the 12.50ct Ceylonese Cabochon Sapphire Ring with Emeralds and Diamonds; and the lushly, chubby Tassel Earrings featuring 169.38cts of Emeralds and 6.29cts of Diamonds in 18kt White Gold are showstoppers, all; and would make their wearer feel like she owns any red carpet on which she walks.  Meanwhile, Andreoli’s turquoise story is so interesting that it merits an article of its very own.

MAISON ALIX DUMAS, JOAILLERIE:  Every year I peruse COUTURE’s Exhibitor List and set appointments with a few of the new exhibitors in the Design Atelier whose pieces strike a chord with me.  This year, one of these designers who I had the foresight to meet was the charming and talented French designer, Alix Dumas, the founder of Maison Alix Dumas, Joaillerie (aka MAD Joaillerie), whose one-of-a-kind creations (she only creates a few pieces each year) present sculpture within the context of haute joaillerie.  Highlights included her stunning collection of right-hand ‘Eternity’ rings, including the Eternity Night Ring (13.48cts of sapphires and a sprinkling of diamonds set in recycled 18kt blackened white gold); the Eternity Star Ring (a 2ct rose-cut diamond set in Fairmined 18kt white gold with palladium); and the Timeless Eternity Ring (featuring 5.41cts of diamonds set in Fairmined 18kt white gold with palladium – this ring won the Alchemist Prize for Audacious Creativity at the 2021 Timeless Jewelry Fair in Paris).  There were some incredible earrings, including the Trapiche Beauties Earrings (featuring a 23.60cts pair of trapiche sapphires set in recycled 18kt gold and titanium); and the convertible Beauties Earrings (featuring a 2.79cts pair of pink tourmalines, a 1.50cts pair of green tourmalines, 2.64cts of rubies, and 20cts of rough indicolite tourmaline needles, set in Fairmined 18kt white gold with palladium, with accents of Fairmined 18kt gold and recycled blackened silver).  Some bold, geometric rings, like the Rough Ring (a hexagonal gent’s ring featuring a half-dozen rough indicolite tourmaline needles, set in Fairmined 18kt white gold with palladium, and accents of Fairmined 18kt gold and recycled blackened silver); and the Colombian Beauty Ring (featuring a pair of rough Colombian emerald bars totaling 5.52cts, a Sri Lankan ruby of 1.57cts, and pave rubies, set in recycled 18kt gold).  And then there were her more sculptural rings including the delicate ombre of the Burmese Leaves Ring (featuring 22.40cts of Burmese spinels interspersed with pink and purple sapphires, set in Fairmined 18kt gold and recycled blackened silver); the implied motion of the Breaking Wave Ring (featuring 16.12cts of teal Madagascar sapphires, accented by light-blue and medium-blue sapphires and diamonds, set in recycled 18kt white gold with palladium, and accents of recycled blackened silver); and the gorgeous Two-Finger Hokusai Wave Ring, based on the famous woodblock print, The Great Wave off Kanagawa, by the Japanese Edo-period ukiyo-e artist Hokusai (featuring4.45cts of Ceylonese sapphires, 2.63cts of emeralds, and 1.23cts of diamonds, set in recycled blackened silver on a two-finger shank of Fairmined 18kt gold).  I knew the moment I first felt the way her Eternity rings cradle the finger that her artistry and execution were the real deal.  So taken was I, with the artist and her designs, that I promptly introduced her to my favorite purveyor of precious jewelry, as well as a particularly formidable agent whom I adore.  Needless to say, it came as little surprise to me when, the following evening, MAD Joaillerie won the 2023 COUTURE Design Award in the category of ‘Haute Couture’ for her Magnolia Flower Brooch (featuring a diamond of 2.51cts, 45cts of spinels, another 2.57cts of diamonds, 1.08cts of light purple sapphires, 1.69cts of light pink sapphires, and 1.27cts of medium pink sapphires, set in a figural ‘Magnolia’ setting of Fairmined 18kt gold, anodized titanium, and recycled blackened silver).

COUTURE 2023: Day 2
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