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Edumacation

Designer You Should Know: Kenneth Jay Lane

Submitted by jewelrywhore on Thu, 09/10/2009 - 16:12
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Ok, ok, I realize you know who Kenneth Jay Lane is - think, enameled zebra bracelets, fabulous cocktail rings - but do you really know KJL? Yeah, me neither. Let's proceed!


Mr. Lane was born in Detroit in 1930. He attended the University of Michigan and the Rhode Island School of design before moving to New York and scoring a gig as an art director for Vogue.

While working at Vogue, KJL decided he wanted to design, and started working as the fashion coordinator at Delmans Shoes. After Delmans he moved to Dior and became an associate designer, and interned for a few summers in Paris under Roger Vivier - hot damn!

It was the embellishments he created for shoes at Dior that piqued his interest in jewelry.  And before long, the big guns - like Saks 5th Ave and Neiman Marcus - were snapping up his collections, and he was on his way.

"I want to make real jewelry with not-real materials" (via).

Designer You Should Know: Hattie Carnegie

Submitted by jewelrywhore on Wed, 08/26/2009 - 22:58
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"We have the loveliest women in the world in this county and wherever there are beautiful women there will be beautiful clothes. To show the American woman herself off to best advantage—that has always been my aim and that is my real biography" (via).

—Hattie Carnegie

Hattie Carnegie was born Henrietta Kenangeiser in Vienna in 1889. She was the oldest of seven children. Originally she was a milliner, and owned a shop in NYC named "Carnegie-Ladies' Hatter" (via).

After her hat shop took off, she delved into the world of clothing design, and opened up a new boutique on the Upper West Side (via). It was there that a lady could get everything she needed for a night out: "furs, hats, handbags, gloves, lingerie, jewelry, and even cosmetics and perfume— everything, in fact—but shoes" (via).

Antiques Roadshow's English Memorial Jewelry, WhereIn I Stood In Front of TV and Made Bizarre Noises

Submitted by jewelrywhore on Wed, 04/08/2009 - 13:46
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Stood. I was standing. So excited I couldn't sit down. Something's wrong with me.

Anyhoo. On to the jewelry.

I'm Bringin' Cut Steel Back

Submitted by jewelrywhore on Wed, 01/14/2009 - 22:22
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I have a new obsession. Besides really expensive cheese. My new obsession is cut steel jewelry. It's pretty much the coolest thing ever.

Polish Jewelry, Cookies and Crazy Families

Submitted by jewelrywhore on Mon, 12/15/2008 - 22:09
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The holidays are about family and spending lots and lots and lots and lots of time with them. And even though they sometimes make you want to chew your arm off in frustration, they're still family, and you love them despite their insaneness. Most of the time. ;) So it's always fun around Christmastime to think about your heritage, where you came from, where your roots are, what it was exactly that contributed to you being crazy. As far as I'm concerned, I'm mostly Polish and Finnish. Accordingly, we make Finnish Desserts and Polish Desserts for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day snacking (Yum!

American Indian Jewelry Appreciation!

Submitted by jewelrywhore on Thu, 11/13/2008 - 22:14
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November in NC is American Indian Heritage month. Apparently we have the 8th largest American Indian population in the country! Whenever I think about American Indians, I think about their insanely beautiful crafts and, especially, about the jewelry. ;) I've compiled some lovely examples of American Indian jewelry, along with history and info about each type.

My Kind of Art

Submitted by jewelrywhore on Tue, 11/11/2008 - 22:43
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With two hours to kill before my plane left, we decided to visit the Milwaukee Art Museum.

Weekend Steals And A Wee-Bit Of Edumacation

Submitted by jewelrywhore on Fri, 10/17/2008 - 22:45
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Hesitation came over me as I started to get the pieces together for this post. I became worried that I love Indian jewelry TOO MUCH, and that the BEAUTIES in this post was just going to turn me into a blathering IDIOT. Too pretty! Too cool! But I'm soldiering on, and hoping it all makes sense! I've always been fascinated by Indian jewelry. So colorful and vibrant and amazing. And they wear so much of it, especially on special occasions, like a wedding.
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