Wendy Brandes Jewelry Blog

I’m a Fashion Group International Rising Star Award Winner!

WendyB — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 23:48:33 -0700

It was great to be a finalist for Fashion Group International‘s Rising Star Award for fine jewelry last year, but it was even better to win the 2012 award yesterday! The fact that gorgeous designer/blogger Stacy Lomman was also a finalist in the women’s ready-to-wear category this year was a bonus. I wouldn’t have been involved with Rising Star if it weren’t for Stacy, so I was happy she was being recognized too. I was excited to pay tribute to her (and to you other bloggers) from the stage. This was my little speech:

“This is a huge honor.

Thank you to Fashion Group International for supporting independent and emerging designers.

Thanks also to my family, friends, customers, colleagues and the many fashion bloggers who have supported me for years.

I’ll mention just two people by name. My husband Paul Steiger who got me interested in jewelry and now keeps a roof over my head while I pursue my dream.

And one of today’s women’s wear finalists — Stacy Lomman — who first told me about the Rising Star awards, nominated me AND made the dress I’m wearing right now. Without her I’d be sitting at home today, wearing jeans and a black t-shirt. Special thanks to Stacy.”

Well, that was what I wrote in advance — just in case — and I mostly stuck to the script, but I have a vague memory of blurting, “OH MY GOD!” into the microphone before I said anything else.

The beautiful red peplum dress that Stacy made for me for the awards was a surprise. She had it nearly all done before she had me stop by her place for a fitting. I thought I was just going to borrow one of her old samples! She made herself an asymmetric blue top a couple of days before the event. We both wore my jewelry. Here we are with my award right after the ceremony.

All the finalists got a corsage to wear.

This wasn’t Stacy’s year to win, but, as she said to me for my recent Huffington Post story on the challenges of small business, her nomination proves she’s someone to watch, only 18 months after launching her line. (My first nomination came after five years in business.) Fashion Group International encourages finalists to try, try again. Many winners get their awards after multiple nominations, so I have no doubt Stacy will have her moment. I’m also sure we’ll see more of the other fine-jewelry finalists: sisters Amaia and Yolanda Torrubia of Torrubia & Torrubia, and Jessica Kagan Cushman. All three ladies were delightful. Stacy and I took a picture with the Torrubias.

After the awards, we had more good news: with a couple of days left to go, Stacy is only $150 away from raising enough money on Kickstarter to pay for her Fall 2012 runway show. If you want to help make up the difference and make the show possible …

CLICK HERE.

Much love to gorgeous blogger Susan of Style Made by Hand for getting Stacy to this level.

I’ll have more pictures of my Stacy Lomman dress and my awards-ceremony guests — MrB, GeorgeB and the lovely Christine — in the next post.

UPDATED TO ADD NEWS LINKS:

Daily Fashion Report mentioned my tribute to Stacy.
I love that WWD called us “young” designers in the headline.
A Fashion Week Daily reporter was at my table and I never even got to say hello to her!

Behind the Scenes at the Lookbook Shoot

WendyB — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 22:01:56 -0700

Yesterday, I had an eight-hour photoshoot for my new lookbook with model Tina J of Fusion Models. Every time I am at a shoot, I am shocked anew at how unglamorous a model’s day is. Poor Tina had to wedge rings onto her fingers over and over … then pry them off with some help from Vaseline. By the end of the shoot, her knuckles were swollen. For one look, she was lying on a piece of Plexiglass with photographer Shane LaVancher standing above her and her head balanced on a jar of pins (it was the only thing that was the right height). And I think she spent a full hour with her lips pursed, pretending to blow into my Virginia Woolf Whistle. Seriously uncomfortable. There’s also a lot of waiting around while we perfect the lighting … the job is definitely not all that it’s cracked up to be.

Here are some Instagram shots of the behind-the-scenes action.

Tina getting her makeup done by Leora Edut. Click for Leora's site.

Manicure by Sylvia.

Getting comfortable on Plexiglass and pins.

When dumbbells weigh more than the model, it helps to have muscle-y men around to assist.

Speaking of models, I wound up on some party planner’s mailing list and was amused to get this email about an event at Tiffany (spelling errors are not mine):

“Due to an overwhelming response for the Tiffany Event tonight, they have pre-wristbanded their VIP’s due to capacity and fire marshall issues. They will not be able to grant acces to my guests at Tiffany & Co. this evening. Any models who rsvp’ed will be admitted to the event, but they cannot bring any guests unless thier guests are models too.”

I wondered briefly if would-be guests just had to be tall and skinny in a model-like way or if they had to bring their portfolios as proof. Then came the followup email (again, spelling errors not mine):

“This is a message retracting the statement from the prior email that only models will be admitted and that their guests had to be models too.

We have been informed that the best looking guests will be admitted wether they are models or not. Models can bring whoever they want to the event. We were worried that good people might be turned away at the door, but have been assured that the best looking people will have no problem.”

High!Larious! No breakfast … or lunch, dinner or party at Tiffany’s for you uglies! Of course, a preference for the pretty people has been a door policy since the Studio 54 days, but to put it in writing and send it out to the world? On behalf of Tiffany, whose name is synonymous with high quality and good taste? I am clutching my pearls with horror!

Models and the Fickle Finger(s) of Fate

WendyB — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 22:01:25 -0700

I had a go-see for models for my new lookbook on Monday. (This is the first time I’m using a model in a lookbook; we’re shooting it later today.) On a go-see, a model comes in with her portfolio, so you can see her in person and look at her photos. If the go-see is for a runway show, the model prances back and forth a few times to show her runway walk. I didn’t request hand models — I’m not shooting rings exclusively — so a couple of the models who came in seemed a little surprised to be trying on rings instead of prancing.

Here's a little Instagram shot of Tina, my final choice, during her ring try-on.

When I show my jewelry to stores or magazines, it’s like a go-see, so it was interesting to be on the other side. I know from experience that rejection feels personal when you’re on the receiving end, but I didn’t actually dislike any of the gorgeous models who stopped by. I simply had very specific requirements: short hair, an edgy portfolio, and fingers that fit the rings. There was nothing at all wrong with the long-haired, girl-next-door models. They just weren’t what I needed.

As for the ones whose fingers were too big for the rings, that’s nothing anyone should ever feel bad about — ring size depends on bone structure as much as weight. There’s no negative connotation to any ring size. My sample size for a woman’s ring is 6, which is fairly mid-range. It usually fits on at least one finger of a woman’s hand — a pinky, if nothing else — so a customer can get a sense of the ring, which she then orders in her size. When the first model at the go-see had the right look but couldn’t get rings on all her fingers, I briefly wished that I had samples in a broader range of sizes. Then I thought, “How would I decide which rings should be which sizes? And what if they still didn’t fit this particular model?” Basically, I was brought back to my 2010 post on sample sizes, in which I pointed out that, by definition, clothing/jewelry samples don’t come in the full range of sizes. Fine jewelry in particular is too expensive to make in unnecessary multiples.

Incidentally, my right index finger is a perfect size 6. My other fingers range in size from 2.5 (pinky) to 7.25 (thumb). Alas, easy-to-fit fingers are not enough to qualify as a model, so I had to bring in a professional. I can’t wait to see the pictures!

I’m on the Huffington Post Today

WendyB — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 11:53:19 -0700

Check out my story about the agony and ecstasy of small business on the Huffington Post today!

CLICK HERE TO READ IT.

If you’ve read me for a while, you might recognize some of the issues raised in the story from my Get Smart series of posts on this blog.

The story also includes a reminder about gorgeous designer Stacy Lomman’s Kickstarter campaign to raise money for her next runway show. Stacy only has five days left. She’s getting close but the rule of Kickstarter is that if you don’t meet your fundraising goal, you don’t get ANY of the money. If you haven’t already sponsored her, please consider doing it now.

Feel free to leave any comments you have on the Huffington Post’s site.

Year of the Dragon Jewelry

WendyB — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 08:27:29 -0700

Gung hay fat choy! Happy Chinese New Year! It’s the lucky year of the dragon and you should get one of my dragon jewelry designs to celebrate. Sure, it will cost you a pretty penny, but it’s much cheaper in the long run than having a dragon-year child. Eighteen years from now, you won’t be sending my jewelry to college.

Empress Wu dragon earrings. Click for more information.

Empress Wu dragon ring. Click for more information.

Empress Wu dragon cufflinks. Click for more information.

Queen Min dragon ring. Click for more information.