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JEWELRY DESIGNER INTERVIEWS

Irene Neuwirth photo

Cabochon necklaces in peach moonstone, citrine, Rose of France and ruby, $7,110 to $18,750 U.S.

Irene Neuwirth

Malibu-based designer is inspired by the ocean

To call Irene Neuwirth a jewellery prodigy wouldn’t be far off the mark.

At 24, Neuwirth became the youngest jeweller ever to sell in Barneys New York. And by the end of that first year, she was one of the top-selling brands.

Eight years later, Neuwirth remains one of the jewellery world’s leading young designers. Her modern classics have clicked with women who appreciate her emphasis on pastel cabochons, peach and rainbow moonstone, lapis lazuli and pink opals.

“I’m inspired by colour,” Neuwirth said during a recent visit to Holt Renfrew’s Toronto flagship. She peeled a rosecut labradorite necklace off to point out its subtle gradations of blues and greens. Many of her gems are set in scalloped bezels so that the 18 kt. gold looks like it’s been pinched around the stones. She also prefers to keep backs exposed so the gems are flush with the skin and always in contact with the wearer.

That direct connection to nature is no accident – Neuwirth is an earthy girl, with a freckled complexion and sun-kissed hair. She grew up between Venice, Calif. and Telluride, Colorado, and has just moved into a Malibu beach-house, where she can now come face to face with another of her prime inspirations – the sea – on a daily basis.

“I live on Dog Beach – not the hoity-toity part of Malibu,” she laughs, when asked for names of famous neighbours. However Cate Blanchett, Angelina Jolie, Kate Beckinsale and Marcia Cross are among the fans of her designs.

“Ninety per cent of what I sell is to women who are buying for themselves,” she notes. “And the other 10 per cent are men buying it because women have told them to.”

When men buy jewellery for women, they want it to look expensive, Neuwirth adds. “But this is more of a style choice.”

Not that her work doesn’t look substantial. “I like simple,” she clarifies. “If something is too intricate, it’s overdesigned and then it won’t be timeless. For me, the simpler it is, the more beautiful.”