platinum – Shine & Starfire

Back tracking to a few of my recent favorites. Always a love for Japanese brands, this is no exception. I’ve been meaning to write this post for quite sometime but wanted to gather a bit more research on company background.
Introducing Tasaki Intl. a subsidiary of the infamous DeBeers company head quartered in Japan. Tasaki Intl. is a luxury Japanese brand with new and innovative designs adhering to old school materials such as the classic pearl.

With pearls making a bold resurgence; design head Thakoon Panichgul creates fresh new ideas to showcase the elegance of pearls. And quite frankly, I’m a fan.

Small background on Thakoon Panichgul: he is Thailand born, Omaha Nebraska raised, and currently NYC based designer. Truly brilliant designer who brings new ideas to his creations. I have nothing but respect for him. Panichgul’s work like many but few have graces the presence of many a famous celebrity (including the Obamas!).

As always I digress.

With a flare for elegance, modernity, the Tasaki branded jewelry never feels clunky or too much. Feast for the eyes to follow. Each line of jewelry is distinct in design (and designer) as each line is created in collaboration with different jewelry designers such as Melanie Georgacopoulous, Mare-Helene de Taillac etc. Collaborations with these designers generate new styles while keeping the beauty and elegance of the materials quality still at 100%.

SIDE BAR // I’ve recently found myself gravitating to pearls. A personal favorite brand, Vita Fede has been showcasing pearls in a classic yet modern and elegant way. In general I’ve found more and more jewelry companies designing pieces in pearl or with pearl accents. I’ve also seen younger girls accessorize with pearly pieces (real or otherwise). To be honest, I’ve always believed pearls would be for… lets say… mature women (ok fine, old people). But seeing trends and I, myself owning a pair of black pearls; they’re not that bad at all; I do not think pearls age me as much as I feared they would. But then again… does that make me more mature/ old now?

Fernando Jorge is Brazilian born based in the UK jewelry designer to watch for. The following is an excerpt pulled from his website

“Fernando’s pieces are imbued with sensuality, energy and movement – his aesthetic is inherently Brazilian. He often uses locally sourced gemstones and minerals, giving them his signature finish, including unique cuts and the use of delicate gold snake chain. The result has a distinctly sculptural feel that is both elegant and modern.”
Very, very accurate and perfect description of his work. Hard metals, molten into fluid shapes both flexible and sculptural.

I’ve been recently eyeing fine jewelry that resemble art work. I’ve also been looking at artists’ designs on a whole. I particularly love Fernando Jorge as he plays with almost all the colored stones out there. He is unafraid to use and abuse all the colors of the rainbow to portray his work. In all of his past/current collections, all sorts of stones are used from diamonds to opals to chalcedony and rubies. And I just love that it speaks about where he comes from as a person with all splashes of color.
Furthermore, as a whole all his collection names are similar and yet different- all and adhering to mother nature and at the same time modern. fresh. new.