KB: How long have you been designing jewelry for and what's the background of your line, Évocateur?
BI: I have been designing jewelry for the past 5 years. I am entirely self-taught. It started when I was looking for a cuff to wear that was bold and beautiful. Alas, when I went shopping, I saw so much of the same thing. I said to myself—why not?-- and started experimenting. Every time I wore my “experiments” people would ask me where I bought my jewelry and belts. With the urging of friends, I decided to attend the famous “Open See” at Henri Bendel, and they accepted us. Our first year at Bendels, we did seven trunk shows and our business was born. Wonder Woman had it right—wear a cuff on each wrist.
KB: What are your inspirations as a designer? Do you have different visions for each collection?
BI: Our designs reflect my fascination with and adoration of 22K gold leaf. I have married this passion with inspiration that I find all around me… from nature, art, music, travel and ancient architecture. Our designs are both sophisticated as well as playful- with a mix of colors, textures, shapes and contours.
Each season, our team of designers collaborate on introducing designs inspired by strikingly novel materials, colors and techniques. It took me 18 months of trial and error to create our proprietary 22K gold leaf technique—and each season we refine that technique and add new elements- it is a fantastic process of discovery and creativity.
KB: What are your thoughts on Gossip Girl? Did you have a vision of seeing your jewelry on any particular characters?
BI: It was an honor to be on Gossip Girl as the show is a fashion trend setter, and extremely influential in women’s clothing, jewelry and accessory purchases. Our jewelry spans quite a broad range in design- from large gold and silver cuffs with authentic vintage elements, to long drippy pendants with images of skeletons… women from 18 to 80 have purchased our jewelry. In terms of characters, I definitely see our jewelry on Blair Waldorf who is über-fashionable and whose mother is a designer. On the edgy Jenny Humphrey, I see our jewelry from the Catacombs collection.
KB: Has having your pieces featured on Gossip Girl altered your designs at all? Do you think your designs have evolved since being featured?
BI: Since being featured on Gossip Girl, we are continuing our focus on vintage styles with a modern interpretation as we see this as both classic and innovative-which is one way to describe Gossip Girl fashion. For example, we believe that the revival of cameos and heirloom jewelry with a modern twist will continue its strong trend right into Fall 2012. These type of designs evoke both legacy jewelry as well as a handmade spirit, for which Évocateur is known.
KB: How has being on Gossip Girl affected sales?
BI: Since being on the show, sales of our Pompei Cuff have increased. We have witnessed a great deal more visits to Évocateur’s website since the cuff first graced Ivy’s wrist last month.
KB: Can we expect to see Évocateur on any other shows or movies?
BI: We work with a variety of different stylists who use our jewelry in TV, movies and on the Red Carpet. We can say that Wendy Williams is a fan, and she wears our jewelry quite frequently on her show (with a great deal of panache, I might add!). In addition, anchors from E! Network have worn our cuffs. Stay tuned for movies coming out in Fall 2012 whose characters will be wearing Évocateur.
