Podcasts about Barneys New York

If you're a woman business owner over 40, join the Dear FoundHer... Forum to find support, advice, resources and mentorship—JUST FOR YOU. It's all inside, without the gatekeeping and without the overwhelm.Jennifer Meyer went from walking into jewelry shops with a sketch in hand to building a fine jewelry brand worn by Jennifer Aniston and sold at Barneys New York. She joins Lindsay to talk through the moments that shaped her twenty-year journey, from saving $7,500 over six months to cold-pitching jewelers and learning everything through trial, error, and curiosity. Jen shares how a last-minute decision to show her pieces to Aniston's stylist helped launch her brand, and how a quiet meeting at Barneys turned into her first major order. She talks honestly about what it means to build something on your own terms, why she's never taken outside investment, and how she's stayed grounded as trends and platforms have changed around her.You'll hear Jen reflect on the emotional weight jewelry can carry, the challenges of raising prices in a shifting economy, and what still drives her to keep creating. How do you build a business that can evolve as you do? How do you stay focused when it feels like everyone else is racing ahead? And how do you know when it's time to celebrate a win? Jen's story is a reminder that starting small doesn't mean thinking small. And that consistency and a little bit of nerve can take you further than you think!Jen is celebrating 20 years of Jennifer Meyer Jewelry this year and is giving YOU an exclusive discount for the next week. You can use the code Foundher15 to save on her website: https://jennifermeyer.com/Episode Breakdown:00:00 Jennifer Meyer's Journey from PR to Jewelry Design10:33 The Breakthrough: Jennifer Aniston and the Barneys Order14:29 Building a Brand Through Transparency and Hustle21:20 How Social Media Changed the Game27:49 Inspiration from Women and Celebrating 20 Years35:19 Real Advice for Aspiring Female FoundersConnect with Jennifer Meyer:http://www.instagram.com/jenmeyerjewelryhttps://jennifermeyer.com/Get on the Marketing Made Simple Waitlist: https://lindsaypinchuk.myflodesk.com/waitlistDear FoundHer Forum: https://www.dearfoundher.com/dear-foundher-forumDon't forget to follow Lindsay on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lindsaypinchukFollow Dear FoundHer on Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/dearfoundherPodcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Puck's retail correspondent, Sarah Shapiro, joins Lauren to discuss the latest tariff-war news, the C.E.O. change-up at D.T.C. luggage label Away, and the prospect of a Barneys New York drama series created by the people behind ‘The OC' and ‘Gossip Girl.' They also explore, at length, the appeal of two very different, but very popular, brands worn by plenty of moms on the private school drop-off circuit: Donni and The Row.DONNI. Taffeta Simple PantDONNI. Rib Kick FlareHIGH SPORT Kick Cropped Flared PantsThe Row shoesThe Row Teva-style sandalsThe Row Igor PantsThe Row Flatform Sandals To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Stories – “I was out of a job for the first time in my life. During the pandemic I went from someone who was upbeat, to someone who was clinically depressed. Ricardo said to me, ‘Why don't we do something together, to get out of this state of sickness.” “There is a huge opportunity out there for high quality footwear that has some fashion element to it, but it's not necessarily runway pieces. Shoes need to address everyday women's lives.” “Because we make everything in house, we're able to play with some crazy fabrics. At the end of the day, you have a fashion director giving direction on the product. Think about it: who is running Stuart Weitzman?The Backstory – Went after her style.com job by approaching legendary editor Candy Pratts Price, who lived in her building, with a note and flowers. Wore her lucky Altuzzara dress twice on interviews with Barneys New York. “Our plaids and velvets… all come from the suppliers for Alaia, Gianvito Rossi, everyone else. We go to the best; we want the best – and we give that to our customer.”Wisdom Rains – "I have the grit to continue on, every day, and I believe that it has been instrumental in my career.” “The business needs to evolve; the technology is evolving. You have to keep moving. I've used that a lot in my career. When I thought I was so comfortable, I then thought… now it's time to move. It's key: you need to learn, and you need to move very fast.”On Inspo – “Those pages, for me, were a dream and the biggest inspiration. The time that I have the most nostalgia about were the years with Claudia, with Cindy, in Chanel pastels. They were happy, they were gorgeous, they were there to inspire you.”On Authenticity – “It came organically… how we wanted to market the product, how we wanted to pass joy. And we never wanted to be a cookie-cutter brand.”What Else – “We're adding other creative directors into the fold. We'll take care of your business. So if you want to launch a shoe collection, give me a call."Obsixed – A collection of Marina's current obsessions.Discover more + Shop The Podcast:larroudé.comLarroudé Miso Platform Clog in Dijon Plaid ShearlingLarroudé Verona Macrame Ballet FlatsLarroudé Salma SandalLarroudé + Markarian MuleLarroudé + Altuzarra PumpLarroudé + Jonathan Cohen Flat Lo SneakerDiscover the episode and more on storyandrain.comfollow @storyandraintalks and @storyandrain on Instagram follow @storyandraintalks and @storyandrain on Threads all about the host

In this episode of The Retail Pilot, host Ken Pilot sits down with Daniella Vitale, CEO of Ferragamo and one of the most influential leaders in luxury retail. From wrapping gifts at a small shop in New Jersey to leading some of the biggest names in fashion — including Armani, Gucci, Barneys New York, Tiffany & Co., and now Ferragamo — Daniella shares her remarkable career journey, pivotal leadership lessons, and deep passion for product innovation.Daniella opens up about navigating the digital transformation of legacy brands, scaling Ferragamo's digital business, and why authentic customer experiences are the future of luxury. She also discusses her philosophy on leadership, career advice for the next generation, and how Ferragamo is evolving its women's business to drive growth in a challenging global market.Whether you're an aspiring fashion executive, a retail enthusiast, or a brand leader navigating change, Daniella's insights will leave you inspired, informed, and ready to take bold chances.Show Notes:Introduction to Daniella Vitale's career in luxury retail, including her leadership roles at Armani, Gucci, Barneys New York, Tiffany & Co., and FerragamoHow wrapping gifts as a teenager sparked her lifelong passion for retailThe importance of embracing both product and operations to become a successful CEODaniella's experience launching digital at Gucci and transforming Barneys' online businessLessons learned from leading Barneys through financial challenges and innovationDriving Ferragamo's digital growth and building an omnichannel strategyHow Ferragamo is shifting from a men's shoe powerhouse to a women's leather goods leaderThe critical role of customer experiences, lifestyle branding, and storytelling in luxury todayInsight into the evolving challenges in the luxury retail market — from tariffs to changing consumer behaviorsDaniella's leadership approach: building cohesive, collaborative, and empathetic teamsAdvice for young professionals entering the retail and fashion industriesRapid-fire questions: favorite brands, dream city to live in, favorite shows, and who she'd love to meetIf you found value in this episode, don't forget to share it with your network and help us spread these inspiring lessons across the industry!Hosted by Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

Lauren and creative director Jen Brill discuss the American brands living out a second (or third, or fourth) life in Japan. They also get into what's happening with Barneys New York here in the U.S. and rate the looks at Gigi Hadid's 30th birthday party. Plus, Jen gives listeners the low down on the latest issue of the magazine-slash-fashion-line Hommegirls, which you can now buy at a branded shop on Walker Street in New York City. Makeup ForeverDaryl K Vintage ArchiveDiesel JeansStanley CupGigi Hadid's oversized birthday bagTrademark basket bagKatayone Adeli To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Fariba Jalili is a COO/Global Operations Executive with over 20 years of experience in leadership and operations. Fariba has held positions with industry leaders such as Donna Karan, Calvin Klein, Diane von Furstenberg, and Barneys New York. Her leadership philosophy focuses on empowering teams to excel, cultivating a positive work environment, and maintaining open lines of communication to inspire peak performance. In this episode, Andreas Skorski interviews Fariba, a veteran retail executive, about her journey from FIT and NYU Stern to leadership roles. She shares key career moments and leadership insights.

Donna Letier is the CEO and founder of Gardenuity, a fast-growing company merging gardening with the wellness sector through personalized container gardens and AI-powered gardening experiences. Donna has raised $8 million for her company so far, innovating Gardenuity Match, which uses AI and weather tech to custom-craft gardens around lifestyles, climate and environment. With over 20 years of retail experience, spanning public and private companies, Donna has worked in the areas of operations, brand marketing, and product development, and takes a data-driven approach with a consumer point of view. Previously, she was CMO for a home furnishings brand with over $500M in annual revenue. She has also been part of the marketing team at Neiman Marcus, MGM, Barneys New York, and United Artists. Donna has been featured in Story of a Brand, Cheddar News, Forbes, Tech FW, WFAA #UpWithHer, Growing Spaces, and The Grow Network.

Host Jason Blitman talks to Christopher Bollen (Havoc) about everything from purging personal belongings to the layered concept of havoc and chaos, the fascinating world of hotels, and Chris' love-hate relationship with musicals. Jason is then joined by Guest Gay Reader Simon Doonan (TV's Making It, The Camp 100) about what he's reading, as well as the difference between Camp and campy. Christopher Bollen is the author of the critically acclaimed novels The Lost Americans, A Beautiful Crime, The Destroyers, Orient, and Lightning People. He is a frequent contributor to a number of publications, including Vanity Fair, the New York Times, and Interview. He lives in New York City.Simon Doonan is the author of many books, including the recently published Transformer: A Story of Glitter, Glam Rock and Loving Lou Reed, How To Be Yourself, DRAG: The Complete Story and Keith Haring. A long-standing member of the fashion community, Simon was awarded the prestigious CFDA award for his work as Creative Director for Barneys New York. He is currently a judge on the Emmy-nominated NBC series ‘Making It'. Simon lives in New York City with his partner, the ceramicist and designer Jonathan Adler, and their rescue-mutt Foxylady.BOOK CLUB!Use code GAYSREADING at checkout to get first book for only $4 + free shipping! Restrictions apply.http://aardvarkbookclub.comWATCH!https://youtube.com/@gaysreadingBOOKS!Check out the list of books discussed on each episode on our Bookshop page: https://bookshop.org/shop/gaysreading MERCH!Purchase your Gays Reading podcast merchandise HERE! https://gaysreading.myspreadshop.com/ FOLLOW!@gaysreading | @jasonblitman CONTACT!hello@gaysreading.com

Learn the untold story of architect and furniture designer, Charlotte Perriand, whose innovative designs and fearless independence reshaped modern interiors, with insights from special guest Adi Goodrich, spatial designer, who reflects on how Charlotte's legacy continues to inspire today's designers._______Support this podcast with a small donation: Buy Me A CoffeeThis show is powered by Nice PeopleJoin this podcast and the Patreon community: patreon.com/womendesignersyoushouldknowHave a 1:1 mentor call with Amber Asay: intro.co/amberasay_______Sources:The Guardian ArticleCharlotte Perriand Autobiography “A Life of Creation”Book: Living with Charlotte Perriand by Francois Laffanour and Cynthia FleuryBook: Charlotte Perriand: The Modern Life by Justin McGuirkBook: Charlotte Perriand: Inventing a New World (Published by the Foundation of Louis Vuitton)About CharlotteCharlotte Perriand was a visionary French designer and architect whose contributions to modernist design reshaped how we think about furniture and interior spaces. In 1927, after famously being dismissed by Le Corbusier with the remark, "We don't embroider cushions here," she eventually joined his studio and co-designed iconic pieces like the LC4 Chaise Longue and LC2 armchair.Though these collaborations are what she is most known for, Perriand's career extended far beyond them. She designed the modular Nuage Bookshelf and minimalist Tokyo Bench, blending functionality with clean, modernist aesthetics. Perriand was also integral to larger architectural projects like the Unité d'Habitation, where she introduced multifunctional interiors, and the Les Arcs Ski Resort, where her modular furniture designs embraced the natural environment. About AdiAdi Goodrich is a Los Angeles-based multidisciplinary designer known for her vibrant and imaginative approach to Environmental design, Interiors, and furniture. Growing up in Chicago, she was heavily influenced by her father's work in architectural and furniture restoration, which fostered her love for craftsmanship from a young age. Adi studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and La Sorbonne in Paris, where she explored various disciplines including painting and art history.Goodrich first gained attention working on window displays for Barneys New York and Anthropologie, which led to a flourishing career in set design for films, commercials, and photoshoots. Adi is Co-founder of Sing-Sing Studio, a creative practice she shares with her partner, filmmaker, Sean Pecknold where they have worked with major brands such as Apple, Google, Nike, Target, and more, bringing a unique blend of storytelling and design to each project. Adi also launched her own furniture line, in 2022 called "Sing-Thing." Her work is characterized by a bold use of color, materials, and a focus on creating spaces that are narratively driven. Learn more about Adi's design approach and career on Episode 22 of the podcast. Follow Adiadigoodrich.com@adigoodrichsing-sing.co@singsingstudio   ____View all the visually rich 1-min reels of each woman on IG below:Instagram: Amber AsayInstagram: Women Designers Pod

Lauren welcomes back WSJ's Jacob Gallagher, fresh from Chicago, to discuss all the bad clothes he saw at the Democratic National Convention. The duo also contemplate what Kamala Harris should (and shouldn't) be wearing, a late-breaking Barneys New York revival, and whether the menswear brand Evan Kinori makes sense outside of San Francisco (or on anyone other than a GQ editor). To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Lauren dials up beloved Los Angeles designer Irene Neuwirth to learn what it takes to build a fine jewelry brand from scratch, as well as the rise and fall of Barneys New York, wearing pretty dresses, and the eternal allure of a horse motif. Plus, Lauren checks in on the Arnault Olympics and the developing situation at Nike. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Los Angeles-based Emily Burnette is a luxury personal and wardrobe stylist with an intuitive ability to dress clients for any occasion. Emily got her start in NYC, working with Neiman Marcus Group, Barneys New York, The RealReal, and Diane von Furstenberg, gaining extensive experience in luxury fashion and high-level client service.Her talents don't stop at personal styling! In the commercial space, Emily has a knack for choosing pieces that bring products to life. Emily's hard work and aspirations have led her to work with clients like Tom Ford, Ugg, and a variety of magazines including Vogue and Marie Claire.  You can see Emily's awesome styling skills on her Instagram or by visiting her website!If you would like to get involved with Focus On Women, you can review sponsorship and contribution options here, as well as become a member here.Remember to stay safe and keep your creative juices flowing!---Tech/Project Management Tools (*these are affiliate links)Buzzsprout*Airtable*17hats*ZoomPodcast Mic*

Today, we're setting up Gurki Basra. Gurki is a thought leader with an MBA from UT Austin and currently enrolled in Pepperdine's psychology masters program. She has worked in the fashion and retail industry, having worked at Barneys New York, Neiman Marcus, and numerous other companies as a jewelry buyer. She writes the newsletter Happily Ever Single, and was a reluctant TV reality star for Netflix's first dating reality show, Dating Around. She recently loved and enjoyed Lori Gottleib's Maybe You Should Talk to Someone and Wayward Lives, Beautiful Experiments by Saidiya Hartman. She loves hiking and sleeping in on Saturdays, and is a total summer person. Her on the spot ted talk would be about how going on a reality TV show showed her how complicated humans are, and she thinks everyone should watch Insecure. Gurki, welcome! The winning bookstore Greedy Reads in Baltimore, MD Book picks Ghosts by Dolly Alderton Easy Beauty by Chloe Cooper Jones Seek You by Kristen Radtke How to Be a Person in the World by Heather Havrilesky August Blue by Deborah Levy Big Swiss by Jen Beagin

Simon Doonan is a fashion icon, author, and former Barneys New York creative director. His book Drag will be released in paperback on May 21st. We chat about the correct time of day to do pilates, Chris in Nashville, Simon travels light, when people copied his window displays, the way he pronounces NASCAR, Los Angeles from the 70s to the 80s, how to have a groovy life without a ton of dough, early Maxfield's stories, the relationship between malnutrition and fashion, beetroot salads, his dog's names, how he fits in down in Palm Beach, his tai chi philosophy, Simon's husband designed The Parker Hotel in Palm Springs and we don't talk about how expensive it is, and what it was like helping put together the Marilyn Monroe estate sale. instagram.com/simondoonan twitter.com/donetodeath twitter.com/themjeans howlonggone.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Syama Bunten CEO of Scaling Retail and Host of Getting Rich Together, an expander podcast for women on money and wealth. For over a decade at she's been working with first time founders as a Co-CEO to launch scalable businesses. Prior to, Syama worked at Barneys New York, and Gucci building intrapreneurial divisions. Syama's won a number of awards including 2023 Positive Leadership Award from the Leadership Institute, 2022 Thought Leadership Award for Evangelizing Female Entrepreneurs and 2017 WWD Top Women in Business. In this episode, Syama talks with her husband, Jon Bunten, about the formative childhood experiences that shaped her career accomplishments.

In this episode, we're introduced to the next generation of virtual shopping with Samantha Lerner, the VP of Marketing at Obsess. Obsess builds stunning virtual storefronts that are revolutionizing online shopping experiences for brands such as Coach, Ferragamo, Dyson and Ralph Lauren for example. Samantha shares a mini masterclass on how audience shopping behavior differs in virtual reality and how brands are using Obsess to create deeper relationships with customers.   Key highlights of what we cover: The Power of Creating Emotion with Virtual Reality How to Compete in the Landscape of Virtual Storefronts What the Future of Retail Looks Like with Obsess   About our Guest: Samantha Lerner Kobrin is an audience-obsessed brand storyteller, with a passion for innovation in content and commerce. She has worked across brand, digital and product teams as a marketing leader at celebrated fashion, food and travel brands of varying sizes—from Barneys New York and Elite World Group, to Baked by Melissa and Skyscanner. Samantha is currently the VP of Marketing at Obsess, an experiential e-commerce platform that enables brands and retailers to create immersive, branded, discovery-driven 3D virtual stores on their websites. Obsess has launched over 300 virtual experiences for brands such as Ralph Lauren, Charlotte Tilbury, J.Crew, Corona and more—driving consumer engagement, brand loyalty and conversion.   Connect with Samantha on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/samantha-lerner-kobrin-50866164/   Connect with Obsess on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/10689169/   Visit the Obsess Website: https://obsessar.com/   If you're a brand looking for market differentiation but don't know where to begin, this is what the host specializes in. Contact Jacqueline Lieberman at her marketing consultancy www.brandcrudo.com or jacqueline@brandcrudo.com.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We talked to the designer who, eighteen years ago, established and nailed an aesthetic that's since soared in popularity. Exploding onto the scene with her leaf design made popular by Jennifer Aniston's character in the film The Break Up, Jennifer Meyer creates and has created countless collectible pieces that define the day-to-day when it comes to modern iconic fine jewelry. Jen tells the story behind the leaf, how exactly she nabbed a much-coveted spot at Barneys New York, and making a gift for Alber Elbaz. We discuss how her father helped instill her strong work ethic from the day she stepped foot off Syracuse's campus, and how one $500 a week PR job turned into a major magazine stint, and roles at Armani and Ralph Lauren. Jen shares her brand's most game-changing moments, why slow and steady wins the race, and how staying in one's lane can create success. She shares how she blindly chased the design ideas she'd had in her heart and soul… and also shares her philosophies for living life and building a brand with heart and soul. We get into the symbolism that's core to the Jennifer Meyer collection and to Jen personally--- and her necklace that truly makes magic. There's the Jennifer Meyer secret sauce as she describes it; you'll hear Jen share her vision for being one with one's jewelry. Also on the podcast, we dive into the waters of Malibu to discuss her newly-released fragrance collection, where even scent tells a story. We get an intimate peek at her Vogue Fashion Fund times, and her relationship with mentor Diane Von Furstenberg. We also talk connecting with her multigenerational customer, and how the people she surrounds herself with inspire her. Jen gives great advice for entrepreneurs and shares life lessons, words to live by, and why success means being at peace. Jen's got a fantastic obsixed list of favorite things, including the key pieces she turns to in her own collection. Our conversations with creatives continue, as Story + Rain Talks to Jennifer Meyer. Discover more + Shop The Podcast: Jennifer Meyer Large Leaf necklace   Jennifer Meyer Large Leaf earrings  Jennifer Meyer Good Luck necklace  Jennifer Meyer Diamond Wishbone necklace Jennifer Meyer Mini Wishbone bracelet  Jennifer Meyer Large Hammered Heart necklace Jennifer Meyer candle  Jennifer Meyer fragrance Jennifer Meyer rollerball fragrance Jennifer Meyer hand + body cream  C + The Moon Malibu Made Body Scrub Roe caviar U Beauty The Super Hydrator U Beauty The Plasma Lip Compound Favorite Daughter Jamie sweater in black Sp5der hoodie Sp5der sweatpants

Travis Paul Martin is an experienced marketing and communications professional with more than 15 years of experience guiding communications strategies for brands in the fashion, lifestyle, and consumer packaged goods spaces. Travis currently runs the consulting firm TPM Consulting, working with brands in the fashion, lifestyle, CPG space with a focus on affiliate PR marketing. Travis discovered his passion for helping brands harness the power of public relations and communications during his time at KCD, working with established brands like Barneys New York, Marc by Marc Jacobs, and The Gap, as well as emerging talent like Peter Som and Tabitha Simmons. While Fashion Director at BPCM, he launched brands, including Brock Collection and Draper James, to a national audience. And, most recently, Travis led the public relations team at Skoog Co. as Executive Director of Public Relations, with a diverse array of clients ranging from Rothy's and Gucci to Method and Room & Board. Travis' clients have been featured in Vogue, Architectural Digest, The New York Times, House Beautiful, The Wall Street Journal, and more. Travis holds a BBA in Design and Management from Parsons Paris and currently lives in Chicago, IL. On this episode, Travis speaks with Lauren Sherman about how his winding career path, from wanting to be an actor to studying design and working retail eventually led him to follow in his mother's professional footsteps.

David Selinger was an early employee at Amazon, working directly under Jeff Bezos. He led the R&D arm of Amazon's data-mining and personalization team. He co-founded Redfin (now a multi-billion dollar company) and founded RichRelevance, a company that offers personalized shopping experiences for large retail brands, including Macy's, Barneys New York, Office Depot, and others. He is now inventing the next BIG thing in home security – Deep Sentinel, an AI-based home protection. The company's intelligent crime prevention transforms home security from false alarms and ineffective after-the-fact crime alerts to real-time crime prediction and prevention. With Deep Sentinel, Americans can gain a reliable, cost-effective way to protect their homes and stop a burglary, mail theft or driveway break-in before it happens – and feel dramatically safer at home, at work, and on vacation. Connect with Jon Dwoskin: Twitter: @jdwoskin Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jonathan.dwoskin Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thejondwoskinexperience/ Website: https://jondwoskin.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jondwoskin/ Email: jon@jondwoskin.com Get Jon's Book: The Think Big Movement: Grow your business big. Very Big!   Connect with David Selinger: Website: https://www.deepsentinel.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/deep_sentinel Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deepsentinel/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/selly/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/deepsentinel/

Join me as we dive into the fashion industry when I speak with the mother-daughter dynamic duo, Alison Bruhn and Delia Folk, co-founders of The Style That Binds Us, a next-gen media company focused on style and fashion. Hear about each of their unconventional entrees into the world of fashion and the relationships and skills they developed. Delia shares how she got her first opportunity with an internship at Versace and her first role upon graduation at Barneys New York on the buying team.  After studying at the Fashion Institute of Technology, Alison became a national style and image consultant.  Alison and Delia talk about what helped them become successful in the competitive fashion world and how their media company The Style That Binds Us is connecting their shared love of fashion and culture with their audience.Don't miss this episode if you're looking to work in the fashion industry  - or, just love fashion and style!Additional Show Notes and Links:Click here to DOWNLOAD the Core Wardrobe ChecklistA few retailers to check out when building your core wardrobe:J. CrewM.M. LaFleur Ralph LaurenAnn TaylorPoshmarkArticle on the science behind dressing and how we're perceived and how we perform:  Research Shows That the Clothes You Wear AcLAUNCH Career Strategies was founded by Karen Elders and Elyse Spalding. We help young professionals launch a successful career path with expert coaching services. Reach out today for an initial FREE coaching session.LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook

Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez, the dynamic design duo behind New York–based womenswear brand Proenza Schouler, share their thoughts on the evolving fashion marketplace with Christopher Michael and how they've seen their work mature and scale with it. Their illustrious journey started 20 years ago at Parsons School of Design when they completed a joint senior thesis collection, which grabbed the attention of retail heavyweight Barneys New York. In their triumphant rise to a successful, prominent luxury label, they navigated social media noise and kept up with the breakneck pace of a never-ending, fast-paced global production cycle. Working in tandem has been vital to them, extending the emotional, creative, and practical support that buttressed Proenza Schouler's growth and longevity.  What's Contemporary Now? A celebration of individuality, keeping the work authentic to the brand's core values, and a broad embrace of all kinds of perspectives while also sticking to your vision and not just being a follower. Episode Highlights: Getting the name right: Pronounced Pro'ensa Skool'er, the name represents the combination of the designers' mothers' maiden names.  Origin stories: Born and raised in Miami, Lazaro fell in love with magazines and design early, ultimately abandoning pre-med to attend Parsons School of Design. Jack spent his early childhood in Japan before relocating to New Jersey as a teen, a "culture shock" that preceded his move to Parsons School of Design. Aha moments: The early influences that shaped Lazaro's interest in the fashion industry and Jack's focus shifting away from the visual arts in college. Becoming a brand: Pulling all-night design sessions as college students cemented the bond between Jack and Lazaro, in terms of style and approach to work.  Turning point: What ensued after the fashion duo was introduced to Julie Gilhart, who was running Barneys New York and became a champion of their first collection—conceived and designed as an award-winning joint thesis project. Early days bootstrapping: The team figured out all the design, manufacturing, pricing, marketing, and other functions that came to be known as Proenza Schouler. (A name they came up with within two days.) What has changed: Jack reflects on today's increased "noise" level in the fashion marketplace, the "endless list" of would-be designers online, and the need to differentiate. Lazaro contrasts today's hardcore business and branding orientation to the more artistic, playful environment that prevailed when they started. Big money, fast timelines: The accelerating breakneck pace of marketing, pre-collections, social media management, and merchandising strategy. Staying creative: Jack and Lazaro evolved a balance between their business and design functions, merging them without letting one take over the other. Then and now: The evolution of Proenza Schouler's editorial/design focus on surprise and innovation toward a sense of continuity and investment in telling the same story but in fresh, new ways. The sweet spot: Curiosity and clear-eyed self-criticism have driven Jack and Lazaro past stumbles from better to best, season to season.  Love-hate: The beautiful opportunity fashion offers to reinvent and extend constantly versus the stress of that never-ending grind of performing. Duo dynamics: Working as a pair has conferred emotional support, creative challenge, and the ability to scale, multitask, and adapt to today's fashion industry. Identity shift: A look at how Proenza Schouler has continued providing "urban clothes for intelligent women" as their customers' lives have morphed and matured.  Celebrating practicality, individuality, and diversity: New York's fast pace and changeability are woven into the Proenza Schouler brand's voice and identity.

In this episode of the Truth in this Art podcast, host Rob Lee sits down with E. Brady Robinson, a Baltimore-based Creative Director, Designer, and Photographer. Robinson shares how she divides her time between personal art projects and commissioned work, providing valuable insights into the creative process and the challenges of balancing artistic vision with commercial demands.Listeners will learn about Robinson's photography career, which includes features in prestigious publications such as The Washington Post, Channel One Russia TV, and Slate.com, among others. She has also produced a documentary called Art Desks, which was published by Daylight Books and distributed by ARTBOOK D.A.P, with an essay by Andy Grundberg.Robinson's commercial clients include major brands such as Under Armour, Google, and Barneys New York, and she has taught at several institutions including the University of Central Florida, Georgetown University, and the Corcoran College of Art + Design. She leads photography workshops throughout the United States and gives seminars on publishing photo books, fundraising for art projects, and branding/social media strategies for artists.During the interview, Robinson shares her experiences as a photographer and professor, providing valuable insights into the world of fine art and commercial photography. Listeners will also learn about her background, including her education at The Maryland Institute, College of Art in Baltimore, Maryland and her MFA in photography from Cranbrook Art Academy in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.This interview is a must-listen for anyone interested in photography, art, or creative entrepreneurship. Robinson's wealth of experience and knowledge will inspire and inform anyone looking to pursue a career in the creative arts.This interview is part of a month-long celebration of National Photo Month where we highlight the stories of Photographers, Photojournalists and other creatives where photography is part of their creative work. National Photo Month is celebrated each year during May by professional and amateur photographers, and even selfie lovers. The entire month is dedicated to learning the history of photography, mastering its many techniques and skills, and researching which camera is best to invest in. Today, anyone can be considered a photographer in the sense that we constantly take photos of things and people around us. Portable cameras and smartphones have made it easier to click and store photographs on the go. National Photo Month is for everyone who has ever clicked a photo. Share your favorite photos and get your friends to do the same.Creators & Guests Rob Lee - Host E. Brady Robinson Studio - Guest National Photo MonthThis episode of The Truth In This Art is part of National Photo Month, which is celebrated every May by professional and amateur photographers alike, as well as selfie enthusiasts. During this month-long celebration, people dedicate themselves to learning about the rich history of photography, honing their skills and techniques, and researching which cameras to invest in.To support the The Truth In This Art: Buy Me Ko-fiUse the hashtag #thetruthinthisartFollow The Truth in This Art on InstagramLeave a review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. ★ Support this podcast ★

Cliff sits down with celebrity stylist & friend Miso Dam. Based in Los Angeles, Miso has shattered industry norms and defied the traditional hierarchy that once dominated the fashion scene. From her humble beginnings, Miso's innate talent and relentless drive propelled her to the forefront of the styling world. Returning to her roots in LA after Barneys New York, she quickly became the go-to stylist. In this episode, we explore Miso's rise in the industry, despite her relatively short time as a professional stylist. Discover how she earned the trust of notable figures like Lil Uzi, Karol G, and Dixie D'Amelio, while also curating editorials for esteemed publications. Get ready to be inspired by Miso's tenacity, unique vision, and impeccable taste as she shares her secrets to success, the challenges she's overcome, and her boundless creativity that continues to push the boundaries of styling. Whether you're an aspiring stylist or simply fascinated by the world of fashion, this episode is a must-listen for anyone seeking a behind-the-scenes glimpse into the world of celebrity styling with Miso Dam.

Jeanne Yang is widely recognized to be the top Hollywood fashion stylist in the world. Jeanne's photo credits include covers and editorials for GQ, InStyle, Vanity Fair, Rolling Stone, Time, Newsweek, Entertainment Weekly, The New Yorker, The New York Times Magazine, Esquire and Vogue. Her cutting edge ability to define emerging trends has led Jeanne to be hired as a consultant by the world's top movie studios, fashion designers, cosmetic and jewelry companies including Warner Bros., Universal Pictures, Sony Pictures, 20th Century Fox, Lionsgate Entertainment, Estee Lauder, Old Navy, Luxottica, Lands End, 3M, Colgate-Palmolive, Proctor & Gamble and many more. Jeanne is the trusted confidante to every major leading man and has amassed an unparalleled styling client list including Christian Bale, Rege-Jean Page, Robert Downey Jr., Keanu Reeves, Jason Momoa, Alfonso Cuaron, Taika Waititi and Jamie Dornan. Jeanne consults for major fashion and cosmetic companies on their national advertising campaigns. After graduating from Scripps College, Jeanne began working as Managing Editor and Associate Publisher at Detour Magazine. Jeanne's talent and foresight put then unknowns Leonardo DiCaprio, Sandra Bullock and Cameron Diaz on covers. An expert at branding, Jeanne created Holmes & Yang with friend and actress Katie Holmes - which became must have garments for every jet set woman and a wardrobe staple for top female CEO's across the country. Holmes & Yang was sold at the most exclusive boutiques in the world including Barneys New York, Selfridges London, Montaigne Market in Paris, and Maxfields Los Angeles. Holmes & Yang became the go-to line for actresses and rock stars including Penelope Cruz, Amy Adams, Jennifer Garner, Olivia Wilde, Jessica Alba, Taylor Swift, Rhianna, Gwen Stefani and Pink. Jeanne has continued styling Hollywood's top men and consulting with major global brands. In her new role at Anonymous Content, Jeanne will manage directors and actors, develop and produce tv and films and she will continue to consult with major brands and style her top clients.

Margo is joined by none other than Lilla Rogers. With a degree in fine art from San Francisco and a second degree in illustration, Lilla spent the 1980s working as a  full-time, highly successful illustrator, whose art has featured in publications including the New York Times Magazine, Vogue magazine, the Grammys and many more. She then went on to found Lilla Rogers Studio, a visionary art agency that represents over three dozen artists from around the world and has sold art for products worth over $300 million. As well as representing some of the most sought-after artists worldwide, the Studio has licensed artwork on a huge variety of products, including best-selling children's books, home décor, major ad campaigns, magazines, wall décor, and greetings cards: their client list includes Crate & Barrel, Chronicle, the New York Times, Blue Q, Godiva, Barneys New York, Warner Brothers, IKEA, Target, Paperchase, Anthropologie, and hundreds more.   Margo and Lilla discuss: How she encourages finding your own voice and power Opportunities and access to success for everyone Where she found the strength to live life on her own terms and encouraging others to do the same Amplifying marginalized voices How the creative landscape has changed over time Making creativity mandatory Battling and balancing cultural overwhelm Finding fulfillment and pride in creative work Her assignment bootcamp Creating a better future for creatives Upcoming projects and more Connect with Lilla: www.lillarogers.com www.makeartthatsells.com https://www.instagram.com/lillarogers/   Connect with Margo:  www.windowsillchats.com www.instagram.com/windowsillchats  

Today's guest Jane Winchester Paradis is the founder of Jane Win Jewelry! After working in fashion design and marketing for 20 years Jane left her corporate job with a dream to design beautiful jewelry with meaning. Starting a company at age 45 is not the path that many take. Jane had a robust career in design and fashion marketing, working for brands such as Calvin Klein Cosmetics, Barneys New York, and Lilly Pulitzer. Jane decided to create a collection made up of 8 amulets symbolizing an abundance of positivity, strength, hope, and luck. When she started researching this gorgeous antique coin jewelry, she realized that wealth is not shown in money, cars, or fancy homes…wealth comes from life experiences both good and bad. Jane and her team take great care to work with the first American craftsmen to cast high-quality pendants that we then plate in 14k gold with ‘the best in the business'. Last but not least, customers love their attention to detail. They package each piece in a beautifully printed box and are invested in delivering something special to every customer. It truly all comes from a LOVE of what they do and want to connect with those who wear their jewelry. Listeners will fall in love with Jane on today's Valentine's Day episode! --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/howdshedothat/support

Pamela has a rich and storied career with over 20 years of experience in luxury retail. Prior to launching Collab Society, she consulted for Arhaus, managing a freelance creative team, creating seasonal concepts, and working closely with the founder and his product development team, and for Roman and Williams Guild, helping to develop the brand's merchandising arm. Berick co-founded two active proprietary clothing lines for Anthropologie: Girls from Savoy, a women's clothing collection, and The Good Friends, a sweater line. In her prior roles, Berick served as a VP at The Line, where she oversaw its merchandising, product development, styling, and retail programs, as a furniture, hardware and found objects buyer at Anthropologie, and as a women's designer clothing buyer for Barneys New York. Her international experience includes dealing and importing vintage and antique furniture from France and Italy as well as extensive travel with her husband and pups. In this episode, Pamela speaks with Abby Bruce about how her mother's hopes that one of her progeny pursue something creative set her on a path that led her to pursue studying the oboe and becoming an opera singer before ultimately transitioning to a career in fashion.

Delia Folk started her career in the fashion industry interning at Versace in Men's Wholesale and after working for Barneys New York on the buying team. While working in the buying office, she discovered and nurtured emerging designers, spotted the latest trends and gave insights into a career in the fashion industry. She works with brands on a consulting basis to craft their wholesale, direct-to-consumer & marketing strategies.

David Selinger was an early employee at Amazon, working directly under Jeff Bezos. He led the R&D arm of Amazon's data-mining and personalization team. He co-founded Redfin (now a multi-billion dollar company) and founded RichRelevance, a company that offers personalized shopping experiences for large retail brands, including Macy's, Barneys New York, Office Depot, and others. He is now inventing the next BIG thing in home security – Deep Sentinel, an AI-based home protection. The company's intelligent crime prevention transforms home security from false alarms and ineffective after-the-fact crime alerts to real-time crime prediction and prevention. With Deep Sentinel, Americans can gain a reliable, cost-effective way to protect their homes and stop a burglary, mail theft or driveway break-in before it happens – and feel dramatically safer at home, at work, and on vacation. Connect with Jon Dwoskin: Twitter: @jdwoskin Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jonathan.dwoskin Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thejondwoskinexperience/ Website: https://jondwoskin.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jondwoskin/ Email: jon@jondwoskin.com Get Jon's Book: The Think Big Movement: Grow your business big. Very Big!   Connect with David Selinger: Website: https://www.deepsentinel.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/deep_sentinel Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deepsentinel/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/selly/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/deepsentinel/

Our last episode of 2022! We sat down with Mark Strausman, world renowned Chef and NYC Icon in the food and restaurant scene. Strausman is known for creating the iconic restaurant Freds at Barneys New York at Barneys' Madison Avenue. He subsequently developed satellite Freds in Chicago, Los Angeles, and a Freds popup in partnership with LVMH. He owned the Italian restaurant, Campagna, and Agriturismo in New York's Hudson Valley, and partnered to create and manage Coco Pazzo in NYC and Sapore di Mare in East Hampton, NY. Mark tells it like it is with a full run down of 4 out of 5 of the Five F's. He explains the beginnings of his career , the birth of Freds, the concept for Mark's off Madison, and YES, answers the question on everyone's mind "What is the secret to the NYC bagel?!" Mark was the perfect guest to close out our food quarter and an amazing 2022. You can find Mark's off Madison, his newest venture at 41 Madison Avenue Ground Level, New York, NY 10010 Please don't forget to share, rate, and subscribe to the podcast! @thenewyawkers

Like it or not, people make snap judgments about your appearance. How can you use this tendency to your advantage for your personal brand?My guests today use their specialized knowledge to help professionals make powerful first impressions about their personal brands without needing to say a word.Some people might consider personal style to be an expression of vanity. This mom-and-daughter duo debunks that theory by diving into the science of first impressions, color theory, and visual communication. The human mind loves to categorize and make quick decisions. Unfortunately, this process is not always accurate. Snap judgments may not be fair, but they happen all the time. That is why it's so critical to understand the non-verbal statements we make by what we wear. By understanding how style communicates your values, you can better align your appearance with your personal brand to make your messaging congruent. Understanding the messages of a stiff white collar or a relaxed sweater can mean the difference between establishing authority, trust, or neither.About the Guests:Alison is a national style and image consultant with clients across the country. She studied at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City and holds a Color certification from the Image Resource Center of New York. She is a member of the Association of Image Consultants International.Delia Folk started her career in the fashion industry by interning at Versace in Men's Wholesale. After graduation, she worked at Barneys New York on the buying team in Cosmetics, Ready-To-Wear & Jewelry, both for full-price and off-price channels.The Style That Binds Us is the original next-generation women's media company and community, exploring the cross-section of style and culture. Connected through their shared love of fashion and culture, the pair is changing the way style content, and storytelling is presented by delivering style with substance through in-depth interviews that dig beneath the surface.Where to connect with Alison and Delia:Website - https://thestylethatbindsus.com/Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/thestylethatbindsus/YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChFVuT_XmJMPPnrK7rjGbIwTwitter - https://twitter.com/tstbuTiktok - https://www.tiktok.com/@thestylethatbindsus?_t=8UhVkP1fpqY&_r=1Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-style-that-binds-us/id1385819832For More Personal Branding Tips, Check-Out:✅ What is Personal Branding & Why You Should Care: https://youtu.be/18GHX7iW6-4✅ 5 Easy Personal Branding YouTube Tips to Stand Out: https://youtu.be/nlp-IGeOsuE✅ Personal Brand Statement Examples & Tips to Create Your Own: https://youtu.be/939KXWY6f7U✅ 10 Things You Need on Your Personal Brand Website: https://youtu.be/MnawRql4NAwLet's connect on LinkedIn!https://www.linkedin.com/in/clairebahn/Say hello on Twitter!https://twitter.com/clairebahnAbout Claire BahnClaire Bahn is the CEO and Founder of Claire Bahn Group. For over ten years, she has been helping high-achieving CEOs, executives, investors, and founders maximize their authority and influence to accelerate business growth and gain the recognition they deserve. As an entrepreneur and influencer with over 70k+ followers, she learned the importance of creating and curating a personal brand that magnetizes opportunities and boosts visibility. Her mission is to help others leverage their personal brand to develop the authority, influence, and trust they need to exceed their career and life goals.She's been featured in Entrepreneur, Forbes, This Week in Startups with Jason Calacanis, MarketWatch, and Ticker Australia, to name just a few.She currently lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two adorable miniature pinschers named...

What you'll learn in this episode: How Beth became a self-taught expert and collector of antique jewelry The definition of antique jewelry, and how it's different from vintage jewelry What separates an enthusiast from a collector, and why collectors have different goals for their collections How to enjoy Georgian jewelry while keeping it safe The meaning behind popular Victorian jewelry motifs About Beth Bernstein Beth Bernstein is a jewelry historian, jewelry expert and collector of period and modern jewels—a purveyor of all things sparkly. She has a romance going on with the legend, language and sentiment behind the pieces. Her love for the story has inspired Beth to pen four books, with a fifth one in the works, and to spend the past twenty years as an editor and writer on the subject of jewels-old and new. She is a die-hard jewelry fan, so much so that she has designed her own collection throughout the 90s and continues to create bespoke jewels and work with private clients to procure antique and vintage jewelry She owns a comprehensive consulting agency Plan B which provides a roster of services in multiple facets of the jewelry industry. These include building, launching and evolving designer brands and retail brick & mortar/online shops and curating designer shows and private collections. Additional Resources: Website Instagram Facebook Twitter Pintrest Photos Available on TheJewelryJourney.com Transcript: Diving into centuries of antique jewelry can be intimidating for even the biggest jewelry lover, but Beth Bernstein is proof that anyone can find their niche in jewelry history. A collector of sentimental jewelry across several periods, Beth is a jewelry consultant and author of “The Modern Guide to Antique Jewelry.” She joined the Jewelry Journey Podcast to talk about how antique jewelry periods are defined; what make a collector a collector; and how to keep antique jewelry in good condition without putting it away forever in a safe. Read the episode transcript here. Sharon: Hello, everyone. Welcome to the Jewelry Journey Podcast. This is the first part of a two-part episode. Please make sure you subscribe so you can hear part two as soon as it's released later this week. Today my guest is jewelry author, journalist, historian and consultant Beth Bernstein. She is the author of several books including “If These Jewels Could Talk,” “My Charmed Life,” “Jewelry's Shining Stars” and the recent and very readable “The Modern Guide to Antique Jewelry.” We will hear more about her jewelry journey today. Beth, welcome. Beth: Hi. So nice to be here. Sharon: It's great to have you. Beth, can you tell us a little bit about your jewelry journey? Did you like jewelry when you were young? Beth: Oh, yes. My favorite thing was to wear a tiara. Most young girls, I would say, think they're princesses, but I have a cute little story to tell. I had my appendix out when I was six, which is really young to have your appendix out. For some reason, they made me a Frankenstein scar. I hated the scar. Back then, they kept you in the hospital for two weeks. It really was the most horrible scar, so my mom wanted to make me feel like I was beautiful. Back then, Bloomingdale's in New York was the store you went to. So, we go to Bloomingdale's—I always had dime-store tiaras, the plastic rhinestone tiaras—and in the window I see this tiara-like headband dripping with Swarovski crystals. Later I found out my mom described it as the most ostentatious headpiece or even worse than that. Anyway, we go in. I'm l like, “I want that. I want that.” So, we go into the store, and she pulls over the salesperson. I didn't know this at that time, but I heard the story later on. She said, “Bring her out a lot of jewels. I'll make up a story about this one, but bring her out something for her age, like a little tiara-like headband thing.” She said to me, “I have to tell you something the salesgirl just told me. The tiara you love is reserved for a duchess from a faraway land.” I went, “Oh, my god, I have such good taste,” and she said, “You have royal taste, right?” From then on, I believed I had royal taste, and I got a pretty seed pearl headband, quite advanced for my age. I've loved jewelry ever since I was young. My mom wasn't a big jewelry fan, but my grandmother was. My grandparents didn't have a lot of money, but she saved, and she'd go to secondhand stores. I think they were like pawn shops. She'd find these gorgeous Art Deco jewelry there, and she'd get them for a great price. She had some faux and real. I would go over to her house, and she'd let me stay up way past when my mother would let me stay up, and we would watch a Late Movie. Most people don't remember the Late Movie, but it had movies like To Catch a Thief and Breakfast at Tiffany's, and even melodramas like Madame X and Back Street. I would watch all these wonderful movies, Marlene Dietrich movies, and I loved the jewelry. So, we'd dress up in jewelry while we were watching the movies. She'd pour ginger ale in champagne glasses, and we'd drink like we were drinking champagne. The next day we'd go out and buy the jewelry at Woolworths, the five and dime, like we saw in the movies, but for 10 cents. It was all plastic and rhinestone jewelry. It was a lot of fun. So, yeah, I've always loved jewelry. Sharon: Would you say that's why you started liking jewelry? Because of the tiara and dressing up with your grandmother? Beth: Yeah, and the movies. I was always very into movies, which is why I wrote “If These Jewels Could Talk.” It connects the celebrities in the movies to the back stories. I'm as much of a jewelry geek as I am a movie geek. I think it was the fun and the glamor of it as a kid. I'll be very honest; it was at a time when I was probably eleven and my parents started talking about divorce. They got divorced when I was 13. So, it was a time in my life when I needed something to escape from all of that. It was a good escape to get into the glamor of those old movies and the jewelry. When I was six, having my appendix out and having that horrible scar, putting that thing on my head actually did make me feel pretty and like a duchess from a faraway land. I did start believing I had royal taste. Sharon: That's funny. I've heard several people say they liked tiaras when they were younger. I'm not sure I knew what a tiara was then. As you got older, did your education bring you to jewelry? Beth: Not really, because I was an English major and a psychology minor. Basically, I was writing poetry and short stories, wanting to be the great American novelist and poetess. I was doing really well in school. I was going to Boston University. I had some poetry and short stories published, and I was editor of the literary journal. My father owned textile mills in Italy and my mother, when she went back to work after my parents got divorced, became a senior vice president of a huge sportswear company. There were fashion and textiles in my blood. So, I was going to school, and my father said, “I'm not going to support you while you're a starving writer trying to write poetry or a novel. Write about what you know. Write about fashion.” I said, “Absolutely not,” even though I love fashion. But then I did start writing about fashion. My first story was actually for McCall's magazine about rust-proofing your car, because I was a non-fiction assistant editor. I got turned down from Condé Nast and Hearst because I didn't type enough words a minute. I was typing on a regular typewriter, and I was just under. But McCall's didn't give you a typing test, so that was my first job. After McCall's magazine, I started working as a freelancer. I wrote about fashion. I also styled fashion shoots, but my favorite thing to style was jewelry and, for some reason, shoes. When I went to the big houses in New York, like Carolina Herrera and Oscar de la Renta and Donna Karan, I loved to see what jewelry they were going to sell with their collections. Eventually, I continued to write about fashion for a bunch of magazines. Then, all of a sudden, I came up with an idea for a jewelry collection. Prior to that, I also became a wardrobe stylist for TV. I styled for MTV, Showtime, Comedy Central, all the cable channels. While I was doing that, because of all my contacts in jewelry through styling and by writing about jewelry and fashion, I had a sort of a collection. So, I knew who to go to to put the collection together. I went to this one company where I was very good friends with the owner, and he said, “Oh yeah, it's a great idea. I think it would sell great at Henri Bendel.” This was when Henri Bendel was really cool. So, I thought it would be a collection for Bendel. He helped me put it together, because I didn't know about castings and all that kind of thing. It sold at Bendel. Then a friend of mine, who was an actor and a comedian while I was in wardrobe styling, said, “Why don't you start your own jewelry company? You have really great ideas,” and I said, “You know what? O.K.” That was how my life went. I was like, “O.K., I'll go from fashion into wardrobe styling then to jewelry,” because I really did love jewelry. Sharon: You were designing it, too. Wow! Beth: Yes, now I'm designing it. I started a small collection, and it sold to over 250 stores. However, I was selling to Barneys New York, Beverly Hills and Chicago and Barneys Japan, but that was Barneys first Chapter 11. They owed me a ton of money, and I didn't know how I was going to produce for the other stores. So, long story short, they owed me a ton of money, but they kept us all in the stores and paid us up front to keep going, but we never got the money they owed us. I was really stretched to the limit because I literally wasn't making any other money. So, I started writing about jewelry because I knew more about it. Now, I knew about casting and setting and how to do waxes and all that. I wasn't doing it, but I knew all about that, so I started writing about jewelry for magazines I had worked with and other people in fashion had recommended. I was also very good at revamping magazines, making them more modern and into the future. So, I started writing while I was also designing jewelry. That's how it all happened. With Barneys, I got 30 cents on the dollar. Six years later, which is when I finally closed my business—back then, they rarely liked independent designers. There was only so much money to be made. I made so many mistakes with reps. A jewelry designer who was very smart said to me, “The worst thing that could happen to you is not having your own name on a collection,” and I said, “No, the worst thing that could happen is not having a volume, because I've been writing all my life.” He said, “So, you have the answer. Go design for these big designers. Get paid well and keep your bylines. Keep writing.” That's exactly what I did. Then I decided it was the smaller designers that needed my help. So, I started my own company to help small, independent designers with marketing, merchandising design and writing their press kits, as I was still writing for magazines. I'm answering you before you're even asking me a question. Sharon: No, this is free form. Go ahead. Beth: Basically, while I was doing all these different things, I started to collect antique jewelry. I had this feeling for antique jewelry. I love the idea of old mine cuts and the old rose cut diamonds. I didn't like a lot of bling or sparkle. I love the meaning behind Victorian jewelry. As I was collecting from the dealers, I was learning little by little. There were a lot of jewelers in New York back then. Eventually, I picked out a ring in the case at an amazing Madison Avenue shop, and she said, “It's one of my favorite rings in the case.” She and I had just met, and she's since passed away. I usually dedicate my books to my mom or my grandmother or both. My mom passed away young, and my grandmother lived until 97. They were the real inspirations in my life, but I dedicated “The Modern Guide to Antique Jewelry” to Hazel Halperin because she taught me so much of what I know. When I picked out the ring, she said, “It's a favorite in my case. I do layaways, so you can pay it off.” I'm like, “Great.” Then she said, “Do you want to come work for me?” and I said, “You don't know me. How do you know you can even trust me?” She said, “I know I can trust you. Every ring you picked out in the case is my best ring. It's like you have an eye for this.” She gave me books to bring home every weekend to read. I went to work for her on weekends. I was working seven days a week doing writing for magazines, still some consulting work, some custom work, and working for her, learning about antique jewelry on weekends. That really helped me learn how to collect antique jewelry. Through her, I was able to go to the big antique shows and meet other dealers, whom I still know to this day. A lot of them are still alive and are quoted in the book, because I've been dealing with them for 25 years. That's how that came about. Sharon: Did learning how to collect antique jewelry help you learn how to collect in general, or was it only antique? Beth: Only antique. Because I designed modern jewelry, I knew what I liked about modern jewelry. With antique, she taught me things to look for, like if something was repurposed, if something was put together, like if the shank was added later than the actual front of the ring. She taught me a lot of different aspects about antique jewelry. She taught me about the time periods and how to identify them. She taught me so much, and the books she had me bring home to read taught me a lot, too. She was a wonderful teacher. She'd always throw in a little story about my life as it was at that time, and how dating would relate to some jewelry stories. She was funny and I just loved her. She really helped. Sharon: Was she your inspiration? She was an inspiration for the antique jewelry book, but was she an inspiration for your other jewelry books, like “My Charmed Life”? Beth: Well, “My Charmed Life” isn't a jewelry book. It's a memoir. It's called “My Charmed Life.” Penguin published it in 2012. I'll tell you about why it's called “My Charmed Life.” It's “My Charmed Life” and the subtitle is “Rocky Romances, Precious Family Connections and Searching For a Band of Gold.” I was writing a memoir. It was a bit different because I also wrote first-person essays for women's magazines on dating, relationships and family. They always had to have some humor, so I knew that anything heartfelt also had to have a bit of humor. If it's grief, it has to have humor. So, I learned the combination of doing that, and I love writing those kinds of things. So, I was working on a memoir, and I kept hearing the word, “Platform. You need a platform.” I thought, “I have a platform in jewelry, but that's not going to work with this memoir, so I need to change it up a bit.” So, I connected different pieces. Every chapter starts with a piece of jewelry. There's love beads. There's solitary rings. There's the Claddagh ring from when I was going out with the Irish guy. There were a lot of different chapters. It was all metaphor for what I was talking about, and that was chapters from a young age up to age 50. It wasn't really about the pieces of jewelry; it was about what was going in my life and the jewelry related to that. People call it a jewelry book, but it wasn't. When you start reading it, you'll realize that it's really a book about life. It's universal. It's about parents divorcing, parents dying young, family relationships, relationships with nieces and nephews, being single when your younger brothers have kids, and all these different things women can relate to. What links do you like more than jewelry? It's the mosaic ashtray you make for mom in day camp that she still kept, or when she got divorced, how she traded in her Jackie O. pearls for love beads, which were my love beads. She was wearing my love beads because she was a young mom who got divorced. It was the 70s and she wanted to be cool. So, it was all about that. That was the first book. The second book was about emerging modern jewelers who I got to know from consulting and writing about them. I wrote about 38 designers who I thought really had it. These days, the market is saturated with modern designers. Stephen Webster was an amazing designer. I thought, “Who can write the forward for this book?” I went to Stephen because we were friends, and they knew he'd do a great job because he was once an emerging designer himself. He was funny, and he had all that heartfelt humor. He was a bench jeweler. He wrote a great forward. He said, “You're going to have to really fix this up,” and all I had to do was fix one word that I didn't think was right because it was very British, and I didn't think everyone would understand. Stephen had to fix one word. It was such a great book. The next book was “If These Jewels Could Talk: The Legends Behind Celebrity Gems.” That was about the stories behind celebrity jewelry and celebrity jewelry houses, like Van Cleef & Arpels, who made the jewelry for celebrities and films, and how the jewelry helped character development. I was very into the films, as I said. One of my friends said, “You wanted to write that book 20 years ago.” I said, “Yeah, I did,” because of my geekiness about film and because I could remember every line in certain films I loved. I learned more about who owned the jewelry as I was writing the book. Back then, a lot of the big stars like Marlene Dietrich and Grace Kelly—when she was Grace Kelly and before she was princess of Monaco—wore their own jewelry. Joan Crawford wore all of her own jewelry in films. Elizabeth Taylor wore her own jewelry in certain films. When it came to awards shows, when they were televised, they wore their own jewelry. It was really interesting. I loved writing that book as well. And then here we are with “The Modern Guide to Antique Jewelry.” I'm not only writing a book about antique jewelry, but I think—once again, I'm going on without you asking me a question. We will have photos posted on the website. Please head to TheJewelryJourney.com to check them out.   Thank you again for listening. Please leave us a rating and review so we can help others start their own jewelry journey.

Emerald Carroll is a New York based creative director and brand strategist driving desire and growth on a global scale. 15 years of expertise in storytelling, strategy, and brand-building across media for legacy and new brands in luxury, CPG, fashion, beauty, retail, and lifestyle. She has guided numerous disruptor brands through launch and lent counsel to heritage players such as Coach, Amazon, Revlon, Maybelline, Christie's, Barneys New York, and more. Driven by curiosity, intuition, and data, Emerald embraces new strategies and technologies while pursuing whitespace innovation. She currently consults on brand development, creative direction, and Web3 marketing. In this episode, Emerald talks with Elizabeth Welborn about how she entered the world of entrepreneurship as a teenager, and where that early start has led.

Are you someone who has created several successful business ideas? I am always impressed with people who are able to change industries and repeat success over and over again. If you find that interesting too then you are going to love this episode.Our guest today is David Selinger. He was an early employee at Amazon, working directly under Jeff Bezos. He led the R&D arm of Amazon's data mining and personalization team. He co-founded Redfin (now a multi-billion dollar company) and founded RichRelevance, a company that offers personalized shopping experiences for large retail brands, including Macy's, Barneys New York, Office Depot and others. He is now inventing the next BIG thing in home security - Deep Sentinel, an AI-based home protection. And he shares with us his journey in creating his new company.LINKS FROM THE EPISODE:You can visit our guest's website at: https://www.deepsentinel.com/If you are ready to franchise your business or take it to the next level: CLICK HERE.ABOUT OUR GUEST:David Selinger was an early employee at Amazon, working directly under Jeff Bezos. He led the R&D arm of Amazon's data[1]mining and personalization team. He co-founded Redfin (now a multi-billion dollar company) and founded RichRelevance, a company that offers personalized shopping experiences for large retail brands, including Macy's, Barneys New York, Office Depot and others. He is now inventing the next BIG thing in home security - Deep Sentinel, an AI-based home protection. The company's intelligent crime prevention transforms home security from false alarms and ineffective after-the-fact crime alerts to real-time crime prediction and prevention. With Deep Sentinel, Americans can gain a reliable, cost-effective way to protect their homes and stop a burglary, mail theft or driveway break-in before it happens – and feel dramatically safer at home, at work and on vacation.ABOUT BIG SKY FRANCHISE TEAM:This episode is powered by Big Sky Franchise Team. If you are ready to talk about franchising your business you can schedule your free, no-obligation, franchise consultation online at: https://bigskyfranchiseteam.com/ or by calling Big Sky Franchise Team at: 855-824-4759.

When co-founders and partners Matthew Herman and David Kien started developing Boy Smells, they weren't exactly sure they had a brand. In fact, Herman said the process of making candles in their living room in 2016 was a side hustle. Both Herman and Kien were working in fashion at the time; Herman was a designer at Nasty Gal and Kien worked in production at The Elder Statesman. "We didn't have a ton of high aspirations for the brand when we first started it because we really wanted it to be a recreational little side hustle. It was in years two and three that we really started to get serious. We left our jobs. We were running the entire business out of the living room, then it was the living room and kitchen, and then the living room, kitchen and sunroom. All of a sudden, there was inventory in the hallways," said Herman on the latest episode of the Glossy Beauty Podcast. While "genderful" Boy Smells launched at Sephora this month, it first launched into retail via independent stores like Boy George in Austin and now closed Barneys New York, positioning the line as for a fashion savvy person but sold at a more accessible price. Equally thoughtful is the brand's perspective on collaborations. After the runway success of Boy Smells' Slowburn candle with singer-songwriter Kacey Musgraves, it would have been easy for the team to take a rinse and repeat mentality to other partnerships. But Herman said whoever Boy Smells works with has to represent what Boy Smells is all about, which led the brand to its latest work with Grace Jones. In essence, Hermand said, "[We asked ourselves], 'If we could choose one person that represents our genderful values and who we are as a brand, who would we want to work with?' And we went after that person, who is not the person that the digital people who want to inform every decision about ... audience reach or whatever [would choose]. We went after the person that we really felt represented our brand values," said Herman.

What You Will Learn:How to breakthrough in a service driven businessHow to know if the hospitality industry is for youThe power of just starting Building an iconic restaurant and lessons along the way The power of time and experience and rebuilding on your own terms Bio:Mark Strausman is a classically-European-trained chef who recently opened his new restaurant, Mark's Off Madison, at 41 Madison Avenue in New York City. Strausman is known for creating the legendary restaurant Freds at Barneys New York at Barneys' Madison Avenue flagship store. He subsequently developed satellite Freds in Chicago, Los Angeles, and in Barneys Downtown New York location. ​In addition, he owned the ground-breaking Italian restaurant, Campagna, and Agriturismo in New York's Hudson Valley, and partnered to create and manage Coco Pazzo in NYC and Sapore di Mare in East Hampton.​Mark's passion project in recent years is to bring back the traditional handmade New York bagel. His Straussie's bagels, which Serious Eats dubbed "New York's Best Bagel," is featured at Mark's Off Madison. And let me tell you, it's amazingly delicious! ​He is the author of The Freds at Barneys New York Cookbook, which Publishers Weekly calls "a wonderful peek inside the popular restaurant." In addition, Mark is author of the James Beard Award nominated Two Meatballs in the Italian Kitchen and The Campagna Table. He has written for Yahoo and The Huffington Post, and consults widely within the food and beverage industry. Important Links:www.marksoffmadison.comwww.markstrausman.comMark's cook book! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Marina Larroudé is the co-founder and CCO of Larroudé, a shoewear company that boasts cheerful designs paired with luxurious construction. Her shoes are made at a family friend's factory in Brazil, where Marina is originally from. Since launching two years ago, the brand has sold shoes around the world, online, and in department stores such as Bloomingdale's and Nordstrom. It has also collaborated with brands such as Oscar de la Renta and Barbie. Prior to starting Larroudé, Marina worked at Vogue Brasil, and after years as a market director across the Condé Nast family, she eventually became the vice president of fashion direction at Barneys New York. In this episode, Marina tells us stories of how she navigated the professional world of fashion, the lucky breaks she got, and how she actually created so much of her luck by putting in the work. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What you'll learn in this episode: Why being a jewelry artist is like being an engineer How Barbara got her jewelry in the hands of famous rock-and-rollers like David Bowie and the Rolling Stones  Why Barbara doesn't separate her jewelry into women's and men's lines Why talent is only a small part of what it takes to become a successful jeweler About Barbara Klar Barbara Klar was born in Akron, OH, with an almost obsessive attention for details. The clasps on her mother's watch, the nuts, bolts and hinges found on her father's workbench, the chrome on her brother's '54 Harley Hog...Barbara's love of hardware and metal and "how things worked" was ignited and continues to burn bright. Coming of age in the Midwest, Barbara was part of the burgeoning glam rock explosion making the scene, discovering Pere Ubu, DEVO, The Runaways, Iggy Pop and David Bowie in out-of-the-way Cleveland nightclubs. Cue Barbara's love of music and pop culture that carries on to this day. New York...late 1970's, early 80's. Barbara began making "stage wear" for friends in seminal punk rock bands including Lydia Lunch, The Voidoids and The Bush Tetras, cementing Barbara's place in alt. rock history as the go-to dresser for those seeking the most stylish, the most cutting edge accessories. She certainly caught the attention of infamous retailer Barneys New York, who purchased Barbara's buffalo skin pouch belts, complete with "bullet loops" for lipstick compartments. Pretty prestigious for a first-time designer! Famed jeweler Robert Lee Morris invited Barbara into a group show at Art Wear and Barbara joyfully began to sell her jewelry for the first time. Barbara opened her first standalone store, Clear Metals, in NYC's East Village during the mid - 80's. In 1991 she moved that store into the fashion and shopping Mecca that is SoHo, where it was located for ten years until Barbara has moved her life and studio upstate to the Hudson Valley. She continues to grow her business, her wholesale line and her special commission work while still focusing on those gorgeous clouds in the country sky. Barbara's work has been recognized on the editorial pages of Vogue, WWD, The New York Times and In-Style Magazine as well as featured on television shows including "Friends," "Veronica's Closet" and "Judging Amy." Film credits have included "Meet The Parents," Wall Street," "High Art" and The Eurythmics' "Missionary Man" video. Barbara has been hailed in New York Magazine as being one of the few jewelry designers who "will lend her eclectic touch to create just about anything her clients request, from unique wedding bands and pearl-drop earrings to chunky ID bracelets and mediaeval-style chains." Additional Resources: Website Instagram Facebook Twitter Blog Photos available on TheJewelryJourney.com Transcript: Barbara Klar's jewelry has been worn by the like of David Bowie, Steve Jordan and Joan Jett, but Barbara's celebrity fans are just the icing on the cake of her long career. What really inspires her is connecting with clients and finding ways to make their ideas come to fruition. She joined the Jewelry Journey Podcast to talk about the crash course in business she got when she opened her store in 1984 in New York City; why making jewelry is often an engineering challenge; and why she considers talent the least important factor in her success. Read the episode transcript here.  Sharon: Hello, everyone. Welcome to the Jewelry Journey Podcast. This is the second part of a two-part episode. If you haven't heard part one, please go to TheJewelryJourney.com. Today, my guest is Barbara Klar, founder and owner of Clear Metals. Welcome back.    So, is your studio inside your home now?   Barbara: Yes, it is. It always has been. One time, I tried to have my studio in the back room of my store in SoHo. That just didn't work at all. If they know I'm there, everybody is like, “Is Barbara here?” I could never get any work done. Eventually, I was able to get a building in Williamsburg and have my studios there. It was a great building because it had been a doctor's office in the 50s, so there was a little living space in the back and the front had been all the examination rooms. That worked out perfectly for my studio at the time.   Sharon: And you're in Woodstock, New York now?   Barbara: Yes, I am. I love it here.   Sharon: Had you moved there before Covid, or is that just an area you like?   Barbara: I've been here about six years now. I've been all over the Hudson Valley. I think I moved here prior to Covid. It's a very arty town and full of weirdos and like-minded people. It's a cool place. It has the history of Bird-On-A-Cliff, which was where all the Hudson Valley artists started. It started as an arts colony. So, it's got that history, and it's nice to be part of a history.    When I had my store—and I loved my store on 7th Steet in the East Village—I was so akin and felt such a vibe from the previous generations of jewelers that had stores on 8th Street in the West Village. It was a complete circle to me, and I feel that way now as well.   Sharon: So, you targeted Woodstock or this area to live in?   Barbara: No, I was going through a breakup. It was very painful. I found a place here. I knew it would be my home and my love. I was lucky. It's one of those guided journeys.   Sharon: Looking behind you, I can see you have quite a well-developed studio. You have all your tools. It doesn't seem like you'd be missing anything there.    Barbara: Definitely not. It's great.   Sharon: Did you start out that way? Did you collect the tools throughout the years?   Barbara: Since 1979, I've been collecting tools. There's always something else you need as a jeweler and a metalsmith. About 10 years ago I sold my house, which was a little bit south of Woodstock, and got rid of everything except my studio and my clothes. That's where I'm at now, and it feels so good to not be buried with stuff. I just have my workshop, and that's basically it.   Sharon: That's the important thing, having your workshop. I don't know if you still do, but you had a very successful line of men's jewelry.   Barbara: Yeah, I was one of the first to do men's jewelry. That was probably in the late 80s, early 90s. I've done a lot of men's. I had a lot of gay male clientele. They were always coming in, and they had a large disposable income. It worked out great. I love to see a man in jewelry. I love what's happened with the metrosexuals in the last eight or nine years. Even the nonbinary and straight males are feeling more comfortable with jewelry, and I think it's really great. Coming from a rock background, you see a lot of flamboyancy on stage, and you see a lot of guys flashing metal. I think it looks great.   Sharon: It that what prompted you to develop this line? Did you ever sell it? Was it a production line or was it one-off? How was it?   Barbara: It's limited production always. I had a friend ask me recently, “Barbara, on your website, why don't you have a category that's specifically men's jewelry?” I said, “I'll never do that because I can never tell what a man's going to like.” With all of this large spectrum of gender identity, I can't tell what somebody's going to like. That's not up to me, to decide what men's jewelry is. So, I never really bought into that, but I know men and kids seem to like my work.   Sharon: They look in your window and come in and say, “I'd like to try that on”?   Barbara: Yeah, especially some of the bigger rings. I was always surprised what was attractive to them. Also, there's a lot of word of mouth. I never relied on advertising. I got a lot of press, which didn't seem to do much, but mostly it's because of word of mouth that people come to me.   Sharon: Is the press how you developed your celebrity clientele? You were mentioning that you have quite a roster or that you've done a lot for celebrities.   Barbara: Yeah, that just kind of happened. In my store in SoHo, I used to have what I would call my “deli wall.” You know how you go into a deli in New York and you see all of the celebrities saying, “Oh, thanks for that corned beef sandwich. It was the best I had”? I had that in the background. Over time, celebrities would come in. A lot of stylists would bring celebrities. I developed the deli wall, and it was word of mouth again.   Sharon: I always wonder when I look at a deli wall if they ask people for their signatures, if they have a stack of photos in the back and say, “Would you sign this?” How did that work for you?   Barbara: I'd always ask them. It's hard to do sometimes. I don't want to overstep because every celebrity reacts differently to being recognized and interacting, but you've just got to do it. It's funny; I'm impressed, but I know they're human just like me. On my website, I sometimes look at the marketing stats, and that page is the most visited page. Here in America, we love our celebrities.    I know a lot of them had a big impact on me, so I get it. Once I waited in line for half a day because I made this belt for Tina Turner. She was signing records at Tower Records in New York City. I went up to her and showed her the belt, and I was so excited because she meant a lot me. She got me through a couple of breakups that were pretty devastating. So, I get it. I'm a fan. Definitely, I'm a fan.   Sharon: What did she say when she saw the belt?   Barbara: She was like, “Oh, I love it. I just love it.” She said, “I'm going to wear it.” I never saw her wearing it, but she was very kind and wonderful and gracious.   Sharon: That takes guts on your part, just to show a belt to a celebrity like that.    Barbara: It's not comfortable for me because I'm very shy. I'm really a shy person. I even tried being in bands. My friends were in bands. I work better behind the scenes, but sometimes you have to jump off that cliff. I'm one of these people that I might be shy, but I'm also brave. I'll take a risk. I think in these times, with the all the competition out there, especially for jewelry designers, you have to take a risk and you have to be brave.   Sharon: Yes, absolutely. It's amazing to me; so many people I talk to who make jewelry, they say they're shy, but you have to put yourself out there. You have to put your product out there. You can't just sit in your studio.   Barbara: You can't, and you also have to be able to talk about your work. There was a relationship I had at one time, and we had these arguments because he would make this incredible work. I would say, “What does it mean? How would you explain it? How would you define it?” and he would say, “Well, I'm not going to do that. If I have to do that, it negates everything. People should be able to draw their own opinions about what I'm saying.” I was like, “No, I don't agree. I think you should be able to say what your intention was, how you see it. If it's interpreted differently, that's an extra plus in my mind.” I think everybody should be able to talk about their work.   Sharon: Especially if you are doing what I'll call art jewelry. You're not walking into a place like Tiffany, let say. That's the only one of its kind.    Barbara: Exactly. The one-of-a-kinds are like that. When I had my store in SoHo, the greatest thing that was the most fun for me was making an inspirational thing that I thought nobody would ever wear or buy and putting it in the window, because that would get people to come in. They were outrageous; they were huge, and often I would sell those pieces. It was a shock to me.   Sharon: How did it feel to see celebrities, such as Steve Jordan, wearing what you made?   Barbara: It's pretty incredible. Once it leaves my hands, it takes on its own journey. It's an ego boost for a minute, but then you've got to make a living the rest of the time. I've been in this business so long, and you think, “Oh my God, I got my stuff on the Rolling Stones tour. It's so great.” It's impressive to people when you're at a party and you can say that. Ultimately, it means nothing. Has he mentioned my name or anything on the Rolling Stones tour? No. That may never happen, and that's fine. I don't care. It's fun.    Sharon: Is it validation to other people if you're showing your work or talking about it, and you say a certain celebrity wore it? Isn't that validation in a sense?   Barbara: It is. I try not to buy into that too much. The validation really comes from myself. I know what I'm doing. It's fine. I don't really need that, but that's an extra special perk, I must say.   Sharon: A validation for you, but also—I'm not sure it would sway me, but for a lot of people—it depends on who the celebrity is, but it could sway somebody. They might say, “If ABC person wore it, then I want one like it.”   Barbara: Oh yeah, definitely. It works that way. To a lot of my rock-and-roll friends, the fact that I've sold a lot of work to Steven Tyler or Steve Jordan means something. Sometimes they'll come to me with special commissions. One of my first commissions when I had my store in SoHo was for a client who had been to London, and he was obsessed with Keith Richards and the bracelet he always wears. He wears this incredible bracelet made by Crazy Pig Studios in London. He came to me and said he wanted me to make a bracelet like the one Keith Richards wears. I said, “Why would you have me do it? Why don't you dial Crazy Pig in London and get the same bracelet?” He said, “Oh, I was in there. They were mean. They were really intimidating. I don't want to give them my money.” So, I said, “All right. It's going to be a little different, but I'll make one for you,” and I made this incredible bracelet. I still sell it today. It's the Keith Richards bracelet. It's a fun story.   Sharon: Wow! Yeah, that is a fun story. You're also writing a book now. Tell us a little about the title.   Barbara: Titles are interchangeable, but this has been the title for a while. It's called “You're So Talented.” I'm not sure what the subtitle is going to be exactly, but it could be “It Takes More Than Talent” or “Confessions of a Worker Bee.” It's basically about my stories, my experiences not being a businessperson and being more of an artist, surviving New York. A lot of stories. It's geared towards kids who have a lot of talent, but that's not all it takes. Talent is like two percent of what it takes to be successful and to be creative and to be a survivor.    Surviving in New York City was such an incredible challenge, especially when you're living and working on the street level. You can't control what comes into your space. You don't know how business is done. I had just opened my store in the East Village. I was 24 or something, and this big bruiser guy comes into my store and is like, “You gotta pay me for sanitation pickup.” I said, “What? I have to pay for sanitation? I thought the landlord took care of that.” He said, “No, we pick it up.” I'm like, “Well, how much do you want?” He said, “We want $75 a month.” I said, “What? I can't pay that. I can barely pay my rent.” He said, “Well, how much can you pay?” and I said, “Well, I can pay like $15.” He said, “O.K.” and he walked out. Wouldn't you know, every month he was there for his $15. It was crazy.   Sharon: You were honest, but you had to become a businessperson over the years.   Barbara: It was such a challenge. I have to tell you, another successful designer once said to me, “Nothing teaches you about money like not having any.” I think that was one of the wisest words, because I learned how to become my own bookkeeper, my own press person, my own rep. I also had to pay all the employee taxes, navigate the business end of it, try to get business loans. That was such an experience. I heard 2Roses talking about this on your podcast, too, about how business should be included in art school training. I was totally thrown out there and totally naïve.   Sharon: It sounds like the school of hard knocks.   Barbara: Definitely.   Sharon: And that's what the book is about?   Barbara: Yes. People say, “You're so talented.” If I had a quarter for every time somebody said that to me, I'd be rich. No, it's not about that. It's about perseverance, and it's about hearing a lot of “no's.” It's about coming through the back door instead of the front door. The book is about things that were on my journey that were important and meaningful to me, and that I think young people could learn something from about moving to New York as an artist. It's very different now. I don't claim to know the ins and outs of New York City at this point in life, but I think my journey is still relevant.   Sharon: Definitely. I'm curious how you took the “no's,” because you must have heard a lot of “no's.”   Barbara: So many. It gets you to that next point. A no is actually good, because you're forced to meet up with another solution or another path. I'll never forget; I wanted to be like Robert Lee Morris, who had his work everywhere and bought a ranch in New Mexico and everything. I remember being tested for QVC in the 80s. They were having young designers on QVC. I did the test, and I heard them in the background saying, “I don't know if she works well on camera. She might be a little too quirky. Her work is a little too eclectic.” I was like, “Oh God, really?” So, I was like, “You know what? I don't care. That's my thing. Maybe I don't want to be a production person.”    I looked into having my work made overseas and all of that, and I realized, in the end, I would just be a manufacturer. For me, the art was more important. The hands-on making was more important. The person-to-person contact, communication with my clients and my employees was really important to me. I enjoy that way more than if I had been basically a business owner.    Sharon: It's having the mark of the hand on it. If I know that you crafted it or somebody crafted it, it has much more meaning, I think.   Barbara: Absolutely. It means a lot to me. Recently I had a client whose mother was a big jewelry collector and had a couple of Art Smith rings. The client had lost one of the rings in the pair in Provincetown. It went into the ocean, gone. I was able to hold the matching ring in my hand and look at it and see a signature, because the client wanted me to recreate this ring, which I did do. But the whole time I was making this ring, I kept imaging Art. The ring was covered in dots of silver and pink gold and yellow gold. It's a beautiful ring, very asymmetrical. The dots were raised like a half a millimeter off the band, and there were like 50 dots on this ring. So, I'm thinking of him making this ring in his studio. Every dot had to have a peg soldered onto the back before it was soldered onto the band. I did that 50 times, and I'm thinking, “My God, this guy was tenacious.” I had a lot of respect.   Sharon: How did you decide to start writing a blog?  You write a blog. How did that come about?   Barbara: I really enjoy writing, and there are things I wanted to say that the work couldn't say by itself. One of the things I've always been obsessed with since I was a child are charms. When I was five, Sherry Carr across the street from me had a shoebox full of charms, like the bubblegum charms, and I coveted that box. I was obsessed with that box. Every time I would see it, I would be like, “Show me the charms.” I wanted to knock Sherry out so I could get that charm. I started collecting charms at a very young age. They mean a lot to me, and they mean a lot to my clients. I talked about that in one of my blog posts. I think that was one of my first blogs, talking about charms and the meaning they hold for us. I think the spiritual side is important to me, the emotion you put to it and how it goes on the body. It's for the body.   Sharon: Well, you have very eclectic jewelry, very unique jewelry. Barbara, thank you so much for being here today.   Barbara: I loved it. Thanks so much.   Thank you again for listening. Please leave us a rating and review so we can help others start their own jewelry journey.  

What you'll learn in this episode: Why being a jewelry artist is like being an engineer How Barbara got her jewelry in the hands of famous rock-and-rollers like David Bowie and the Rolling Stones  Why Barbara doesn't separate her jewelry into women's and men's lines Why talent is only a small part of what it takes to become a successful jeweler About Barbara Klar Barbara Klar was born in Akron, OH, with an almost obsessive attention for details. The clasps on her mother's watch, the nuts, bolts and hinges found on her father's workbench, the chrome on her brother's '54 Harley Hog...Barbara's love of hardware and metal and "how things worked" was ignited and continues to burn bright. Coming of age in the Midwest, Barbara was part of the burgeoning glam rock explosion making the scene, discovering Pere Ubu, DEVO, The Runaways, Iggy Pop and David Bowie in out-of-the-way Cleveland nightclubs. Cue Barbara's love of music and pop culture that carries on to this day. New York...late 1970's, early 80's. Barbara began making "stage wear" for friends in seminal punk rock bands including Lydia Lunch, The Voidoids and The Bush Tetras, cementing Barbara's place in alt. rock history as the go-to dresser for those seeking the most stylish, the most cutting edge accessories. She certainly caught the attention of infamous retailer Barneys New York, who purchased Barbara's buffalo skin pouch belts, complete with "bullet loops" for lipstick compartments. Pretty prestigious for a first-time designer! Famed jeweler Robert Lee Morris invited Barbara into a group show at Art Wear and Barbara joyfully began to sell her jewelry for the first time. Barbara opened her first standalone store, Clear Metals, in NYC's East Village during the mid - 80's. In 1991 she moved that store into the fashion and shopping Mecca that is SoHo, where it was located for ten years until Barbara has moved her life and studio upstate to the Hudson Valley. She continues to grow her business, her wholesale line and her special commission work while still focusing on those gorgeous clouds in the country sky. Barbara's work has been recognized on the editorial pages of Vogue, WWD, The New York Times and In-Style Magazine as well as featured on television shows including "Friends," "Veronica's Closet" and "Judging Amy." Film credits have included "Meet The Parents," Wall Street," "High Art" and The Eurythmics' "Missionary Man" video. Barbara has been hailed in New York Magazine as being one of the few jewelry designers who "will lend her eclectic touch to create just about anything her clients request, from unique wedding bands and pearl-drop earrings to chunky ID bracelets and mediaeval-style chains." Additional Resources: Website Instagram Facebook Twitter Blog Photos available on TheJewelryJourney.com Transcript: Barbara Klar's jewelry has been worn by the like of David Bowie, Steve Jordan and Joan Jett, but Barbara's celebrity fans are just the icing on the cake of her long career. What really inspires her is connecting with clients and finding ways to make their ideas come to fruition. She joined the Jewelry Journey Podcast to talk about the crash course in business she got when she opened her store in 1984 in New York City; why making jewelry is often an engineering challenge; and why she considers talent the least important factor in her success. Read the episode transcript here.    Sharon: Hello, everyone. Welcome to the Jewelry Journey Podcast. This is a two-part Jewelry Journey Podcast. Please make sure you subscribe so you can hear part two as soon as it comes out later this week.    Today, my guest is Barbara Klar, founder and owner of Clear Metals. Barbara began her work as a jeweler in 1980 in New York and has grown her business from there. She has a roster of celebrity clients. She has also developed a successful line of men's jewelry. Steve Jordan, who replaced Charlie Watts throughout a recent Rolling Stones tour, sported her jewelry throughout. Most recently, Barbara has become interested in reliquaries. She is also writing a book. We'll hear more about her jewelry journey today. Barbara, welcome to the program.   Barbara: Thank you, Sharon. I'm so happy to be here talking about my favorite subject, jewelry.   Sharon: So glad to have you. I want to hear about everything going on. Tell us about your jewelry journey. Did you always like it?   Barbara: I was obsessed with my mother's jewelry box. She wasn't a huge jewelry collector, but she had some gemstone rings from the time my father and her spent in Brazil in the semiprecious capital, Rio. I just loved her selection and got obsessed.    Sharon: Did you decide you wanted to study jewelry then?   Barbara: No, I really didn't. My sister was the artist in the family, and I was always trying to play catch-up with her. Eventually I took a class at Akron University in Akron. Well, I made some jewelry in high school out of ceramics. I loved to adorn myself. I loved fashion. I loved pop culture. I was always looking at what people were wearing, and jewelry was so interesting to me because it was so intimate. It was something you could put on you body, like a ring. You could look at it all the time, and it became part of your persona, part of your identity. Sometimes it represented the birth of a child.    I used to go to the museum in Cleveland a lot, and I started seeing these top knuckle rings on women in the Medieval and Renaissance paintings. I ran home and went to my mother's jewelry box because I remembered she had my sister's baby ring in there. I put it on my little pinkie finger. She saw me wearing it and she got very upset, but I started scouting flea markets until I could find my own top knuckle ring. I wear a lot of them at this point in life.   Sharon: Wow! We'll have to have a picture of that. I can see your fingers. You have a ring on every finger, it looks like.   Barbara: Practically.   Sharon: So, you went to the Cleveland Institute of Art. Did you think you'd be an artist or a graphic designer? What did you think you'd do?   Barbara: Like I said, when I went to Akron University, I studied beginning jewelry. My teacher at the time noticed I had an aptitude, and he said, “If you really want to study jewelry making, you should go to the Cleveland Institute of Art.” At that point, I made an application and I got in.   Sharon: Did you study metalsmithing there? When you say jewelry making, what did you study?   Barbara: It was called metalsmithing. It was a metalsmithing program, and at that point in time, Cleveland had a five-year program. You didn't really hit your major until your third year, so you had a basic foundation of art history and drawing and painting. It was really a great education. I feel like I got a master's of fine arts rather than a bachelor of fine arts. When we studied, our thesis was to do a holloware project. A lot of people did tea sets. I did a fondue set and it took me two years to complete. It was a great training, but it was also very, very frustrating because it was a very male-dominated profession.   Sharon: Do you still have the fondue set?   Barbara: I do. I entered it into a show, and they dropped it and it got dented. I have yet to repair that. Over the years, the forks have gone missing, but I have incredible photographs of it, thank God.   Sharon: Wow! So, you were the only fondue set among all the tea sets.   Barbara: Yeah, I was. I had to be different.   Sharon: You opened your own place right after you graduated. Is that correct?   Barbara: Pretty much. All my friends were moving to New York City, so I said, “Hey, I'll go.” I'd been commuting there because my boyfriend at the time was Jim Jarmusch, and he had moved to Columbia to study. I had been going there off and on for a couple of years and when everybody moved to New York City. I was like, “Why not?” So, I went.   Sharon: How far is it from Cleveland or where you were going to school?    Barbara: It's about 500 miles.   Sharon: So, you would fly?   Barbara: No, I would drive. Those were the days you could find parking in the city.   Sharon: That was a long time ago. I'm impressed that you would open your own place right after you graduated. Some people tell me they knew they could never work for anybody else. Did you have that feeling, or did you just know you wanted your own place?   Barbara: No, I didn't. It took me a couple of years. I was in New York a couple of years. I moved in '79 and I opened my store in '84. One thing I did discover in those five years is that the jobs I did have—thank God my mother insisted that I should have secretarial skills to fall back on in high school. She said, “You're not going to depend on any man.” So, she got me those skills, and I became a very fast typist. I realized eventually that to save my creativity, I needed to have a job that was completely unrelated to jewelry work. I would work during the day, and I found a jewelry store where I could clean the studio in exchange for bench time. I started doing that. A lot of my friends were in rock-and-roll bands, and I started making them stage ware when I could work in the studio for free. It just evolved into that before I opened my store.   Sharon: Tell us about your jewelry business today. Do you still make it?   Barbara: Oh yes, I still make everything. I have one part-time assistant. I no longer wholesale. I do a little bit of gallery work. I wish there was more, but I consider myself semi-retired. I'm trying to work on my book. Mostly I do commission work, and I do maybe one or two shows a year. I like to say I have a cult following that keep me in business.   Sharon: When you say you have a cult following, do rock-and-rollers call you and say, “I need something for a show”? How does that work?   Barbara: Pretty much. I'm lucky enough to have been in this business since 1984, so a lot of my private clients, now their children are shopping with me and they're getting married. It's really nice. I feel very blessed to have that.   Sharon: Yeah, especially if it's a second generation.    Barbara: That means something to me because they have a different sense of style. The fact that they would find my work appealing moves me, makes my heart sing.   Sharon: Do you find that you go along with their sense of style? If you have one style you were doing for their parents, let's say, do you find it easy to adapt? Do you understand what they're saying?   Barbara: I do. I try to understand. First of all, I listen. I'm a good listener, but I'm still old-fashioned. I still like streetwear. I still love pop culture. A lot of times I'll ask them what they're looking for, and I can always tell. Even when I had my store, when somebody would walk into the store, I can get a sense of their style. I'm one of these designers who can design very different, very eclectic work, from simple and modern to intricate and whimsical. That used to be a problem for me in my early days because the powers that be—I had a rep. They were like, “Barbara, your work is so different. Why don't you try to make it coherent?” I couldn't. I tried to and I came up with beautiful lines, but for me, the joy is the variation and never knowing what I'm going to come up with.   Sharon: Is that what's kept your attention about jewelry?   Barbara: I think so. And being challenged by commission work and by getting an idea and trying to make it come to fruition. I actually think jewelry designers are as much architects and engineers as anything else, because you get an idea and you're like, “How am I going to make that happen?” That keeps me inspired and challenged.   Sharon: I remember watching a jeweler making a ring. This was several years ago, but they were talking about how jewelry is engineering because of the balance and all of that.    Barbara: Oh yes, totally. There was time when I really wanted to study CAD. I looked into it a bit, and I realized you also have to be able to draw in order to do CAD. It really helps if you have some knowledge of metalsmithing or jewelry making before you enter into a program like that, because you have to be able to visualize it and see how it's going to come together, how it's technically going to work. That interests me a lot.   Sharon: So, that's not a problem for you. You can do that in terms of visualizing or seeing how it would come together.   Barbara: It's a challenge. I'll find myself getting inspired by an idea and spending a couple of days or even a week thinking about how it's going to be engineered, how it's going to fit together. I made a tiara for the leader of a local performance group. He's very flamboyant, and he sings and has a beautiful band. I made him a crown out of a crystal chandelier that I got at a flea market. It was an engineering challenge. It was really fun.   Sharon: It sounds like it. I don't know if I could even imagine something like that. I wanted to ask you about something you said a little while ago, that you wished there were more galleries who wanted your work. What was it you said?   Barbara: I've been making my living doing limited-production items that sell very well. I have a classic piece—I call it the pirate, which is a lockdown mechanism earring that is kind of my bread and butter. But what I've been doing in my off time is making, like you mentioned in your opening, reliquaries or pieces that are more art than jewelry specifically. That's what I've been doing during Covid and everything. It's like a secret group of pieces I've been working on. It would be nice to have a gallery to show them in, but they're very unique and different, so I haven't found that yet.   Sharon: Tell us a little bit about the reliquaries. Tell us what they look like and what they're supposed to represent.   Barbara: I got obsessed with reliquaries when I was going to the Cleveland Institute of Art because right across the street was the Cleveland Museum of Art. I spent a lot of time there, and they have a fabulous armor hall for armor and a 17th century room that's filled with religious reliquaries. I was fascinated by how these fragments of bone or hair were incorporated into jewelry and what they represented as objects, how people would pray to these things or display these items with great meaning. It really moved me, and I started making them in college covertly. I continued that living through the AIDS crisis and now Covid.    I did some pieces recently for people who had lost their loved ones, incorporating pieces of hair or fragments of letters from their loved ones. I find that so meaningful because you have something to hold in your hands that gives you a link to this person whom you've lost. I made a beautiful reliquary for an ex of mine which was based on the dog they lost. Buddy was its name. I got a piece of the dog's tail when he died and made a little charm out of it. It was under a little window. Then I had another artist make this beautiful portrait of the dog when it was a baby. I made a little locket-type thing that could be put on your desk, or it could be hung on the wall or you could wear it. That's what I describe as tabletop jewelry.    Sharon: That's interesting. When I think of a reliquary, I think of exactly what you're saying, but without the jewelry—a piece of bone, hair, whatever, that people venerate.    Barbara: Yeah, absolutely.   Sharon: How do you incorporate it? You're saying for this piece you put it in a locket, but how else have you incorporated it?    Barbara: Pretty much lockets, things that open. I have another piece I made that was based on a monk. I found a little porcelain painter's image—it was about three inches tall—at a flea market years ago. I could hardly afford it. It was hand-painted porcelain. I kept it in my bench drawer for years, 20 years probably, and one day I pulled it out and thought, “You know, this monk needs to be seen.” So, I made a beautiful locket. It's probably about four inches long that you too can display it on your desk. It has little doors that open, and you can hang it on your wall or you can wear it. It's a very large piece, obviously, if you're going to wear it, but it's a statement piece and it's very precious.   I did this piece actually about 10 years ago after living through the AIDS crisis. My friend, one of my clients, looked at this monk and said, “I know who that is.” I did the research. It's on my blog. It is this monk who was from a very wealthy family that gave his life to treat lepers in Spain. He was the patron saint of healers. It touched me so deeply that I was creating this piece after everything I'd watched and lived through with Covid, with the AIDS crisis.   Sharon: Wow! Do pieces hit you as you're going through a flea market? Do they hit you and you say, “That would be perfect”? How is that?   Barbara: I'm a collector. I collect things. I'm fascinated. I love to look at things. One time at a flea market when I had my store in Soho, I found this—I didn't know what it was. It was like a little skeleton paw. It had no fur on it. It was a little skeleton about two inches long, probably a racoon's hands. I used to make incredible windows to get people to come into the store. It was Halloween. At the same flea market, I had gotten some of the old-fashioned glass milk containers that used to have the paper caps on top. So, I had gotten those, and I thought, “I'm going to do a Lizzie Borden window.” I made Lizzie this incredible watch fob, and hanging from that was this little skeleton paw inside the milk container. It was great. You never know. I sometimes hold onto things until it's like, “Whoa, O.K. Now's the time.”   Sharon: I'm imaging it. It's a drawerful of things, a shoebox full of things that you paw through and say, “Oh, this would be perfect.”   Barbara: Absolutely. That's the great thing about being an artist. You never know when it's going to hit. Like I tell people, I would never not have my studio inside my home, because you never know when you're going to be inspired and have to make something.

In this interview with Dave Selinger, the mind behind the next BIG thing in home security – Deep Sentinel- we'll discuss how artificial intelligence is disrupting the trillion-dollar security industry and what he did to make it possible. David Selinger was an early employee at Amazon, working directly under Jeff Bezos. He led the R&D arm of Amazon's data-mining and personalization team. He co-founded Redfin (now a multi-billion dollar company). He founded RichRelevance, a company that offers personalized shopping experiences for large retail brands, including Macy's, Barneys New York, Office Depot, and others. Follow Dave Selinger Website https://www.deepsentinel.com/ Facebook https://web.facebook.com/deepsentinel/?_rdc=1&_rdr Instagram https://www.instagram.com/deepsentinel/ Twitter https://twitter.com/deep_sentinel LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/selly/ YouTube https://www.youtube.com/c/DeepSentinel Know more about Dave https://www.cnbc.com/2021/08/17/redfin-co-founder-david-selinger-on-jeff-bezos-lessons-for-success.html

What you'll learn in this episode: The surprising stories Prince Dimitri discovered while compiling material for his book, “Once Upon a Diamond: A Family Tradition of Royal Jewels” How decorative and fine arts have influenced jewelry throughout history Why paisley is an enduring motif in jewelry Why mixing high and low jewelry and fashion has always been chic How Dimitri's ancestor Catherine the Great created the royal uniform we recognize today About Prince Dimitri Prince Dimitri founded his company in 2007 after sixteen years as Senior Vice President of Jewelry with Sotheby's and later as head of Jewelry at Phillips de Pury & Luxembourg auction houses. Dimitri's love of jewelry dates from his childhood and unique heritage of a family where the heads of European Royalty were closely tied together in an era of extreme opulence, beauty and culture all over Europe. He began designing jewelry in 1999, with a collection of gemstone cufflinks that was sold at Bergdorf Goodman and Saks Fifth Avenue. He also designed a line of women's jewelry that was sold at Barneys New York and Neiman Marcus. He has designed for Asprey's in London and done special lines for other American companies. With his own jewelry company he has been able to realize his own vision in his love of gemstones; the juxtaposition of unusual materials and color; imaginative forms and paying attention to detail and to superb craftsmanship. Additional Resources: Website Instagram Facebook Dimitri's Book Photos: Available on TheJewelryJourney.com Transcript: Growing up surrounded by the world's most beautiful jewels, it's no wonder that Prince Dimitri became a jewelry designer known for his gemmy creations. After working in the auction world for many years, he launched Prince Dimitri Jewelry, which offers a range of jewels from affordable to six-figure masterpieces. He joined the Jewelry Journey Podcast to talk about how jewelry became a symbol of royalty; the most memorable pieces that came across his desk at Sotheby's and Phillips; and where royal jewelers throughout history found inspiration. Read the episode transcript here. Sharon: Hello, everyone. Welcome to the Jewelry Journey Podcast. This is the second part of a two-part episode. If you haven't heard part one, please go to thejewelryjourney.com. Today, my guest is Prince Dimitri of Yugoslavia. Welcome back.    You know so much about this, I'm sure, because of studying through auctions, but is it because you looked at Russian jewelry, too, as part of your background?   Prince: Yes, and I've read all the Cartier books. My favorite book of the moment, apart from mine, is the one of Francesca Cartier. I did a podcast with her. The beginning of a certain style of tiara was the tiara of Grand Duchess Vladimir, my great grandmother. She had invited him to her palace in St. Petersburg and introduced him to the court. There was a particular tiara she liked that is now the property of the Queen of England. It's the favorite, actually, of the Queen of England, but Cartier also was her favorite. He asked her if she would be kind enough to loan it to him so he could get inspired by it. She, being the most important patron of the arts in Russia at the time, immediately said, “Yes, let them have it.”    His first tiara, he made it for an American heiress who had married one of the sons of the King of Greece. I show it in my book on two pages, one next to each other, the two tiaras. You can see exactly my great grandmother's tiara in it, but you can see exactly the Cartier style as well. It's unbelievable, the alchemy he did. He took the design, tweaked it, altered it, made some changes, and turned it into a typical Cartier thing. It's the typical art of the French. French art, I would say from the Middle Ages on, and especially in the 18th and 19th centuries, was the art of taking an element from foreign cultures, but doing the magic of turning it into a specifically French product. You see that with porcelains, with furniture, with Japanese lacquers and the Chinese porcelains mounted in the French bronzes, all of that. That's what Cartier wanted to reproduce in his workshop, this mentality of being able to create magic like that, which is true creativity. It all started during the Renaissance times, which marked the beginning of that mentality. Every artist today works based on that.    Sharon: You like paisley as a motif.   Prince: Yes, I love paisley.    Sharon: Why?   Prince: Because the shape is so pretty, and the history is so interesting. It is believed that it arrived in Iran and India more or less at the same time, during the conquest of Alexander the Great. He conquered half of the world in those days, and he died pretty young, at the age of 30, I think, in India. A lot of his armies didn't want to go back to Greece and just settled in India and then Iran. On the artifacts they had with them was a shape that was very similar to the paisley. It was the mango. The mango, in ancient Greek decorative arts, represented the symbol of fertility.   Sharon: What was the name of it?    Prince: The mango, the fruit.   Sharon: Oh, mango, O.K.   Prince: Yes, the Greek mango was the symbol of creativity, fertility and all that. The Persians and the Indians were already an advanced civilization, and they loved the shape and created their own out of it. It's different from the mango, but when you see the two together, you understand how it originated.    It then came back to Europe in the 19th century. There was a huge revival of paisley, and it was immediately applied to fabrics. The center of fabric in Europe was a town in Scotland where they made all the famous shawls that all the elegant ladies of the 19th century wore. The name of that city in Scotland was Paisley. That's why it's called paisley. In French we call it the Kashmir motif, and in Italian also, because it's from the Kashmir region of India. They made it very popular to the western world after it disappeared. It never came back. It's this idea of art going back and forth between different continents, which I find fascinating.   Sharon: Your jewelry is mostly by commission. Is it somebody bringing you a bag of their grandmother's stuff and saying, “What you can you do with this?” or is it, “My wife has a birthday coming up. What can you do?”   Prince: Exactly. We do a lot of that, or cufflinks for the husband or little pendants for young men for graduations. I do Damascus steel corsets, Damascus steel being the metal with which they made the swords for the crusaders. It's folding sheets of steel, like how you fold sheets to make a croissant, like a baked pastry. In my book, you will see how when you cut it, the way it's folded appears. It gives a wonderful design to the steel itself, and then you apply stones to it, and it makes something very, very interesting. I try and make it into my style of design at the same time to make it more interesting.   Sharon: And you say it's appealing to your male clients?   Prince: Male clients or female clients who like more toned-down jewelry, more masculine jewelry, because some jewelry is masculine. During the whole Art Deco period and the retro period, all of a sudden they veered away from all the flowers and the fussy things from before to make more geometric forms, which were more masculine. So did fashion. The fashion was more strict. There were fewer feathers, less fabric. It's a back and forth in history between the energies of yin and yang. You see it in decorative arts.   Sharon: Do you find it's become more popular or growing in popularity? What's the market?   Prince: The market nowadays is for smaller things that you can wear all the time and that you can dress up and down. I make things you can wear with a ball gown that will look amazing, but you could also wear it with a jean and a white T-shirt. It has this chameleon aspect to it. It will blend into your outfit and people won't realize what you're wearing. This is good. You want only the opinion of those who understand jewelry. You want them to understand. To people who don't understand, it doesn't matter. Stuff like that.   Sharon: I think—and this is based on some of the reading I was doing—you talked about it being very chic to mix the high with the low.   Prince: Yeah, to mix things like that. I remember during my second year at Sotheby's in Geneva, there was a lady who walked in who looked like a model. She was a model; she was actually a Serbian model of unbelievable beauty. She was wearing a white T-shirt and jeans and high heels, and on her pinkie finger she had stuck two rings. One was an emerald-cut, D flawless diamond of 30 carats, and the other one was a 25-carat cushion-cut Kashmir sapphire. I spotted those and I said, “Is this what I think it is?” and she said, “Yes, absolutely.” You know who that lady was? Mrs. Rizzoli.    Sharon: I'm sorry, who?   Prince: It was Mrs. Rizzoli.   Sharon: Mrs. Rizzoli, the publisher?   Prince: Yeah. I was told afterwards when she left, but it's Rizzoli who did my book. I always remember what an interesting way of wearing jewelry it was. She has certainly influence my creativity, I think.    Sharon: I'm sorry; I'm just not following. Because you would expect somebody like that to be dressed a lot more formally?   Prince: I had never seen somebody with a jean and T-shirt wearing a 30-carat, D flawless diamond. She was wearing $10 million of diamonds on that finger, and nobody paid attention. I spotted it immediately because gems speak to me.    Sharon: When they speak to you, are they telling you what to do with them?   Prince: Yes, sometimes, but I don't know. The first thing I notice is jewelry. It's like a sixth sense I have.   Sharon: I don't know how many places somebody's going to walk in with a 30-carat, D flawless diamond. Maybe in New York. How many do you see? I don't see that many, anyway.   Prince: Not anymore. Yeah, not anymore.   Sharon: You've probably seen a million. When I think of the high and the low, I think of people describing wearing something from Target and then something from, I don't know, Tiffany. Maybe not so much anymore.   Prince: Yeah, from Tiffany, of course, or Cartier or anything. Even Fabergé.   Sharon: Yes. You talked too about having different lines at different price points. You have it for the ultra-rich and then you have it—   Prince: At every price point there is, because I like the challenge of being able to do something very pretty that's affordable. With unlimited budgets it's easier, but I also like the challenge. For instance, this is the best example. The other day, I had to do an engagement ring for the daughter of a friend of mine. The boyfriend of the fiancé couldn't afford much. He didn't have a very big budget, and he was wondering if we could do a mounting that would make the diamond look bigger and add two on the sides and all that. I said, “No, no, no. You don't want a ring that says, ‘This is all I can afford.' You want a ring that says, ‘I have fabulous taste, and this is it.'” So, I gave him a one-and-a-half-carat diamond, which is small, but I did a really nice mounting. We did something called the love note on each side.   Sharon: The love song?   Prince: The love note. The love note is also known as the note of Savoy, which I speak a lot about in my book and my Instagram. It's the symbol of true love, and it comes with a motto: It binds you, but it doesn't constrain. I said, “You already have a wonderful symbol in this thing. We're going to make it in platinum. There's no underhand. I want the diamond to touch the skin of your fiancé so she can feel it on the palm. It's going to be a work of art.” It worked. We kept the budget under $20,000.   Sharon: Wow! It's a love dot?   Prince: A love note.   Sharon: Is it a little knot on the side?   Prince: It's a love note, two of them. It's shaped like a figure eight, like an infinity note; one going up, one going down. It's the note Savoy. You'll see it in my book and on my website. I did an entire collection called “The New Look of Love,” and I do the colored version of it in gold with little cabochon stones. They are about $4,000 or $5,000 and they're super nice.   Sharon: And you find those do well for you?    Prince: Yes.   Sharon: I'm curious what you think. I was listening to a podcast this morning talking about inflation and whether there's going to be a recession with a little “r” or a big “r.” What do you see in terms of jewelry right now? How is the market for jewelry? Are people uncertain?    Prince: People are uncertain. It will slow down. I happen to be lucky right now. I have had a ton of orders lined up, but I don't know how long it will last. It all depends on how the economy does. It's always like that.   Sharon: Maybe you haven't experienced it for a while, but when times are slower in terms of jewelry, are you doing more drawings in preparation for when things pick up?   Prince: Yes, I do that. In 2008, I did that. I was drawing a lot because I like to draw.   Sharon: Do you wake up full of ideas?   Prince: Sometimes, yes. Not every day, but all of a sudden I do have ideas.   Sharon: And they're coming from things around you and things you see and what you read and history, like you talked about.   Prince: Yes, anything I could see in the street, for instance, any object, sometimes out of nothing comes an idea. You know what they say: for those who listen, even stones speak.   Sharon: That's interesting. I haven't heard that before. I think that's a great line.    You talk about Catherine the Great being one of your ancestors. She was a fabulous marketer through her jewelry; her jewelry was a form of marketing. Could you tell us more about that?   Prince: Yes. She normally had a gold dress. The dress was very important. She had something like 150 brooches sewn on the dress. She looked like a Christmas tree, plus the tiara and the crown behind all of that. She understood that somebody walked into the palace in St. Petersburg, let's say. If they saw her looking like that, they would instantly know that was the empress and that's what she did. In a way, she invented the outfit, the uniform of an empress.    It's funny you say that, because years later my grandmother told me, “Tiaras always give me a headache.” I said, “And could you not wear them?” She said, “No, I had to wear them because that's what was expected of us. It was our uniform. We had to wear tiaras and jewelry and look the part because that's what we were; that's what our job was.” You see it today. The Queen of England, who's a genius at what she does, is always the most elegant woman in England. If you didn't know she was the queen, which is impossible in the modern day because everybody knows what she looks like, but if you saw a lady dressed like that, you would instantly know she's somebody very important.   Sharon: You're communicating through your jewelry.   Prince: Yes, it's a uniform in a way. If you're a policeman, you were a policeman's uniform. If you're a nurse, you wear a nurse's uniform. If you're a princess or queen, you wear that kind of uniform.   Sharon: Which raises a question as you're talking, I'm thinking, “Why put tiaras with your jeans?” I don't know.    Prince: No, that you can't do. That is the one thing left that—first of all, you have to be of noble or royal blood, and it's only with a white tie on certain, very rare occasions.   Sharon: Do you have to be noble if you can afford it? I'm just wondering.   Prince: Yeah. The protocol is that it's only ladies of the nobility and of the aristocracy, meaning the nobility or the royalty, only those ladies are allowed a tiara, and they have to be married. Normally unmarried girls don't wear tiaras yet.   Sharon: Interesting.    Prince: No.   Sharon; Did you have a lot of tiaras cross your desk when you were in the auction houses?   Prince: Yes, quite a few from royal families in Europe. Yeah, very nice ones.    Sharon: Did they want them melted down, or did they want you to try and auction them as tiaras?   Prince: Auction them as tiaras, because it makes more money like that.    Sharon: Yes, I suppose—well, I don't. Would it? I guess it depends on what it was made of.   Prince: If you can wear it as a necklace, then it makes a lot of money. If you can't wear it as a necklace, then it sells for less because it's more a difficult thing to wear. A lot of those tiaras were necklaces fixed on an invisible frame that you put on your head. It stands up straight, and then you unscrew everything and you can turn it into a necklace, which was a very clever invention done in the 19th century. The Russians were the masters of that, jewels with a variable geometry, I call them.   Sharon: Jewels with a variable geometry. I think of the pieces that come apart as being more from the 30s and 40s, but you're saying it was done earlier.   Prince: Well before, at the end of the 19th century. The Russians did that. You could take the center parts and wear them as brooches.    Sharon: I'm surprised to hear that you're not talking about Fabergé jewels. Did you see those? Were they in your background?   Prince: I sold those, yes, but those were extremely, extremely rare. The most famous one in existence today is the Cyclamen Tiara of the Duchess of Westminster in England, which also unmounted to become a necklace. It's absolutely a dream of a tiara. My grandmother had some necklaces and pendants and little things, but not many important ones.   Sharon: Fabergé, she had.   Prince: Yeah, it was mostly objects and little jewels. But tiaras, there were very few made, and they disappeared during the Revolution.    Sharon: Prince Dimitri, where do you want to take your business from here?    Prince: I want to keep on growing, wherever that will be.    Sharon: Have you found it to be any help or impediment, being a prince? It must be, “Oh my god, it's a prince.” There's an attraction there, but has it been an impediment in what you do?   Prince: No, not really. You're right; there's always a curiosity, but after a while, that's it. There's also a human being.    Sharon: When people ask you what you are a prince of, what do you say? A Yugoslavian prince?   Prince: Yugoslavia, yeah. That's my birthright. When we were born, Yugoslavia still existed, even though it was a Communist country. Titles go on forever. They don't change in case of mutations or geopolitical upheavals and stuff like that. It's a birthright that follows the family forever because it proceeds from the family itself. One studies that in constitutional law in Europe, funnily enough, because some countries still recognize titles, the ones where there's a monarchy. On my English passport and Belgian passport, my title is written because they recognize it. On my American passport and my Italian passport, it's not written.   Sharon: Has it influenced your jewelry in any way?   Prince: No, it's all aesthetics. It's only about aesthetics.   Sharon: So it's removed from that.   Prince: Yeah. Movement is very important.   Sharon: What's your favorite jewel? What's your favorite gem?   Prince: I don't have a favorite gem because I really love all of them, but I have a favorite color combination, which is greens and blues together. For instance, there is nothing I like more than the mixture of aquamarine, emerald and sapphire together. There are lot of examples in my book based on that.    Sharon: How about the cut? Is there a favorite cut you have of a gem?   Prince: I like emerald cuts. I like a square emerald cut with cut corners. I like antique cushion cuts very much, and I love cabochon also.    Sharon: Do you work with all those?   Prince: I work with all of those. I also like pear shape, but it all depends on how it's cut. Some cuts don't work; others do. I like unusual cuts also, different shapes that are not seen very often. It depends on how you combine them.   Sharon: Right. I guess that's the artistry.   Prince: Yes.   Sharon: Thank you so much for being with us today and telling us about your line of jewelry. We can find it at Neiman Marcus. Besides that there's the book, which we can find—   Prince: You can find it on my website, Dimitri.com. You can find it on Amazon also. You can find it at Neiman Marcus in Dallas, Texas for the moment, along with a collection I designed specifically for them.   Sharon: For Neiman Marcus in Dallas. When you say specifically for them, how would it have been different if you had done it for Neiman Marcus in Los Angeles, for instance? What was specific?   Prince: From the moment I sold to Neiman Marcus, it was the one in Dallas. We just started last fall, and it's a variation of the cufflinks I was telling you about before. It's stones inside of stones, but with different colors, different assortments, a different way of designing it. Similar but different. That's what I'm doing only for Neiman Marcus.   Sharon: Do you see it throughout the states, though, in other places?    Prince: No.   Sharon: It's basically Neiman.   Prince: Neiman in Dallas for the moment. I'm hoping to expand that.   Sharon: Well, we'll look for you elsewhere, and we'll also look at the book. Thank you so much for being with us today. We greatly appreciate it.   Prince: Thank you so much. It was so kind of you to invite me. I'm very touched.   Thank you again for listening. Please leave us a rating and review so we can help others start their own jewelry journey.    

What you'll learn in this episode: The surprising stories Prince Dimitri discovered while compiling material for his book, “Once Upon a Diamond: A Family Tradition of Royal Jewels” How decorative and fine arts have influenced jewelry throughout history Why paisley is an enduring motif in jewelry Why mixing high and low jewelry and fashion has always been chic How Dimitri's ancestor Catherine the Great created the royal uniform we recognize today About Prince Dimitri Prince Dimitri founded his company in 2007 after sixteen years as Senior Vice President of Jewelry with Sotheby's and later as head of Jewelry at Phillips de Pury & Luxembourg auction houses. Dimitri's love of jewelry dates from his childhood and unique heritage of a family where the heads of European Royalty were closely tied together in an era of extreme opulence, beauty and culture all over Europe. He began designing jewelry in 1999, with a collection of gemstone cufflinks that was sold at Bergdorf Goodman and Saks Fifth Avenue. He also designed a line of women's jewelry that was sold at Barneys New York and Neiman Marcus. He has designed for Asprey's in London and done special lines for other American companies. With his own jewelry company he has been able to realize his own vision in his love of gemstones; the juxtaposition of unusual materials and color; imaginative forms and paying attention to detail and to superb craftsmanship. Additional Resources: Website Instagram Facebook Dimitri's Book Photos: Available on TheJewelryJourney.com Transcript: Growing up surrounded by the world's most beautiful jewels, it's no wonder that Prince Dimitri became a jewelry designer known for his gemmy creations. After working in the auction world for many years, he launched Prince Dimitri Jewelry, which offers a range of jewels from affordable to six-figure masterpieces. He joined the Jewelry Journey Podcast to talk about how jewelry became a symbol of royalty; the most memorable pieces that came across his desk at Sotheby's and Phillips; and where royal jewelers throughout history found inspiration. Read the episode transcript here.     Sharon: Hello, everyone. Welcome to the Jewelry Journey Podcast. This is a two-part Jewelry Journey Podcast. Please make sure you subscribe so you can hear part two as soon as it comes out later this week.    Today, my guest is Prince Dimitri of Yugoslavia. After more than a decade in the auction world, rising to the top of the jewelry ranks, Prince Dimitri took his love of gems and launched Prince Dimitri Jewelry. He is also an author, having written “Once Upon a Diamond: A Family Tradition of Royal Jewels.” The book has been described as an extraordinary family scrapbook. It has photographs of his relatives, who are celebrities and royalty, showing them wearing their jaw-dropping jewels. It weaves in stories of his illustrious family background and the history that goes behind the photographs. We'll hear more about Prince Dimitri and his jewelry as well as his jewelry journey today. Prince Dimitri, welcome to the program.   Prince: Thank you. Hello, Sharon. So nice to see you.   Sharon: Nice to see you.   Prince: I heard so much about you.   Sharon: Dimitri, I'm going to let you tell everybody what your official name is because I could not pronounce it. I saw different variations. Go ahead.   Prince: It's a Serbian name. It's pronounced Karageorgevich, and it's written with letters that don't exist in our alphabet.   Sharon: I didn't realize that. It's interesting; in everything I saw about you, it gave your name, but I didn't realize it was Serbian. Tell us about your jewelry journey.   Prince: It all started as a child. I was obsessed with gems, totally fascinated when I saw my mother and my grandmothers wearing jewelry. When we were in the street and there was a jewelry store, I had to go in and look, and I would stare at the showcases. It never left me. I think I was born with it. It's my passion in life. I joined Sotheby's in 1984 and I stayed there until 2001. Then I was at Phillips for three years. Little by little, I started designing, and now it's all I do.   Sharon: I thought it was interesting; some of the material I read said you started making jewelry because you decided you'd seen everything there was to see in jewelry after so long in the auction world. Tell us a little bit about that.   Prince: It's not exactly like that. I started designing cufflinks when I was at Sotheby's totally by chance. I had no idea I could design anything or that I was slightly creative. I was a gemologist and expert. I appraised jewelry, and that's all I did. Then a friend of mine had some cufflinks he had made in Brazil with some lovely stones, but a very ugly mounting with thick claws around it. I looked at it and I thought, “You know, I love those stones, but those big, thick claws around it are so clumsy. You need to remount them.” He said, “How should we remount them?” All of a sudden, my mind went blank. I saw a little hole, and I said, “That's it. You're going to drill a hole in the center of the cufflinks. In that hole, you're going to set a little diamond or a ruby or an emerald or a sapphire. It has to be a precious stone, one of those four. That will be how you mount it, through the stones. What you'll see on your shirt will be that lovely, emerald-cut aquamarine with a little stone in the center.” Slick, clean, very gemmy, very chic, I thought. He did it, and it worked beautifully.    He said, “Why don't we do a collection like that?” Long story short, we did the collection. It ended up at Bergdorf, at Saks. Little by little, I said, “Let's make some rings and some bracelets and some necklaces on the same principle. All of it,” and we made all that. We were doing trunk shows on the side, as I was still at Sotheby's then, and little by little, it took on a life of its own. Then I was given an offer to join Phillips with a group of other people. It was at the time when Sotheby's was going through major changes and nothing was very happy there anymore, so I thought, “Why not?” That didn't last very long, the Phillips adventure, so I continued.    Then, I was approached by a wonderful man who was called Salvador Assael, the king of pearls in those days. After the war, he had convinced all the big houses that black pearls were not black because they were dirty; they were black because it was a beautiful color. He finally opened their eyes. He told me the story of how they would look at the pearls and say, “But these are black pearls. They're dirty. Pearls are supposed to be white,” and he told them, “No, open your eyes. Look at this. This one is a green one. This one is a pinkish one. This one is a peacock one with mixes of green and purple,” and they loved it. He became the number one wholesaler of pearls.   Sharon: Is that Assael?   Prince: Assael, yeah.    Sharon: Wow!   Prince: He's very famous. He called me one day. He said, “You know, I love the old jewels and everything you make.” It was after 9/11. The market was not doing well for jewelry anywhere. He said to me, “I can't sell anything anymore because there are only so many strands of pearls people want. Do you think you can design a collection for me? More importantly, do you like pearls?” I said, “Yes, I absolutely love pearls.” We made this collection, and before you knew it, we were in every Neiman Marcus in America except three or four of them, I think. We were in 35 Neiman Marcuses. We were the number two seller at Neiman Marcus and it became a huge success.    Then I met my business partner who put me in business to be a serious company. That was 2008, so things didn't work as well as I wished. I had to go on my own because he couldn't funnel any more into it, and now that's all I do. I'm back at Neiman Marcus in Dallas, but the bulk of my business now is one-of-a-kind pieces. That's what I really like. As I say in the preface of my book, I like the concept of alchemy. Bring me some lead; I will turn it into gold. All my friends look into their drawers and find these old stones and granny's pearl necklaces that they can't wear because they're so dated and all of that. Sometimes they bring me bags of things that are totally unrelated and I do the magic. Half of the jewels in the book are made like that.    One of the typical examples: I was in Southampton with a friend. We were picking up pebbles on the beach together one day in August. We go home. She shows me these diamond earrings she wants me to remount, these little strings of diamonds that are badly made and boring. I went into the bowl where we had placed all the pebbles. I picked four of the most similar ones, and I said, “Here. This is where your diamonds are going. This is going to be your necklace.” She thought I was completely crazy. She said, “I know you are original and you have ideas, but—"   Sharon: You were mixing pebbles and diamonds? Is that what you were doing?   Prince: Yes. She said, “You're going to have to explain this to me.” I said, “I will. I will do a drawing for you, and you will make your decision.” So, I did the drawing. I get a phone call from her a few days later. She goes, “I love it. I need this necklace more than I've ever needed a piece of jewelry.” It's featured in the book; you'll see it.   Sharon: How did the book come about? Did you want to write the book? Did Rizzoli come to you?   Prince: The same way the first cufflinks came to me: totally by chance. It's one of the miracles of modern technology. It's called Instagram. I put all my jewelry on Instagram, but I have tons of old photos from the family, and I post them and write fascinating stories of what all these people have done. For instance, how my great-grandmother saved the life of Albert Einstein; how Adolph Hitler kidnaped the sister of my grandfather and had them killed in a concentration camp. Some of them are beautiful stories; some are very, very tragic, but there are many of them. Somebody from Rizzoli sent me a message on Instagram saying, “I love your Instagram. We should make a book based on that concept. I need to talk to you.” Long story short, it took two and a half years, and here we are.   Sharon: Somebody should put together a book of all the stories of everything that's come from Instagram, because people have started jewelry lines and written books from it. It's really launched a lot of people. Was it hard for you to gather all the material, or did you already have it?   Prince: I already had all the material. What I didn't have, my mother had. Also, some uncles and aunts and relatives had it, so that was easy. The difficult part was how we were going to make it work. We had to put the chapters in order. It was like a puzzle. We had everything on the floor in our minds, with the different chapters and stories and everything. Little by little, it came together. Everybody had a great idea. I had great ideas.    They lady who wrote the book with me had a great idea. She was a fantastic fact checker. She discovered, for instance, that—one of the stories I tell is how, before the war, my grandmother, then Crown Princess of Italy, had discovered Maria Montessori of the famous Montessori School. She decided she loved that program so much, because it was so modern and interesting and ahead of its time, that she wanted to create her own Montessori School at the royal palace for her children and children of the nobility.    My mother told me, “Yes, it was fantastic. Here's the photo.” The school was in the Gallery Uffizi in Florence, which had been turned into a palace one year before, in 1942. She said, “Yes, and Maria Montessori was so nice. I remember her.” Well, it was a fictitious memory my mother had because she was eight years old. We found out through fact checking that Maria Montessori was actually in India for eight years at the time. The person she met was the associate of Maria Montessori who founded the school with her. My mother assumed that, because her mother was who she was, it was actually Maria Montessori herself who came, but it wasn't the case. We discovered lots of stories like that.    Sharon: Interesting.   Prince: We discovered that my grandmother's famous Cartier jewelry was not Cartier jewelry. I pressed and pressed the wonderful gentleman at the Cartier archives, the poor thing. I tortured him so much that he had to do three months of research to find out that it was my great grandmother, the Grand Duchess Vladimir of Russia, who came to Cartier to buy some things and asked him if they could repair this tiara she had in her bag. It was a tiara from Chaumet, and nobody knew it. In every history book, it's listed as the Cartier Tiara.    I had just enough time to jump on my phone and call the editor at Rizzoli when we were already in full print. I said, “This is what's going on. We need to change the story.” They said, “You can delete the word Cartier. That's all I can do for you. It's too late.” We were in the middle of Covid. The paperwork was done in Bologna, which was the center of printing in Italy. “That chapter is going to be printed six hours from now, so let me hang up and call them.”   Sharon: Is that what you did? You just didn't use the word?   Prince: We just removed that, yeah. We couldn't say anything more, but I speak about it all the time. So, now people know.   Sharon: Interesting. I've seen the book and I've looked through it, but I don't come from an illustrious background like you do. My ancestors were not royalty, so I didn't relate to it as much, but now this humanizes it.   Prince: Yes. There are 16 pages of Romanov photos that have never been published before because I owned the four albums they were in, and I've never shown them to anybody. These are really interesting because it shows them in day-to-day life. They are in the south of France. They go to a spa in Gautreau, Seville, famous for its water. They visit the house of Joan of Arc. It's really interesting.    The most fascinating series of photos is the second Olympic Games in history, photographed by my great grandmother. It's all there in the book. There were also photos in Venice and photos in Spain at the bullfights, but we decided not to show the bullfight because it could be controversial. In those days, it wasn't.   Sharon: You've lived all over the world. Prior to coming to the auction world, you went to school in Switzerland, then France?    Prince: I was in law school in Switzerland for a while, then in France. Then I did law school in Paris.   Sharon: When did you do GIA?   Prince: When I came to New York. When I finished law school, I had so many friends already in New York. New York was this magic world far away from us. There was something very exotic about America and New York. It was quite fascinating, so I decided to come here and finish my law studies. I had my degree already, but I thought it would be a good idea to do a training program on Wall Street, which is what lots of European people did. So, I did that on Wall Street for almost a year. It was very interesting. I learned a lot of things, but I wasn't particularly ready to make it a career. There was an opening at Sotheby's that I found out about, and that's how it happened.   Sharon: Was it a huge decision, or was it a natural segue to go into that world from the world you were in, the business world?   Prince: Yes, it was a big decision. It was a very exciting decision. It was a logical thing to do because I have this Renaissance mentality. I think one should know about everything in life. I felt that with a law degree and a kind of Wall Street degree, which is a Series 7—it's the exams you take to become a stockbroker—I thought, “I'm well educated enough to do what I really like, which is gemology and stones and jewelry and all of that.”    I worked at Sotheby's right away. I knew enough about jewelry that I could become an expert right away, in the sense that I needed to learn gemology at the GIA, which I went did by following the prices in the market. Pretty quickly I moved up and became after six or seven years, I think, a senior vice president for the company.   Sharon: What was it about the auction world combined with jewelry that attracted you?   Prince: The amount of jewelry we sold every day, that was the exciting part. For every auction you see, the catalogue you see four times a year in New York, three times a year in Geneva, four times a year in London, and, in those days, also in Hong Kong, that catalogue represents the tip of the iceberg of what comes in and out the doors of Sotheby's. Every day, it was mountains of jewelry. It was so exciting to see so much. I'm very impatient. I want to see a lot. One diamond that's there day after day if you work in a shop is not exciting enough for me.    Sharon: You need the constant turnover and attraction.   Prince: Yes. That was great. One day we discovered, literally in a shoe box in a bank vault on Park Avenue, one of the most famous Cartier tiaras. The same one is in one of the Cartier books today. The lady who had it had no idea. She said, “I have this funny thing that goes on the head from my grandmother. Do you think it's worth anything?” I was like, “Yes! It's fantastic.”   Sharon: Wow! What else is in shoe boxes that we don't know about, right?   Prince: There were lots of things like that. My most beautiful story from Sotheby's, I have to say, was when this poor lady came in. She was a bag lady, literally, in tears and very nervous. I felt there was something going on there. She told me the tragic story of how her husband had divorced her, took all her money, and she had literally one little sapphire ring. She was hoping to get $2,000 to just be able to pay her rent or she was going to be evicted. She was going to be on the street. She starts crying and crying, and she said, “Do you think you can loan me the money?” I said, “Well, can I please see the ring?” She looks at me and goes, “Here it is. Do you think I can get maybe $10,000? Would that be possible? And you could loan me $2,000?”   I take a look at it. It is the most beautiful Kashmir sapphire I saw in my entire life. I said, “I think I can get more. Let me speak to my boss for the loan. Let me see.” I call everybody. I said, “Guys, you won't believe this.” I tell them the story. They all look at the stone and everybody says, “Oh, my god! We've never seen a stone like that.” My boss says, “You know we don't loan money against one piece.” I said, “John, she thinks it's worth $10,000. Let's offer her $75,000 to $100,000 for the ring and let it sell for over $200,000.” He goes, “Fine.”    I go back in the room with a check with me. I said, “Listen, it's your lucky day. That is a lovely ring. I think we can put an estimate of $75,000 to $100,000.” She almost fainted. She goes, “Oh, my god!” Three months later, she comes to the auction. We opened the bid at $75,000. Before you know it, the hammer falls, and it sells for $380,000. She is sitting in front of me sobbing and crying, and then all of us start crying because we knew the story. It is a lovely story because we really changed the life of somebody.   Sharon: That's true. You did the change her life, it sounds like. From there you moved to Phillips. From Sotheby's, you moved to Phillips?   Prince: Yeah.   Sharon: And you were head of the jewelry department there?   Prince: Yes.   Sharon: Where were you when the man from Brazil came to you with the first cufflinks?   Prince: I was at Sotheby's then. It was in 1997. It was 40 years before I left Sotheby's, so I was starting that process little by little then.   Sharon: In your jewelry, you barely see the jewelry part; you see the gem. Is it the gems that are talking to you?   Prince: Both. I love that. A lot of my jewelry is very gemmy, like you say. You're absolutely right, but a lot of it based on whimsical ideas, unusual materials like the pebbles from the beach or even rubber cords. I do things mounted on leather, Damascus steel, oxidized bronze, oxidized silver. 24-karat gold I use a lot. I do all sorts of things. The other source of inspiration is the shapes, shapes as you see them in decorative arts of every culture in the world.    That was the philosophy of Cartier. He instructed, already in the 19th century, the designers who worked for him to look at the decorative arts and to travel and take notes and make drawings of everything they saw, because that was the basis for all sorts of things. In the 19th century, there was a very famous book written, which is called “The Grammar of Ornament.” “The Grammar of Ornament” is a visual dictionary of every artistic style that ever existed in history in any country in the world. It's absolutely fantastic, and I've gotten tons and tons of ideas from there. So did the people at Cartier at the beginning.    For instance, the Edwardian period of Cartier, it coincided with two things: when they rediscovered the Louis XVI decorative arts style with the garlands—it was called the garland style—and the introduction of platinum. Platinum in the old days was not considered a precious metal; it was for industrial applications. Then, when they studied it, they realized how hard it was and how white it was. So, it quickly replaced silver.    If you look at tiaras made with silver, which are the oldest ones from the first half of the 19th century, they are very heavy. They are lovely, but there's something about them. With the introduction of platinum, Cartier was able to transform them into literally a spiderweb, completely ethereal. That's when they double in size. They're ten times as thin and you can put twice the amount of stones. It sits like an aura on your head. That is what gave them the impetus to create the garland style, the classical Art Deco that mutated into Art Deco. At the time, platinum became such a success that it became seven times more expensive than gold.    Sharon: Wow!    Prince: It's interesting, yeah?   Sharon: Yes, very.

Working with Jeff Bezos, co-creating Redfin and sharing the secrets of making a billion-dollar company with David Selinger. David Selinger was an early employee at Amazon, working directly under Jeff Bezos. He led the R&D arm of Amazon's data-mining and personalization team. He co-founded Redfin (now a multi-billion dollar company) and founded RichRelevance, a company that offers personalized shopping experiences for large retail brands, including Macy's, Barneys New York, Office Depot, and others.   He is now inventing the next BIG thing in home security.   Areas of Expertise: Entrepreneurship Artificial Intelligence and Robotics Home Security & Crime

Jon talks with Alison Bruhn and Delia Folk, Co-Founders of The Style That Binds Us, a fashion-forward lifestyle brand & community for those who want to live a stylish & fearless life. Hear how this mother-daughter duo is building its fashion business. They offer style & business consulting, host events, have a podcast & YouTube channel and so much more. Walk with this mother-daughter duo as they pull back the curtain on the fashion industry. Alison Bruhn is a national style and image consultant with clients across the country. She studied at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City and holds a Color certification from the Image Resource Center of New York. She is a member of the Association of Image Consultants International. The purpose of her work is to empower women through creating a visual brand and transforming their style to ignite a new path of confidence and independence. She works with both private clients and groups. Delia Folk started her career in the fashion industry by interning at Versace in Men's Wholesale. After graduation, she worked at Barneys New York on the buying team in Cosmetics, Ready-To-Wear & Jewelry both for full-price and off-price channels. While working in the buying office, she discovered and nurtured emerging designers, spotted the latest trends, and gave insights into a career in the fashion industry. She is a sought-after speaker, having spoken at American Fashion System with ISEM & the Independent Jewelry Summit. She works with brands on a consulting basis. She is enthralled with the history of fashion and how the past affects the present. Going to market, meeting designers, and hearing their inspiration firsthand along with attending fashion shows and getting a view into the designers' brains and creativity is what fuels her. Having kick-started her career at world-renowned fashion institutions, Delia is committed to sharing the knowledge she's learned with others. Connect with Jon Dwoskin: Twitter: @jdwoskin Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jonathan.dwoskin Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thejondwoskinexperience/ Website: https://jondwoskin.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jondwoskin/ Email: jon@jondwoskin.com Get Jon's Book: The Think Big Movement: Grow your business big. Very Big!   Connect with Alison Bruhn and Delia Folk: Website: https://thestylethatbindsus.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/tstbu Instagram: http://instagram.com/thestylethatbindsus LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deliafolk/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-Style-That-Binds-Us-374143669728760/

David Selinger was an early employee at Amazon, working directly under Jeff Bezos. He lead the R&D arm of Amazon's data-mining and personalization team. He is the CEO and Co-Founder of Deep Sentinel, an AI technology security company. In addition, he co-founded Redfin (now a multi-billion dollar company) and founded RichRelevance, a company that offers personalized shopping experiences for large retail brands, including Macy's, Barneys New York, Office Depot, and others.--The complete show notes for this episode can be found at: https://Podcast.SYGroupIntl.com--If you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts/iTunes? It takes less than 60 seconds, and it really makes a difference in helping to convince hard-to-get guests. I also love reading the reviews!--Need help creating your businesses' next breakthrough? Book a Call!https://S4SPod.com/book-a-breakthrough

David Selinger was an early employee at Amazon, working directly under Jeff Bezos. He led the R&D arm of Amazon's data-mining and personalization team. He co-founded Redfin (now a multi-billion dollar company) and founded RichRelevance, a company that offers personalized shopping experiences for large retail brands, including Macy's, Barneys New York, Office Depot, and others. He is now inventing the next BIG thing in home security – Deep Sentinel, an AI-based home protection. The company's intelligent crime prevention transforms home security from false alarms and ineffective after-the-fact crime alerts to real-time crime prediction and prevention. With Deep Sentinel, Americans can gain a reliable, cost-effective way to protect their homes and stop a burglary, mail theft or driveway break-in before it happens – and feel dramatically safer at home, at work, and on vacation. Guest Links Website: https://deepsentinel.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deepsentinel LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/selly SJS Website: Thesuccessjourneyshow.com Facebook: @successjourneyshow Instagram: @successjourneyshow Twitter: @success_show

David Selinger was an early employee at Amazon, working directly under Jeff Bezos. He led the R&D arm of Amazon's data-mining and personalization team. He co-founded Redfin (now a multi-billion-dollar real estate company) and founded Rich Relevance, a company that offers personalized shopping experiences for large retail brands, including Macy's, Barneys New York, Office Depot and others. He is now inventing the next BIG thing in home security.

David Selinger was an early employee at Amazon, working directly under Jeff Bezos. He led the R&D arm of Amazon's data-mining and personalization team. He co-founded Redfin (now a multi-billion dollar company) and founded RichRelevance, a company that offers personalized shopping experiences for large retail brands, including Macy's, Barneys New York, Office Depot, and others. He is now inventing the next BIG thing in home security – Deep Sentinel, an AI-based home protection. The company's intelligent crime prevention transforms home security from false alarms and ineffective after-the-fact crime alerts to real-time crime prediction and prevention. With Deep Sentinel, Americans can gain a reliable, cost-effective way to protect their homes and stop a burglary, mail theft, or driveway break-in before it happens – and feel dramatically safer at home, at work, and on vacation. What we discussed: Aligning your personal life w/your professional life The importance of growth Relationship building secrets The importance of finishing something How to use data to make great decisions Strong Convictions loosely held Principles of leadership he learned from Jeff Bezos (CEO of Amazon) Connect w/David: https://www.deepsentinel.com/ (Website) https://www.instagram.com/deepsentinel/ (IG) https://www.linkedin.com/in/selly/ (LinkedIn) Let's connect: https://open.acast.com/shows/5e759e3195fa07a414c9afe8/episodes/60ed28a18c0c31001917b838/www.yourultimateplaybook.com (My book (The Ultimate Playbook for High Achievement) ) https://www.linkedin.com/in/alex-molden-9693431b/ (LinkedIn) https://www.instagram.com/alexmolden/ (IG) https://www.facebook.com/alex.molden1/ (Facebook) https://open.acast.com/shows/5e759e3195fa07a414c9afe8/episodes/www.alexmoldenspeaks.com (website) https://thehaacademy.com/get-full-access (High Achievers Academy) *Get you a https://www.uv-brite.com/ (UV Brite water bottle)!! Use coupon code Sharkeffect15 for 15% off!! **Get stronger w/https://frogfuel.com/ (Frog Fuel)!! Use coupon code Sharkeffect20 for 20% off of your 1st order! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Looking and feeling your best are core principles of being camera-ready and on this episode, I get schooled in the psychology of getting dressed, enclosed cognition and how it can make or break your audition, job interview or first date with mother-daughter duo Alison Bruhn and Delia Folk, co-founders of The Style That Binds Us.   Delia and Alison have built a global lifestyle brand and community for women who want to live a stylish and fearless life.   Delia Folk is a former Barneys New York buyer and a national wardrobe consultant. She is enthralled with the history of fashion and how the past affects the present. Having kick-started her career at world- renowned fashion institutions, Delia is committed to sharing the knowledge she's learned with others.   Alison is a national style and image consultant with clients across the country. The purpose of her work is to empower women through creating a visual brand and transforming their style to ignite a new path of confidence and independence.   Together we share the belief that it is never one size fits all.   Here are the emerging brands Delia and Alison are loving right now: Mestiza: Use code THESTYLE15 for 15% off on their website ALIVIA: Use code TSTBU10 for 10% off on the Alivia site Marie Laffont: Use code THESTYLE10 for 10% off on her website LOVA: Use code THESTYLE15 for 15% off on LOVA's website Li Organics: Use code TSTBU20 for 20% off on her website Sarah Flint: Use code ALISON50 for $50 off your first pair on her website Michelle Waugh: Use code thestyle for 15% off on her website The Laundress: Use code STYLE for 25% off on their website Mon Coeur Schutz Dose & Co. Esker Beauty Laiik: Use code TSTBU15 for 15% off on their website ClassicSix: Use code THESTYLEXCLASSICSIX10 for 10% off on their website SUPEREGG: Use code THESTYLE for 15% off on their website OJOOK: *Use code: THESTYLE for a free toothbrush with your purchase on their website Asutra Short & Suite: *Use code THESTYLE for 15% off on their website Dirty Labs Learn more at www.thestylethatbindsus.com. You can also find them on YouTube as well as on their The Style That Binds Us podcast.

A deep conversation with Ronald van der Kemp (RVDK) a very creative soul who speaks about how staying true to himself and his own beliefs made him achieve his lifelong dream of becoming a globally celebrated sustainable Fashion Designer.    Guest Introduction:    I hope you are ready for a wild ride into the ever-moving world of high fashion, gorgeous supermodels, extremely talented fashion designers and flashy movie stars dressed up in the most exquisite creations - because my next guest is in the very midst of all of this.   His own demi-couture fashion house is responsible for the most wonderful garments worn by Royalty like Her Royal Highness Sheikha Mozha Bint Nasser, supermodels such as Kate Moss, Adriana Lima and Karlie Kloss singers like Justin Bieber, Lady Gaga, Celine Dion and Kate Perry and actresses such as Pryanka Chopra Jonas, Emma Watson, Lily Collins and Dakota Johnson - and this list goes on and on.    Ronald van der Kemp worked for over 25 years as a designer and creative director for high-end international luxury brands such as Bill Blass, Celine/Michael Kors, Guy Laroche and Barneys New York before starting ‘RVDK' a label under his own name in August 2014.    ‘RVDK' is on a mission to show the world that ethical fashion can be glamorous and exciting and profoundly believes that a form of art can change behaviour which leads to a bigger change in the industry. “The world is full of beautiful things and we can't see it anymore. Because we are too busy to consider them or too rookie to appreciate them.” is an RVDK observation prominently featured on the label's website.    The vision and mission of RVDK is not just a hollow slogan as this designer ensures that 95% of the material used for his designs already exists. With that RVDK is the very first sustainable couture brand in the world and Ronald the very first green pioneer haute couture designer on the globe.    In an interview with the French ‘Federation de la Haute Couture et de la Mode' Ronald states that RVDK is trying to reinvent the notion of couture.    “We are not really a Couture House but more a movement that is trying to change things in the world.” says Ronald.    “We want to work with companies and customers who want to be different, who have a point of view and a strength that wants to exude what they are about. We all need to think differently, this is what I am looking for.”   So much to talk about with this world famous sustainable designer who is on a mission to design clothes with a soul!    Ronald a very warm welcome to you! * You can find more of Ronald's amazing designs on his website: https://www.ronaldvanderkemp.com