Modern Jewelry Design

By Chrisitne Breen

Modern Jewelry is all jewelry that has a modern or contemporary look to it. The advent of plastics and Precious Metal Clay (PMC) and the arrival of improved quality artificial gemstones influence Modern jewelry. Modern jewelry is mainly presented at exhibitions, and one of the best-known events is the Goldsmiths’ Review held for 20 years in Legnica. A growing trend in modern jewelry is “theme” bracelets. With the desire to create something new and original, modern jewelry is suitable to fulfill these kinds of wishes.

Important Jewelry Designers

Louis Comfort Tiffany, one of the first important American jewelry designers, introduced the art nouveau style in the United States. This lavish spending attracted both designers and jewelers to Hollywood. Michael Dawkins is one of the hottest luxury jewelry designers on the scene today. Images Jewelers is one of the mid west’s leading jewelry designers and manufacturers. Local designers also display and sell classic and modern jewelry pieces.

Modern Jewelry Styles

There are many different ways to approach modern jewelry designing. At Vuja De Designs they blend the age-old craft of metalworking with the art of modern jewelry design. Chaya Wiesel Art Studio designs original, modern Judaica and exceptional, modern jewelry, hand-made with silver and gold. Anna Curran crafts simple, classical gemstone designs. Designer John Kennedy’s Cylettes are an innovation in modern jewelry design.

History of Modern Jewelry

Art Deco jewelry was extremely popular during the Roaring Twenties and continues to influence modern jewelry styles. Marcasite Jewelry was made popular in Victorian jewelry and remains popular today adding an Old World quality to modern jewelry. Amethysts were popular in the parures (matching sets) of the 1820’s. In the 1890’s charms had evolved into a fashion statement and a popular keepsake. Art Deco was a popular international trend that surfaced between 1910 and 1935. It wasn’t until the 1980 are when Cubic Zirconia became popular with jewelers.

Popular Modern Jewelry

Art Nouveau antique jewelry is very popular with collectors today. Tiffany Jewelry is regarded as one of the most popular styles of modern jewelry. Platinum has become a very popular choice for modern jewelry, displacing significant gold demand. Sea glass is also a popular jewelry component these days. Versatile and colorful, resins are becoming increasingly popular among modern jewelry artists. Black pearls are quite popular in modern jewelry making. The anklet has become so popular it has become a modern jewelry classic. Versatile and colorful, synthetic resins are becoming increasingly popular among modern jewelry artists.

Now that you've got a grasp on modern jewelry, stop by Gems Explained to learn more about jewelry and gems.

The Hot Colors for the Spring and Summer Fashion Season

By Ash Monga

Where does fashion begin? Most people would agree that fashion beings on the catwalk. The runway the models confidently strut down each year in fashion-conscious cities like Paris and Milan. In truth fashion begins when the designers start to design their new collections.

Each year designers must come up with hot, new looks for spring/summer and fall/winter. Spring and summer are considered to be the hottest seasons in fashion. It is during these two seasons that bright vibrant colors usually make an appearance on the runway. The colors that are seen modeled on the runaway at the start of the season will soon be found in stores across the country.

This spring and summer season one of the latest color trends is Monochrome. As winter was brought to an end many designers were working with black and white tones. The tones were set against retro patterns for a chic end to the gloomy winter months. As winter has turned into spring and summer monochrome has made an appearance. The black and white look has been rejuvenated for the warmer months.

The spring season has brought bright yellow tones with its arrival. Another hot color is electric blue. The spring season is the time to be daring and bold by wearing bright, vibrant colors. Spring is a time period in which everything seems to blossom, to come to life, as splashes of colors dot the countryside. If flowers create striking looks each spring why shouldn’t your wardrobe?

Note-worthy Victoria Beckham wore a beautiful bright yellow Roberto Cavalli dress, floor length last year. Now, both Valentino and Lanvin have been leading the spring/summer seasons with yellow being the predominate color in their new collections. Yellow speaks of spring.

The other color that has taken over this fashion season is blue. As the summer months replace spring, blue, is the color to be seen in. Ultramarine and electric blue are the designer’s top choices this season. You are guaranteed to look amazing in spring and summer’s hottest colors. Be in style with either blue or yellow.

How is it possible to keep up with all of the latest fashion trends? One way is through several fashion websites. Fashion news can be found on the Vanity Fair or Vogue website. There are fashion websites that specialize in retro, vintage or the latest looks of the runway. In this new era fashion news and spreads are only as far away as a click of the mouse. Fashion Obsessed sells all of the latest looks.

High fashion is not an impossible look to achieve. It is easy to achieve the looks that are seen on the runway. Choose a few items each season that you absolutely love and create several different stylish outfits. For example this spring and summer season you might want to purchase an electric blue summer dress that can be worn for a casual outing or a night out on the town. There are many ways to look as if you just stepped out of Vogue. For daily fashion updates visit www.fashionobsessed.com.

Ash Monga
http://www.fashionobsessed.com

The New Age of Breaking into Fashion Design

By Elisha Burberry

Which celebrity does not have their own fashion line? The list seems to be getting shorter as more and more stars announce their new lines and fragrances to be sold at already well established and accessible stores around the globe. The next time Sarah Jessica Parker is seen on the red carpet she may be wearing the likes of Marc Jacobs, but her new fashion line Bitten is not aimed for this Prada toting crowd. The new trend among celebrities is reaching out to the masses by providing them with trendy and affordable duds on the high street and in shopping malls everywhere. But what does the future hold for the real designers out there?

The recent deaths and retirements of a few major leaders in fashion have piqued the interest of fashionistas everywhere that are wondering who, when, and even if, they can be replaced. Some of these designers and their associated brands such as Versace and Calvin Klein have lived on in the hands of designers happy to take on and continue the legacy. In other instances the designer brand is bought out by bigger corporations looking to cash in on the already established client base. These big name designers who are so often worn at movie premiers and award shows might continue to reign but the question lies in whether or not the public and the celebrity elite will see any new big names and faces associated with fashion, as we have seen in the past.

David A. Wolf, a fashion trend forecaster and creative director of the Doneger Group believes that the era of massive empires built upon a single name or face are probably over. "The people who have empires and giant names, happened to begin their careers with the maximum window of opportunity for that kind of enterprise," said Mr. Wolfe. "That doesn't seem to exist anymore. I just can't imagine who would be a new Donna Karan."

The task for new young designers on the scene has been made doubly difficult by the number of celebrities who already have face and name recognition coming out with their own designer fashion lines. These celebs have used the already existing economic infrastructure of big names like Topshop and Tesco to market and sell their designs, or in many cases someone else's design that they have attached their name and face to. This strategy is what can give many new designers a ray of hope, using mega stores and recognisable brands to get their designs out there to be seen, purchased and worn.

The time may soon come when young budding designer's dreams are not their first catwalk show during London's Fashion Week, but a job with a big name high street store like Marks and Spencer, Debenhams or Kate Moss's choice of Topshop. The benefits of designing for big stores has even been highlighted on shows such as Project Catwalk, a reality show where young designers compete to win a job working as one of the designers at Debenhams.

This new building ground for designers just starting to get their feet wet has potential to benefit all parties involved. The designers receive more capital via sponsorship from an array of initiatives from big names stores with deep pockets looking to capitalise on fresh new looks and the public can happily drape themselves in the newest trends for prices that will not break the bank.

Elisha Burberry is an online, freelance journalist and keen traveller and watersports enthusiast. Originally from Scotland, she now resides in London.