Name Dropping in Honor of Father’s Day

Phillip Glass, composer

One of the first cool men/fathers to wear my jewelry back in the early 90's was Seal. He called the office directly to ask if we did pieces in platinum. Anderson, who answered the phone, almost told him ‘no’ but thought for a moment…maybe Jeanine will say yes. Can I get your name? how do you spell that? S..E..A...L….!!! pause…

I ended up making him many pieces in platinum. He was lovely and we talked quite a bit about poetry, his lyrics and creative process during that period. It was a thrill to meet him in person in his rehearsal studio while I was working on some pieces for him. He wore the ring and necklace while performing which was very cool. I have some silly pictures of the two of us that I still take a look at now and then, it is fun to remember that time and the work I did for this truly amazing artist.

Another cool dude who’s name might ring a bell is Mick Jagger. His stylist came to the studio looking for pieces for him to wear on his San Francisco Voodoo Lounge Tour kick off in 1994. She ended up bringing him a huge selection and he ordered pieces with the caveat that he wished to use his own poetry! I can only tell you the poem involved a hawk being tempted by all sorts of birds but the only one that had his attention was the white swan swimming in a pond below. Amazing. I am afraid to throw any of my old files/piles away because that poem is in there somewhere!!

I had the pleasure of making a special bracelet for Phillip Glass when he composed an opera inspired by Rumi. It was a gift from the patron who funded the opera to be given to him on closing night. Being a huge fan of Phillip Glass...and of Rumi's poetry and philosophy, it was a thrill to create this piece. I listened to Koyaanisquasti over and over again while making my very first pieces.

I can’t leave Mr. Crowe off the list. This is a good story I have been dying to tell. I will spill it now. I was working on large crosses inspired by Moorish tile work when we got a call from the actress Meg Ryan wanting to make a chunky cross for Russell—this in the midst of the highly publicized and difficult time when it seemed every tabloid was splashed with pictures of Meg and Russell; thy had just worked together closely on Proof of Life, he was up for an Academy Award for Gladiator, and her marriage was in the public eye. I made a one of a kind platinum cross on leather for him and a matching one for her and they loved them. His had a Robert Burns poem on the back. When they eventually broke up he carried the cross in his pocket as a good luck charm and that year at the Oscars he had it with him and showed it to people on the red carpet. He ended up on Entertainment Tonight talking about the cross. It was a three night in a row story on the show…and I ended up having a cameo on ET as well.

Those are the main stories that pop out but fast forward to today... we love that Orlando Bloom wears the 18k Emmie that his girlfriend, Miranda Kerr, gave him when he did the Hugo Boss commercial. We have pictures up in the studio of Mark Ruffalo wearing his own Dale and Sycamore and we recently sent him pieces for good luck at the Academy Awards. He wrote the nicest note saying that he and his wife have been giving each other pieces for a long time and how much they mean to them.

These guys are on my list because they are the epitome of the man who wears jewelry but it doesn't shout. It isn't bling. This isn't rapper time. I appreciate knowing that these are artists driven to wear pieces that have words that resonate, inspire, and carry personal meaning. I appreciate that even though I create a line of jewelry for women, some pieces transcend sex and have found their way onto a cool group of men who are also looking for their talisman.