Born in the French Alps but now based in London, jewelry designer Ornella Iannuzzi has created a style that includes unusual, eye-catching and organic shapes, using rare and natural precious materials crafted in a way that mirrors sculptures as much as fine jewelry.
She specializes in one-of-a-kind pieces, and though she has been primarily creating pieces that she sells directly to consumers, Iannuzzi has an eye on the U.S. market and is ready to make her name known in the trade here.
Iannuzzi is a new Couture exhibitor this year and will be exhibiting as part of Stephen Webster’s Rock Vault at the show.
There, she will debut the “Les Corallines” & “Les Précieuses Corallines” collections, which include pieces for everyday wear, as well as a few one-off pieces from her “Abyss” and “Les Exceptionnelles” collections.
Read on to hear more about where she draws inspiration and her design process, her favorite parts of the job, and what she does when she’s not designing.
Q: What’s your favorite part of being a jewelry designer? Ornella Iannuzzi: Definitely working with fabulous materials. Every day I’m touching gold and playing with beautiful stones. And I love designing as well, of course. It’s the most enjoyable part. There are so many ideas you can have and things that you can imagine and you get to figure out how to bring them to life.
Iannuzzi looks for rough stones and natural materials that have the “wow” factor to attract the eye. Pictured here at left is Iannuzzi’s “L'Exceptionelle Emeraude” cuff in 18-karat gold vermeil and set with natural emeralds crystals, joined by the “A l'Ere Glaciaire” earrings featuring aquamarine and black tourmaline crystals set in black rhodium silver.
Q: What’s behind your design process and where do you draw inspiration for your creations? OI: I usually look for unique and unusual natural materials to create with. It has to be special and it really has to have that “wow” factor that really attracts the eye. And then, according to its size, weight and other particularities, I might place it on my hand or my chest to figure out if it’s going to be a ring or a necklace. From there, I build around the piece itself. So it’s very similar to sculpture in that way. I let the details about that element help point me in the right direction and determine the design of the jewelry.
Q: Do you have any favorite stones or materials that you prefer to work in? OI: There are a lot! I have a big collection of opals, especially Ethiopian opals. In 2010, I went
on a trip to Ethiopia to get the stones myself, and they’ve become part of my “Lucy in Wonderland” collection. So every collection of mine and every piece of mine has a title and a story behind it.
Left, the “L'Exceptionel Grenat du Piémont” clip earrings feature garnets combined with green mica from the Italian Alps, set in 18-karat gold with diamonds. On the right is the “Coralline Atoll” ring is set with a Welo opal and diamonds, and is made in in 18-karat gold.
Q: What’s the best advice you’ve been given about jewelry design or trying to launch your own brand? OI: When one door closes, another one opens. It can be really tough at some points, trying and trying to get your brand started and then something doesn’t work. You have to find your own niche and work within it. This is what I’ve been doing. My pieces are naturally high street and make a statement. I like for people to come see my pieces and be blown away by them, so this is a good place for me to be.
Q: What are you looking forward to most about your Las Vegas trip this month? OI: I’m really looking forward to the feedback from the U.S. market. I think that my pieces will get a good response there. People in the U.S. are much more open-minded. They seem to me to be very daring and want to stand out; they don’t want to fit into the mold. Even here in the U.K. I’ve got some American customers. I’ve been working in a niche market, selling direct to clients, and haven’t really been doing shows or been part of the trade, so I’m starting to work in the trade with my newest collections.
Iannuzzi said that she thinks the look of her jewelry, which uses rough materials and has a sculptural design aesthetic, will speak to U.S. consumers.
Q: What hobbies or other activities do you like to do that other people might now know about you? OI: I like to snowboard. I’m from the Alps in France and I grew up going skiing in the mountains. I spent weekends as a teenager doing that and I still really enjoy it.
Brecken Branstratoris the senior editor, gemstones at National Jeweler, covering sourcing, pricing and other developments in the colored stone sector.
