At first, Rick Van Streain Low thought it was a spam email. Low, with
Malu Byrne, is the cofounder of jewelry line En Studio. He says he was
stunned but thrilled when Saks Fifth Avenue asked the pair to send over
their creations. “It was very Dickensian,” Low explains. “Somebody saw
our Instagram and showed it to someone else…we still don’t know who!”
It’s the kind of serendipity that young designers dream of. Low and
Byrne, who work in an atelier in Catskill, New York, design things like
necklaces that balance a rock crystal and a silver knot, and zebra stone
earrings that close with the company’s trademark spear. “This is the
largest order we have ever produced,” says Byrne. “We were overwhelmed
and excited, but it was a nice challenge.”
Their jewelry is wearable and modern (but what contemporary jewelry
does not claim that these days?) and features only conflict-free
diamonds and fair-mined gold. The work is distinguished by distinct,
sometimes borderline-whimsical touches: An artfully carved rock-quartz
pinkie ring is enhanced with tiny starry diamonds. (Full disclosure: I
own this. It is magical.)
For Saks, they have made special pieces, among them a diamond ear
cuff, an ambitious piece that employs gold and Carrara marble, and an
earring with hidden diamonds and Tahitian pearls.
