Irene Neuwirth Talks Stones, Red-Carpet Style and Her CFDA Nom
If you’ve ever marveled over the artful mismatch of an Irene Neuwirth necklace, that mélange of stones that works precisely because it seems a bit
discordant, then get ready for her latest collection. “I wanted things to feel
more evolved, more over the top, more interesting and one-of-a-kind,” the Los
Angeles-based designer says.
Opals mixed with turquoise mixed with diamonds and perhaps tanzanite or a splash of pearls: Such thoughtful concoctions are key to Neuwirth’s aesthetic,
and among the reasons she’s nominated for Accessory Designer of the Year at
Monday night’s CFDA Fashion Awards at New York’s Hammerstein Ballroom. “When I
first started, people were like, ‘You can’t put opals with turquoise,’ and I
just thought, Oh, you can’t? I didn’t really realize that was something you
weren’t allowed to do,” she says. “Everything I’ve done has been about going
against the rules, and it worked. And I feel like people have really connected
to how unusual the pieces look.”
Neuwirth was briefly in Las Vegas for the Couture Jewelry Show, the annual high-end trade fair taking place through Tuesday at Wynn Las Vegas, to debut her
latest pieces. Opals in all colors are drawing her eye at the moment: A
one-of-a-kind necklace features fire and pink opals alongside pink and
watermelon tourmalines, morganite and rutile quartz, while carved pink opals
have been crafted as strawberries for a pair of earrings, which are topped by
stems of 18-karat yellow gold accented with Sleeping Beauty turquoise and white
diamonds. “Lately I’m really into Mexican fire opals, because I love that deep
red color,” Neuwirth adds. “I’m so drawn to color, and that’s the part that’s
the most fun to me, the stones.”
Her love of color and her decidedly non-traditional designs have attracted the eye of stylists like Karla Welch, who reached out to Neuwirth earlier this
year. “Karla texted me the morning after the Oscar nominations went out, which I
thought was pretty awesome,” she says. “She asked me to make a piece for Ruth
[Negga], and that was really thrilling, because she could have asked anyone, and
I was not necessarily the safe choice.”
Welch already had an idea in mind, Neuwirth says: “She was like, ‘Would you ever make a headband?’ I started pulling inspirations that day, printing
everything out and sending her ideas. It was so much fun to make such an
over-the-top piece in rubies.” Crafted of Mozambique rubies, Negga’s headband —
a look that Neuwirth likens to a “pagan princess” — was among the most
talked-about jewels on the Academy Awards red carpet.
For the Met Gala in May, Welch once again worked with Neuwirth, who crafted statement earrings in 18-karat oxidized white gold, sapphires and indicolite
tourmalines for Sarah Paulson. “That was really fun, not only because I
absolutely love Sarah, but also because it sort of opened up a whole new palette
for me,” Neuwirth explains. “I’m always thinking about what looks warm next to
rose gold, for example, but with oxidized gold, all of a sudden you’re thinking
about how it looks cool with pink or black or light blue.”
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