Jaclyn Hill wears many hats—influencer, entrepreneur, YouTube OG—but one that is becoming more important to the makeup mogul is that of jewelry designer.
Her first jewelry collection sold out in 48 hours, and her second launch, the Spring Dream collection, dropped last month. While the shift to jewelry is still new to Hill, she is pouring both her knowledge and her social media skills into her Jaclyn Roxanne brand, so the jewelry industry may want to take notice.
While Hill is known in the beauty industry for her expertise and Jaclyn Cosmetics line, she’s particularly good at creating viral makeup tutorials. For example, her lesson on creating the smoky cat eye has more than 16 million views, and her hangout with Kim Kardashian has more than 11 million views. Translate that popularity into jewelry, and the numbers are going to be massive.
Since YouTube became her home in 2010, Hill has shared much of her life online. But not people may realize how jewelry influences her look and her work, Hill says. In fact, she calls jewelry her “first love” because it reminds her of family.
“I always knew I wanted to create my own jewelry line since the day my grandmother gave me her pearls when I was eight years old,” Hill says. “I’m passionate about jewelry because you can wear the most basic outfit, minimal makeup with your hair tied up, and then throw on some jewelry and instantly look put together.”
Hill says she feels particularly connected to her jewelry brand for two reasons. First, it is the first brand she built entirely from scratch, doing it without outside partners or investors. And the other reason is its name, Jaclyn Roxanne. That is what her family calls her, as it is her birth name. Hill says she almost named her YouTube channel that, but she is glad she saved it for her jewelry.
In a lot of ways, Hill says the Jaclyn Roxanne brand is about a new era of independence for her. She’s come into her own as a female founder.
“For the first time in my career, I got to learn something totally new,” Hill says. “I have been working in the cosmetics industry for over a decade, so I had an idea of the product development process, but this was the first time I had to educate myself about things like types of metals and stones and how to bring design sketches to life.”
Hill says she hopes her fans will wear her makeup and her jewelry, especially because the items in her new lines feel like a personal signature. Some of her favorites are the Stacked Coin, which helps make layering jewelry accessible for more people, and the Trendsetter, which has an adjustable necklace length.
“I was at dinner just the other night in Tampa, and I spotted two girls at the bar wearing Jaclyn Roxanne, so I introduced myself and there was this instant connection,” Hill says. “That moment was so organic and surreal, which made me excited to keep launching pieces that my followers love.”
The Spring Dreams collection came about because of her love for layering, adding options and versatility to jewelry. The second collection for her jewelry brand gave a refresh to her fans, and she hopes they have fun with it.
Most of all, Hill says she hopes the people who love her work and support her understand how hard she works to make sure the details are right and her customers are happy.
“I want people to know how much emphasis and value I put on the customer experience,” Hill says. “For example, we recently received a ton of requests on our social media platforms for more inclusive ring sizing, so the past few months we’ve worked diligently with the team to add two to three more sizes to all future collections. Obviously, some improvements take longer than others, but it’s so important to me that my followers know that I’m listening.”
Top: Makeup expert Jaclyn Hill recently launched her second jewelry collection, Spring Dreams, after a successful first drop that sold out in 48 hours. The YouTube sensation says jewelry is a great next move for her brand because everyone looks good wearing her creations (photos courtesy of Jaclyn Roxanne).
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