Most Wanted
Diamond earrings in the Floral collection have just the right blend of contemporary styling and feminine details. In 18k gold, they start at $1,573.
What’s Your Inspiration?
Pieces in the Cougar collection feature diamonds set in 18k white and black rhodium-plated gold and start at a suggested retail price of $7,465.
Designers to Watch
LOCATION AND CONTACT Manya & Roumen, Brooklyn, N.Y.; (703) 623-4040; www.manyaandroumen.com.
SIGNATURE STYLE AND INSPIRATION Limited-edition 18k gold and sterling silver jewelry inspired by nature, especially animals. The couple’s own wedding bands feature a buffalo motif inspired by a YouTube.com video of a rescue from the jaws of a lion and a crocodile.
FUN FACT Tessler, an illustrator, and Vragov, a Ph.D. in economics systems designs and a Bulgarian expatriate, launched their jewelry business in 2006 when they designed their wedding bands. Since then, the couple has won several awards, including the Mort Abelson New Designer of the Year Award at the 2009 JA NY Summer Show, honorable mention at the Women’s Jewelry Association’s 2009 DIVA Design Competition, and a finalist award in the 2010 Niche Award competition.
STARTING RETAIL PRICE POINT $350
COUNTRY OF PRODUCTION United States (New York)
TRADE SHOWS American Craft Council, Baltimore; JA New York Summer Show; Buyers Market of American Craft, Philadelphia; and Washington Craft Show
For A Good Cause
Diamond and sapphire-studded guitar picks in gold and silver do more for Lavalier By Lauren Jewelry fans than punch up wardrobes; they also help cancer survivors. Lauren Auslander, designer and one-time musician, wanted a style to reflect her passion for chords, but when her father and the father of her husband and business partner, Edward Ormandy, were diagnosed with cancer, she took the idea a step further to donate 10 percent of sale proceeds from her Hope and Faith guitar picks to the National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship (online at www.canceradvocacy.org). According to the group, it is the “oldest survivor-led cancer advocacy organization in the country, advocating for quality cancer care for all Americans and empowering cancer survivors.” Prices start at $50 for a silver design and can exceed $2,000 for gold and diamond versions. The company has five wholesale accounts, but none carry the pieces (consumers can buy them directly from the Web site).
Birthstone Trivia
Spanish explorers in South America in the 16th century discovered emeralds in the hands of Aztecs and Incas. The stone is thought to bring good luck, symbolizes rebirth, and is the signature stone of what Zodiac sign for the month of May?