By Rachel Garrahan in Los Angeles
Hollywood actress Mila Kunis' green eyes have rarely looked more beautiful than when wearing this Jemma Wynne gold collar with Zambian emeralds, part of the fine jewellery company's collaboration with leading coloured stone producer Gemfields.
Stephanie Wynne and Jenny Klatt, the design partners behind the brand, have creativity in their bones. Both self-taught artists, they met while working for the designer Jupith Ripka, where they learned a lot about the jewellery business as well as about themselves. "We realised we worked well together and had a very similar design aesthetic," says Jenny.
They established their business in 2008, and their shared love of art and design is reflected in their modern, feminine jewellery, which combines luxury and wearability.
"Inspiration comes from everywhere," says Stephanie, who jokes she could spend hours and hours on photo site, Pinterest. "We might like a piece of architecture or even the knobs on a piece of furniture, and we'll reinterpret it for a jewel."
Their signature piece, the open bangle, looks effortless but took a long time to perfect. It features a specially manufactured gold wire that gives it a unique spring, maintaining the piece's integrity as well as making it comfortable to wear. It is also a bestseller for the brand, whose stockists include Octium in Kuwait, luxury e-tailer Ylang23 and Neiman Marcus in the US.
The design has been widely imitated, and the pair are constantly creating new silhouettes of the bangle - such as heavier cuff styles and versions that close in the front or the back - to keep ahead of the game and to satisfy the demands of their customers, who love to wear them stacked.
"We feel like our jewellery is the cashmere hoodie of fine jewellery," says Jenny. While they use the finest gemstones and craftsmanship, they always keep in mind that their jewellery needs to be wearable, above all. "You could wear it for black tie or a super casual occasion," she adds.
Their collaboration with Gemfields, which so far includes the limited-edition collar worn by Mila Kunis, as well as an emerald open bangle, looks set to continue with the pair already working on more designs for the gem producer later this year.
And while they are renowned for their jewellery's gorgeous colour palette, their first diamond collection, Covet, sold out after its launch last year. As a result they are expanding on the collection with more expensive, one-off pieces that mark a departure from their previous work.
"We feel more confident in our aesthetic, and we've found some amazing one-of-a-kind diamonds that we're excited to design pieces around," explains Stephanie. Roll on June when the design duo will present the new collection at the not-to-be-missed Couture trade show in Las Vegas.
