Hollywood Reporter Discusses Our "Jewel Box of a Shop On Melrose Avenue"
by Gabriela Artigas | Jul 23, 2018
While on the rise, Meghan Markle bought the brand's shooting star earrings.
Long before it became a trend, L.A. jewelry designer Gabriela Artigas and her sister Teresita (sales director for the business) were artfully layering their brand's architectural bracelets, rings and necklaces, and multiple, mismatched earrings.
The creative way the sisters wear their jewelry has made it that much more covetable for fans including Meghan Markle, who wore thier $350 Triple Shooting Star Earrings at the Invictus Games in April, and Gwyneth Paltrow, who snapped up a $1350 Reloaded Tusk Ring with Pave Diamonds.
The Artigas sisters are celebrating the ten-year anniversary of their successful L.A. brand with a new Melrose Avenue boutique, and a new ten-piece Cosmos collection ($280-$790) that reinvents best-selling styles such as a two-finger ring, a tusk hair stick and tusk necklaces, with pearl accents.
Keeping it all in the family, their older brother Alejandro Artigas, who founded his L.A. company Artless in 2004, designed all the furniture, including a marble table with unique green markings that Tere says reminded them of a seascape. Even the curtain pulls are thier signature gold tusks. They sell about 80 pairs of the core Infinite Tusk earrings style per month, says Tere.
The sisters tend to finish each other's sentences. When asked to desribe their aesthetic, Gaby says, "Modern and sculptural. You see shapes like links and tusks repeated." Tere adds: "One of our aims is that if you see a piece now, you don't know if it's from the latest collection or from 10 or 25 years ago. We like to create heirloom pieces. In the sam way, the store design is very minimal and sleek. But we put a lot of thought into the design." The store showcases the Gabriela Artigas & Company fashion jewelry in sterling silver and gold plating, a fine jewelry collection in 14-karat gold with diamonds and other precious stones (the sisters point out a new $4,500 diamonds tennis bracelet with argyle-patterned settings), and the brand's bridal line of eight engagement rigns that's currently in expansion mode (new is a squared-off double-band Twin Ring with pave diamonds designed for stacking, with an empty slot in the middle, so other bands or an engagement ring can be slipped in between). Another exclusing addition are tiny gold initial necklaces ($180, plus $35 for addition letters and $60 extra for a diamond).
The Artigas' mom Teresita Tinajero, who recently relocated from Mexico to L.A., perches on a stool next to the Fall 2018 Collection, called Mother, which is dedicated to her and brings back mother of pearl shell accents used in the collection ten years ago.
Also in the mix are top-selling hair accessories ($160 for a gold-palted barrette to $680 for 14-karat gold bobby pins decorated with white or black diamond pave), a new yellow gold-plated jewelry box ($370), a gold children's spinning top that doubles as a paperweight ($180), and a rose-and-wood scented Early Morning candle ($65). For guys, there are signet rings, cuff links, pendant necklaces and a cuff bracelet, with new additions due out in Spring 2019. Pretty much everything can be personalized and customized. Made-to-order engagement rings start at $2,500 and signet rings and disc necklaces can be engraved on site.
- Ingrid Schmidt
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