Layered bangles, necklaces get Fashion Week play

Jewelry tends to be either a second thought, of the costume variety or largely absent on the Fashion Week runways, but when apparel and fine-jewelry designers meet on the catwalk, the collaborative results tend to exceed the sum of their parts.

This year, the bangles, cuff bracelets, thick chains and sculptural earrings that found their way into several spring collections featured during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York did not disappoint.

One designer who showed jewelry an abundance of love was Carmen Marc Valvo, whose Spring 2010 Collection featured a number of fine gold jewelry designs provided by the World Gold Council. Valvo's collection was presented during an informal runway show and cocktail event at the Nasdaq building in New York City last Sunday, with images broadcast to the crowds outside via the Times Square Jumbotron.

Valvo's form-fitting gowns and sleek swimsuits, mostly in black, white and other neutrals, made an ideal backdrop for the key jewelry trends at the show, which included stacked bangles and cuff bracelets, layered chain-style necklaces and hoop earrings.

The hues of the precious metals used in the jewelry were varied: There was gold mixed with oxidized silver (via Elements and Alloys), and colored gold--particularly rose gold but also brown--as well as high-karat gold pieces by the likes of Gurhan, which provided a stack of 24-karat gold bangles that was paired with a black swimsuit wrap featuring gold shoulder accents.

One model wore layered rose- and yellow-gold chains for Gold Expressions with a khaki-colored suede safari jacket, an ivory-colored satin-chiffon racer-back tank top and gunmetal-colored lame pants. Another wore gold bangles and gold hoop earrings, which served as sleek, modern accents to a futuristic-looking white and glass-window-beaded cocktail dress.

One example of the 1980s redux that has pervaded fashion runways lately was shown on a model who wore layered gold chains with a black lame trench over a black racer-back tank top and beaded, multi-media cocktail skirt that seemed to channel Run DMC.

Other looks took a different path to old-school elegance, as shown on a model who wore a stack of diamond-accented yellow-, white- and brown-gold cuff bracelets a black plunge-neck swimsuit.

Another jewelry-oriented fashion show came via the Passman Galleries, which debuted its "Cathedral" collection of diamond and black-coral jewelry at Celestino's Spring 2010 fashion show last Monday at the Ukrainian National Institute, where models with upswept hair swanned across the floors of the French Renaissance-style mansion like mistresses of the house.

The Celestino Spring collection was a mix of billowing, loose silhouettes and more tailored ladylike dresses and gowns, and while there was a strong emphasis on yellows and grays, neutral black and white also got play. For the first time, the designer--who noted the role the economy played in developing the season's offerings--included separates: pants, shorts and flowy tank tops.

The substantive fabric used throughout the collection--satin, boucle and lace--proved a perfect backdrop for Passman's bold, one-of-a-kind jewelry, including limited-edition coral bangles, necklaces and earrings, all cast in a sleek, sculptural style that played especially well against the collection's airy pieces.

One model wore a strapless and belted, gray lace dress with Passman's large black-coral and gold "Avant Garde" bangle accenting her slim arm, while another wore a black and gold strapless dress with the brand's open-ended, serpentine "Cobra" necklace encircling her neck.

Long, dangly, sculptural earrings also abounded at the show, for which noteworthy attendees included music and fashion entrepreneur Russell Simmons (who also owns Simmons Jewelry Co.) and model Amber Rose--rapper Kanye West's girlfriend--who closed the show wearing a white lace gown and Passman's "Empress" necklace.

Posted via email from Whiteflash Diamonds posterous