As the former Head of Buying for Brown Thomas, Karen Higgins has an eye for gorgeous fashion and jewellery, which informs her personal style and also that of her store, Ecru Studios. Here, she shares some of her favourite pieces …
My interest in jewellery really began while growing up in the 1980s when fashion jewellery was really a statement, the bigger the better! The look was for chunky silver or gold chains, rows of pearls and jet crystals, all layered together and offset with diamanté earrings. It was a time when less was definitely not more. Madonna in the ’80s really embodied that period of time and I loved how the right jewellery pieces could change a look.
My biggest investment was a watch I bought about 20 years ago, it’s a Cartier Pasha. While I have other watches, this is the one I wear nearly every day; it is definitely my most hard working accessory. I never leave the house without my Hermès Chaine D’Ancre bracelet and my watch.
There are some pieces of jewellery that I treasure and one of them is a pair of tortoiseshell drop earrings from Peillini (www.donnajewel.com). One of my favourite jewellery appointments ever was with this lovely Italian company, which has been on around since the 1950s. I remember turning up to this most magnificent Palazzo on Via Morigi in Milan, where the showroom was above their shop. I walked through this treasure trove of the most wonderful array of semi-precious jewellery, mixed with beautiful resin and plexi glass pieces. I was in awe of the colours, and mix of stones and textures. I was brought upstairs to the showroom where this very large wooden table was down the centre of this dimly lit room, then the designer Donatella Pellinni opened up large shutters where the sun streamed through the windows onto an antique table where every piece shown in that sunlight just looked perfect. The collection sold very well when it landed in Dublin and I still have many of the pieces today.
The most sentimental piece of jewellery I have is my engagement ring. A beautiful marquise/navette diamond cluster ring that John [Redmond] bought many years ago from John Farrington. It’s from the 1920s and I adore it. I don’t wear it all the time, but when I do I just love it for all the wonderful memories it evokes from then and since.
The most recent item I bought are these beautiful crystal and silver earrings from our collection at Ecru Studios. I love the illumination they bring to the face; the addition of the silver ring detail gives them lovely movement. I still adore a statement earring.
For Ecru Studios, we like to add a small selection of jewellery each season. This season, we have two beautiful collections from Italy. One is bolder in silver tones with crystals, and the second is gold with a more vintage feel. Both are available at our pop-up shop in the Westbury Mall in Dublin and online.
My biggest treat is window shopping in the beautiful antique jewellery stores in Paris. I’m like a child in a sweet shop, it’s often hard to take everything in. There are so many divine pieces from every decade; a feast for the eyes and the soul.
I love most of the jewellery pieces at Hermès – I have their divine silver loop earrings, which I’m lusting after in the gold … a girl can dream!
Follow Karen @ecrustudiosdublin and at www.ecrustudios.com
