Rejects Make Perfect: The Making Of The Charlotte
Sometimes, the most beautiful things come out of complete chaos.
A few years ago, a male client asked me to design a diamond-set version of the Brant for his wife—only with much larger stones. I created the master model, but it felt bulky, unrefined, and completely unsatisfying. We pivoted to another design, and I set the master model aside and forgot about it.
Fast forward to a recent studio cleanup. Scanning through my drawers, I stumbled across that abandoned master design. I decided to give it another shot—making a mold, casting it in 18kt gold, and setting it with diamonds, hoping to elevate one of my existing pendants.
It was a total flop. I just didn't like it. Frustrated once again, I walked away.
Around the same time, a batch of new horn link pieces arrived, but they wouldn't fit properly into the design I had originally intended for them.
I now had a desk full of "rejects."
Usually, these 'rejects' lie untouched until a quiet moment hits, or I need an escape from whatever I'm stuck on. I'll reach for a length of cord, scatter the odd pieces across my desk, and indulge in a little 'arts and crafts'—as my kids call it—letting my hands take over.
If you know my work, you know there are signature touches that anchor almost everything I touch: the delicate gold links holding the cord, the signature disk stamped with my name, and the sleek end cap tubes. With these classic components on one side and a pile of misfit materials on the other, the dance began. Adding, sliding, cutting shorter, pulling longer, placing a piece, stripping another away...
This unstructured play is my absolute favorite part of the process. Most days, it leads nowhere, and the pieces just sit on my desk waiting for another attempt.
But that day? That day was magic.
Out of thin air, the Charlotte pendant was born.
Many artists start with a precise sketch on paper. For me, creation is a physical building block process. It's hands-on, intuitive, and raw. Combining solid gold, natural horn, and brilliant diamonds, draped effortlessly over my signature cord—that is pure me.
The Charlotte has a distinct, original balance that captures your gaze through the sheer power of its simplicity. It's chic, effortlessly cool, and just feels right. Like a flawlessly composed symphony for your ears, the Charlotte is a visual statement that stands entirely in a class of its own.
Oh, and the name?
Right as the final piece came together on my workbench, my granddaughter Charlotte happened to walk through the studio door. It couldn't have been anything else.
