This article will discuss Collaboration on the Runway between Jewelry and clothing. Keep reading!
February 10, 2023, marked Sandrine B.’s first participation in New York Fashion Week. And her first collaboration with Be’l Bla’k Couture. Dr. La’tifah Qawishabazz, the clothing designer and CEO of Be’l Bla’k Couture Ltd, and Sandrine are passionate about sustainability and giving back to the community.
They met through a common friend. They initially spoke of a collaboration for a magazine. And then the topic of New York Fashion Week came up. They were about two months away from New York Fashion Week In February and Sandrine was planning on being away for part of January.
They decided that they would work independently on their collections and check in a couple of weeks before the show. The only guidelines Sandrine received were that she should have half silver and half gold tone jewelry and that there would be 10-15 models with a third of more being male models.
Collaboration on the Runway
Mid-January Sandrine returned from her trip and looked at some of the things she had collected over time and never got a chance to work on.
She found a mold of a leaf from her stoop in Brooklyn. She designed three pieces of jewelry from it: the leaves necklace, the leaf ring and the leaf earrings. The necklace and earrings were showcased at the New York Fashion Week Show.
Another thing she found was a mold from a dried yellow daylily flower from her roof deck. She had been looking at this mold for a while not knowing what she could do with it. She made a silver cast of the flower and designed a silver necklace for the show!
She designed earrings from roots found on Fort Lauderdale Beach to match a necklace.
And she expanded her collection of seed pods from France to include duster earrings.
She also designed a new collection of pieces that she named “Don’t play with your food, wear it.” It includes cherry pits inspired earrings, dates’ branch earrings with responsibly sourced coral beads, and a necklace from a branch of a citrus fruit tree.
The collection also includes a ring inspired from a persimmon fruit.
And then came the day of the show. The show was scheduled to start at 5 pm on February 10 at Gotham Hall. Latifah and Sandrine met at 8:30 am. From the time they arrived at the venue, it was nonstop work. La’Tifah adjusted the clothes on each model and Sandrine put the jewelry on. What struck them was how the jewelry and the clothes complement one another.
Finally the models lined up and it was show time!
La’Tifah asked Sandrine to walk on the runway with her. She said she was the only brand at the show to include a jewelry designer.
La’Tifah bears the title of Head Designer and in this position, she performs every facet of the launch process from concept and construction involvement to merchandise control. It was amazing to see her at work the day of the show.
“It was an amazing experience to be able to showcase my jewelry at New York Fashion Week! I learned much and will be better prepared for my next show!” Sandrine B.
What’s next? La’Tifah and Sandrine are planning another collaboration for Miami Swim Week in early July.
More About Sandrine B.
They believe in wearable art as a means to preserve memory and amplify the beauty of nature. They see the meaning and magic in discarded, forgotten items and seek to illuminate all the things they represent – concepts like memory, utility, and hope. Beauty transcends time, gender, race, and all other limiting constructs. Their jewelry reminds us that we are more than what meets the eye.
All their jewelry is mindfully handcrafted, cast and finished by hand in New York City. They pride themselves in promoting traceability and transparency, and they responsibly source all their metals and gemstones. By committing to this practice and by tracing all of their suppliers, they avoid contributing to injustices in the supply chain. They ensure fair wages, working hours, and good working conditions.
Follow Sandrine B. Jewelry on Instagram and discover Sandrine B.’s beautiful Jewelry Collection on her website here.
* Written by Sandrine Valentine, founder and designer of Sandrine B. Jewelry.
Editor’s Note: The opinions expressed here by Fashinnovation’s columnists are their own, not those of Fashinnovation.
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