Erica Courtney’s jewels have been spotted on many Hollywood celebrities, including Uma Thurman, Jessica Alba and Faune Chambers. Having started her career almost 30 years ago, Erica’s first design experience was decorating sunglasses with Swarovski crystals from broken jewellery. Sparkling accessories turned out to be of great interest to others and Erica was garnered a lot of complements. That’s what prompted Erica’s mum to say that her daughter was a jewellery designer.
For a while, Erica sold sunglasses in a multi-brand retailer, when, just for pleasure, she embellished her watch with Swarovski crystals. The result caused a furore and orders started rapidly coming in. Eventually, Erica sold not just dozens, but hundreds of models with rhinestones. A little later, she started making fashion jewellery. After moving to Los Angeles, Erica tried designing silver jewellery. Although her jewellery price tag went up from $5 to a couple of hundred dollars, she felt that her jewellery became more valuable and more important to its owners. Gradually, having nourished her love for precious metals and gemstones, Erica began creating fine jewels that were the foundation of her ‘Drop Dear Gorgeous’ pieces. During my chat with Erica at the Couture Show, I found out a lot about her love for fine gems. Here are a few questions that I asked…
Gemstones are a centrepiece in my current collections because…
... they each have their own personality and a need to be in that piece of jewellery.
A piece of jewellery with a spectacular gem in my collection features…
... a Mahenge Spinel. It is truly one of a kind stone, which is found only in Tanzania. The watermelon jolly rancher colour is what makes it so special and rare. I have never seen that colour before and I travel the world for gemstones.
If I were a gemstone, I would be…
... Fire Opal because there’s so much mystery and electricity in a beautiful fire opal. Each opal is absolutely one of a kind and each tells its own story…some are shy and some just are an explosion of personality and brilliance. You just never know what tales they tell.
The most beautiful gem I have seen is…
... my 50 cts natural colour Mozambique Tourmaline. It absolutely glows…it’s to die for.
Erica Courtney Csarite ring and the mineral crystal
If I could add any gemstone to my personal collection I would choose…
... a Kashmir Blue Sapphire. My most recent trip to Sri Lanka has gotten me crazy in love with this gemstone.
When I select gemstones I mostly pay attention to…
... brilliance, colour and their personal seduction. If they can’t seduce me from across the room, I don’t want it.
Csarite (the very last image) is a gemstone, valued for…
... its beautiful colour-changing feature and rarity. It only comes from one mine in Turkey. Most importantly it’s a gemstone that can transcend boundaries of colour, as it compliments everything else around it.
I think every woman should have a piece of jewellery with…
.... Csarite – a true one-of-a-kind gemstone at an affordable price that goes with everything in the jewellery and fashion wardrobe.
