Style NOV (05.11.16)

Jewellery Gallery
Style | home 21
Adored by the fashion elite, London-based and
Christchurch-born designer Jessica McCormack
specialises in diamond jewellery. Now famous
for the clever way she merges the contemporary
with the classic for an aesthetic that appeals to
all women, her fans include an extensive list of
high-profile celebrities including Rihanna, Julianne
Moore, reese witherspoon, Liv Tyler, Jennifer
Connelly and sienna Miller. Her incredible
collection is housed in a stunning Mayfair
townhouse that was originally a
high-end private residence. speaking with Jessica,
Style gets a sneak peek into this amazing home and
talks to Jessica about what inspires her.
How did you find yourself on this career path?
My father owned an auction house in New
Zealand, so I grew up surrounded by antiques, art,
vintage jewellery and many weird and wonderful
things. I gained an appreciation for the old and how
to make it fit into modern life. In my early twenties,
on a gap year in Morocco, I met someone whose
sister-in-law was the head of jewellery at sotheby’s,
and he mentioned getting in touch. I wrote to her
constantly when I returned to New Zealand until
she relented and invited me to intern in London.
Coming to London and my time at sotheby’s
was a big eye-opener, I was exposed to the most
incredible array of historical jewels, seeing russian
crown jewels, Lalique, Cartier, suzanne Belperron. I
learned about all of it and became obsessed!
Where do you get inspiration from?
My collections have been inspired by so many
things – sailing as a child, Greek Mythology, fairy
tales, ’80s video games, snowdrops… the list goes
on and on. Georgian and Victorian techniques have
also inspired my work and are featured throughout
my collections. The Victorian doublet is one of my
signature styles – it is a technique where a layer
of yellow gold is applied to the back of a white
gold or silver piece by hand – and has become an
intrinsic part of my design process.
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