What I did with a Wisdom tooth…
I’d been sitting on this tooth for months now. Initially I was going to make a chain out of the teeth, which I still may do. I casted 3, drilled a hole at the top and strung a Venetian box chain through them. I held it up, around my neck, and thought I would work on it more. I then took a shorter version of the same chain and hung it up to my ear. I fell in love! I later soldered the pieces. Below are images of the wisdom tooth earrings.
Empire State of Mind
I’ve wanted to make this piece for a long time. I kept saying to myself, I gotta make a pinky ring, it has to be a signet ring. The classic style and flat top. Something that I would wear everyday, over and over. And I was like damn what should I put on the top? A stone? A few stones? Maybe a stamp from a royal estate? And I knew it would be none of these things. I knew it had to be New York. Short, simple and to the point.
Luminary Custom New York Signet Pinky Ring
Keith Hernandez in Luminary
A new face at New York’s Request Models, Keith Hernandez has already been featured on the cover of Vogue Hommes Japan, in American Eagle’s ad campaign, and walked for Givenchy. He is building quite the portfolio.
Vogue Hommes Japan Cover Shoot
Keith walking the Givenchy runways for SS 2010
Recently photographed by Yoshi Sekine in Luminary’s Mosaic pendant.
Solo Negro y Blanco
Men in black and white. Luminary.
Relax and take notes. The only way to prepare, is to be well prepared.
Custom Signet Ring
A lil pre-holiday gift, I’m making for myself. Can’t wait to cast this baby in 14k Gold.
P.S. Get yourself a pinky ring.
King of Kings
Another installment of Crew Thick begins here at Luminary, and as before I will begin with a quote.
“There are no days in life so memorable as those which vibrated to some stroke of the imagination.”
-Ralph Waldo Emerson – American philosopher and poet
A while back I designed a piece for my friend Lawrence J. Annunziata. Many know him as a model on the scene, having worked with Escada for commercials, Pelle Pelle for ad campaigns, and Jeremy Scott for runway shows. With a Black and Italian background it’s no wonder this young man, has heads turning. When we sat down to discuss his piece, we decided on an Egyptian themed design, using a Pyramid and the Eye of Osiris. When asked why he chose an Egyptian piece, Law said, “…that’s where Black people are from, and people have always told me I look like an Egyptian, so I ran with it. The Eye of Osiris represents awareness, and these cats out here need some of that.” Well said my friend, well said indeed!
Before I can begin waxing, I create the design with Illustrator.
Purple and green wax.
14k Gold Pyramid with high polished finish, 14k White Gold Eye of Osiris with matte finish and black onyx, on a black gold ball chain.
(Lawrence Annunziata, West Side Highway, New York, King of Kings Custom)
Get Into the Groove
Ivy over at Groove Effect, shot me an email around three this morning, while I was designing the Luminary store.
Crew Thick
“You give but little when you give of your possessions. It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.”
-Khalil Gibran – The Prophet
Of all the books I’ve read so far, The Prophet is one of my favorites, and it seems fitting to begin with a quote from Khalil Gibran, since ‘Crew Thick’ will be a reacurring theme on The Extension.
I know a lot of guys, and many of them don’t wear jewelry and because ‘The Space Blockade’ was a men’s/unisex collection it was important to me to give some of them pieces. Not just for exposure, or word of mouth, but to give them something that was important to me. When you truly design, you put yourself into what you create. With that being said, below is an interview I did with Curtains, who was given the Blind Ring. I’ve known Curtains for years now, since he was living in New York, and performing all over the city. Great dude.
(Curtains, LES, New York, unveiling the Blind Ring)
1. Where are you originally from, and how does that affect your lifestyle/way of thinking?
I’m ORIGINALLY from St. Vincent in the West Indies. I was raised in Brooklyn, NY. Brooklyn pretty much gave me my personality, my taste, my insight, my attitude, everything. I’m 100% Brooklyn.
2. Why the name, Curtains? Is there a story behind that?
Uuhm… Hmmm.. No real real story but my original name was Show Stopper. Curtains is just another way of saying show stopper. The phrase curtains has such a harsh connotation to it and it fits my personality and my music so it works.
3. If you could do anything, and go anywhere, where would you go, what would you do, and why?
I would go vintage shopping in Paris. Sounds real shallow but I get a thrill out of vintage shopping and Paris aesthetically is a beautiful city. I like sightseeing and shopping so I get to kill 2 birds with 1 stone.
4. What, if anything, would you change about the music industry?
Hmmm… Good one. There’s so much. I would bring back artist development. I think the loss of artist development kind of was the 1st step in the downward spiral of the music “business”. I would give artist more stake finanially in their projects. Most artists make pennies on the dollar for records sold, I would def get artists more money. I would also shut down the whole notion of 1st week sales. Most people judge an acts success on 1st week sales, when that’s not always the case. So those 3 I would change.
5. You mentioned to me (personally) that turning 23 was a turning point in your life, if your comfortable talking about that, why was this a turning point, and what was significant for you that year?
That year I think I totally got my mind right, got focused on my life, I found my inner peace and I found happiness within myself. The key to life is inner peace so finding that at 23 set me up for a long road of prosperity and happiness. When everything is going good inside of you, the outside world adjusts itself accordingly. And that’s the secret to being successful.
‘Black Folks,’ Curtains video, from his upcoming mixtape, ‘The Great Adventures of Dope Boy C: Dope For President’ directed by Gabriel Hart, recently launched on MTV. Watch it below.
The Extension 
leave a comment