In a way, jewelry designer Heather Goldberg has Monique Lhuillier to thank for her collection of hand-knit jewelry. While Goldberg studied fashion design and art history at the Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles, Lhuillier served as her weekend mentor, overseeing the creation of a dress. Lhuillier recommended that one part of the dress — loosely knit and spangled with Swarovski crystals — be scrapped from the final product. After rediscovering it hanging in the studio later, that piece found new life as the prototype for Goldberg’s jewelry line, Shadowplay.
Though Goldberg interned at ThreeAsFour and Band of Outsiders during design school, the first necklace was most influenced by an image she found of a Vivienne Westwood sweater from the seventies. “It was full of holes, black and white, all messed up, and really cool,” she says. “I had always experimented with knitting, and after seeing that sweater I started sourcing natural yarns.” Today, Goldberg’s ethereal yarn-and-Swarovski pieces have a distinctly organic feel, inspired by algae, spiderwebs, rock formations, and gnarled trees. Goldberg has debuted two collections since November, and though they were quickly picked up by Debut New York and Eva, she’s still meticulously hands-on. Each necklace is handmade (some are also hand-dyed) and takes anywhere from four hours to several days to complete; all are also available directly through her website. Click ahead to see more of her creations.
