Oct 28

Oct 28 Hanna Bernhard Jewelry

Culture, Fashion and Design, Creative People

'Hanna Bernhard' is a husband and wife team based in Paris that create 'collectible' jewelry. They recently accessorized the Essa fashion show in Dubai which was the first time I had seen their 'larger than life ' creations.

Greatest Inspirations or Influences?

We are inspired by nature and animals. My husband lived in an island in the Mediterranean sea when he was young, which explains why he loves to design sea creatures. My father, a Science teacher, used to take me butterfly hunting growing up.

Interesting 'fans' of your work?

Each of our pieces is one-of-a-kind and entirely hand made by us,which is why they have become collectable. Many people around the world collect our jewelry, including

Iris Apfel, an American fashion icon -she has made exhibits of her clothes and accessories in museums such as the Met.
and Barbara Berger who has probably the largest collection of costume jewelry. Barbara did several exhibits of her pieces, including at the 'Musée des Arts Décoratifs' in Paris, which was sponsored by Karl Lagerfeld.

Exciting collaborations you have done and upcoming ones?

We have worked with 'Fabrice' -a French brand who has stores in Paris and sells to Bergdorf Goodman in NY- at the beginning of our career. The most recent collaboration was with Essa of Dubai for his 'Oh Sauvage' collection.

We have been contacted by many famous designers through the years but if we feel they will just use us for their fame, we decline the offer.

Until now we have only made one-of-a-kind pieces but now our plan is to launch a 'mass produced' jewelry line and promote our brand worldwide.

Most interesting reaction you have witnessed to one of your pieces?

Once an Italian customer came to our place and started to cry when she saw one of our monkey necklaces, she said she had never seen such a beautiful thing...

Favorite websites/blogs?

SeaofShoes- Jane's blog gets 80,000 clicks per day on it, and was invited by Chanel to the 'Bal de débutantes' in Crillon hotel in Paris last year.
We also recently met Hanh from 'Life in Travel' and Martina from 'The little fashion treasury', both adorable ladies that we plan to see again.

How long does it take to make one of your iconic pieces such as the octopus, or monkey?

The monkey that Essa used for his zebra pattern bag is one of our biggest pieces and probably took a month of work. It is difficult for us to count time on each piece because we are always working on several pieces at the same time.