Now, men and millennials can wear diamonds, too

Diamonds used to be a girl’s — particularly a bride’s — best friend.

Ever since homegrown jewelry brand De Novo launched on July 1, we’re facing a new world order. Diamonds are no longer the exclusive province of brides-to-be and engagement rings; men and Millennials can wear them, too.

“We decided to make De Novo different from a normal jewelry brand,” says Caryll Benitez, De Novo’s creative director.

“We want to break away from the traditional jewelry selling point that you have to wait to be engaged before you get a diamond ring: ‘How many carats is this, how much is this?’” adds her husband and business partner, Jose Benitez. “We want diamonds to be accessible to more people. Even men and the young generation can wear diamonds now.”

So the couple, together with brand architect Amor Maclang, decided to collaborate with six Filipino artists — each with an internationalist mindset and global appeal — to design their own jewelry lines: multimedia personality, STAR food columnist and world traveler Cheryl Tiu created a global collection for independent women; artists Leeroy New, Olivia D’Aboville and Jinggoy Buensuceso designed different lines targeting modern urbanites; fashion designer Maureen Disini conceived a bridal collection for those planning to wed; and Cebuano designer Neil Felipp did a whimsical Simian collection for young Millennials.

De Novo’s focus on local artists injects new meaning into the phrase “wearable art.”

“We consider our jewelry pieces art pieces because they’re made by well-known local artists, so one of our brand values is to promote art,” says Jose.

“We share a vision to tell stories, that’s why we got different kinds of artists to make different kinds of lines,” Caryll continues.

De Novo gave the artists free rein to let their creativity run wild, their only stipulation being that gold and diamonds — De Novo’s main product — be used. Once the final sketches had been submitted (a process they liken to “giving birth” because it took nine months), art director Georgina Ong translated them into the stunning jewelry showcased at 71 Gramercy that night. The company, which plans to release three collections a year and also takes bespoke orders, only makes 30 pieces of each design.

“We wanted to create value for each piece because each one is handcrafted,” says Jose. “So it’s like owning art from the artist.”

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De Novo jewelry is available at the De Novo boutique in Century City Mall, Kalayaan Avenue, Makati.

Cheryl Tiu: ‘Global’ collection

On designing jewelry: I’ve always been creative, although people generally see me express this in the form of the written word. One day I was just thinking to myself how cool it would be translate this creativity to design, and then I got presented this opportunity to design with a fine jewelry brand — and with diamonds, too!

Inspiration: My line is inspired by my travels around the world. A lot of them are elements that caught my eye while I was visiting a place.

• Blue Mosque diamond bangles (Istanbul, Turkey)

Story: The Blue Mosque is supported by large elephant pillars, and hanging before each of these pillars are pendant chandeliers, which apparently have ostrich eggs to repel the spiders to avoid cobwebs inside the mosque. I was particularly drawn to their unique hexagon shape, and this was the inspiration behind the bangles. We decided to make them thin in width, so you can stack and wear them at the same time.

• Dome of the Rock diamond ring (Jerusalem, Israel)

Story: When I was riding a camel on the Mount of Olives at the Old City of Jerusalem, I looked out to a mesmerizing view of Temple Mount. What completely stood out against the backdrop was the Dome of the Rock because of its shape and gold color. The dome-like shape of the ring was inspired by it.

• Fisherman’s Bastion diamond ring (Budapest, Hungary)

Story: Budapest will always have a special place in my heart because I spent some time there as an exchange student. The Fisherman’s Bastion, a combination of neo-Gothic and neo-Romanesque architecture me, is one of the prettiest landmarks of the city. There are seven towers, and the sharp spires were what inspired the shape of this ring. It also has a fairy-tale staircase, and this inspired curvilinear design of the ring.

• Metropolitan Cathedral (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)

Story: Inside the Metropolitan Cathedral of Saint Sebastian, sometimes known as the Rio de Janeiro Cathedral, I was blown away by the fantastic stained-glass art on the walls that form a cross on the ceiling. These cross earrings were inspired by it.

• Three Stars and A Sun (Philippines)

Story: This piece is the most personal to me. While all the other pieces were inspired by landmarks or specific places, Three Stars and A Sun is inspired by our country as a whole. After typhoon Yolanda/ Haiyan happened, I was deeply touched by the incredible hope that surged through our country despite having been plagued by one of the worst calamities in the world, ever. The sun in the Philippine flag is emblematic of the hope that we Filipinos have inside us every time we are plagued by a catastrophe — we always rise, and we come out stronger. I wanted to make a piece of jewelry that would continue to be that symbol of hope — that we can all wear to remind us that, as the old adage says, hope always dies last. While the sun may be a universal symbol of hope, what makes the Philippines unique is the fact that our flag has three stars and a sun, and I decided to incorporate them into the design (try to spot them, they are intentionally interlaced behind the sun) to make this piece of jewelry uniquely and distinctly Filipino.

Leeroy New: ‘Seraph’ collection

Inspiration: Most of my sculptural pieces are derived from a lot of religious iconography but I rearticulate them somehow according to my preferences and sensibilities. I’m not particularly religious, but growing up here, you get exposed to all sorts of religious imagery. It can’t be helped but you take it in, and it comes out in your work. I have references to different religions from all over the world, from India to Greece.

On designing jewelry: It was always a dream to do jewelry. I’ve experimented with wearable pieces all my life. Back in high school, one of the things they ever had us do for a sculpture was a mask, so the human body was always a consideration for our work.

Fave materials: I like working from the most common of materials to the most precious. I’ve used fish-ball plates for work, so I’m not prejudiced. I was very partial to the black gold and the black diamonds. I saw the final output and thought, “I could wear that.”

Jinggoy Buensuceso: ‘Equilibrium’ collection

Inspiration: My wall-bound sculpture, “Equilibrium.” I designed the collection for leaders, for achievers — those people who have very intense lives — to remind them that balance is important. Between personal life and work, you have to find equilibrium.

On designing jewelry: Before, I created chunky, sculptural rings. This is the first time I designed fine jewelry. The process is not really different but to get that really fine look, you need to collaborate with a really good company like De Novo.

Fave materials: I chose silver with a black finish and black diamonds. I wanted to have a very manly collection but we realized when it was finished that girls wearing it would look beautiful, so it became unisex.

I’m in love with aluminum but it’s really hard to work with, to control. I like that challenge but with silver, if you want to achieve that clean line, it’s more malleable.

Olivia D’Aboville: ‘Crystal Dew’ collection

Inspiration: In general my work is really inspired by nature. Whether it’s the sea or flowers or trees, it’s really a tribute to nature, so when I had to design for De Novo, I was thinking, how can I interpret the diamonds? Because they’re all about diamonds.

Since I’m very sensitive to the ocean and water in general, I thought, why not create a droplet of water? So I was imagining the droplets of water that you can find early in the morning on the twigs, on the trees. It’s very literal and I think it’s quite simple but it works. You can play with and really combine my pieces.

On materials: The base is silver and then dipped in yellow or white gold.

On designing jewelry: I design jewelry with my materials, but the materials I work with are either nylon or fishnets, so it’s more sculptural, it’s not really wearable.  I did this for the experience, and they went all-out.

Neil Felipp: ‘Simian’ collection

Inspiration: In the beginning I was inspired by (the game) Barrel of Monkeys, but when I looked further to my childhood I based it on Abu from (Disney’s) Aladdin. As you know Abu is a mischievous monkey who has this attraction for shining, shimmering, splendid things. So I wanted to expand his universe and create this collection. Each piece is named after a children’s game: the necklace is “Follow the Leader,” earrings are called “I Spy,” the ring is called “Hide and Seek,” the cuff “Ringolevio,” and the pendant “Capture the Flag.”

His muse: The woman that I envision is a decision maker, a woman with power. She knows what she wants but at the same time she’s still very playful. That’s what the collection is all about — it’s basically whimsical elegance.

On his fascination with Disney movies: I was very influenced by Disney and The Little Mermaid, now Aladdin. It’s part of the branding I developed for Neil Felipp. The brand I’m trying to create is awakening the inner child. Whether we’re 50, 60 or 70, we still like things we liked as a child, so I try to reopen that memory and pass it on from generation to generation.

Maureen Disini: ‘Bridal’ collection

On designing jewelry: This is my first foray into jewelry design. It came naturally after I got engaged, and got married two months ago. My fiancé gave me an emerald-cut diamond ring.

Romancing the stones: I chose my favorite stones: emerald-cut, there’s a marquise in the mix, an eternity stone. I wanted to create something that young women would adore and cherish for the rest of their lives.

Her jewelry-fashion connection: My clothing designs and gowns aren’t too far off from my designs for De Novo. They’re quite similar: they’re simple, they’re easy, they’re feminine and relevant to the times.