Hot New Jewelry Designers Reveal Their Sisterly Style Secrets
Above: Phoebe (left) and Annette sit on their Maria Felix sofa in the company of a 200-year-old Virgin from Denmark. Phoebe wears a Boudicca top, Comme des Garçons pants, Acne heels, and an Anndra Neen gladiator cuff. Phoebe wears a vintage dress, Givenchy heels, and Anndra Neen bangles. Enlarge Image
A few months back, we were scoping out Maryam Nassir Zadeh to see what new designers the chic shop-keeper had on her radar. While her boutique always offers an eyeful, we were particularly taken with a new jewelry line by the name of Anndra Neen : unusually rustic-glamorous pieces of handmade copper, brass, and nickel-silver jewelry all hewn in Mexico. The designs--almost a cross between what you might find around the neck of Frida Kahlo or Diana Vreeland and locked behind glass at a Mayan archeological museum--reveal an uncommonly bold sort of beauty, but also the hand that made them.
Above: An array of Anndra Neen jewelry sits on an Alvar Aalto table in the living room.Enlarge Image
Turns out, sisters Phoebe and Annette Stephens are the young visionaries behind the collection that launched just this past spring. And not only do they conceive all their handcrafted pieces alongside a local artisan in Mexico City, they also wear their work well...very well. In fact, the two have just that sort of unconventionally inspiring style we pretty much go nuts for. Just take a peek inside their Gramercy Park apartment. Surrounded by objects, artworks, and storied keepsakes from their Mexico City upbringing as well as their famed artist-sculptor grandmother, Annette Nancarrow, the pair have created a transporting world in which to design their European, Egyptian, and Bedouin-inspired jewels. And yes, live and play dress-up, too.
Above, left: Phoebe poses beside a wooden sculpture by Goulven Elies in a vintage purple dress, Ann Demeulemeester shoes, and Anndra Neen cone bangles. Above, right: In the closet, a stack of magazines and a shelf of colorful scarves. Enlarge Image
We know your grandmother was a great artist and designer. What or who else inspired you to start your own line? Phoebe: "We grew up in Mexico City in a family surrounded by artists. We were always encouraged to be creative. As the only girls in a family of five, we wanted to do something together."
Annette: "Yes, our grandmother was a painter in Mexico during the '30s and '40s, and she also designed her own jewelry. She had an amazing studio in Mexico City filled with pre-Columbian figures, beads, feathers, and bones. So, we wanted to combine our love of fashion and visual arts to make a new collection that followed in her footsteps."
Above: In the courtyard, Phoebe wears an Electric Feathers jumpsuit. Annette wears a Claude Montana jacket dress and Anndra Neen cage choker. Enlarge Image
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