Cover Story

Natural Beauties

Print

14K gold-fill chain links with agate and Peruvian chalcedony; $845; designed by Elyssa Bass.

Elyssa Bass designs photographed by Dave Cox Pictures.

Hand-crafted jewelry is a must-have for this spring's fashion season, and some Atlanta women are busy designing and producing just that. Over the next few pages you'll be introduced to Elyssa Bass, whose high-end designs can be found at Saks Fifth Avenue, and Betsy Cabot, whose company, Peru to You, found the perfect model to show off its exotic jewelry. And while both companies offer differing styles and prices, they do have something in common Ñ they have been inspired both by nature and by family.

Lucky Charms

By Ann Marie Quill

Elyssa Bass knows fine jewelry. She also knows how to design and produce it, as evidenced by the fact that Saks Fifth Avenue jumped at the chance to sell her creations last year. In fact, the first weekend the store displayed Bass' designs, they starting selling rapidly, prompting Saks to request she bring in additional pieces.

Mixing and matching all types and sizes of all-natural, semiprecious stones and metals, Bass says "a hunger for color" helps account for some of her line's popularity. "So many women wear black and brown clothes that they need a great piece of jewelry to add some color," she says. Bass has some celebrity fans as well, with the likes of Kate Hudson and Catherine Zeta Jones adorning themselves with her pieces.

Bass began seriously designing jewelry about 4 1/2 years ago as a hobby. She had quit a lucrative career as a producer with the Cartoon Network to be able to stay at home with her new baby.

But her creative juices still needed an outlet, so she got to work making her own jewelry.

She realized jewelry making could be more than a hobby when a woman literally bought a necklace off Bass' neck while she was shopping in Costco one day. Bass says she's pretty sure where her creativity stems from. She's the daughter of Adrienne and Barry Anbinder; her playwright father could recently be seen acting in the Jewish Theatre of the South's Peter and the Wolf (and Me) and Born Guilty.

Additionally, her grandmother owned an antique store in Brooklyn, where as a child Bass says she was fascinated by "beautiful estate jewelry," which also led her to create a line of cocktail rings that are a "modern take on old-school glamour from the '20s."

Bass says she has preferred high-end materials from the beginning and has designed her Spring/Summer collection with warm weather in mind. A trip to Hawaii inspired her starfish-and-coral necklace (pictured on the cover) and a pendant design that incorporates the rare sunrise shell as its single charm. She also uses opals, turquoise, rubies, sapphires and just about any other kind of stone that exists.

Bass keeps a sketchbook at her bedside so when she wakes up in the middle of the night with a fabulous idea, she can immediately draw it out - which is fitting considering her style. "I like to create pieces that are unexpected," she says.

Elyssa Bass' designs are available at select Saks Fifth Avenue stores, including the Phipps Plaza location, and at www.elyssabassdesigns.com.

One Stone At a Time

By Ann Marie Quill

Semiprecious stones, sterling silver, Murano crystal beads in vibrant Mediterranean colors - those are just some of the appealing elements of Peru to You's line of hand-made jewelry.

The company, owned by Atlanta resident Betsy Cabot and partners Beth Greenberg and Liliana Rossello, designs pieces that are not only affordable, but flexible. "We try to design the jewelry so customers get a lot for their money," Cabot says. She points out that the pieces go well with anything from evening gowns to T-shirt and jeans. And some designs feature detachable and interchangeable pendants that allow their customers to mix and match, which also makes for easy packing when traveling. Women can bring along one piece that can easily change depending on what they decide to wear that day or evening.

Cabot has also followed the lead of Rossello, a Catholic living in Peru who designed a bracelet that tells a Christian story, with proceeds going to a church there. So Cabot designed a similar Chanukah bracelet that tells the story of the holiday stone-by-stone. Anyone who purchases it also receives a postcard relaying how each stone fits into the story. Cabot is in the process of locating an outreach program in Israel to donate proceeds from that bracelet.

"It's a fun educational tool, too," says Cabot, who is considering also making a Passover bracelet.

She says the company is able to offer affordable jewelry because stones and Murano crystal can be purchased at a cheaper rate in Peru.

The company also found the perfect model to display its pieces. Though she is not Peruvian, Cabot's daughter, Jenny, has dark features, which were a perfect pairing for the exotic designs. Cabot remains grateful and amazed that her daughter agreed to be the model. She thought her daughter, a medical student at Columbia University, would surely not have the time to help out Mom. But Jenny, a member of Temple Sinai and a graduate of the Woodward Academy in 2000, jumped at the chance to help out.

"It is amazing to me what my daughter is doing in pursuit of a medical career to help others and she still finds time to come help me," Cabot says, adding that her daughter quickly set her straight. "She said to me, 'Isn't it every girl's dream to get made up and be photographed for an entire day?' "

Peru to You items can be found at Chosen Treasures, Lisa Brown, Fragile, Love Street, Temple Sinai gift shop, Serenity (Dawsonville) and www.perutoyouonline.com.

TOP