Worn by the likes of Zoe Kravitz, Olivia Munn and Ruby Rose, Swati Dhanak has become the go to jewellery brand for all the cool girls in Hollywood.
“The Swati Dhanak girl is definitely fashion forward with her own individual style,” founder and namesake Swati Dhanak told Savoir Flair. “She is not afraid to experiment and make a statement.”
Like the cool girls wearing her jewellery, Dhanak isn’t afraid to take risks. The young designer from Dubai moved to New York to pursue her passion but she has never forgotten the place that taught her what jewellery was all about.
“As a kid, I frequently visited our family-owned gold workshop in Dubai with my grandfather, who moved here in the 1950s, to expand the family jewelry business,” she said. “I have several happy childhood memories of going to our jewelry store in the Gold Souk with him after school. I would spend hours watching him and my father work, and would even help out by running small errands for them.”
Although she no longer lives in Dubai full time, Dhanak continues to be inspired by the art, architecture and landscapes from the region and is especially excited by the local talent that is continually encouraged to grow.
“Dubai has had a huge influence on my designs and aesthetic,” she explained. “It has always been such a metropolitan city, and growing up there allowed me to have exposure to international pop culture and fashion, in addition to traditional heritage, growing up. Events like Design Days and Fashion Forward in recent years have really allowed local designers to thrive, and I am absolutely inspired by their aesthetic and design philosophy.”
Dhanak specialises in 18k gold and diamond jewellery and all her pieces are made-to-order. Although her collections are as luxurious as those of other designers from Dubai, her emphasis on intricate details, texture and shape makes her stand out from the crowd.
“I gravitate towards geometrical and asymmetrical elements and like to push boundaries that characterize fine jewelry,” she said. “One of my first collections, Shards, explores the asymmetry and shapes formed by glass when it is shattered. Each piece within the collection is designed by placing individual ‘shards’ together in a unique way, exploring the idea behind mosaic tesserae.”
With the immense success of her first collections, Dhanak plans on presenting a new set of designs this fall, this time inspired by a staple pin.
“I have developed the collection to look like flipped diamond staples are holding the pieces together, she explained. “The pieces in the collection have an industrial feel to them, but with a refined edge. I wanted to use an everyday, non-glamorous object and turn it into luxury.”
With her talent and eye for detail, we’re sure to see Dhanak’s new collection all over the red carpet in 2018.
