The Enchanted!

New York based Brent Neale lives by ‘don’t take life too seriously’ mantra which reflects in her bright and cheerful jewellery that would give even the most morose person in the world a big hit of happiness says Vijetha Rangabashyam

Pink tourmaline, amethyst, citrine and blue topaz sparkle on a rainbow that emerges from a milky white opal cloud with a blush of blue. This ring from Brent Neale’s debut collection ‘After the Rain’ mimics a water colour sketch by a little kid (in a good way) imbued with innocence and a sense of childish playfulness. The fact that Neale has a lot of fun with her gemstones is quite evident and is perhaps why her pieces have found a home in some of America’s top line retailers – the likes of Barneys, Elizabeth Bruns and Fivestory.

After graduating from Johns Hopkins, Neale began working at a large company involved in private label design for big box retailers. She had no formal training in jewellery design and realised that she had to learn the technical craft of jewellery making. This is when she decided to enroll in FIT’s two-year Jewellery Design program. During her second year, she interned with celebrated jewellery designer Kara Ross and upon graduation, she joined her full time. During an eight year stint at Kara, Neale dabbled in a bit of everything, from product development to design and production and worked her way up to being the Director of Fine Jewellery.

A pregnancy complication led her to quit Kara Ross but she still continued sketching and in the Spring of 2017,Neale launched her eponymous label. Today Neale’s entity is pretty much a one woman army – she has managed to forge relationships with retailers across the country as well as patrons who adore her jewellery for its sheer happy-golucky vibe. “My label is fun and it is not for someone who takes themselves too seriously, it is whimsical, colourful and though a cliché, my jewellery is happy.” It is quite amazing what her brand has managed to do in such a short time.

Neale loves her colours (surprise, surprise!) and her inspiration comes from realms that use plenty of colours too – art, interiors, cartoons, books, textiles and so on. Her latest “Gem Stars” collection that she launched in Paris is a play on the 80s television series JEM. “They are large slabs of stones cut into stars surrounded by 18k gold and sprinkled with bezel set diamonds, rubies, emeralds and multi-coloured sapphires. My collections are nostalgic in general and this is another nod to that sensibility.”

Much of what Neale creates involves learning from her colleagues too, “Sometimes I sketch it out fully and see how I feel about it – other times I speak with the head jeweller I work alongside and the lapidary about a concept and see what they have to say –I need to make sure what I’m dreaming up can actually be executed. They are both veterans and I learn something new from them every day.”

nothing about creating them is easy – there is so much texture and so many colours. With her, you just don’t buy a pair of earrings to wear them, you want to feel the petals and drown in their beautiful indentations. Clearly it is tough for someone like her to put her finger on one gemstone but right now emeralds it is, “Currently I’m having a love affair with them. I just can’t quit them. Oh and 18k yellow gold always.”

Today she enjoys the patronage of women who like to have fun with their jewellery and who also resonate with an aesthetic that is quirky and one-of-akind. Neale loves going to trunk shows because this is where she gets to see her girl, “She’s a wide range in age late 20’s to 70’s. The common thread is that they are all looking for something a little different. They have a sense of humor, love colour, are a little daring and they are fun!” But her favourite thing ever is to see it out in the wild on people who are complete strangers to her.

One would always find Neale with a tonne of jewellery, “I have at least 5 to 6 rings on, a layering of necklaces and always earrings and at least 2 bracelets. So that is 10 - 11 pieces on an average.” She laughs out loud at the thought of wearing so much jewellery. But a memorable piece has to be her engagement ring. “I reset it a few years back and now it really feels like a lovely mix of my husband and I. He picked out the stones originally and I have kept those the same but now the setting is just way more me.”

In a career spanning more than a decade, Neale believes that one of the wisest things she has learnt is from Kara Ross. “Every time we would get a new sample in she would always say ‘ok so do you love it? Because if we are going to produce and sell this you have to really love it.” That goes through Neal’s mind every time she makes a piece even today.

So many pieces in Neale’s collections are inspired from her travel escapades but she feels Italy is a place that she she can never get tired of, “They love jewellery – they wear it so well and I’m definitely a more is more person. They are also home to some of the most amazing art, architecture, and textiles in the world. Not to mention they manufacturer some of the best chains on Earth!”