POWER BABES STRIKE GOLD
by Anita Sarko
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| TOURMALINE (except for the third from the top, which is SMOKY TOPAZ) BRACELETS set in 18K rose gold and framed by a row of pave diamonds. “Each stone is unique in coloring, shape and size.” ($950 – $1,100). |
| It’s always refreshing to do someone’s first interview and be their first experience with press: They haven’t gotten hardened yet, don’t have any walls up and haven’t settled into responses that are basically phoned-in because they are so tired of answering the same questions over and over. In this case, DESIGN AZ is so spanking new that their only outlet for their unspeakably delicate fine jewelry is virtual, as in their website designazjewels.com. They also plan on taking it on the road with trunk shows in all the major markets from coast to coast. It should be mentioned here that now is a great time to visit their site because customers receive 40% off any orders placed between February 1-19 because of their Valentine’s Day promotion.
A lady can buy a nice piece of jewelry for themselves. They don’t need a boyfriend or a husband!” says Zeynep Kudatgobilik, the “Z” in the company’s name. The “A” is Alexandra Moosally. “One of our goals is to allow a modern woman who is busy and has a multifaceted life to treat themselves.” And if there’s one thing these two women personify and truly understand, it’s “multifaceted” lives. And then some. Kudatgobilik and Moosally met through grad school at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. They were both in grad school there, studying International Affairs. Though they matriculated at different times, they met through Alexandra’s sister. It was during a 2004 boat trip in Turkey that they bonded over their shared love and fascination with jewelry. However, it went no further than talk because other elements of their lives got in the way. Zaynep got married, had a baby, worked at The World Bank on Private Sector projects for Eastern Europe, moving from D.C. to New York, then on to London. Alexandra, meanwhile, studied law at Catholic University, first doing public interest law and then corporate law. By 2005, Alexandra had moved to Italy for grad school, which was when Zeynep was in London. |
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| L. to r.: LARGE EYE BRACELET composed of diamonds and sapphires and set in 18K white gold ($2,160); 18K white gold diamond DOUBLE EYE NECKLACE centered with sapphires ($3,370). |
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| Clockwise from above: ASYMMETRICAL EYE NECKLACE (“We’re really influenced by the symbol of the Evil Eye”) composed of diamonds and sapphires and set in 18K yellow gold ($1,735); Diamond OVAL EARRINGS set in 18K white gold ($720); 18k rose gold and diamond BUTTERFLY RING ($1,000). |
| It wasn’t until spring of 2009 that they got together in New York. “We wanted to do this.” Zeynep says about their shared dream of designing jewelry. “We both have a creative streak. So, we started designing and got samples made.” Their next step was to return to Turkey because Zeynep knew artisans there could interpret their designs and “... get the essence of (their) creations.” They found such a person in one artisan in the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul.
He also works fast. Though everything is handmade, there is only a five-day wait for inventory pieces and a two week wait for those that are customized. “We will do any gold, any color stones and any length anyone wants.” Alexandra says about their willingness to do custom work. “We also engrave initials. We can customize anything.” Their vision is to provide quality without flash. They both agree that this is what modern times are all about. They wanted to provide lean and sophisticated pieces that would appeal to all ages and can be worn alone or “... with that fancy rock.” “We wanted to make real jewelry accessible to a broad range of people.” Moosally emphasizes. |
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| 18K rose, yellow and white gold TWO GIRLS & A BOY BRACELET with a satin wristband ($850). |
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| Clockwise from above: 18K white gold diamond ELONGATED OVAL BRACELET ($1,035); 18K white gold BOY CUFFLINKS ($1,200). May be plain or studded and/or engraved. “The men in our lives asked us, ‘Well, what can WE wear?’ We do cufflinks to match the bracelets so the fathers, mothers and grandparents are all celebrated.”); 18K white gold pave diamond TWO BOYS BRACELET ($1,995). |
| That range of people has grown according to insights garnered through their own international and dual lives as corporate power vixens by day and creative powerhouses by night (and probably some weekends). “The men in our lives asked, ‘Well, what can WE wear?’” Alexandra laughs about a chance remark that led to them creating cufflinks that matched their designs for the ladies, be it their take on the Evil Eye or, what has grown into a very large segment of their business, little boy and girl shapes to commemorate births. That all began when Zeynep had her daughter Layla. “It’s evolved into something else.” Alexandra says. “I’m a girl, so I wear a girl.” Think of it as their modern take on the past habit of buying charms, which proud moms and grandmothers happily collected and showed off. Now, with the addition of cufflinks, even dad and granddad can get into the act. |
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| L. to r.: ROW OF DIAMONDS BRACELET set in 18K yellow gold with a satin wristband ($510); Pave diamond GIRL BRACELET with a satin wristband ($600). |
| There’s little worry that Kudatgobilik and Moosally will get and keep their act together business-wise, considering their backgrounds. The toughest thing would have been to see if their creative desires actually made sense when executed. It’s obviously one thing to THINK you have a creative streak and quite another thing to actually possess one. Judging from what I’ve seen in person (I actually first met them at a trunk show) and what bits you’ll see below, I think you’ll agree that they’ve more than lived up to their artistic pretensions. |
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