Not Your Mother’s Jewelry

Fashion icons like Jennifer Lopez and Sofia Vergara have walked out on the town in these jewels. Even country singers like Kimberly Perry of The Band Perry and LeAnn Rimes have donned the stunning pieces designed by the beautiful Jacqueline Nerguizian. Whether it’s on a red carpet or an episode of American Idol, you have most likely seen a Jacqueline piece.

Made with stunning black and white diamonds, Jacqueline Nerguizian’s unique fine jewelry makes a statement with every piece, and every piece is one of a kind. “This isn’t your mother’s jewelry,” as she puts it. Every single piece is made with either white gold or yellow gold – as Jacqueline isn’t a fan of platinum. She says that because platinum is such a soft metal, it tends to wear easily and gets ruined after time. “My jewelry is not typical fine jewelry,” says Jacqueline. “It has an edge to it, a twist – a lot of black and white diamonds.” Jacqueline’s line comes from what is available, what is already trendy or even traditional, mixed with her own unique flare. “You can wear your fine jewelry on a daily basis because it’s not just all white diamonds and all this bling. It’s mixed in with black and white, and it’s young and it’s hip and it’s edgy,” explains Jacqueline. Women usually keep their fine jewels hidden away until a special occasion calls for them, possibly once a year.

The Jacqueline Nerguizian line allows women to have fun with their special pieces and show them off all the time. Jacqueline’s artistic mind rarely ever takes a break. With a sketch book at her bedside for those moments when she wakes up from a dream and is suddenly inspired to design, Jacqueline never stops working. Even a simple drive down the street to her 4,000 square foot office can be the beginning of a new design. A single tree leaf can be turned into a pair of earrings almost instantaneously. However, Jacqueline is a perfectionist in implementing all her ideas. “It’s almost like a double-edged sword because I want everything to be perfect,” says Jacqueline. “When my name is stamped on something, I want it to carry some sort of pride in what I do. I want to make sure the client is 100 percent happy.” She pulls every design apart until it reaches absolute perfection. Sometimes, making a piece can take days and she still wouldn’t be satisfied with it. But regardless of the length of time certain pieces may take to design, if she isn’t happy with it, it isn’t going to be made. She also says that every piece she’s made was most likely designed in the midst of the night. No two Jacqueline Nerguizian clients are walking around with the same piece of jewelry because Jacqueline believes two women shouldn’t be wearing the same piece. It’s simple – just like two women wouldn’t want to be wearing the same dress at an event, why would they wear the same accessories? Jacqueline begins creating a piece for a client from the moment they call her. She asks for their height, their hair color, what styles they usually wear
in clothing. Although most clients laugh at all of the questions, Jacqueline explains it’s necessary so she can create the perfect piece. She usually designs two or three different versions of what they’re looking for.

When you’re this good at designing jewelry, you’re likely to run into problems. Jacqueline’s problem? Creating too gorgeous of a piece for a client in Beverly Hills. “I finished it and thought, ‘Oh my God, this is gorgeous!’” says Jacqueline. “Then my husband suggested I keep it, and I thought ‘Yes, you’re right, I need to have it; this is mine!’ So there are pieces I keep for myself – which gets me in trouble all the time.” Rest assured, she does create pieces strictly for herself. Her favorites include a black, gold and diamond initial that hangs really low, down to the bottom torso. Jacqueline designed a two and a half inch long chain with a black diamond ‘J’ in a bed of brushed gold and eight carats of rose cut diamonds that surround it. She calls it
her ‘ghetto piece’ and wears it with black diamonds. Jacqueline believes that yellow gold is going to make a huge come-back. She says that mixing up white and yellow gold isn’t a sin. “Don’t be afraid to add a little bit more color in your jewelry.” Nerguizian’s pieces aren’t for those who like dainty things. Her clients usually want the pieces to be bigger, thicker, heavier and more sparkly. It’s for those who want to make a statement walking down the street. Jacqueline has a long list of clients looking for pieces that have her special touch. Some A-list celebrities are included in that group. Her first celebrity client was Sofia Vergara who wore long diamond chandelier earrings and a Super Bowl-like ring to a premiere, and didn’t even want to give the ring back because she loved it so much. “She became a huge fan,” laughs Jacqueline.

Jennifer Lopez is another fan who wore Jacqueline’s pieces throughout the entire season of American Idol. Once the season was over, she continued wearing the pieces to award shows and premieres. Jacqueline even designed a pinky ring just for JLo. “I actually made it for myself because I thought, ‘Well, a lot of older men wear pinky rings, women need pinky rings too,’” says Jacqueline. “I took this marquise diamond and put
pave diamonds all the way around it and Jennifer kept saying she needed to have this piece.” Sandra Bullock is another star Jacqueline designs for. “Sandra Bullock is very conservative,” says Jacqueline. “I was showing her huge pieces, and she wanted the small studs and the small snake ring and just very conservative pieces.” Jacqueline says that she is very fortunate to be working with such talented people. However, make no mistake because she doesn’t see herself done yet. She recently finished working with Kris Jenner of E!’s Keeping Up With The Kardashians for a magazine shoot.

 

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