Ippolita jewelry has been a favorite of mine as a fashion stylist for many years. I recently had the pleasure of meeting with Ippolita for a preview of her fall 2012 collection at Saks Fifth Avenue, in Beverly Hills.

Hallman: What was your inspiration for your fall collection?

Ippolita: Antique mirrors; I am really interested in metallics and how to make them more modern. This season I incorporated a lot of hematite and pyrite into the collection. In the silver group I used rock crystal over hematite and I designed the pieces to have movement allowing them to move around so you can see both sides giving it a cool metallic sheen, which looks great with neutrals. I design my fine jewelry to be fun. It doesn’t have to be so serious.

Hallman: Do you feel that women today buy jewelry that they can wear from day to evening?

Hallman: Yes I think a lot of women buy jewelry today that they can wear for all occasions and that’s the client I design for. The Ippolita woman is a woman who leads a busy life. From professionals to housewives, I want my clients to feel comfortable wearing my jewelry, knowing that it will go with whatever they are wearing while making them feel fabulous and look sexy.

Hallman: I noticed, a few seasons ago, you introduced rosé into the collection?

Ippolita: Yes rosé is a newer metal for me. It’s a mixture of sterling silver and gold. I’m a metal smith by trade and a sculpture and I love mixing different alloys to see what new things I can achieve. I find different metals look different on different skin tones and the rosé collection is jewelry that works for everyone and mixes well with my silver pieces. Mixing in rosé to your existing Ippolita collection is a great way to update your look.

Hallman: I find your jewelry chic and the pieces easy to layer. Is that intentional?

Ippolita: For me layering is very important. I suggest, when buying my jewelry, you start with stackable bangles and a long gold chain, which makes it easier to layer. I suggest using some of my multi-colored pieces because they help pick-up other shades that you are wearing.

Hallman: Like most fashion brands you do a different collection from season to season. Do you name the different collections?

Ippolita: Yes, since I’m Italian a lot of my collections have Italian names. One of my new collections for fall is called Oceano, which is the Italian word for ocean. Another collection is called Compagna, which means countryside. It has beautiful peach moonstones, pyrite, rock crystal and diamonds. The peach hues allow you to style it monochromatically or you can mix it with metallics. I also use, what I call, “fun candy names”. The new silver collection is called “Wonderland”.

Hallman: I see your jewelry mixing well with casual day, cocktail and eveningwear?

Ippolita: I think that ease of wear is very important. Women don’t want to have to change their jewelry multiply times throughout the day. They just want to be able to get-up, put it on and go through their day not feeling overly dressed up. That’s an important part of my design function. You know you’ve succeeded in design when it looks effortless.

Hallman: I understand you just opened an Ippolita boutique?

Ippolita: Yes our Madison Avenue boutique is now open and we are looking to open a boutique in Beverly Hills as well.

Hallma: So what’s next for Ippolita? Will we see a ready-to-wear collection?

Ippolita: I am not sure about a ready-to-wear collection, but probably other accessories.

Hallman: Do you have plans to introduce a men’s collection?

Ipppolita: Yes, next season I plan to introduce a men’s collection of cuff links, necklaces and bracelets. It will be exciting to add men’s to the Ippolita line. www.s5a.com www.ippolita.com

Photos: Peter Wintersteller/ABimages