“At this more affordable price point, it’s the idea of allowing people to become collectors of pieces,” Los Angeles-based jewelry designer Suzanne Donegan describes of her new Insignia Collection, which builds upon her original 18-karat gold fine jewelry line Mannin, launched in 2009. “You’re still building the basics of your jewelry wardrobe.” This new bridge collection is entirely based on accessible sterling silver, with equal offerings in sterling and 22-karat gold overlay ($150 to $450, totaling 40 variations). Working with a family of craftsmen in downtown Los Angeles, Donegan chose four special fonts from old engraving books, which are now applied by a machine. “It’s much more interesting for me to be able to work hands on,” she says of the production process, which she chose to keep local. “There’s a dialogue that goes back and forth with the craftsman and the artisan between who’s making the piece and what the design is.”
The notion of modernizing the ideas of bespoke and customization was an important influence for Donnegan, whose own Irish heritage played a big role in the line’s development. Named for her grandmother’s Irish hometown, Mannin’s pendants, charms, and the looming idea of heritage draw on the traditional Irish tartan that is used to identify a district or family. “The collection had this idea of roots and personalization and where we come from.” In its sustainability and longevity, it lives up to Donegan’s ideal: “It’s something that we’ll hand down to our children.”
The Mannin Insignia Collection is now available at Manninfinejewelry.com.
—Alexis Brunswick
Photo: Courtesy of Mannin
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