We were absolutely blown away by the fabulous food and amazingly professional team of Tracey and Amie of Two Chix Catering for our 1-year anniversary party! They put together a fabulous menu for us and had everyone drooling for more! My personal favorite was the double fudge and fresh raspberry brownie bites, or was it the skirt steak chimichurri on crisp plantain chip? Maybe the summer crab tartlets? The mini goat cheese and asparagus frittata...

 

 
ABOVE: GISELE BUNDCHEN WEARS THE LINHARDT BULLET RING IN MOKUME GANE TECHNIQUE OF RECYCLED STERLING SILVER AND COPPER; SHOOT PHOTOGRAPHED BY GREG KADEL; COURTESY NUMERO MAGAZINE 101.

 
ABOVE: HAND-CRAFTED ONE-OF-A-KIND SOFALA PLATE, MADE IN MOZAMBIQUE  FROM SUSTAINABLE WOODS. TEXT BY SUMMER RAYNE OAKES; PHOTOS COURTESY ESTHER HAVENS.

As you may recall, I’ve shared some sustainable design and development stories from Mozambique while working with Allan Schwarz. The whole team is super excited to officially be launching the A.D. Schwarz line for the first time in New York with some limited quantities of handwrought sustainably-harvested wood jewelry and Sofala plates. You can read more about the project below. The items will be available at Linhardt Design Studio on 156 1st Avenue.

 

SCREENSHOT: SHOWING TAGUA, AN ORGANIC SUSTAINABLE SEED FROM ECUADOR; COURTESY SUNDANCE

Am honored to have been chosen as one of ten artists to be showcased on a new Sundance series entitled "The New Revolutionaries," which profiles artists who are pushing and/or re-defining the boundaries of their medium. Sundance writes "They are re-thinking the status quo, and take an untraditional approach to their work." These video diaries will support Sundance's on-air film stunt which includes documentaries featuring revolutionaries in design and art. Both the series and the stunt are sponsored by Hyundai. "The New Revolutionaries" Series will air from now to September 2009 on the Sundance Channel. Or view the sneak peek by clicking here.

 

 
PHOTO: SUMMER RAYNE OAKES POSES FOR PHOTOGRAPHER RINZE VAN BRUG IN THE EAST VILLAGE, NYC

Linhardt Design Studio recently shot its latest campaign for the Fall 09 collection with eco-fashion model Summer Rayne Oakes and the Dutch House of Photography's Rinze VanBrug.

 

 
ABOVE: LAUREN BUCCELATI INTRODUCES LISA LINHARDT FOR THE ALDRICH MUSEUM TALK. PHOTO: SMNEEDHAM FOR THE ALDRICH CONTEMPORARY ART MUSEUM.

 
PHOTO: ARLENIS SOSA PEÑA WEARS LINHARDT JEWELRY THROUGHOUT THE EDITORIAL SPREAD SHOT BY CHAD PITMAN

ABOVE: ECO-FASHION MODEL SUMMER RAYNE OAKES SIGNING HER NEW BOOK, STYLE NATURALLY AT STELLA McCARTNEY IN NYC. PHOTO: COURTESY TREEHUGGER.COM.

Style, Naturally is the only book to offer such a comprehensive visual guide to environmentally-conscious fashion and beauty from all corners of the globe. From cotton basics to haute coture dream pieces to organic skincare, these goods help connect what's in our closets to what's happening in the world. Check out more by clicking  here.

 
ABOVE: AN ARCHITECTURAL PLAY ON LIGHT AND FORM - ONE-OF-A-KIND ENGAGEMENT RING MADE WITH RECYCLED PLATINUM AND ETHICALLY-SOURCED DIAMOND; HAND-SCULPTED AND CAST WITH AN OUTER SATIN FINISH AND INNER HIGH POLISHED FINISH

 
Jewelry by Lisa Linhardt is on display at the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum. Only fifty miles from New York City in Northern Fairfield County, The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum enjoys a national reputation for its perceptive exhibitions and ground-breaking education programs. The Aldrich is known for stylish events in award-winning new galleries, located in a jewel-like setting in a historic town. Linhardt Designs are also available for purchase at the Aldrich web store.

 
ABOVE: JEAN OEI IN HER OWN WEDDING DRESS DESIGN MADE FROM TYVEK, PIXEL RING IN WHITE JADE WITH RECYCLED 18K GOLD INLAY.

 
Many Thanks to New York Magazine for giving Linhardt Design Studio a glowing review! Please check it out here.

 
ABOVE: LINHARDT SWOON PENDANT FEATURED IN LUCKY MAGAZINE NOVEMBER 2008.

For the month of November, Linhardt Design Studio will team up with Lucky Magazine to give readers 20% off ALL Linhardt custom and ready-made pieces. See the Nov 08 issue for details!

 
ABOVE: ALICIA KEYS WEARS THE LINHARDT PIXEL RING IN BLACK ONYX WITH AN 18K YELLOW RECYCLED GOLD INLAY.

 

Thanks Alek! I'm a huge fan...

 

 

ABOVE: LINHARDT RUFFLE RING IN RECYCLED STERLING

Diego Binetti is just about one of the most fun fashion designers you can work with. He is uber excited about his new collection, which debuted on Sept 19th during Mercedes Benz Fashion Week in NYC on Manhattan's Pier 66. This season it was all about the sophisticated traveller, with maritime splashes of sea blue, magenta, and yellow on a solid base of sailor white. I adorned the women with huge artful cork necklaces, and lots of minimalist sterling jewelry. Here are some impressions of behind-the-scenes before the show, on a day with the most perfect weather! Its a fairly crazy scene back stage but filled with lots of adrenaline and positive energy. Binetti definitely rocked the runway and I am very grateful for the opportunity to have been chosen to show with his fabulous new collection, some of which you will see here...

 
ABOVE: INTRICATE HAND-MADE FILIGREE HOOP EARRINGS FROM COLOMBIA; SHOWN IN RECYCLED STERLING SILVER.

Filigree is an ancient technique originating from Spain and Italy. It came to Mompox, Colombia during the Spanish colonization period when the Spanish arrived to this small Colombian town. Mompox was the main port, on the Magdalena river, where all sterling silver and gold was received from the Colombian mines. The Spanish jewelers taught the native people and created a fine legacy to their jewelry making skills of today. Filigree is made by Colombian jewelers with very rudimentary tools. The labor is slow and refined - very delicate sterling threads of different thickness are interwoven in endless circles. This jewelry is hand made using recycled sterling silver, 18k gold or 24k gold vermeil. To this very day, Mompox continues to be the "Colombian Filigree town." The above design as well as other hand-crafted filigree work is now available at the Linhardt gallery.

 
Denethor! or should I say John Noble walked into my shop the other day and commissioned wedding rings for him and his wife of many years, Penny. They were an absolute pleasure to work with, and were nice enough to pass along my information to the set stylist of Fringe, John's latest gig. Thanks John! Hope to see you again soon.

 

Congratulations to Wary Meyers Decorative Arts for their book deal with NYC-based publishers Stewart Tabori and Chang. Linda Wary and John Meyers have been refurbishing vintage pieces into beautiful works of art ever since I met them back in 2002. The book, called "Tossed and Found," is scheduled for release in October 2009 and is an extension of their former column in Time Out: New York magazine. The book will be sold at the Linhardt gallery as well as various booksellers worldwide. Thanks Linda and John for all your love and support, you truly deserve this! Congrats!!!!!

 
Kibera is one of the largest slums in Africa. It is the size of NYC's Central Park with one million inhabitants, yet has no proper sewage or waste disposal system. Kibera also houses the highest concentration of HIV-positive women in East Africa... One of the more positive days spent in the African slum of Kibera was when I visited Carolina for Kibera, an NGO that fights abject poverty and helps prevent violence through community-based development. There I learned about the Tabitha Clinic which provides Home-Based Care (HBC) to twenty families living with HIV/AIDS with the help of ten trained community health workers. HBC provides free treatment of opportunistic infections, food, and clothing for these patients and their families.

Since implementing the HBC program, many women in Kibera with HIV/AIDS have regained so much strength and energy that they have literally come back to life.  These women have formed a small cooperative called the Power Women Group, in which they make traditional beaded jewelry. I am thrilled to say that their work is now available at the Linhardt gallery. Profits from the sale of their artwork are shared among the members of the group. Please stop and have a chat with me to find out how else you can help the women of Kibera.

 
Please join us tonight at Off The Mat, Into The World's fundraiser for The Cambodian Children's Fund at SoHo's Tailor Restaurant from 5-8pm. Jennifer Lynn Steinwurtzel will be hosting the silent auction, and 100% of proceeds from Linhardt jewelry will be donated to the fund. Hope to see you there!

 

ALL HAND-SEWN BY LINDA WARY - ITS DIFFICULT TO SEE IN THE PHOTO BUT THE TORSO LINES ACTUALLY SAY "LINHARDT". SO COOL.

 
When contemplating the interior of my new boutique, I recruited friends Linda Wary and John Meyers of Wary Meyers Decorative Arts to help design an eco-friendly space that reflected my use of repurposed materials in my jewelry. I first met Linda back in 2002 or 2003? back when we were both art directors at a publishing company. She always had the best vintage clothes (I even remember taking a beautiful purple 70s coat off her hands) and it seemed scouting/thrifting was a real passion. I also remember when former Anthropologie Display-Director John Meyers walked into her life - it seemed a match made in heaven. Eventually they both moved from the Big Apple to Maine and formed Wary Meyers Decorative Arts, where they create a variety of artistic endeavors including paintings, interiors, illustration, design and more - all stemming from their passion for scouting. I thought they were the perfect team due to their incredible artistic vision coupled with a true love for repurposing materials. You have to see what they did with the space...

 

Thank you to all who joined in celebration for the grand opening on May 2, 2008 in the East Village section of Manhattan! It has been an incredible journey and I was so amazed to see the space even better than I had imagined, thanks to my good friends over at Wary Meyers Decorative Arts! Both of my parents flew in for the event as well as childhood friends, customers, mentors, you name it... The room was filled with such incredible love and support! I cannot thank you enough and tell you how much it meant to me to see you all there.

The jewelry gallery is named "Linhardt" in hommage to my family, who arrived here in NYC at the turn of the century through Ellis Island. Like many immigrants, they lived and worked as artisans on the Lower East Side of Manhattan although they did not have a store to call their own. Three generations and three NYC boroughs later, I return to the Lower East Side to go full circle. I present to you... Linhardt, a Custom and Ready-Made Jewelry Gallery. Please allow me to share it with you and be part of the journey ahead... xo lisa