Danielle Sherman Spent a Decade at The Row, Alexander Wang, and Edun—Now She’s Launching a Fine Jewelry Collection of Her Own
The last time Danielle Sherman was mentioned in these pages was 2016, when she left Edun, the Bono and Ali Hewson–backed ethically sourced line where she was creative director for three years. In the interim, Sherman relocated from New York to Los Angeles and had a second child with her husband, the photographer Todd Selby; their girls are now three and one. But it’s her new baby we’re here to talk about.
Since exiting Edun, Sherman has been nurturing a new fine jewelry collection, the hero pieces of which are substantial 18-karat hand-linked chain necklaces. They’re real beauties, made all the more so by the fact that so little of this kind of artisanal work happens these days.
Sherman Field takes its name from a women’s tailoring brand the designer’s paternal grandparents founded in London circa 1967. It was a short-lived endeavor, and there’s only one piece of marketing material: a photograph of a Twiggy-type model on Westminster Bridge sporting a sharply cut A-line coat, with a Jensen Interceptor and a chauffeur idling in the background. In the future, Sherman Field could grow to encompass categories beyond jewelry and become a real lifestyle brand, but for now she’s quite pleased to be thinking small. Sherman is part of a growing cadre of former creative directors (in addition to Edun, she worked at Alexander Wang and The Row) who are reimagining their careers—not just their day-to-day grinds, but what their output is, and, further, what its impact will be on the local and global environment. The 2020s could just turn out to be a new age of independents.
Sherman Field Is a New Fine Jewelry Collection From Danielle Sherman, a Veteran of The Row, Alexander Wang, and Edun
“Because of the world we’re in now, it’s sometimes hard to find things that people have taken time to create,” Sherman says. “But Sherman Field is really built to last. I mention this on the website: ‘craft without compromise.’ I stand for everything that fast fashion doesn’t.” A lifetime lover of jewelry, Sherman’s development process began in the archives of LA’s Getty Museum, where he discovered a love for Retro jewels. Bold, dramatic, and made in gold post–World War II, they’re the antithesis of the dainty, delicate rings and ear cuffs that’ve been so popular this decade. “I was excited to try to do something that felt new,” she says.
As Sherman made the rounds of jewelry trade shows—call it secondary research—she noticed a real lack of chain necklaces from the era of her interest, so she made them her focus. “They’re heavy and they have weight to them,” she says. “They’re an investment that you can pass on, and that’s how I envision this brand.” In addition to chunky necklaces in multiple lengths (Danielle wears the 22-inch and Todd the 25-inch), she’s designed cigar and barre rings and stud earrings featuring black onyx, lapis lazuli, or white cacholong. All of the pieces are made to order in Los Angeles in gold (the yellow gold was specially mixed for Sherman to evoke the warm hue of Retro jewelry), and they’re available via her direct-to-consumer website and social channels. She’s also supplementing her original designs with vintage pieces from France, Italy, and the U.S. There’s a Victorian locket, link bracelets with appealing heft, and a stunner of a diamond Art Deco cocktail ring, plus a signed Cartier ingot bar pendant. “Creating something new is incredibly time-consuming, and some things are just better as they were,” explains Sherman. “Also: This being a personal project, curating other pieces that were personal to somebody else, it just felt right.”
But why use the name of her grandparents’ company? “Even though Sherman Field didn’t last long it stood for something—it really represented quality,” says Sherman. “Hopefully we’ll be around for the next 10, 15, 20…this is something that maybe one day my kids will want to take up. It’s nice to build something of permanence in a time when things feel really impermanent.”
Originally Appeared on Vogue
