Last week, I had the pleasure of meeting the one and only Alexis Bittar at the Houston Galleria. While I was expecting to peruse through the latest jewelry and have a brief moment to say hello, I was pleasantly surprised at Alexis’ openness and generosity with his time.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with this American designer, allow me to introduce you to one of my favorite jewelry designers. Alexis was born and raised in New York by parents who possessed a love for antiques. This influence as well as their support of his passion for jewelry played a great part in his successful career. In fact, Bittar began selling jewelry and vintage clothing as a teenager and continued doing so as a young adult after dropping out of college.
Inspired by his love for antique jewelry, Bittar began designing his own pieces teaming up with everyone from Burberry, Jason Wu, Jeremy Scott, Phillip Lim, and even Sex and the City costume designer Patricia Field. Not too bad, right?!? While his first major design collaborations took place in the late 1990s, Bittar’s first self-titled boutique opened in New York City in 2004. Since then, Alexis has not looked back seeing his pieces on the likes of fashionistas such as Iris Apfel, Faye Dunaway, Beyonce, Alicia Keys, Sarah Jessica Parker, Cameron Diaz, Joan Collins, Michelle Obama…ok you probably get the picture.
For my fellow Bittar fans, you are most likely familiar with his legendary Lucite pieces. This is what took Alexis to new heights and for good reason. Once glance at one of his bangles, and you know exactly who created them. I love them because they are fabulous for any occasion whether it’s a day in the office or a night out. In fact, I will be sporting this lovely bangle tomorrow at Runway for a Cure supporting the LLS foundation. More on that soon.
Bittar’s jewelry has garnered attention for many reasons, but one thing many have agreed upon is that each piece is truly a work of art. I had the privilege of having a nice chat with Alexis himself, and he spoke about his love for detail. As I marveled upon the flower bangles, he showed me how each petal is designed to move naturally as though it was a real flower. As an attorney, my job is all about paying attention to detail, and I have a new-found appreciation for his designs. While he and I briefly exchanged travel stories, I was quite surprised to hear that he wasn’t directly inspired by his countless travels. The pieces have such a worldly edge, and some are even featured in the Museum of Modern Art!
I always love championing designers who are good to their consumer base. Alexis is definitely one of them. We talked about everything from boys to Arabic food. I learned that Alexis is actually half Syrian! He even happily embraced the idea of chatting via face time with his greatest supporters. You can’t beat that!
I highly recommend checking out some of his artwork at your local Nordstrom. They even have some sale items online!
Each Alexis Bittar creation is crafted by hand, and you won’t regret your purchase!
Such beautiful pieces! Thanks for sharing this info 🙂
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I couldn’t agree more! Thanks for stopping by!!:)
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Wow! You get to meet so many interesting designers. Love his pieces and that is a gorgeous display. Love your nail color also 🙂
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Thanks! I thought it was time to go red for spring. 😉 I have been super fortunate. Houston is really booming for fashion, and I’m super excited about it!
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Eeeekkkk. I was awaiting your post on Alexis Bittar. His design aesthetic and niche that he has created for himself is simply mind blowing! I discovered Alexis Bittar several years ago through a jewelry store I used to work for here in Vancouver by the name of Blue Ruby. Blue Ruby is known for carrying local and international jewelry designers and of course Alexis Bittar was one of the fine designers that we carried in store AND of course he was my absolute favorite designer we carried. His lucite pieces were my preferred styles and I bought nearly 20 bangles just working there. Its so wonderful to hear how kind of man he is and that you were able to talk up a storm with him .. I hope to meet him one day! Lovely post lady.
Xo. http://www.sonamnaiducreative.com
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I really hope you have the chance to meet him too! From what his team told me, he’s touring a lot of cities meeting with his target audience. I know he has visited several Nordstrom stores recently. I always love when designers are normal and easy going. We literally sat in the corner talking for like 25 minutes about life, boys, you name it…
I love stackable jewelry, and he showed me so many different ways to stack his pieces with other pieces I designed. I LOVE his pops of color, so I went a little nuts with my shopping.
Blue Ruby sounds like an amazing store!!! Definitely one I would frequent if I was in Vancouver. With the amount of pieces you have, you’ll definitely have to meet him. He loves fabulous women, so he will adore you. 😉
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That is so amazing!! Its really a hear-warming gesture when international designers such as Alexis are such humble and kind beings. Oooo I would love to see the techniques he has shown you for stacking pieces with your personal designs (Which I would also love to see woman!) I would LOVE to meet him .. maybe I will do a bit more research and see if he’s making a stop over here in Vancouver. We don’t have a Nordstrom here but definitely do have a Holt Renfrew and they carry his pieces and every so frequently he does stop by at Blue Ruby hmmmm.. This could be very possible now that you have mentioned how down to earth and kind he is! Thank you again and share some techniques with us pretty please! Xo.
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I will definitely incorporate some of his tips into a jewelry pairing post!! He is all about bold, fierce designs, which are naturally right up your alley, love!;)
One of these days, I plan on expanding my blog to incorporate custom jewelry requests. Hopefully when work dies down, I can start the planning phase. I will definitely do a post on some of my designs. Promise!
I heard rumors that Nordstrom was coming to Canada, but who knows?!? They really should. Girl, if he stops by Blue Ruby, you have to him them up! I basically told the manager of the jewelry section to get in touch with me when designers come, and that’s how I found out about Alexis. He tends to love chatting with fashionistas, so we need to get you in the same room with him!!! I have a good feeling…:)
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Oh yes! I love the design aesthetic in his jewelry .. I feel like it really does highlight his passion and his overall outlook in style innovation.
That would such a great addition to your blog; very creative and enticing for your readers. Yay! So excited to read some content on your designs!
The rumors are correct .. our downtown location is scheduled to open late this FALL and I can hardly contain myself of course! Super exciting and now that you have passed along your great tips .. I will definitely make an effort to get in touch with the management department and work my magic. You are so extremely thoughtful awww! Xo.
PS; I have nominated you for the Very Inspiring Blogger Award: http://sonamnaiducreative.com/2015/04/09/very-inspiring-blogger-award/
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YAY! I’m so happy they’re finally coming to town! I’m sure there will be some fabulous events on opening day! They have so many wonderful events, but a lot of the best stuff isn’t publicized, so I found someone and forced them to be my friend haha. 😉
Thanks so much for the nomination!!! I’ve had a rough day at work, and that made me smile. I’ll get to work on this ASAP!
ps. I send you a note about a little nomination coming your way…
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Wow! I can’t believe you met him!! I treasure my Alexis Bittar pieces. So unique and original…
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I still can’t believe I did either! He is the nicest man. His pieces definitely turn heads which I love.
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He designed a collection inspired by animals. There was this wonderful monkey ring that I wish I bought…still think of it to this day! Sigh!
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Ohhhh I love monkeys…that sounds super cute!! I hate when you have that feeling of regret. There’s definitely a list of items that haunt me. 😉
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Meeee too!!! Lol! Oh well. There’s always something else to dream about!
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Wow, those necklaces in that last pic are so beautiful! https://hideorgochic.wordpress.com
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Yes, they are definitely bold pieces. They really are art.
Thanks for stopping by!!:)
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