For jewellery designer Bernard James – who has designed a white gold edition of his signature Flora chain necklace for Dover Street Market New York to mark the store’s tenth anniversary – flora is a source of creativity, curiosity, and wonder. Inspired by the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens, a stone's throw from his childhood home in Crown Heights, he reimagines the beauty of daisies, hellebores, and petunias through gold and diamonds.
Although James’ work has transcended the neighbourhood – he produces his line in New York’s famed 47th St Diamond District in midtown Manhattan and boasts a burgeoning international following of high-jewellery connoisseurs – his Brooklyn roots are never far away. Here, he speaks to Wallpaper* from his dedicated storefront in the Greenpoint section of Brooklyn.
Bernard James x Dover Street Market New York
James says that he’s ‘super excited’ about his partnership with Dover Street Market: ‘They have such a strong presence in New York and such an eclectic mix of brands. I think their merchandising is fantastic. And they have a very, distinct point of view.’ The new collection is emblematic of his aesthetic – featuring rings, earrings, necklaces of 14ct and 18ct gold, and diamonds that interpret a range of blossoming flora, including pavé diamond flora earrings shaped as lilies and helios.
While his aesthetic is well-defined, James says that his creative process and the decisions he makes in running his business are based on careful deliberation. ‘I sit on things for a long time,’ he admits. ‘Something pops into my head, but I've had to learn to be discerning.’ Perhaps it is this patience that has enabled him to avoid mass-producing and overproducing, he says.
The jewellery designer has a disdain for the growing industry of manufactured diamonds. ‘I'll just be very diplomatic and say, there's a use for every material,’ he says. He goes on to cite his partnership in 2023 with the Natural Diamond Council, called ‘The Process Collection’, in which he showcased the ‘journey of natural stones’, explaining that his goal was to highlight the process of cutting a natural stone and transforming it into a finished product. ‘So, I created this middle step showing that process of cutting. I’m obsessed with natural diamonds. I love the idea of working with something that's been formed over millions of years. I think it's such a special thing.’
James has had his share of challenges breaking into the industry, and it is not lost on him that as a person of colour, in a space with both established luxury brands and multigenerational jewellery houses, it wasn’t going to be easy. ‘You sort of feel like an outsider in a lot of ways, because a lot is handed down and a lot is based on relationships.’
He shares a story of one client who attempted to refer friends but reported that they declined because they preferred a more recognisable house for fine jewellery. However, shortly afterwards, the same client returned and mentioned that someone at a party recognised one of his pieces on her and mentioned his line by name. ‘The fact that there is recognition on a different scale with the brand, and people are getting familiar with it, is really special to me,’ he says.
-
Introducing the design-led Split Watches, a force for goodGood design is given a charitable spin by Split Watches – for every one sold, the company donates an hour of therapy
-
Meet the New York-based artists destabilising the boundaries of societyA new show in London presents seven young New York-based artists who are pushing against the borders between refined aesthetics and primal materiality
-
Inside a Montana house, putting the American West's landscape at its heartA holiday house in the Montana mountains, designed by Walker Warner Architects and Gachot Studios, scales new heights to create a fresh perspective on communing with the natural landscape
-
From Cubism to Pop, artists’ jewellery goes on show in Palm Beach‘Artists’ Jewelry: From Cubism to Pop, the Diane Venet Collection’ at the Norton Museum of Art showcases key pieces from an impressive collection
-
Nina Runsdorf brings classic jewellery back to life to mark 20 yearsNew York-based jewellery designer Nina Runsdorf celebrates her eponymous brand’s anniversary with a new jewellery collection, ‘Archive’
-
Ulla Johnson’s collaboration with artist Julie Hamisky on the A/W 2025 runway is blooming lovelyUlla Johnson and French artist Julie Hamisky have created 12 new jewellery pieces for the designer's A/W 2025 runway
-
Offbeat placing, diamonds and cool cuts: Shahla Karimi’s architecturally inspired jewelleryFine jewellery is given a cool spin by the New York-based designer Shahla Karimi, who riffs off architectural references for her eponymous brand
-
LVMH watch week 2025: everything we know so farOur guide to LVMH Watch Week 2025, taking place in New York and Paris, starting 21 January; keep an eye out for our updates
-
Athens’ finest: jewellery studio Vasiliki sculpts conceptual pieces by handMeet Kiki Karayiannis, the imaginative jeweller behind new metalwork creations
-
Wallpaper* Design Awards 2025: JB Blunk rings are sculptures for the handThe JB Blunk Estate has partnered with J Hannah on the reproduction of four special rings
-
Dyne is a New York jewellery brand fusing fluid forms with futuristic flairDyne embraces striking materials and silhouettes for very modern jewellery
