Jeweler Janina Dizon is celebrating her 10th anniversary in the business. While everyone else might be booking vacations in their dream destinations or splurging on new luxuries, Janina crafted a new line, Dekada, to mark the milestone.
Dekada consists of 10 diverse themes, representing key moments and inspirations in Janina’s life. Every piece echoes not just her style and taste, but also her firm belief of what jewelry should be: a memento for occasions and a relic detailing precious histories.
Ascend features step-like designs that represent life’s unpredictability. The pieces seem to echo the adage, “Life is never a straight line.” Earrings, necklaces and rings take on a pointed form, accentuated with bursts of simple color from gems neatly aligned and cornered.
Buddha is a testament to Janina’s reverence for religion. Inspired by her stay in Thailand, the pieces depict the enlightened one in royal shades of jade, purple, rose and ebony. A select number of stones accompany the figure, enhancing their elegance.
Candy, named after her sister, is a range of playful, flirty jewelry that flaunts feminine whimsy in every curve and shape. The pieces seem “extra” in a good way. I love the tassels, pale pink beads and eclectic mix of colors that reflect so much of Janina’s sibling’s personality.
Menagerie
Exotic is a tactile menagerie of leather and gems. Crocodile, stingray and snake leather create dramatic backgrounds for the stones. It’s perfect for those looking to make a statement. There’s nothing louder (and more sophisticated) than a bold leather necklace.
Galaxy is a different take on pearls and astronomy. Pearls tend to be “old woman’s jewelry,” and I’m glad Janina’s changing all that. “I wanted to add a fun element to it,” she says. The pearls come in unique shapes, reminiscent of constellations in clear skies.
Pieces in Goddess are “for mighty beings with incredible powers.” Any guess? Well, it’s all of us women. A throwback to the jewelry we’d often see in portraits of Greek and Roman goddesses, bangles and bracelets of gold tinged with bluish purple details command attention and loyalty.
Kasal is meant literally for weddings. As jewelry almost always plays a part in marital rites, the pieces take on refreshing forms. They feature the morse code, rose cuts and mixed fancy-colored diamonds.
Mobile is made as an ode to Janina’s favorite artist Alexander Calder. These sculptural mobile earrings in unique geometrical shapes won the Samshin Award in Korea in 2008.
Most versatile
Transformer is perhaps the most versatile of the bunch. While most statement earrings want you to go big or go home, these earrings are wearable depending on your mood.
Whether you want to dress up or down, the design’s simple yet elegant attachments are its genius tech.
Vintage looks back to eras past. Sophisticated and timeless, these pieces are in calming blues and greens that defy age and are, in fact, quite reinvigorating.
