New Accessories Designers: The Big Picture

Rocio Ildemaro

Backstory: Born in Venezuela and raised in Texas — she currently lives in Dallas — Rocio Ildemaro, 33, spent her 20s learning the art of bespoke shoemaking, shuttling between Italy and New York while developing what one might call a very thick skin. “I’ve had cobblers and workshop guys yell at me, throw things at me,” says Ildemaro with a laugh. Her private bespoke footwear line morphed into her namesake collection this year. Perfectionism, while perhaps an old-world Italian factory owner’s bête noir, is evident in Ildemaro’s work, which highlights precise seaming and a mix-up of skins like ostrich, suede, and snake.

Collection: The shapes range from booties and Mary Janes to d’Orsay pumps and straight-up stilettos, but a luxe sensibility runs throughout. Ildemaro prefers to approach her designs with a cheeky, personalized hand, as with the sexy black boot she crafted for her thirtieth birthday, aptly dubbed, “Happy Birthday To Me.”

Stats: Wholesale prices range from $250 to $600; the line is currently available at Gregory’s Shoes.
— S.H.


Dama

Backstory: Heather Keller’s approach to jewelry design has been fairly by-the-book. The former Rizzoli and Gloss.com editor, who says she’s “always been drawn to jewelry because it’s the one thing that you put on by choice,” enrolled in goldsmithing classes at the School of Visual Arts in New York City and started making pieces for herself and friends for fun. Now, Dama, named for the queen in the Greek deck of cards, is her full-time gig. She is launching it for fall.

Collection: Greece and New York City, where Keller has homes, are her biggest influences. Her 70-piece collection includes gold, silver and brass statement cuffs and necklaces, some done with a gear motif, meant to reflect New York’s machine-age modernism and Greek classicism.

Stats: The wholesale prices range from $175 for earrings to $8,000 for a diamond-encrusted necklace and the line is available at damajewelry.com.
— J.I.