Eternamé lands stateside at Winnetka boutique Neapolitan
Sometimes I fear I have joined the seeming legions of French haters. But this has nothing to do with politics or August-long vacations (though I could grow to resent that) or freedom fries.
No, my vitriol arises from my firmly held belief that everything a French woman touches is perfect.
Her chignon. How she can tie a scarf 14 different ways. She shops at Monoprix, Zadig & Voltaire and Chanel and looks as if she’s stepped out from the pages of French Vogue. All while never gaining an ounce despite eating macaroons and foie gras.
Couture jewelry designer and Eternamé founder Sara Besnainou is a case in point.
After spending a special weekend in 2006 with a very special guy, Besnainou wanted to send him a gift. But nothing in the shops of Paris was suitable.
So what did Besnainou do?
Oh, she just made her own cufflinks. The rest, as they say, is history.
You can get an up-close look at that history at Winnetka’s Neapolitan Collection. The North Shore shop offers a stunning array of Besnainou’s work — the only store in the United States that carries her fine jewelry.
She is a truly hands-on designer.
“I really wanted to make them myself,” she said. “I spent a full three days and four nights cutting stones for these cufflinks.”
And of course this gal is friends with French model Audrey Marnay, who liked her work so much, she encouraged Besnainou to design jewelry she could wear.
Baby Christian Dior communications guru by day, she became a GIA-certified gemologist on the side.
“I was certainly more a business person than a creative force,” she said. “And I kept saying I wasn’t going to quit Dior to launch my own brand.”
But fast forward to the 2007 Cannes Film Festival when Kylie Minogue was photographed wearing her one-of-a-kind couture baubles, and Eternamé was on its way to becoming a global brand.
“I’m not a designer, but I can create beautiful pieces using my emotions — and I’m inspired by everything. I keep my eyes open everywhere I go.”
Kelly Golden, owner of Neapolitan, sought out Besnainou while in Paris on her buying trip. She saw her work in foreign fashion magazines and knew not only would her clients fall in love, they’d want pieces of their own.
“The hands-down favorite is a pair of wood and diamond earrings, with Sarah’s signature filigree work,” Golden said.
She hosted a pop-up shop in Paris last fall. And after a long day at her studio (boudoir, actually) she headed down to the shop late on a Sunday evening.
Much to her surprise, the French fashion designer and creative force behind Lanvin, Alber Elbaz stood in her pop-up shop admiring her collection.
She spent 45 minutes with the designer, who liked what he saw and bought three pieces for his personal collection.
Four days later, Besnainou took a call from a shop owner in Kazakstan.
“I need to carry this brand,” the caller told her.
By Meg Moore
Originally published February 23, 2012 in Pioneer Press Newspapers.
Reposted with permission.