Love of amber inspired designer
Trade beads, old coins used in Helene Pach Modern Tribal Jewellery
The tribal look is hot for spring/ summer. Every designer from Michael Kors to Donna Karan is doing it and every retailer from Holt Renfrew to Sears is stocking it. Jimmy Choo has beaded crocheted sandals. So does Payless.
But how much faux zebra and ikat prints can you pile on?
If you want accessories to make your summer whites or LBD pop, check out authentic tribal pieces with accoutrements from Helene Pach Modern Tribal Jewelery.
Pach, originally a yoga teacher from Toronto, who now lives in Berkeley, Calif., was in town to brainstorm designs with her employee Joan Hutton. Pach’s jewellery is available in Toronto at 889 Yoga studio, 889 Yonge St., The Thompson Hotel, 550 Wellington St., Gwendolyne Hats, 401 Richmond St. W., suite 433 as well as online at www.helenepach.com.
The jewellery incorporates trade beads and old coins, Buddhist symbols and religious icons such as St. Michael, the guardian angel. Pach uses turquoise, green jade, red coral, cloisonné and amber — her signature.
“Amber is one of the oldest substances in the world (used for decoration),” Pach says. “It is fossilized tree resin. Some pieces are over 40 million years old. Ancients call it the tears of the gods. I buy it all over: Mexico, Nepal, Tibet, India and Timbuktu.”
Amber inspired Pach to make a career shift.
“I went to Courage My Love (in Kensington Market) and saw a rare amber necklace I was obsessed with. It was $600 and Berber. I traded it for $600 worth of vintage clothes. Amber is known for its healing properties. Every time I put it on, I felt that energy. So I decided to make jewellery.”
“It’s about love and healing,” Pach says. “The necklaces all fall at the heart chakra.
“The coins are 300 to 400 years old. I bought Afghani coins from African traders in Berkeley. Ninety per cent of each piece is recycled, using things like ancient African and Indian trading beads. The stones, bones and coins come from Mexico, Borneo, Timbuktu, Madagascar, Mozambique and the Baltics. I get old chains from the ’40s in California.” Hutton assembles the pieces for Pach in her Beaches studio. Hutton came from film. She was a director of photography on all of Ken Finkleman’s TV series and is president of the Canadian Society of Cinematographers. “I am used to directing a 40-man crew,” says Hutton who also has her own jewellery line. “Making jewellery is relaxing.” Pach’s price points start at $60. The pieces are convertible. The belts can double as necklaces; bracelets can be converted into necklaces by adding extensions, $108, which are on button loops. The jewellery can be layered for drama. “You can travel with four pieces of jewellery and you are done,” Pach says.