Shana Gulati: Love on the Shards
by Kim Crow
There’s something so exotic about Shana Gulati’s work, an air of ancient Middle Eastern mysticism that hovers over her totally modern designs. Shana, a former lawyer, says she is inspired by the beauty, lifestyle and culture of both her native India and her hometown of New York City. But what inspires us about Shana’s work is her technique.
Using tiny tweezers and a steady hand, Shana and her collective of artisans painstakingly lay diamond shards much like mosaic tile, in a base of resin, that can be dyed any color. These shards are often ringed with pave diamonds in white or black, adding a more in-your-face sparkle to the subtly shimmering shards. The metals here are generally 14k gold vermeil over brass, rose-gold vermeil over brass or sterling silver. While we tend to prefer neutral design bases — um, no surprise there! — in shades such as silver, charcoal and off-white, Shana offers a dizzying array of choices, from light pink to dark green. (So, if you see a piece you love, but would prefer a different resin color or metal choice, feel free to ask — Team Gulati is amazingly receptive to special orders, especially if you’re patient. )
Prices range from $128 for simple stud earrings to $328-ish for her best-selling silk-cord bracelets to the high hundreds for some of her specialized, limited-edition pieces. Contact us for details. Please note that we get way more jewelry in the store than we’re able to show on our website. (We’re a very small staff with limited resources. Most of the time, we have only one or two each of a given piece of jewelry, and by the time we shoot it, tone it and post it, the item is gone!)