EXCLUSIVE: Alison Lou Unveils New Line With Look Book Featuring Emily Ratajkowski

Jewelry label Alison Lou, created and designed by Alison Chemla, has made a name for itself with fine jewelry that speaks to the Millennial market. Her whimsical first collection of emoji jewelry, launched in 2012 and titled Emoticore, was inspired by a generation where texting first is the primary mode of communication. Now, Chemla is bringing her playful ideas to a new affordable line of lucite hoops with the launch of Loucite by Alison Lou.

“I had been playing with the idea of a diffusion line for some time but I wanted to be sure that when it came about it was true to the brand and spoke to the Alison Lou customer,” Chemla said.

Chemla launches her fine jewelry collections annually with a playful theme, most recently a collection called Mama Mia, a pasta-themed line inspired by a summer trip to Italy. “When designing, I do best if I am focused on a particular theme or idea otherwise my imagination will really run wild and the next thing you know I’ve designed 1,000 pieces. I pay very close attention to detail and the quality of my pieces, I am involved with every step from sketching to the production of my samples to the polishing and finishing of the piece.” Chemla says.

The new lucite hoop range, however, is inspired by materials. “After looking into materials — lucite stood out to me — I think it’s unexpected, unlike working in a metal like brass or silver where I would be competing with myself. I could still use enamel, which is a signature of mine and I love the lightness of lucite. It’s fun, playful and unique,” Chemla said.

Chemla is also keen on collaboration, having previously teamed on a line of brooches with Staud Clothing, underwear and sleep sets with Morgan Lane, and a game night-themed collection with Hasbro. For the new, more affordable line, communication to the Millennial market is still key, enlisting model-actress Emily Ratajkowski to model for the Loucite look book, styled by Danielle Nachmani. The recently married star of countless fashion campaigns, including an ad campaign for jewelry designer Jacquie Aiche with almost no clothing, and the new film “I Feel Pretty,” Ratajkowski’s social reach packs a serious punch with her 17.3 million followers. And Ratajkowski has already teased images from the shoot.

Loucite by Alison Lou will retail at the recently opened Alison Lou New York City boutique, small hoops are $125, medium hoops $145, large hoops $165 and the set, which comes with a hologram pouch, retails for $395, as well as brand’s web site, alisonlou.com. It launches April 23 first, and mid May on net-a-porter.com.

“Lucite is light, I can really play around with shapes and it’s the perfect jewelry to always have with you on the go, there’s very little maintenance with lucite so it was a no brainer for me,” Chemla said. “Also, not to mention the name of the material Loucite…it was meant to be!”

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