Three Emerging Fine-Jewelry Designers I’m Watching in 2026… and Stealing Notes From
There are two types of inspiration: the kind that makes you want to take a long, romantic walk on the beach… and the kind that makes you open seventeen tabs, start a Notes app list titled “DO THIS IMMEDIATELY”, and then remember you’re also a human with laundry.
Lately, I’ve been in the second camp—in the best way.
As Coastal Carats grows (and as I keep designing pieces that feel like modern heirlooms with a wink), I’m constantly looking at designers who have that rare combination of:
a point of view you can spot from across a room and
a business brain that understands today’s customer is buying a story, not just a sparkle.
Here are three emerging fine-jewelry designers I can’t stop thinking about—plus the specific details I’m borrowing (lovingly, respectfully, with a little fangirl energy) as both a designer and a business person.
1) Rosalie Carlier: Jewelry that feels like a gesture
Some jewelry is “pretty.” Some jewelry is “cool.” Rosalie Carlier’s work is something else—a feeling. Her pieces have this sculptural, architectural softness that reads almost like a handwritten note: intentional, intimate, and slightly mysterious.
What’s inspiring me as a designer
It’s the way her designs have restraint without being boring. The shapes feel deliberate, almost like they’ve been edited down to their cleanest, most poetic form—no extra noise, no fussy theatrics. It reminds me that the most powerful luxury move is often clarity.
I think about this a lot with Coastal Carats—especially with floating diamonds and gemstones. When the stone is the star, the design needs to feel like the perfect frame, not a competing headline. Her work is a masterclass in letting the viewer’s eye land exactly where you want it to.
What I’m stealing as a business person
A strong aesthetic that doesn’t chase trends. That’s the long game. When you’re not designing for the algorithm, you’re building something collectors come back for—because it feels consistent, recognizable, and yours.
And yes, I say this while still enjoying a good micro-trend like a person who lives in 2026 and owns a phone.
2) Inesa Kovalova: Bold texture, brave materials, zero apologies
If Rosalie’s work feels like a whisper, Inesa Kovalova’s feels like a confident entrance.
There’s a tactility to her designs that I love—jewelry you can almost feel through the screen. The forms are bold, sculptural, and a little bit futuristic, but still deeply wearable. It’s giving “I have a meeting, a martini, and boundaries.”
What’s inspiring me as a designer
Her relationship with texture is the moment. I’m obsessed with how she uses surface and shape to create drama without relying on maximum stone coverage. It’s proof that “luxury” is not just diamonds-per-square-inch—it’s design intelligence.
It also makes me want to push my own experimentation further. In Coastal Carats, I’m always balancing my signature romantic femininity with a clean, modern finish—Inesa’s work is a reminder that contrast is chic. Soft + strong. Classic + unexpected. Gold + something you didn’t see coming.
What I’m stealing as a business person
Distinctiveness is a marketing strategy.
When your product has a silhouette people recognize immediately, everything gets easier: social content, PR, word-of-mouth, repeat buyers, even how people talk about you at brunch.
Also? She’s a reminder that niche isn’t a limitation—it’s a moat. If you’re brave enough to be specific, you become unavoidable to the right customer.
3) Juju Vera: Antiquity, but make it addictive
Juju Vera’s work hits that sweet spot that makes my collector brain light up: ancient references with modern attitude. It’s the kind of jewelry that looks like it could’ve been found in an Italian archaeology dig… except now it’s styled with a white button-down and excellent sunglasses.
What’s inspiring me as a designer
It’s the storytelling. Every piece feels like it has a past—even if it was made yesterday. That’s a magic trick I deeply respect, because feeling is what turns an object into an heirloom.
At Coastal Carats, I’m building a world that’s very “feminine coastal glamour meets country club garden party,” and Juju’s work is a reminder that mythology is marketing. Not in a fake way—in a romantic, world-building way. The customer wants to step into something. Wear something that makes them feel like a main character with a plot.
What I’m stealing as a business person
Collectibility.
Her pieces feel like the beginning of a “set”—and that’s so smart. When your line naturally encourages collecting (without feeling gimmicky), you’re not just selling one purchase. You’re building a relationship.
Also: when you have a strong narrative, you can create editorial content forever. Product pages become little essays. Instagram posts become tiny stories. Your brand stops being “stuff for sale” and becomes “a place people return to.”
The throughline: A signature, a world, and a backbone
What all three of these designers have in common is something I’m constantly working to refine in Coastal Carats:
A signature (you can identify their work quickly)
A world (you know what it feels like to wear it)
A backbone (they’re not designing to be liked by everyone)
That last one is the hardest—and the most important. If your jewelry is trying to appeal to everyone, it ends up feeling like it belongs to no one.
And if you’re building a brand, especially in fine jewelry, the goal isn’t to be “nice.” The goal is to be specific, memorable, and emotionally resonant—while still making pieces that people actually want to wear to dinner, not just admire in a museum.
Which, frankly, is also my goal for myself as a person.
A little Coastal Carats note (because yes, I’m inspired—but I’m also working)
Watching designers like this doesn’t make me want to copy. It makes me want to clarify. To take Coastal Carats and make it sharper, more unmistakable, more “this could only exist in this exact universe.”
So if you’ve been following along—thank you. And if you’re new here: welcome. We do floating diamonds, custom solid gold, and modern heirlooms that feel a little bit like champagne and a little bit like sunscreen. (The expensive kind.)
If you want more posts like this—designer spotlights, trend intel, behind-the-scenes of building Coastal Carats—stick around. I have thoughts. And a spreadsheet. Always a spreadsheet.
