Fashion Designer Helen Yarmak On Her Ocean-Inspired Jewelry Collection

We might know internationally-acclaimed fashion designer Helen Yarmak for her colorful coats that have been worn by some of the most iconic pop stars in history, like Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, Rihanna, Jennifer Lopez, and Mary J Blige.

But Yarmak is also a jewelry designer with a new ocean-inspired collection, Natural Beauty. The collection boasts a stylish collection of rings, earrings, and necklaces, as part of her Fall/Winter 2024 collection, just in time for New York Fashion Week.

The whimsical pieces incorporate some of the most overlooked semi-precious stones, like a soft pink stone called Morganite. The collection pays homage to the deep sea, and the world’s natural treasures.

“I love and appreciate what mother earth gives us,” explains Yarmak. “Our oceans make up more than 70 percent of our planet, and there’s beauty and a whole different life underwater.”

Nobody does luxury fashion quite like Yarmak. She got her PhD as a mathematician in Kyiv, then started out designing lingerie in her kitchen for her friends—for fun, back in the 1980s. “I’d discovered this deep-rooted creative passion in my veins, and I was loving and cherishing every moment,” she recalls.

This experience led Yarmak to create her namesake lifestyle brand, which includes womenswear and menswear, jewelry, a home accessories collection, and salons. “I guess you could say I’m a scientist who can thankfully use both sides of her brain,” said Yarmak.

The new collection features glittering aquamarine rings, and pieces made from Morganite and Kunzite. “These stones have absorbed the earth’s energy for millions of years, and each one tells a different story,” said Yarmak.

“When I’m choosing my stones, I must feel its energy straight away. If I don’t feel connected, then I part ways. That connection drives my imagination for the ultimate design for my jewelry.”

Jewelry with semi-precious stones can still be luxury, “I love the transparent gemstones because they’re rare,” she says. “I collected a type of stone called Paraiba tourmaline years ago, and now it’s very difficult to find. Thankfully we have a big collection.”

She also uses a semi-precious stone called Rubellite in her new collection, which is a red-hued tourmaline. “Rubellite possesses special mystical powers,” says Yarmak. “Our stones are mostly on a larger scale, so the value increases every year.”

Her jewelry collection started in the 1990s when she was invited to a British Red Cross Gala at Buckingham Palace. “I didn’t have any jewelry to wear, so I went to a store where they sold loose stones, and I purchased big Topaz stones, designed them into settings, and created my first ring, necklace, and earrings,” said Yarmak.

“At the gala, the guests who wore luxury brands like Cartier and Tiffany, came up to me and said they loved my jewelry, and that sparked the beginning of my jewelry line.”

Each handmade piece of jewelry has its own unique story, and the big statement stones are a trademark of Yarmak’s over-the-top luxury. Her jewelry collections include one called Art of Love, another which uses diamonds and pearls called Rock & Royal, as does her Guardian Angel collection.

“It goes back to my base philosophy that we are one with mother earth and we must appreciate her riches and blessings,” said Yarmak. “It’s natural luxury.”