Women's
Conversation With: Eddie Borgo
Eddie Borgo and Ken Downing in New York.
I got to talk jewelry, family and that hat with rising-star jewelry designer Eddie Borgo in New York.
Eddie Borgo
KEN DOWNING: You and your jaunty fedora are a fixture on the New York fashion scene. Are you a Manhattan native or just have the cool that makes me believe you were born and raised here?
EDDIE BORGO: No, no, not a New Yorker at all. I am from Atlanta, born and raised. I went to high school in Virginia.
KD: Did the hat come with you from Atlanta, or is that a New York addition?
EB: I started wearing the hat about ten years ago. I have always loved hats and feel comfortable wearing them. I bought mine at Arnold Hatters on 8th Avenue. It’s sadly no longer there. They would brush and steam it whenever I stopped by. Recently, for my birthday, friends conjured up a way of secretly taking it for 24 hours.
KD: Hat-napping!
EB: [laughing] Kind of—they had a block made of it at Worth & Worth custom hat shop. It’s called the Borgo.
KD: Are you kidding me?
EB: I’m not joking. They surprised me with a new one that’s the exact duplicate of the original, so I can replace it if I ever lose it.
Eddie Borgo
KD: Don’t lose it! I wouldn’t recognize you. I love your hat—it adds to your creative aura. Have you always been a creative spirit?
EB: I have always been creative, always drawing. I was always sketching on graph paper as a kid.
KD: What was it about graph paper that you found so appealing?
EB: My grandfather was a chemical engineer and architect. He was always designing things in the 40s, 50s, and 60s. He was obsessed with patents. He was always building things. He would give me graph paper for sketching to keep me busy.
KD: So your grandfather was an early influence on you?
EB: Absolutely. He was always making things. He made my swing, my wagon, the table we ate at outside. I was fascinated that people could make things with their hands.
KD: As a kid, what were some of the images you were drawing on graph paper?
EB: The graph paper caused me to draw in a very geometric style. I really wanted to illustrate and draw realistic figures. When I think back, it was difficult for me to render in a realistic fashion. I really loved the simplicity of the graph paper. I never got tired of looking at the grid over and over again.
KD: Do you come from a creative family?
EB: Creative in different ways. My mother and grandmother were really into women’s rights. My grandmother had her own radio show in the 1940s in New York that was about women’s issues. My brother is the total antithesis of me—he surfs, snowboards, and day-trades. He’s not as serious as I am. We look nothing alike.
KD: I have three brothers; I can relate. When did you first realize you were interested in jewelry?
EB: My mother wore a lot of jewelry, and loved costume jewelry. She invested in costume jewelry—chokers, bracelets, very colorful. She was always very pulled together.
KD: Now that I can absolutely relate to!
EB: When I was young, my mother wore a buffalo coin in a beautiful setting. I remember it being huge. I was fascinated with that coin necklace. In reality, it wasn’t so big. Funny how the scale of things changes when you become an adult.
KD: Scale certainly plays into your designs. What were some of the first jewelry pieces you created?
EB: I designed jewelry for a photo shoot for the New York Times T Magazine. It was red, white, and black. Very punk. I was very fortunate. I had early support from all the fashion stylists—Karl Templer, Camilla Nickerson, Alex White. Working with great stylists really helped get my jewelry and name out into the fashion world.
KD: Were you a punk rocker?
EB: [laughing] No, I was not a punk rocker. My parents were big music buffs, though. They loved the Rolling Stones, David Bowie…
KD: Is your signature cone-shaped stud a reaction to all of your musical influences?
EB: Absolutely. The album covers, silhouettes from the streets, studs on motorcycle jackets, latches on doors…I find inspiration in so many things.
KD: You have come a long way from black, white, and red. Today you work in gorgeous rose gold and diamonds, and the color infusion in the metalof the resort collection is almost indescribable. Ultraviolet!
EB: It’s prismatic. I wanted color in the metal. I insisted it be silver and brass. It is not an easy process, but my factory in Rhode Island figured it out. All of my jewelry is made in America; I’m very proud of that.
Find the full interview in the Holiday issue of The Book.
