ECO-CHIC EVERY DAY
When Jennifer J. Matchett couldn’t find a pair of tortoiseshell earrings that suited her, Matchett first designed some for herself. Then she launched a modern, eco-conscious jewelry line.
The designer: Matchett, originally from Maine, grew up in South Florida and graduated with an art history degree from Santa Fe College in Gainesville, Fla. She started making earrings using acetate jewelry she found in a second-hand store and sold them on Etsy. Last May, she started her jewelry collection.
The company: Atlanta-based Machete creates a line of eco-conscious jewelry, including super-lightweight earrings, cuffs and bracelets made of cellulose acetate, a natural and renewable material, imported from Italy.
What's popular: Clare and Margot earrings ($38 to $58) in all colors.
Other favorites: Grande flat hoops ($78).
Big break: Profile and feature in Vogue in 2017.
Where to buy: Shopmachete.com. In Atlanta, at Coco + Misha in Ponce City Market (cocoandmischa.com). Matchett's new studio will open later this summer in Marietta.
MIRROR, MIRROR
Atlanta’s Stacy Milburn is an abstract mirror artist whose work adds light, color and something unexpected to a space.
The company: Atlanta-based Stacy Milburn Studio started in 2014. Milburn uses part-art, part-science techniques to create her versatile mirror art.
The artist: Milburn grew up in Columbus and graduated from Converse College (S.C.), where she studied international business. After graduation, she lived in London for two years, where she found her passion for interior design and historic preservation. She headed to New York and pursued a degree in interior design at Parsons (now the New School). In 1999, she moved to Atlanta and worked for Lori Tippins, an interior designer who encouraged her to test her creativity. Milburn now works as lead designer at Modify Home in Smyrna.
What's popular: For color, blues. Anything from a stylish navy to a soothing beach-glass blue. For location: powder room mirrors or tall panels over bedside tables. A 20-inch-by-40-inch framed panel is about $1,100. A 30-inch-by-40-inch powder room vanity mirror is $1,600.
Other favorites: White mirror as opposed to white subway tile in a kitchen. Also, mirror over abstract black-and-white photos of children, teens and beloved pets. Framed 20-inch-by-20-inch works are about $500. Milburn refers to this as "etching the present in the past."
Fun (or unusual) request: Create a large-scale mirrored piece of a vintage black-and-white scene of old Buckhead. Milburn added pops of color to give a more contemporary aesthetic to the work, which is in the lobby of a renovated Buckhead office building. See the work on her website.
Where to buy: StacyMilburnStudio.com. In Atlanta, at Modify Home, 3691 Atlanta Road SE (modifyATL.com), and Waiting on Martha, 4300 Paces Ferry Road (shopwaitingonmartha.com).
OPEN AND SHUT
Founded by a husband-and-wife team, Atlanta-based Two Chair Studio uses European craftsmanship to create modern doors and furniture. See the company’s innovative sliding doors at the new 402 Ashley Ave. home on the upcoming Atlanta Architecture Tour.
The company: Two Chair Studio and Neu Doors started in 2012 in Atlanta's West End. The boutique company designs and builds custom furniture for residential and commercial clients.
The owners: Alex and Jenny Baumann. Alex Baumann grew up in Germany and attended German trade school before moving to the United States in 1998 and to Atlanta in 2008. He is the company's designer and master builder. Jenny, from Tennessee, handles the business side.
What's popular: Resin and wood doors ($2,000 & up); resin and wood river table ($6,000 & up); resin and wood consoles ($1,500 & up). Resin comes in different colors.
Other favorites: Solid hardwood dressers and credenzas ($5,000).
Claim to fame: Collaborating with Heery (heery.com) for two "ATL" signs, located in the lobby of the Metro Atlanta Chamber.
What's next: A branded line of doors.
Where to buy: Twochair.biz. In Atlanta, at the company's showroom, 565 Northside Drive SW.
ATLANTA ARCHITECTURE TOUR
If you like all things modern, visit AtlantaDesignFestival.net and learn about the annual Atlanta Architecture Tour of homes on June 2-3 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
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