Hasta La Ideas

Designer Nicole Messina mashes up materials for jewelry with a playful edge

Designer Nicole Messina combines unconventional materials to create edgy accessories with a whimsical twist. Inspired by frequent childhood trips to hardware stores with her father, Messina became fascinated with reinventing industrial materials into fashion pieces for her line, Industrial Candy.

Messina’s collection “Hardcore Candy” features chains, screws and bolts, all of which she pairs with rubber neon elements. The more subdued, neutral-hued “Nature’s Candy” collection pairs materials like leather and suede with oxidized and distressed hardware. The concept for her most recent collection, “Adventure Candy,” derives from what she calls “materials you would find while on an outdoor adventure such as hiking rope, paracord, bungee cords and even fishing hooks and lures—the entire collection is screaming out for attention.”

Messina recently collaborated on a collection with eco-conscious designer and fellow Parsons graduate Laura Siegel. The line has an earthier feel than Messina’s individual work, comprising naturally dyed rope and string, as well as handcrafted and distressed copper bells made by artisans in India. Messina explains that Siegel’s “free form aesthetic and use of natural materials is something I understand and appreciate. It was also an aesthetic I don’t usually explore in my own collections so I thought it was a great opportunity to challenge myself as a jewelry designer.”

The collection offers artful braided bracelets, bangles and necklaces for which Messina explored various braiding and layering techniques to create “depth and interest.” All of Messina’s pieces, including the collaboration with Siegel, as well as any custom color requests, can be purchased through her website “Industrial Candy“.