Alex Jane, the visionary founder behind the Vancouver-based jewelry brand Xander Jane Fine Jewelry, has navigated an unconventional path to jewelry design. His journey, fueled by a love for fashion and an intrinsic sense of creativity, has resulted in the creation of a unique jewelry line blending the audacity of punk fashion with the sophistication of luxury materials. Armed with a background in luxury fashion and a teenage admiration for punk aesthetics, Jane fused these influences to create a collection characterized by edgy spikes, luxurious 18-karat gold, reverse-set black diamonds, and South Sea pearls, offering a modern interpretation of posh punk.
Tell us about your journey to become a designer. When did you know you wanted to pursue this? Where did you study? When did you officially launch your collections?
My interest has been predominantly in fashion. For the last ten years, I’ve owned a resale boutique dealing with luxury fashion brands so I was often looking at all kinds of fine jewelry. At some point, I thought it would be cool to have a very simple spiked black diamond ring. I
contracted the work out to a goldsmith, but the results weren’t exactly what I was looking for, so I decided to learn CAD software and design it completely myself to get exactly what I wanted. This sent me down a path of understanding the jewelry-making process much more in depth.
My simple design turned out to need a type of precision that wasn’t common in the custom jewelry-making industry. At the same time, while I was learning about precision-type manufacturing techniques, I elaborated off that one design, and decided to create a small collection. It was a “little family” for my black diamond ring design, so to speak. I spent a few years acquiring various machinery and tools for the precise production I required and officially launched the SPIKED collection in Spring 2023.
We love the spikes on your jewels, in gold and reverse-set black diamonds. What inspired you to make that central to many of your pieces?
When I was a teenager I loitered around the local punk-rock scene and for a short time embraced the fashion. Ever since then, I’ve had a soft spot for the style. Combine that with my later experience in luxury fashion, it only seemed to make sense to take the best of both worlds and put them into play together.
There are a few colorful pieces that incorporate ceramic. Why the mix of ceramic and precious metals; how does it draw you?
Mixing ceramic with precious metals gives a modern dynamic I couldn’t find with anything else. Combined with color it really softens the aggressive style of my line.
How do you relate the fashion world to your aesthetic? How do you describe the style of your accessories?
It’s a polished interpretation of punk fashion. An ironic blend of what’s typically used in high fashion with a style that’s been typically seen in street fashion. The mix creates a very “posh punk” vibe. The pieces I’ve created have a geometric simplicity with a little bit of a noisy tone.
Many men are moving more towards wearing fine jewelry. Why do you think this is, and how does your line speak to them?
A lot of fashion has become very unisex as of late so what was previously seen as perhaps too feminine, can now be a show of confidence. Any opportunity to stand out and make ourselves more attractive seems like a win that I imagine any other guy would take. I would say my line
with its naturally aggressive look has a nice balance of soft, but not too sweet.
You use South Sea black pearls in several designs. Why use these, and not other pearls, specifically? Why use pearls at all?
South Sea pearls are the most rare and valuable pearls on the market, so it only seemed fitting to massacre them (with 18K gold) in true punk rock fashion!
Is there a contemporary fashion designer or artist that you would love to collaborate with one day?
I’d like to do an iced out hip-hop collection for The Hershey Company and call them Reese’s Pieces.
What is the most meaningful piece of jewelry that you either made, or that was gifted to you, and why?
The most memorable pieces I’ve made were for my children. They were a pair of Super Mario Brother turtle shell rings. One shell was red and one shell was green, with little yellow gold shanks attached to the bottom.
They really did resemble little Koopa Troopas.
What is your personal and professional mantra?
Live free or die hard! (laughs)
Xander Jane’s pieces stand out not only for their aesthetic allure but also for their unconventional blend of materials. Jane’s innovative use of ceramic alongside precious metals infuses his creations with modernity and softens the aggressive punk-inspired style, resonating with those seeking a daring yet sophisticated aesthetic. Visit Xander Jane on Instagram @xanderjane
