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The vice president prefers pearls for a very specific reason.
On this historic day, when Kamala Harris is sworn in as our country’s first woman, first black, and first South Asian vice president, she must pay tribute to the people who have paved the way for this moment. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor (Sonia Sotomayor) was sworn in. She was the first Hispanic and Latino, and the third woman to serve in court. She took the oath of office on two bibles: one belonged to Thurgood Marshall, the first African-American Supreme Court judge and the political role model of Harris, and the other belonged to her childhood neighbor Regina Shelton , She called the surrogate mother.
But Harris's consistent loyalty to her sorority sisters, who have been her most outspoken supporters throughout her political career, is perhaps the most obvious-and loveliest-tribute to her.
Harris' perpetual pearl necklace seemed to be a safe bet at her inauguration today, but this particular piece of jewelry is full of symbolism. It represents her Howard University sorority Alpha Kappa Alpha (AKA), the first African-American Greek alphabet sorority. The founder of AKA is usually called "twenty pearls." In order to express honor and sisterhood, Harris has worn a pearl necklace on almost every important life occasion since graduating from university.
Last August, when she accepted the historic nomination for vice president (wearing pearls), she clearly expressed her commitment to family supremacy and said: "My mother instilled in me and my sister Maya the Values. She taught us to put family first. [Both] The family you were born in and the family you choose."
Today, Harris is not wearing a classic pearl chain. Instead, she chose the stylized expression of jewellery designer Wilfredo Rosado, who, like Harris, is the son of immigrant parents.
In September, when Harris' stylist contacted him to submit designs for the then vice presidential candidate, he didn't know that they would eventually be used for the most important inaugural day jewelry. The New York designer is known for his imaginative pearl design in the new W. Rosado collection, and he is honored for this request. "I have always admired Kamara, especially when I saw her as a senator questioning Brett Kavanagh, the nominee for the Supreme Court justice," he said. "I like her rudeness, I like her methods, and she is very kind to me."
Rosado’s challenge was to use pearls-very feminine and classic gemstones-to make them powerful and modern, but not too fashionable. "Kamala represents a strong and strong woman," Rosado explained, "and pearls are so gentle, feminine and precious." As he often does, designers turn to hip-hop and street culture for inspiration.
"When I think of hip-hop style, artists always wear heavy chains, and I decided to combine it with pearls," he said. The result is a necklace with large oval 18K gold links, each inlaid with a small diamond and an Australian South Sea pearl that appears to be suspended within the link. Rosado showed the stylist sketches of three different pearl design options, and she knew right away that this was one of them. This is an update to the classic pearl, which makes people feel fresh and loyal to Harris' restrained style.
Kamala's inaugural jewelry is just Rosado's latest way to redesign classic pearls. The designer launched a series of interesting pearls last year, which became popular on Instagram. His Pearl ID series—inspired by the plastic friendship bracelets made by many children at summer camps—featured with white gemstones embedded with diamonds or gemstone initials and symbols. He explained: "I make pearls cool and fashionable, and I also personalize them."
Pearls have always been part of Washington's political uniform, partly because they represent classicism and virtue; they are also the most common jewelry in biblical imagery. Mary Todd Lincoln wore a Tiffany pearl necklace at her husband’s presidential inaugural ball. As we all know, first lady Jackie Kennedy and Barbara Bush ) Pearl necklaces are often worn at official events. But Vice President Harris belongs to a different generation-she is a woman who is taller than any woman before her in the leadership of our country.
This is why Rosado feels pressured to create something that truly reflects Harris. "I want to maintain high taste and respect the expectations of DC political celebrities, but still challenge the limits," he said. Fortunately, he has some experience designing for political greats. While President Obama was still in office, he made chandelier diamond earrings for the first lady Michelle Obama, which he wore when attending events, but because of the high monetary value, she could not accept them as gifts. She liked them so much that the president bought earrings for his wife's 50th birthday. "I took the check, it is very close and precious to me," Rosado said.
For the next four years, Harris will almost certainly continue to express her sisterhood through her pearls, and now everyone knows this secret. She has a variety of styles, from the Irene Neuwirth pearls with chain links, to black Tahitian pearls and classic white strings, to today’s modern looks, so I look forward to seeing the creativity inspired by the most powerful women in Washington. The design of pearl jewellery has proliferated.