Beginning the Trend

Karen Lindner spent 12 years in the interior design world. She ran her own business. She participated in Homerama twice (and won best design). But then she needed a change.

"I kind of realized that my heart wasn't really in it but I loved the design aspect of everything," Lindner says, so she made a switch from home fashion to personal fashion. But it was her interior design background that helped her launch into her newfound passion.

Lindner used chandelier crystals as an inspiration for jewelry, a concept which was unheard of at the time. So, there she was at coffee one day with a chain of chandelier crystals when a mutual friend introduced her to a woman who owned Belle Vie Bridal Couture in Chicago and was about to open a Vera Wang boutique.

"She picked the thing up, wrapped it around her neck and said, 'Absolutely! I see this with this designer and this designer' and 'You need to hook up with designers' and 'This would be great, and I've never seen anything like this,'" Lindner says. And while it only took a couple months before everyone else had struck it big with chandelier crystals before Lindner could put her idea into action, this was her start in the jewelry world.

"That particular response from somebody in the industry just lit my fire," Lindner says. 

Finding a Niche

Lindner's love of antiques fueled her fire. "I ended up taking collections of antiques that I already had, researching new ideas for pieces that did not begin as jewelry items, and wanting to see how I could incorporate them into a line of jewelry which focused on rare and unusual antiques as opposed to the found item repurposing, which is really hot right now but I wanted a different aesthetic. I wanted my own thing," Lindner says.

Even more specifically, Lindner enjoys working with very personal antiques that have engravings or inscriptions on them. "I work with pieces of history that have been personal to people. A lot of the pieces I use commemorate events and are engraved so that you can know that," she says. "There's just a very personal, tangible nature to what I do as well as the exciting and glamorous and funky and all those other things."

In addition to her own antique finds, she also helps repurpose family heirlooms for her clients. She uses her style and design to create something new out of the old so that her clients can enjoy the piece in a new way. "It's a really personal adventure, and that's a very special part of what I do," Lindner says.

Making a Break

Lindner might not have caught the chandelier trend on time, but she still was able to get her works in Vera Want stores and on big-name TV show cast members. The same friend who had introduced her to the Belle Vie and Vera Wang representative also introduced Lindner to Nancy Gould, a Los Angeles-based costume designer who styled the "Friends" and "Heroes" casts.

Gould used some of Lindner's pieces for "Gossip Girl" and two new shows coming out this fall. Check for Lindner's looks in "Better Together" and "Perfect Couple."

Lindner ended up making her own major break, though. While having pieces in a Vera Wang boutique and on actors on screen "opened a lot of doors editorially" for her, "it wasn't until, to be honest, I hired a PR firm that it just went crazy," Lindner says. "And that was just over this past summer, which marked my two years in the business.

Now, Linder has pieces lined up to be featured in InStyle, Elle, Brides magazine and New York Magazine's wedding issue. Her pieces also will be worn in the New York City Bridal Fashion Week next month.

And one of her biggest jobs to date is for Miranda Lambert who will be getting married in May. This country music singer is up for nine Country Music Awards, and when she walks down the wedding aisle toward fiance Blake Shelton, she will be wearing Lindner's designs.

Staying True to Herself

Even with all of the TV shows, magazines and celebrity encounters, Lindner maintains her down-to-earth, family-focused self. She has two daughters and a husband who don't get lost in the mix.

"I'm always coming back to family," Lindner says. And one way she comes back to family is through her work with the American Cancer Society, as her husband and 15-year-old daughter are cancer survivors.

Next month is Breast Cancer Awareness month, but during our interview, Lindner made a point that September is Childhood Cancer Awareness month. This hits close to home for Lindner, as her now daughter was diagnosed with neuroblastoma in 2004.

"It's just my reality, and I think it's important for people to own the reality that they were given and work with it and turn it into a positive," Lindner says. "It's essential. It just can't be any other way."

Lindner turns her family's cancer experience into a positive by using it as a motivation fuel source and donating time and proceeds to the American Cancer Society. "I just kind of try to integrate it into what I do and not preach about it, but it's kind of hard to not mention," she says.

For more information about Lindner and her designs, check out KarenLindnerDesigns.com.

PHOTO CREDITS
Photographer: Brenna Sullivan
Model: Karen Linder
Location: Patina At Home

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