By Diana Cavagnaro
PK Walters is a San Diego jewel who started the jewelry line: PK BIJOUX. In French Bijoux means jewelry and this is an extraordinary line. Each piece is one of a kind that is hand made from vintage jewelry. Walters has an art background and studied art and art history at the University of Italy for Foreigners in Perugia. She has always had one platform shoe in fashion, starting as a teenager with a career in modeling and print-work.
Walters went on to have a career as a subject matter expert (SME) in video conferencing. Having a job in technology was grueling, working 80-hour weeks. One day, she had money in her pocket to spend and decided to buy herself a piece of jewelry. She searched in stores like Luis Vuitton and Neiman Marcus and couldn’t find anything she liked. They say that the best things come out of necessity. Her job was so stressful that she would come home and create jewelry for herself. She began experimenting by tearing apart precious jewelry from Miriam Haskell and Hattie Carnegie.
Her neighbor, who was a collector of Christian Lacroix, Philip Treacy, and Christian Louboutin, asked her to redesign a piece of jewelry. The rest is history — Walters began making amazing pieces for other people and PK BIJOUX was born. I asked her who her customers are and she said, “they are women who love high fashion, are extremely social and want unique pieces.” In designing, she borrows from her Native American heritage. Her mother was part of the Cherokee tribe and born on a reservation. Many Native American tribes have sustainably used every part of animals, such as feathers for head dresses, claws, teeth, and bones for ornamentation.
Walters incorporates some of these elements in her jewelry, including a beaver skull. Warren always leaves a hole in her jewelry because of indigenous lore that bad spirits need to be released. Diana Vreeland said that if you make everything perfect, the eye will move on, but if there is an imperfection or different color the eye will stop and hold your attention. When you look at PK BIJOUX jewelry closely, you can always see that. Another one of Warren’s specialties are pins with war medals from antiquity.
Walters has gone on to have her jewelry at the high-end Japanese couture boutiques Misaki Matsuka in Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, and Newport Beach. In 2017, she was awarded Best Jewelry in the film “Habana 3AM” at the International Fashion Film Awards. Last month, she was in a Sue Wong fashion show for the Oscar Gala 2020 in Beverly Hills. Currently, her line is at the POP PR showroom in London and has been featured in “Hunger,” “Millionaire,” “Flanelle,” “Overdue,” “5’Eleven,” and “Boyfriend” magazines. Celebrities such as Nicole Scherzinger from the Pussycat Dolls, Actress Rose McGowan, and Miss Universe Malaysia 2019 have been photographed wearing her jewelry. Visit Instagram @pkbc1 for additional information on this timeless jewelry.
— Diana Cavagnaro is an internationally renowned Couture Milliner based in Alpine, California. Learn more about our Hat Designer, Teacher & Blogger at www.DianaCavagnaro.com
