Fresh off the back of ruling the fashion world, the designer and our iconic collaborator Harris Reed talks to our founder (and friend) Marisa Hordern about jewellery, his uncompromising identity, and the milestones that have made him. Plus, of course, our beautiful partnership.
Since the launch of Harris Reed x Missoma in September 2021, the designer’s star has only continued to rise. Championed by everyone from Vogue to the V&A Museum, his garments have recently been showcased as part of an exhibition at the latter entitled ‘Fashioning Masculinities’ – celebrating the power, artistry and diversity of masculine attire and appearance. There’s no one who breaks boundaries and pushes the mold quite like Harris Reed.
At just 25-years-old, he’s already had a career many can only dream of – from graduating from Central Saint Martins, to creating pieces for Harry Styles and Solange Knowles, plus features in Vogue, the New Yorker and every publication we can think of.
But let’s get back to the jewellery. One of Harris' favourite pieces and the best seller of Harris Reed x Missoma, the In Good Hands Necklace has sold out five times over. Why? Because meaning matters.
The design represents our acceptance of others and ourselves. An icon of Georgian jewellery clasped hands were used to represent friendship and love. With our hands we can link together and raise each other up high. Wearing the necklace is a symbol of self-love and expression. As we celebrate re-emergence after the pandemic, we are drawn to pieces that speak to connection, identity, and something bigger than ourselves.
The Harris Reed challenge, be the fashion risk taker.
- Harris Reed
“As someone who’s very American, or very L.A.,” says Harris “I guess you could say someone very spiritual, we love meaning.” Our founder Marisa agrees: “jewellery will always be the most personal of any kind of purchase or gift you have,” she says.
The ‘In Good Hands’ emblem has also appeared in Harris Reed’s 2022 London Fashion Week show entitled 60 Years A Queen, inspired by Sir Herbert Maxwell’s book of the same name. After the sustainable triumph that was his first London Fashion Week show, which saw Reed upcycle Oxfam wedding dresses into intricate lace outfits, his most recent collection was fashioned from 100-year-old Italian upholstery.
Rooted in individualism, the Harris Reed x Missoma collection challenges the boundaries of gender and celebrates the joy of self-expression.
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How would Harris describe his personal jewellery style? “I’m a bit of a maximalist. I think people know that if they’ve seen my shows, or the people I dress. It’s about having fun and risk tasking, but also classic and a bit modern… Half my hands are usually flea market finds and then the Missoma collection… It’s mix and match… modern vintage.”
From meaningful gemstones to the Janus Locket Signet Ring with double heads – symbolising the duality of male and female – illustrated by Lukas Palumbo, to the Openness Ring spotted on everyone from Billie Eilish to Adele, every single piece in the collection is incredibly versatile, able to be styled in endless ways – something that suits Harris’ aesthetic.
“Obviously we’ve all seen the Labradorite Cocktail Ring on so many amazing celebrities,” says Harris. “But the stories we’re getting are amazing – it has this milestone [gift] element to it, it’s really special.”
While Harris’ love of flea market trinkets and vintage whimsical inspirations are apparent in his jewellery collection, so too is looking towards a bright future. “When we were making this, I had just graduated in the pandemic in this super strong class of amazing creatives and individuals. When we were coming up with the names, I loved ‘rising star’ because it’s all about this projecting shooting aspect of going into the universe and becoming bigger. Growing and becoming brighter and stronger.”
What has Marisa, our founder, loved about collaborating with the fashion icon? “Working with [Harris] is all about how you express yourself. We’re saying to everyone ‘it’s okay to express yourself however you want, there are no rules.' Everything is fluid.”
“We’re very detail oriented with everything,” Harris laughs. “It would be funny if one day we do something that doesn’t have like eighty different things on the front, the back, the side...” It’s clear the designer wouldn’t be himself without the intricacies within his fashion and jewellery collections.
The details are what make him stand out from the crowd, and what’s helped Harris change the jewellery landscape as we know it. The ultimate fashion risk taker, we wouldn’t have him any other way.