The Go-See: Jess Hannah Révész

Generally, I’ve always been really interested in making things with my hands, and jewelry was this thing I was obsessed with ever since inheriting pieces from my grandma. I was fascinated by the craftsmanship of it all. They're these tiny sculptures that you can wear like a piece of art. 

I don’t know so much that it was confidence. I studied graphic design, graduated, and applied for jobs that I wasn’t qualified for. I was applying for, like, an art director at a magazine, and obviously no one would hire me for that. So I stayed in the town where I went to college and was like, “Fuck it, I’m going to make jewelry and sell it to friends.” So then I made a website—I designed it and shot everything myself. I thought, “I’m going to try this and see what happens.” And here we are.

There are things that have been challenging, but I meet challenge with excitement. I’m learning as I go here. So in terms of sustainability, I don’t know everything, and I think it’s important to own up to the fact that we’re interested and learning. We’re doing our best and we’re constantly evolving.

I used to bite my nails, so I would get manicures so I wouldn’t bite. Because when you’re making jewelry, you’re showing people your hands all the time. So I would get my nails done, and the colors were red and pink and all of that. That’s not really what I like, so I’d buy nail polish and bring it with me. Then I thought, “Oh, there must be other people who want this.” At the time, honestly, I did it for myself, but people thought it was a smart business idea. I guess it was, especially because it’s a lower barrier to entry.  Not everyone can afford to buy silver and gold jewelry, and when our entry price point is $250, that’s pretty aspirational. It’s nice to connect with a new audience.

A decent role. My makeup look isn’t very “done,” but I love skin care, hair products, winged eyeliner. I feel like it's really meditative in the morning to spend time doing something for yourself. It sounds so strange in a way, or even narcissistic, but it does make me feel good to put my makeup on and to feel pretty. 

Let's see. I love Sunday Riley UFO oil. It just works for me. I like oils instead of a heavier moisturizer. And lately, I’ve been into lash lifts. I go every eight weeks, and it’s awesome because—well, nobody has to use an eyelash curler, but if you’re someone who chooses to, you don’t need to do it anymore.  

I like Damdam cleanser, which is from a Japanese brand. It’s very subtly exfoliating. Noto Botanics has this amazing walnut scrub for more of a once-a-week, shed-all-your-dead-skin situation. F. Miller has amazing products as well. 

For makeup, I most always have brows and a winged eyeliner. That's mostly it.

Generally, I try to be unapologetic unless I’ve done something wrong. I'm opinionated. I know what I want. I’m pretty stubborn. Also, I feel like sometimes I have an honesty problem. I almost don't know when you're supposed to not be honest when someone asks you how things are going.

Sometimes it is. I’ve had to learn that sometimes, when an acquaintance says, “How are you?” that means they often don’t want to know the real answer. It just means “Hello.”

I had to learn that if I don't want to share how I’m actually feeling, I don't need to. It's not that anyone would judge me for what I have to say. It's more just like, if I don't feel like I want to get into things, that’s okay.

We have some things in the works that I cannot yet share. In the meantime, we’re trying to do more video content because storytelling is a really important part of the brand. While we're very content-focused, it's so easy to get stale on Instagram. You have to offer something other than “Here's a pretty photo. Buy this.” To create a connection, you have to get people interested in what you’re doing outside of that. That’s something I’m constantly thinking about—how to innovate, innovate, innovate.