Fort Myers jewelry designer takes work global

COURTESY PHOTO Jewelry designer Erika Pena has several different lines available including, the light and playful Kika line which showcases pieces made with Lucite, a clear material that comes in a pallet of transparent colors. Some people seemed to be born to be a star. Others create stars.

Erika Pena seemed destined to do both.

The 31-year-old Cypress Lake High School graduate is dazzling jewelry lovers around the world with her trendy designs that feature bold pieces such as silver and gold earrings, bracelets and necklaces. Many are featured in bright translucent colors or stark dark or clear crystal.

Her work adorns such Hollywood glitterati as Paris Hilton and Jessica Alba.

Fort Myers-based Erika Pena Designs opened three years ago by sisters Erika Pena and Bielka Pena- Bevillard.

Before starting the business Erika worked for the Puerto Rican government as a fashion director. In this position Erika helped promote the country's fashion designers.

She left that post to start her own company.

COURTESY PHOTO Fort Myers jewelry designer Erika Pena models some of her trendy designs. Her work adorns such Hollywood glitterati as Paris Hilton and Jessica Alba. Yet, even with a degree from the New York-based Parsons School of Design, Erika was venturing into uncharted territories.

Designing clothes and jewelry are vastly different.

"She didn't know anything about it," Pena-Bevillard said.

But that all changed fast.

With a creative mind and flare for fresh, trendy, elegant shapes and designs Erika is building her own jewelry design empire.

She has several different lines available including, the light and playful Kika line which showcases pieces made with Lucite, a clear material that comes in a pallet of transparent colors. These confections are girly and feminine

and boast rosebud, owl and butterfly charms and earrings in different shades of Lucite.

Erika's other creations offer something for everyone. The Olivia line tends toward sophistication and elegance - for the more classic look - Pena- Bevillard said. And the new Jules collection is a heady, smoky French Boudoir feel. The stones are bigger and bolder - reminiscent of the sultry sexiness of a regal French woman.

There is also a beachy design that highlights the sand and the surf with her use of shells and tiny crystals.

And in keeping with her Hispanic and Catholic roots, Erika makes medallions with symbols of saints.

Many of the pieces are made with sterling silver and sold in trendy boutiques. Diamonds will be used in the near future, said Pena-Bevillard. Prices range from $60 to $700.

In a testament to the designer's popularity, over 400 stores worldwide carry Erika's lines.

Pena-Brevillard runs the main office and the business aspects of the design company. Meanwhile Erika is the face - that is if you can see her before she jets off (she's was in Paris last week for a jewelry show).

The pair hopes to open a retail store sometime next year in Fort Myers, Pena- Brevillard said. For more information or to see which local stores carry her jewelry, check out Erika's Web site at www.erikapena. com.