9 jewelry brands make glass the essential material of the day

If you’ve noticed glass jewelry appearing more and more on your Instagram feed over the past few months, you’re not alone. Candy-colored glass rings, earrings, necklaces and bracelets began to replace beads and resin as an accessory material of the day– and celebrities like Gigi and Bella Hadid, as well as Kylie Jenner are taking note. Although glass jewelry has become a trend in its own right, with designers like Maryam Nassir Zadeh launching specialist glass jewelry lines, artists like Colin Lynch have been working with these items for years. Lynch, who runs the Keane ball brand (which has found fans at Jenner and the Hadids, who have all been photographed wearing his designs), studied under the Italian glass masters at 15. “I was a troublesome kid,” Lynch said over the phone from his Brooklyn Navy Yard studio, noting his parents took him to his first rave when he was nine. The glassblowers, who were introduced to Lynch through her businessman father, thought they might be able to tame her wild side with some discipline and structure. After spending a summer in Italy with the artisans, the designer became addicted. His Keane pieces are heavily influenced by the kaleidoscopic, multicolored balls of the 1990s and the brightly colored and somewhat wacky accessories associated with rave fashion. But the beauty of glass jewelry, adds Lynch, is in its versatility. “Glass jewelry, in terms of popularity, has definitely increased more and more,” he says. “The great thing about the material is that everyone looks at it a little differently.” Below, we’ve highlighted nine top jewelry brands making delicate and whimsical pieces of glass, which would make perfect additions to your spring and summer wardrobe.