Made either of precious or semi-precious metals and stones, and costing anywhere from £8,000 to £20,000, the Francis de Lara brand of eyewear and jewelry pieces is its Filipino-American creator’s nod to individuality and his statement against fashion’s overproduction and homogenization.
By ALEX Y. VERGARA
He dreams of someday seeing his fabulous pieces made of rare wood, titanium, sterling silver, even solid gold and studded with such precious stones as emeralds, rubies and diamonds being worn by the likes of Tilda Swinton, Rihanna and Lady Gaga. But as far as inspirations go, this accessories designer has a wellspring of ideas to draw from. And they’re very much evident in the limited-edition eyewear and jewelry pieces he creates under the brand name Francis de Lara and its more affordable diffusion line FDL Editions, with prices starting at £290.
John Paul Pietrus’ eye for details as well as his ability to view and reimagine objects differently from most people can be traced to the nearly three decades he spent as a fashion photographer. But, by and large, the London-based accessories designer credits his innate creativity and amazing range to the fact that he’s biracial—his mom is a Filipino, while his dad is an American of Polish decent–and the product of a multicultural upbringing. Art happens to run in his blood, too.
“My great lolo was a goldsmith from the Philippines, while my lolo was an architect,” John Paul shares. He also counts singer Annie Quintos of The CompanY as one of his cousins.
Citizen of the world
Add to this, the years he spent growing up in the United States, particularly in Minneapolis where he studied fine arts, vacationing and spending time with family in the Philippines, settling in London as an adult and later immersing himself in arts education in Florence, Italy have transformed him into a citizen of the world, allowing him to absorb and, consciously or not, reinterpret the best features each culture has to offer.
John Paul, now 53, started relatively late as a designer. After experiencing a slump for several years, not in creativity, he says, but in the volume of business in photography, he shifted gears in 2018 by finally doing what had long been percolating in his head: create his own line of statement accessories.
He started with handmade, precious stone-encrusted unisex eyewear fashioned from gold, sterling silver and ebony that took an average of 750 hours to make. He then moved on to design and manufacture chunky, one-of jewelry pieces. Before launching his brand though, he had to prepare himself by taking an extended sabbatical to study renaissance jewelry in Florence.
“Filipinos are a hugely creative people,” says John Paul, who used Francis, his middle name, and de Lara, his mother’s maiden name to honor her, as his products’ brand name. “The Philippines is also a rich source of materials. Like some of the precious woods I use for my pieces are sourced from the Philippines.”
But to trace his creativity to just one or two cultures, he adds, would be to deny other aspects of himself as a creative person. “(The source) is not purely Filipino. Not purely British. Although there’s a huge Florentine influence in my pieces, having studied in Florence, it’s not purely Florentine either. I think what you see is a product of different cultures and time periods.”
He also used to work with a seasoned Filipino woodcarver before the pandemic hit, but since the fellow’s eyesight started to fail, John Paul has had to settle for other craftsmen.
“My main artisan, a teacher who teaches other artisans, is based in Florence. I also have people in London. An assistant, a Filipina-British, and I also set the stones ourselves.”
Signature features
Two of Francis de Lara’s most evident signatures, at least, as far as the brand’s eyewear pieces go, are the crooked temples and teardrop detail made of a single piece of precious or semi-precious stone found in the eyewear’s lower right frame.
“For the very first high-end eyewear I made, I used 18K solid gold, which was quite heavy,” he says with a chuckle. “As a market, the Philippines has been wonderful for me, especially for FDL (the brand’s diffusion line). I haven’t had much success so far in tapping into the Middle East market. I think the FDL edition would also be fantastic for that region.”
He has yet to open his own chain of stores. Instead, the brand is sold online (www.francisdelara.com) or carried by a select number of boutiques and fine jewelry stores the world over. In Manila, his items can be found at Janina for Jul Dizon.
Owing to the brand’s top-of-the-line price range—which could set you back anywhere between £8,800 and £20,000 for a pair of eyewear—John Paul eventually considered coming up with the more affordable FDL. Both lines, however, are still limited in number not only because they’re difficult to source and produce, but also in keeping with his strong belief in sustainability.
“I don’t want to be like most huge companies that make sunglasses by the tens of thousands, which often break after a year or two,” the advocate of “slow fashion” reasons. “I want my products to be sustainable. I want them to last a lifetime.”
And this philosophy extends to his FDL edition’s eyewear case. Made of “piña tex,” a material derived from the pineapple fiber and developed by a Filipino, the case can be transformed into a handbag. Everything John Paul does, he insists, is a statement against the “constant outpouring of,” in his words, “superfluous items.”
Stuff that sparks joy
“I want to challenge and present the consumer with things that are different from the norm, but are still wearable and delightful,” he says. “Things that spark joy! Even if what I’m offering is not fashion per se, but more of jewelry, I really want to support responsible material sourcing.”
Not only is fast fashion bad for the planet, in John Paul’s eyes, it encourages homogenization of style and personality. Nothing can be more tragic that that, he says, as far as aesthetics go.
“I want people to celebrate their individuality. That’s why I try to make pieces that are individual. I think it’s beautiful when people, rather than just blindly following a trend, are more individual.”
And if by any chance you find yourself bumping into another person wearing, say, the same Francis de Lara eyewear, you still have ample room beforehand to express your individuality through your choice of gemstone and lens color. In John Paul Pietrus’ world, everyone should have the right and power to express himself or herself simply because no two people will ever be alike.
