How Pattaraphan, loved by Hailey Bieber and Gigi Hadid, blends genderless jewellery with Thai heritage

Sep 16, 2024

Cover From left: Hailey Bieber wearing Pattaraphan jewelleries, spring-summer 2024 collation, founder Pattaraphan “Nok” Salirathavibhaga

From left: Hailey Bieber wearing Pattaraphan jewelleries, spring-summer 2024 collation, founder Pattaraphan “Nok” Salirathavibhaga

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Thai jewellery designer Pattaraphan ‘Nok’ Salirathavibhaga has created the ultimate cool girl-favourite jewellery brand which is riding the waves of demi-fine jewellery with a gender-fluid design mindset

Bangkok-based Pattaraphan “Nok” Salirathavibhaga has been making a name for herself since launching her brand in 2018. The Pratt Institute-trained interior design student-turned-jewellery designer is best known for the custom-engraved locket and the “Pressurized” earrings spotted on influential It girls, including Hailey Bieber, the Hadid sisters and Olivia Rodrigo. Staying true to the meaning of her brand name— “beautiful skin”—Pattaraphan offers genderless jewellery that feels as effortless and natural as a second skin, and pays tribute to Thai heritage with a modern twist. This autumn season, Pattaraphan is making history as the first Thai jewellery brand to have a six-month residency at Bergdorf Goodman, the iconic department store of New York. Tatler sits down with Nok to discuss design, inspiration and more

Pattaraphan spring-summer 2024 collection (Photo: Pattaraphan)

Above Pattaraphan’s jewellery is being seen on It girls like Olivia Rodrigo

Pattaraphan’s jewellery is being seen on It girls like Olivia Rodrigo

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Why jewellery?
Jewellery was always a medium to express myself. I never saw it as specifically for women or men. And I think jewellery should be fun while maintaining its sophistication. So, I think there was this gap in the industry when I started in 2018: there seemed to be a lot of fashion jewellery and high-end jewellery but nothing much in between. But lately, there are more and more brands in the demi-fine jewellery sector and more brands are being fluid in their designs and offerings.

Could you share the most definitive moments of your design journey?
We opened our first flagship store last year—to be able to have a physical permanent store to interact with our customers and host events is a game changer for us. We were the first Thai jewellery brand [to be sold] on Mr Porter. Our jewellery has always been genderless—a global menswear platform was the perfect launchpad for us.

Lastly, when I saw Gigi Hadid wearing our Diamond Pressurized Earrings and Pressure Pendant Necklace for the first time, it felt so surreal. Our jewellery has been spotted on many other cool men and women since then and I’m so very grateful to all those who chose to wear Pattaraphan. But that very first time when someone as major as Gigi Hadid wore our jewellery—that will always be a special moment for me.

Above Pattaraphan founder Pattaraphan “Nok” Salirathavibhaga (Photo: Pattaraphan)

Pattaraphan founder Pattaraphan “Nok” Salirathavibhaga (Photo: Pattaraphan)

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What’s the inspiration behind your latest collection?
We introduced a new motif in pre-spring-summer 2024 and continued the same narrative into the spring-summer 2024: chata, which means “fate” or “destiny”. I truly believe fate and free will are always at play— you roll a die but cannot control the outcome.

Have any female muses inspired your work?
There are so many. For example, the “Remnants” series, which was made of bone, was inspired by Georgia O’Keefe’s paintings of bones. She is well known for her flower paintings but I was really struck by her bone paintings that I saw in the Brooklyn Museum. I was heartbroken and I felt that this imagery was the perfect representation of what I was feeling and hence the Remnants series was born.

The Locket series was inspired by a famous Thai novel called Pritsana, which translates to “mystery”. [It] was also the name of the book’s main character, who had an impact on me as a child—she was fearless and pushing boundaries. I started making lockets to honour her, putting a small diamond inside a modern locket to signify the feeling of “mystery”.

Lastly, both my paternal and maternal grandmothers are important figures in my life who inspired me to love and honour our heritage in times of globalisation. They were such stylish, strong, brave women. When my maternal grandmother [opened a] hotel, she named it in Thai, going against people’s advice of giving it an English name. She refused to give up her heritage. I have always been proud of both my grandmothers and loved listening to their stories. That is why so much of Pattaraphan’s DNA is rooted in Thai heritage and most of our designs are named in Thai words.

Above Pattaraphan spring-summer 2024 collection (Photo: Pattaraphan)

Pattaraphan spring-summer 2024 collection (Photo: Pattaraphan)

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Can you share any insights into the trends in the fashion market in Asia in recent years?
In recent years, I believe that generally consumers are much more flexible and are having more fun in the way they present themselves. We see a surge in male clients for Pattaraphan, both in Thailand and overseas. They buy for themselves, as well as for their loved ones. We often see clients who want to change their whole look and come in to buy a whole new set of jewellery.

What would you like to explore in the future?
It’s always been a dream to expand Pattaraphan into other categories with the same concept of “beautiful skin”. I’d love to venture into home goods and skincare in the future— it’s adornment like jewellery but for something else. But for now, we want to focus on expanding Pattaraphan globally and domestically.