The lead singer of New York garage glam-rock band Semi-Precious Weapons, Justin Tranter, has recently announced the launch of his “F***ed-up and prETTY” jewelry line, “Fetty,” sold at stores across America including Barneys New York, Barney’s CO-OP and Urban Outfitters.
The frontman has created three line extensions – “Fetty,” “Fame,” and “Precious Weapons” – under the umbrella brand Fetty. A hopeless romantic, Fetty founder Justin Tranter can almost always be found in studded high heel boots with his signature platinum coiff and David-Bowie-like persona. Tranter insists on staying true to his punk rock image by using whimsical names like Neapolitan Heart and Love Bites to distinguish his Fetty pieces from one another.
“I want Fetty to encompass a classic beauty, opting for subtly over showiness,” says Tranter adding that he is “taking the concept of being classic one step further by oxidizing the metals and incorporating strong, contrasting symbols including necklaces featuring a damaged heart with a gun, axe or saw.”
So with his mother, a Chicago jewelry designer, acting as an inspiration and mentor, Tranter created three distinct jewelry lines to appeal to everyone from the Upper East Side socialite ready to discard her school uniform, to the punk-rock fashionista.
Fetty is the highest price-point of the three extensions and is comprised of diamond Braille bangles, bracelets, rings, and necklaces. The highlight pieces are Shot through the Heart (a 14K yellow gold gun with diamond pave with a puffy white gold heart with a “bullet hole” in it, on an 18-inch 14K white gold chain), and Love Bites (a large oxidized sterling silver heart with 2 bite marks in it and white and champagne diamonds accent the edges of the bite marks on a 28-inch chain.) “Fetty” pieces are currently sold at Barneys New York and Barneys CO-OP worldwide and are priced between $170.00 and $800.00 depending on diamond setting.
“Fame,” is the costume jewelry line inspired by Fetty’s Braille collection. The brass and crystal collection have highly polished brass cuffs and medallions, each with crystals that spell out words like “magnetic,” “baby,” “try,” “love,” “precious,” “fire,” “I love me,” and “fame” in Braille. This line is sold at Nina at Fred Segal in Los Angeles, Alter in Brooklyn and Karmaloop.com and is priced between $40.00 and $100.00.
Lastly, Fetty’s “Precious Weapons” collection is a line of costume jewelry inspired by Justin’s glam band Semi Precious Weapons. This line uses motifs like guns and axes that features a XL gold colored gun on an 28-inch gold colored ball chain and a XL gold colored tooth on an 28-inch gold colored ball chain. Over 100,000 pieces have been sold at the likes of Urban Outfitters and Hot Topic. Prices range from $15.00 to $25.00. Semi-Precious Weapon’s inaugural album, called “We Love You” will come with a gun charm necklace from the Precious Weapons line, while 2,500 bonus CDs will come with an oversize gun charm necklace and a gun USB port. The USB drive comes out of the “gun handle” and will have music and the band’s video.
Though Fetty is a relatively new brand, its already attracted a high-profile group of followers that includes Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Kate Moss, Jamie King, Taylor Momsen, and Lindsay Price.
