4 minute read
Stephen & Proust
NANCY MANN CHALLENGES JEWELRY DESIGNER STEPHEN WEBSTER TO THE PROUST QUESTIONNAIRE.
INTERVIEW BY NANCY MANN
SW: Apart from being 50 percent responsible for two amazingly talented and lovely daughters, my “greatest achievement” has been receiving an MBE from HRH the Queen of England. The honor was in recognition of the mentoring and training that have become integral to our business since creating Rock Vault over 12 years ago.
Q: What is your idea of perfect happiness?
SW: Perfect happiness is a gin martini with my family in our kitchen, overlooking the English Channel, with a clear view of France. The street on which we live is the final frontier before Europe, so close that all cell phones welcome you to France. It’s a great way to hide.
Q: What is your current state of mind?
SW: My current state of mind is hectic as usual. I just returned from Moscow where we opened a beautiful new boutique. This coincided with President Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, where we also have a boutique. We know more than most how horrified most people are on both sides of this terrible situation that has deeply affected my, and millions of others’, state of mind.
Q: What is your favorite occupation?
SW: Having been a jeweler for 46 years, thank god, it’s also my favorite occupation. Once I realized that my day job was not just limited to the days, I thought I had better start blurring the lines between work and play. Most people I know would say I have pulled that one off seamlessly.
Q: What is your most treasured possession?
SW: My most treasured “material” possession has to be my 1959 Ford Thunderbird. I bought it for $5,000 after our first successful US trade show in 1999. Since then, along with my close friend Jeff Feero, we have completed 15 road trips, covering 38,000 miles of American high roads, low roads and long and winding roads. Despite the two of us having invested considerably more restoring and maintaining the “bird” since that original investment, the experiences we have had make this my most treasured possessions.
Q: What is your favorite journey?
is going to add to the extravagance: I’m planning an extension for no purpose other than to be a gallery. That feels extravagant.
Q: What is your greatest regret?
SW: No regrets. My daughter and I both have that tattoo. We don’t even regret those.
Q: What talent would you most like to have?
SW: I’m happy to be talent-free, it’s less stressful.
Q: What is the quality you like most in a man?
SW: A great sense of humor and perhaps a matching tie.
Q: What do you value most in your friends?
SW: I’m so lucky to have some amazing friends all over the world. Friends are there for each other when needed—including buying a round.
SW: My favorite journey is taking the high speed train on a Friday evening from central London to the Kent coast, to where we have our family home. It’s only 1 hour 10 minutes, but I am transported to a place that feels like a world apart.
Q: What is your most marked characteristic?
SW: My marked characteristic is that I enjoy life, and it tends to rub off on people.
Q: What is your greatest fear?
SW: My biggest fear is known as FOMO. Fear of missing out.
Q: What is your greatest extravagance?
SW: My greatest extravagance is my love of art. I’m still buying art despite having no more bare walls or even spaces. The next step
Q: What do you consider the most overrated virtue?
SW: Any one of the seven heavenly virtues tend to be overrated.
Q: What words or phrases do you most overuse?
SW: My most over used phrase: A gin martini, extra dry with a twist, please.
Q: What is your motto?
SW: I refer to my previous answer: No Regrets.
Opposite page: Stephen Webster The ReBelles Love on the Nile cocktail ring with Tahitian pearl, blue topaz, tsavorite and black diamonds in 18k yellow gold. $15,000 Above: Stephen Webster The ReBelles Double Dutch cocktail ring with peridot center and rubies, pink sapphires and diamonds in 18k rose gold. $35,000 Stephen Webster Thorn earrings with pavé black and white diamonds in 18K white gold. $3,950 HAMILTON 31
