Don’t let Disco
Don’t Let Disco is a collection of one-of-a-kind beaded jewelry individually crafted to capture life’s most significant, evanescent moments. Founded by Ashley Harris in 2021, Don’t Let Disco playfully strings together treasured moments of connection, memory, closeness, and nostalgia within an art historical lens. Harris scours the world to source artisans who deal in bespoke materials, like Murano glass made in Venice or hand painted porcelain in Detroit, to create worldly, sentimental pieces. The brand takes a lighthearted and whimsical approach in celebrating the moments in-between, reminding the wearer, ‘don’t let this go’.
With a background in fine art, the former Sotheby’s Director found inspiration in the departments she was charged with overseeing like Master Paintings, 20th Century Design, Photography, and Rare Books + Manuscripts. Harris worked daily with renowned specialists, not only learning about the intricacies of certain pieces and their techniques, but gaining a bird's-eye perspective of how artworks and artists informed each other over thousands of years. The decision to use beads at Don’t Let Disco was not just because of Harris’s own personal connection to them (her own collection is 15+ years old), but because of their importance within art history. The creation and use of beads is the oldest art form known to man. Dating back to Neanderthal times, some of the earliest recorded use of tools were being used to make beads out of animal bones and teeth. Millennias later, Don’t Let Disco’s designs are all created within that exact same global context and lineage; connecting us to today, tomorrow, and yesterday.
Don’t Let Disco’s slow-design process allows for every individual piece to have its own distinctive personality. Loyal clientele can spot how each iteration has evolved and been cataloged, like a piece of art, and with every product drop, these longtime followers watch, track, and collect. Since the brand’s inception, Harris has created a culture of informed appreciation. Don’t Let Disco’s beading parties, a conversation-pit event that pays homage to the style and culture of the 1970s, invites new and old friends to come together and bead their own jewelry scrapbook of preserved memories and emotions. These beading parties have become essential to Don’t Let Disco’s DNA, as they encapsulate the brand’s ethos: there is a luxury in connection.
