Jewelry

Even those with a mild interest in fashion have likely come across Danielle Bernstein of We Wore What in their Instagram feeds. The 25-year-old influencer boasts nearly two million followers, a closet filled with hundreds of pairs of shoes, her own line of overalls and a brand new bathing suit collaboration. And to add to her résumé, she’s launching a jewelry collection with Lulu DK, which arrives at Nordstrom on Tuesday. But unfortunately for the star, the launch isn’t going as smoothly as planned.

To create her collection, which is all gold-toned and under $100, Bernstein says she pulled inspiration from a vintage locket that she bought after her grandfather passed away. But after revealing the line on Instagram, industry insiders noticed that a few of her pieces looked strikingly similar to other designers’ lines — some of which Bernstein had previously worn on her feed.

Instagram account Diet Prada slammed Bernstein in a post on Sunday, sharing pieces from her collection alongside very similar designer pieces from Tiffany & Co., Foundrae, Retrouvai and more.

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“Did you miss the memo on social responsibility in 2018? Cuz it seems like your jewelry line with @luludk_lifestyle for @nordstrom is cherry-picked out of your personal jewelry collection,” they captioned the post. “Pieces from hard-working designers who not only shared their work with you, but some even invited you into their homes. Pretty cruddy way to show ‘support’ for @foundrae , @retrouvai , and @bondeyejewelry if you ask us.”

Foundrae, one of the lines she is accused of copying, also spoke out on Instagram, holding both Bernstein and Nordstrom responsible.

“Tonight I feel crushed. Danielle came to my house over a year ago to see our jewelry and we let her borrow pieces several times. How is it not personal when you let a person into your home, let them wear your pieces, and then she knocks it off??” the designer said in an Instagram post. “It’s an abuse of privilege, taking advantage of access. The buyers of Nordstrom also have a responsibility to protect design integrity and their PR team is creating consumer confusion by endorsing her as the designer which is not the truth.”

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But according to Bernstein, she had nothing but good intentions when designing her pieces. Before posting a teary-eyed video on her Instagram story, the star shared a statement explaining her intentions.

“I would never in a million years deliberately copy or attempt to knock off another brand’s work,” she wrote on her Instagram story. “I said from the beginning that my collaboration was inspired by vintage and high-end jewelry pieces. My pieces are different from those saying I stole their designs. My goal has and always will be to bring quality product at an affordable price point to my followers and I will not be deterred by anyone.” 

However, she and Nordstrom have shared that they will be removing the pieces in question from the line. A spokesperson from Nordstrom tells PeopleStyle, “We take any questions about copyright seriously and have removed each of the pieces in question. We’re excited to offer our customers the chance to shop the rest of the collection.”