Martin Katz

Martin Katz is an American jewelry designer and collector whose pieces have graced the stars of Hollywood’s Red Carpet for nearly two decades. His work has been highlighted in countless fashion spreads and celebrity photo shoots for magazines such as Vogue, W, and InStyle. Katz is known for infusing vintage and classic styles with a modern edge.

Born in South Bend, Indiana, Katz is the fourth of five children. He began his career as an undergraduate student at Indiana University selling silver jewelry to his classmates. After graduating with a psychology degree in 1978, his first significant position in the jewelry industry was with Laykin et Cie in Los Angeles, a jeweler inside the then prominent I. Magnin specialty stores.

Katz started Martin Katz, Ltd. in 1988. He began by making house calls to his few clients or inviting them into in his home. The panoramic view from his Beverly Hills penthouse apartment was the ideal complement to what Vogue dubbed the “Jewel Bar”. He opened his first retail store in Beverly Hills in 1998. Shortly thereafter he created a private New York City showroom on Madison Avenue.

Katz has been most lauded (and copied) for his pioneering work with micro-pave settings. The most famous of these are his microbands. Hand set with diamonds and/or gemstones under a microscope in his European workshop, each band is only the thickness of a nylon string.

Katz has not limited his work to necks, wrists, ears, and fingers. In recent years he has dabbled in fashion. In 2007 he collaborated with Renee Strauss to create the world's most expensive wedding dress. With 150 carats of diamonds and a $12 million price tag, the dress was first shown at the Luxury Brands Lifestyle Bridal Show in February 2006.

In 2008 Katz designed Victoria’s Secret Fantasy Bra. Worn by supermodel Adriana Lima, the bra was set with 3,575 black diamonds, 117 certified 1 carat white round diamonds, 34 rubies, and 2 black diamond drops totaling 100 carats. Valued at over $5 million, the bra carried more than 1500 carats.

Katz was one of four jewelers chosen to design wedding bands for NBC’s 2009 edition of Today Throws a Wedding. He also provided the engagement ring used on the famous Will & Grace episode, "Marry Me a Little, Marry Me a Little More", in which Leo (Harry Connick, Jr.) proposes to Grace (Debra Messing), in New York City's Central Park.