MILAN — Italian advanced contemporary brand Forte_Forte has released a mood-boosting collection of beaded jewelry that promises to add a joyful touch to spring outfits.

The line was developed in collaboration with Tomasa, a company that puts handcrafted fashion and accessories at its core and was established by Mónica Cordera, founder of the Cordera sustainable fashion brand.

The result is a range of six beaded necklaces in the shape of different animals, encompassing lions, giraffes and colorful parrots, among others.

All pieces are hand beaded with a technique passed down from generation to generation by Indigenous Guatemalan artisans hailing from the rural villages near Lake Atitlán, where crafts play an important role in people’s daily life and the local economy.

Pieces of the “Forte_Forte Loves Tomasa” capsule retail around 140 euros on average, and are available at the Italian brand’s brick-and-mortar and online stores, as well as a selection of its wholesale retailers globally.

Part of Style Capital’s portfolio since 2017, Forte_Forte currently operates 11 direct stores, eight of which are in Europe. It kick-started its retail expansion with its first flagship in Milan in 2018, quickly followed by an outpost in Paris. Locations in London, Rome and Tokyo were next, as well as its U.S. retail debut with a unit on Melrose Place in Los Angeles in 2022. 

Last year, Forte_Forte strengthened its presence in Spain opening a store in Puerto Banus, Marbella — which marked its third unit in luxury resort destinations after the locations in Cannes and Forte dei Marmi — and unveiled an outpost in Seoul.

The brand is additionally carried at 600 retailers worldwide, including specialty stores, department stores and e-tailers such as Rinascente, Le Bon Marché, Le Samaritaine, Harvey Nichols, El Corte Inglés, Tsum, Isetan, Ron Herman, SKP and LuisaViaRoma, to name a few.

Positioned in the advanced contemporary segment and with an average retail price of 600 euros, Forte_Forte is known for a feminine, laid-back aesthetic rich in fluid silhouettes, washed silks and refined colors. Launched in 2002 by siblings Giada and Paolo Forte, the brand started with a small collection of hand-finished T-shirts and gradually evolved into total looks, encompassing dresses with a bohemian vibe that became one of the brand’s signatures, knitwear, tailoring, outerwear and accessories, ranging from footwear to jewelry.

The brand has a track record of collaborations, encompassing tie-ups with Acqua di Parma, Superga, Borsalino, Sebago and Manebì. As part of its sustainable ethos, in 2023 it joined forces with indie label Lessico Familiare on a capsule collection of upcycled looks launched with a takeover of Le Progres café in Paris during fashion week. Yet its sustainable bent traces back to more than a decade ago with a seminal collaboration with silk specialist Mantero Seta to retrieve and breathe new life into deadstock silks. 

During the pandemic, the brand also boosted arty tie-ups, ranging from the “Corde Vocali” project with artist Pauline Guerrier using its deadstock fabrics for her artistic tapestry, to partnering with Ukrainian talents in 2022.