Brazilian designer Mana Bernardes has launched her self-titled jewellery line, Mana, in the American market. Available through selected retailers, Mana's pieces are bringing a playful luxury to the American fashion world with creative reuse and irony.

At 26, Mana has already received international acclaim for her innovative approach to high-end jewellery design. Without using precious stones and metals, her designs are of a level where they can compete with "luxury" collections. Objects found in her daily life are re-purposed as design elements of necklaces, earrings, bracelets and other pieces. From sample perfume vials to aluminium can tabs, toothpicks, hairclips, plastic soda bottles and phone cards, Mana transforms seemingly mundane and disposable objects into jewellery.

Coupled with sustainability, Mana's handmade production provides employment opportunities to artisan communities in and around Rio de Janeiro in a time and place where handcrafted items are seen as a thing of the past. In shunning large-scale manufacturing, she finds that her pieces carry more meaning: their creation benefits local artisans, Mana herself and the people who wear her jewellery. "We want to help pave the way to sustainability in Brazil and around the world," she says.

Her design philosophy goes beyond the "trash to treasure" concept because she combines fine materials like pearls and crystals with toothpicks and recycled plastics to create unexpected pieces that are simple yet stunning. Her design mantra is, "the power of transformation is the human being's jewel."

"Mana is one of the most talented young designers in Brazil," said Zoë Melo, founder of Touch, her co-partner in launching her collections in America. "With a lot of passion she transforms ordinary materials into very special objects. Her jewellery makes you feel good about yourself and the world we live in."

Through her work, Mana has been a pioneer in promoting sustainable design in the Brazilian fashion industry.

Her most defining characteristic, however, is her eye for recognising beauty in everyday objects combined with the vision to transform them into wearable jewellery. Mana's talents are not confined to jewellery, as she is a well-recognised poet and visual artist. Looking at her pieces, it is clear that she incorporates all of these artistic disciplines into her work. Intrigued by Brazilian Indian folklore since childhood, Mana has spent time studying traditional folklore and rituals. Her jewellery, though modern in design, honours and is influenced by indigenous Brazil.