Catbird x Japanese Breakfast Jewelry Collection: Shop Bracelets, Rings

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Michelle Zauner is many things. She is the frontwoman of the Grammy-nominated indie rock band Japanese Breakfast. Director of most of the band’s music videos. Soundtrack composer for the video game “Sable”. He is also the author of the best-selling memoir “Crying in H Mart.” Now, Zauner has added jewelry designer to her resume.

The 36-year-old has teamed up with New York-based jewelry brand Catbird to create a collection of rings, bracelets and charms made from 100 percent recycled gold and sterling silver. The design is rooted in the theme of Japanese Breakfast’s latest album, “For Melancholy Brunettes (& Sad Women).” The capsule launches today and is available at Catbird retail stores and online.

Zauner and Catbird originally worked on the design for the brooch the band wore on tour, which was inspired by the song “Orlando in Love,” which is “about a sailor who falls in love with a siren, and she comes to him like Venus out of a seashell,” Zauner explains over the phone. She specifically wanted to incorporate seashell motifs into the brooch and began discussing a broader collaboration with Catbird. The rest of the just-launched collection similarly draws from the lyrical and visual themes of ‘Melancholy Brunettes’. (For example, a row of ants on a thin bracelet evokes the lyrics of “Honey Water,” and the line “All my ghosts are real” from “Picture Window” is quoted throughout the marketing copy.)

The brooch may not be the kind of flash that fans deep in the audience will immediately notice, but it’s clear that small details matter to Zauner. “I think what I’m really blessed to be in right now as a musician is that we’ve grown so much in size. I really enjoy the effort of expressing everything we do in as much detail as possible,” she told WWD. “Whether it’s the lighting design, the stage direction, or the costumes we wear.”

The word Zauner responds with is “delicate”, which applies to both the collection and the album. “After touring Jubilee for three years, I wanted to be like the sad mopey girl again, and this record, For Melancholy Brunettes (& Sad Women), is kind of the exact opposite of Jubilee,” she says. “It was a very mature, very sensitive album. It didn’t have a lot of drums or repetitive sections, so it felt like a poetic, romantic album to me.”

Zauner took a vacation after “Jubilee” and lived in Seoul with the intention of studying Korean and working on his next book. “I wanted to go back because I was so sad to leave,” she recalls. That led to a return to South Korea, where Zauner enrolled in an intensive language course.

She was there when the Catbird collection was completed, giving us the opportunity to bring in trusted collaborators. “I was able to work with the exact same team that I shot the album cover for ‘Melancholy Brunettes (& Sad Women),’ the same photographer Park Bae, and since it’s Korean, an amazing hair, makeup and styling team that I loved working with on the album cover. I was so lucky to be able to work with some of my favorite people again on this campaign.”

As Japanese Breakfast grows, Zauner’s circle naturally grows too, but she’s always quick to thank her team. At one point in the conversation, she paused to mention Smooth Technology, the lighting company that designed the lantern props for the band’s performances, which inspired one of Catbird’s pieces.

Despite this expanded scope of recognition and connection, Zauner hasn’t wavered from the DIY spirit that sustained her through the band’s early albums. The reason is surprisingly practical. “I think throughout my career I’ve always felt like I was on the edge of a cliff without a job, so a lot of my work as a DIY musician has turned into, ‘If everything falls apart, how can I take advantage of my opportunity to see if I can do something else with the skills I’ve gained in this job?’

She added, “When I first got a budget for a music video, I directed it myself instead of hiring someone else to do it.”

Working in other mediums also lends itself to Zauner’s creative process as a musician. “When I’m writing music, I don’t listen to much music. Part of the reason is because I’m so scared of accidentally stealing something. I find myself looking to many other mediums to inspire what I do: watching movies, going to museums, looking at paintings, reading. Those influences are often more helpful to me.”

Catbird x Japanese Breakfast prices start at $88. Every purchase comes with a special edition co-branded postcard and sticker from the women’s and jewelry label that brought this piece to life.

Catbird x Shop more Japanese breakfast items

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meet the author

Jonathan Zabaleta A commerce writer at Penske Media, she covers topics such as streaming, audio technology, lifestyle, and entertainment. He has contributed to publications ranging from Men’s Journal to SPY, and is interested in alternative/indie music, including the Japanese Breakfast discography.