Latina Star Launches Line Of Jewlery

Say the name Myrka Dellanos, and most Latinos beam with excitement - and pride.
My mom certainly did.
Dellanos is one of the most recognizable faces on Spanish-language television. An Emmy Award-winning journalist, she was co-host for 13 years of the popular television news program "Primer Impacto" on Univision.
"People en Espanol" named Dellanos its first "Estrella del Ano" (star of the year) in 2004. And this year, she and her daughter grace the pages of the magazine's "Los 50 mas bello" (most beautiful people) issue.
Dellanos' private life also has grabbed headlines - most notably her engagement to Mexican singing superstar Luis Miguel in 2004. (The engagement was later called off).
Now, it's her creative side that's making news. Dellanos is launching a jewelry line that bears her name.
The line was a chance for Dellanos to combine her business savvy with her love for jewelry design.
"Ever since I was in high school, I loved to design," said Dellanos from her home in Miami. When she was on "Primer Impacto," "I often drew jewelry pieces, and the women seemed to like them. I never thought it would be a business for me."
Dellanos, 42, says jewelry, like a woman, should be multifaceted.
"We have different feelings every day," she says. "Who wants to be sexy every day? You want to look professional for work. You want something that translates to evening when you're out with your husband to a show or dinner." You want pieces that are different and can work with your different moods and looks."
The Myrka Dellanos jewelry collection includes necklaces, earrings, bracelets, watches and rings crafted in gold and silver tones decorated with bold colorful stones, beads and Swarovski crystals. The collection ranges in price from $39 to $119.
Dellanos said she has guided the design of every piece.
"I give the OK on whether something is in or out. I've done my research. I watch the red carpet. I pay really close attention to what women want and what men like," says Dellanos, author of the 2005, Spanish-language motivational book "Triunfa y se Feliz: Cosas que Aprendi Gracias a Dios, a Mi Madre y la Vida" ("Be Happy and Triumph: What I Learned Thanks To God, My Mother and Life"). "I tell them the designers this is what I like, and we go back and forth until a final decision is made.
"I want the line to be accessible to everyone, young girls and teenagers as well as mothers and grandmothers." Everyone across the board can enjoy it and wear it."
Dellanos says she found inspiration for the collection from her many travels. Her favorite piece, a gold-tone necklace with blue crystals and coral beads, was inspired by a pair of earrings she bought in Spain.
"There's a little bit of Latin flair in this line," says Dellanos, who was born in Pennsylvania and grew up in Miami. "The key here is that it's different than what's at HSN right now." When you're Cuban-American, she says, "you can't help but bring the cultural influence into your designs.
"As a Hispanic woman born in this country, I have the duality of being a Hispanic woman but also an American woman. And that's something you're going to see in my designs. The color schemes and styles of my collection are evidence of that. I want Hispanics to know they are represented in this line."