Jennifer Meyer has built a successful jewelry empire, but long before her pieces found their way to Jennifer Aniston in 2006’s The Break-Up and Meghan Markle during the first official photo with baby Archie, Meyer got her professional start working right here at Glamour as the magazine’s beauty and fitness editor in the early 2000s under former editor in chief Bonnie Fuller.
Still, Meyer says she always loved the idea of designing jewelry and knew by her late 20s that she needed to give her dream a shot. But it was a conversation with then boyfriend actor Tobey Maguire that sealed the deal. After he asked her, “What do you really want to do?” Meyer vocalized her dream of designing jewelry.
His response? A little inspiration from Star Wars’s Yoda: “Do or do not. There is no try. Just go and do it.”
“And somehow I figured it out,” Meyer says. Keep reading for the latest edition of our Doing the Work series with Jennifer Meyer, who shares how she handles busy days, her go-to thank-you gift, and her typical daily routines.
Glamour: What time do you get up?
Jennifer Meyer: I’m up around 6:15.
What’s your typical morning routine?
From 6:15 to 7:00 a.m. is quiet time in my house. That’s my catch-up [time to] look at what texts I haven’t returned, catch up on emails, read the news, read CNN, take a quick look at Instagram. I really try my best not to go too deep into that hole, but, you know, every now and then it sort of spins you out. At about 7:15, the kids [ages 12 and 15] start getting ready for school, so it’s a lot of “Do you have your homework? Do you have your backpack packed?” It’s really mayhem, I’m not gonna lie. It’s still “Mom, make me breakfast! Mom, where are my jeans? Mom, did you see my red Converse?” I take my kids to school almost every morning. I’m done with two drop-offs around 8:30 a.m.
Are you a breakfast person? If so, what do you eat?
It really depends. I love a breakfast. I’m down for an eggs Benedict, but obviously there’s no time in the morning to cook myself eggs Benedict. Usually before I take them to school, I’m not eating, but I’m grabbing my coffee for the ride, always. I just like black coffee. Nothing makes me happier.
Your first childhood dream job?
That’s a good question. Honestly, I loved fashion and I loved magazines, and I didn’t know exactly what I wanted to do or how I wanted to do it, but I knew I wanted to be involved in that world some way, shape, or form. And I got to do both.
Your first actual job?
Glamour magazine was my first actual professional job out of college. In high school and in college I did everything from working as a salesgirl at a store called Tracey Ross for many years, which was a supercool boutique in Los Angeles. I worked as a P.A. getting people coffee on movie sets. And I worked at CAA in the mailroom.
How do you typically deal with rejection in the workplace?
We can’t worry about rejection in the workplace. We all have to look at things as a stepping stone to the next moment in your life. I always think, whether you’re religious or not, Rejection is God’s protection. And it’s hard. Our egos get bruised—we’re human beings—but you’ve got to look at something like “Okay, that wasn’t meant for me; something bigger and better is meant for me, so I’m just going to keep working hard at what I do and not let feeling rejected interfere with my growth.”
What’s the best piece of money or career advice you’ve ever gotten?
If you base your life and your career on being kind, you’re going to get very far. I truly believe that. For money advice, don’t spend what you don’t have, but you also have to spend money to make money. Once you start getting a little bit of success, you can’t be scared to put more money into it.
Best parenting advice you’d give a new mom:
Never wake a sleeping baby. And also, you can never give your child too much love. Cuddle that baby. Love your baby. Kiss your baby. Hold your baby. Feed your baby.
Do you feel your gender has ever memorably hindered you from a job, an opportunity, or a promotion?
I really don’t. I am really lucky, and I feel like I have always been surrounded by people who are super pro-women.
What’s your most comfortable work outfit/piece(s)?
I think all our clothing choices have changed because of quarantine, but I think you can’t go wrong with a great pair of jeans, a black blazer, and a white T-shirt. For me, that seems to be my work wardrobe almost every day, and either a sneaker or a heel.
Explain the moment/scenario you realized, “Okay, I might actually be successful…”
Seeing my display at Barneys for the first time. I saw a plaque that said “Jennifer Meyer” and I thought, Oh my God, please let this jewelry sell so they’re not upset that they invested in making this plaque that says my name. That was a big moment for me. Seeing Jennifer Aniston in The Break-Up, the first time seeing my jewelry onscreen—that was a big moment for me. There’s been a thousand incredible moments in between. There was a pretty big moment when I saw Meghan Markle wearing our Three Bezel Dangle necklace when the world got to see her baby for the first time.
What’s your personal favorite piece you’ve ever designed?
It’s like picking your favorite child—it changes day by day. If I had to pick one that I’m wearing right now that I don’t take off, it’s my Good Luck charm. I’m wearing that every single second.
Your favorite low-stakes treat after a productive day:
Listen, nothing makes me happier than a good margarita or a great glass of red wine, so that’s where I’m going. If I really want to indulge, my sister has the most incredible caviar company in the entire world—ROE Caviar.
What’s your go-to thank-you gift?
I think people like jewelry! I love to give my friends jewelry and I love to send flowers. [Floral designer] Eric Buterbaugh always knows what to do, so I always count on him, but I think orchids are always a great one.
Your go-to email sign off:
It’s probably really not professional, but I do a lot of “xo,” I do a lot of “love.” With men, it’s “warmly” or “thank you so much.”
People would be happier at work if…
They learned to not take things too personally, and just to get along with your team. Keep it moving.
If you weren’t in your current career, you’d be a…
I am on the board of a charity called Baby2Baby and I watch what amazing work they do in helping these families. I would be more full-time with them for sure. We provide basic essentials for underprivileged families or families going through disaster, everything from car seats to cribs to baby wipes to diapers.
What is your typical nighttime routine?
I try to wash my face every night. There are a few products that I use religiously. I love Barbara Sturm products, I love Joanna Czech—she just made a little traveling kit case, which is amazing. All the products are incredible. Anything at Violet Grey is really good. You can find it all. There are a few things from Biologique that you’ve got to use. I love using sage—I’m big on cleansing my space. I’m all about comfortable sheets and your bed being white and crisp. I’m always cleansing, moisturizing—one of my favorite moisturizers in the world is U Beauty by Tina Craig. If I’m unwinding before bed, I always shower, and I always scrub my body with C & The Moon body scrub. And this really is the best stuff ever—the LolaVie detangler. I’ve got so much hair. It’s my game-changing lifesaver.
