Beauty in the Jagged Edges

Picture three teenage girls giggling until their abs hurt as they stroll through a Montgomery, Alabama Winn-Dixie in the 1990s.

One of them locks eyes with a Vogue magazine special edition entitled, “700 Pages of Fall Fashion,” and she can’t resist. She clutches it to her chest, spinning around as if all her dreams have come true, and the girls erupt into more laughter. 

That was a defining moment for Danielle Poe. She and her best friends, Laurie and Chava, still laugh about that day, over twenty years later. Danielle was destined to do something extraordinary in the world of fashion. 

She went on to study fashion merchandising with a double major in social butterfly (Elle Woods style) at Auburn University, confident that whatever she did in life would involve makeup and fashion. Her love for them runs deep. So deep that she has collected over 600 fashion magazines over the last three decades. Danielle revisits eras by flipping through and drinking in the colors and styles for inspiration. 

Fast-forward to a calm winter Birmingham morning in 2018, when then-makeup artist Danielle finds herself alone in her kitchen. She is running her hands back and forth over her marble countertop, thanking God for creating such a beautiful stone, when she has an epiphany. “No one has ever worked with marble for jewelry. Wow. This is it! I’m going to be the first one!” 

Her entire fashion-filled life had been her training ground. Danielle was locked and loaded to begin designing jewelry right away—even that very day. And that, my friends, is how  “JAG/ged Edge Jewelry” was born. 

The company name holds a double meaning. Marble stones have jagged edges, but the company is also named after Danielle’s son, Jagger. 

“Jag is a little different; he is my bright light.” 

Just a few months after the creation of JAG/ged Edge Jewelry, Danielle and her husband Kevin faced an unexpected turn in their parenting journey. Jag had a “more than typical meltdown" in the doctor’s office over an ear exam. After that visit Danielle received a phone call from the doctor that left her sobbing. 

“He thought Jag might be autistic. There was so much unknown in that moment, and I had

so many thoughts, but I began researching. I got back on the phone, I made appointments, and I began learning about autism.” 

With Jag’s eventual diagnosis came a lot of questions—but also a lot of answers, along with a community of people who have changed their lives. “It’s a hard journey, but it’s also incredibly beautiful. It’s the greatest gift I will ever receive, besides being Jag’s mom.”

Driving 40 minutes each way, twice a day, to get Jag into the best possible school for his needs, became a nonnegotiable. It has its challenges, but it keeps Danielle focused and structured with her time, so when it’s time to create, it’s time to create.

Getting dolled up and jamming out to some great tunes (an eclectic mix of Dave Matthews Band, Bruno Mars, Christian, old-school rap, and even a little Sinatra) gets her creative juices flowing. She creates more than a dozen pieces each week, right there on the kitchen island where the inspiration struck. “The island is wide open, ready for each new piece. I lay out the fabric, stones, jewel tones, and I can visualize it all very clearly. Then I sketch it.” 

She has designed more than 200 unique pieces, using marble, glass, seashells, leather, and even rocks and clay. 

The flowers, warmth, beaches, and bright colors of this season bring out the best in Danielle’s creativity. “I love statement pieces, and they’re so in. My current line emcompasses a bold look. I’m a big believer in ‘go big or go home.’ A creative mind is one that is always on. Sometimes it strikes at 2 or 3 a.m., as my husband knows all too well. I’ll just skyrocket out of bed and type furiously into my phone. You’ll lose it if you don’t log it somewhere.”  

Even though JAG/ged Edge was born in a moment, and Danielle’s passion for fashion hasn’t wavered, the success of this one-woman show took incredible persistence.

“I was told ‘no’ many times more than ‘yes.’ I think rejection is the best thing that can happen to an individual because we all go through it and it makes people own their strength. You can only get stronger from there.”

For Danielle, the rejection lit a fire to keep going. Her Irish-Italian upbringing helped instill in her a “won’t-take-no-for-an-answer” attitude.  

“My mom taught me that you have to be tenacious, strong-willed, and never willing to quit. And you have to be able to handle honest critique.” 

From figuring out that the packaging needs to be as beautiful as the jewelry inside, to learning how to go above and beyond with customer service, there was a learning curve for Danielle (as with every new and worthwhile journey.)

Beginning just two years ago as a small jewelry design company carried in local boutiques, JAG/ged Edge is now represented in 84 upscale retail locations, spanning 20 states from sea to shining sea. Danielle’s line has been shown at Orange County Fashion Week four times and has been accepted into Faire, the wholesale platform with over 70,000 retail shoppers. 

JAG/ged Edge isn’t just edgy elegant jewelry. It’s heart. It's an inspiration to rise up. To lean into who you are. To fight for what you believe in, and for those you hold dear. It’s a reminder to embrace adversity and to let beautiful things bloom from there. 

Next time you stop into a Winn-Dixie, do me a favor. Buy the issue of Vogue Italia for the young girl who is laughing and clutching it to her chest, because JAG/ged Edge Jewelry itself is slated for its cover.

And tell that little girl to dream big.