Silver Star Casting Co

Eric Weller was walking out of his English class at Newport Harbor High one day when he noticed a classmate wearing a T-shirt featuring two red Ss in the form of lighting bolts. "I was astonished," the high school junior said. "I couldn't believe that he was allowed to wear this at school." To Weller and several friends, the letters conjured up one image: Hitler's notorious SS police.

With their flames, fuzzy dice and hood ornaments gleaming in the sun, classic cars have become the driving force behind alternative unisex jewelry and cool fashions. Luke Burrett, owner of Silver Star Casting Co. in Newport Beach, has introduced a line of sterling rings that pay homage to retro rods. Like the cars that inspire them, Burrett's rings are neither subtle nor small. "They're big, gaudy stuff guys would wear, but women wear them too," Burrett says.