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AW22: How It's Made

September 11, 2022 - Alice Barnes
AW22: How It's Made

From sketches inspired by Parisian jaunts, discovering processes with prototypes and bedazzling bibelots… Keep curious and open the door to the craft(wo)manship behind our handmade limited edition collection, Cabinet of Curiosities.


Starting as thoughts flowing through our Co-Founder Harriet’s extraordinary brain, the best way to turn these ideas into jewellery? Put them on paper - let’s flick through the pages of her sketchbook…

From intricate illustrations to naive style sketches, our limited edition collection began life through the medium of graphite and paper. A jewellery collection inspired by discovery, scientific classification and craftsmanship: discover notes on the inspiration behind our Signet Ring Statement Necklace - just take a closer look at the sketch.

Putting the pieces together in our Kent studio

Each signet ring is etched across its marbled acrylic centre to bear a significant symbol: its floral centrepiece celebrates botanic collector Mary Delany, followed by a delicate seaweed frond paying homage to pioneering Victorian women and their algae collections. A folk-art style bee celebrates The Hive, home to the so-called Duchess of Curiosities' noted natural history and antiquities collection. Finally, empirical evidence is given the seal of approval with two ethereal crests: a narwhal and a unicorn. 

The final product: our Signet Ring Statement Necklace is part of a numbered edition of 30. Each covetable piece of this collection comes with an etched and hand-inked limited-edition tag. 

Paying homage to enchanting creatures, each Walk of Snails Statement Necklace is comprised of 21 perfectly placed pieces, laser cut from different types of awe-inspiring acrylic. Flex on your fellow malacologists in luxe lilacs, lavish greens, and cool earth tones and shimmer in silver-flecked slime and marble shells.

Our Walk of Snails Earrings sliding their way for their final touch: hypoallergenic gold-tone hooks

Putting the slime into sublime: our mollusc is majestically adorned with an array of 43 twinkling crystals, all individually hand placed.

Take a closer look at the sparkling specimens of AW22: our Jewelled Insects.

Inside our laser cutter!

With nods to the Natural History Museum’s Coleoptera collection, serve surrealism in Cabinet of Curiosities’ Schiapelli-esque story. Striped with unique markings, these bejewelled beetles turned 3-D masterpieces are shimmering in sweetie wrapper shades - our team of expert makers delicately heat and bend acrylic bringing these bugs to life.

 

Each Jewelled Insect is made of three layers of acrylic delicately hand-pinned together. Did you know our sold-out statement was made of 25 individual pieces of acrylic?!

“What is the most difficult part of the jewellery-making process?” We hear you ask… Deciding which colours to choose - so yellow or teal?

Shop Cabinet of Curiosities online and in-store now. 

 

While you're there, why not check our AW22 collection trailer!

 

AB
Alice Barnes