Young British Jewellers

I recently joined the Young British Jewellers website which is an 'online community' of some of the best jewellery talent in the UK today. When you join Young British Jewellers you get a profile page that you can personalise and an image gallery, as well as a messaging service to communicate with the other member jewellers.

The website has a detailed events calendar and a blog which is full of news and promises to showcase 'jewellers’ studios, interviews, exhibition reviews and of course plenty of photos'.

Vega, Christopher and Lucie run the website and are active on social media such as Twitter and Facebook, which is great to see as well as being extremely helpful if you have any questions.

The 'young' does not refer the age of the jeweller, it instead draws reference to the innovation in the techniques and materials used by the jewellers, creating a wide range of different jewellery styles to browse on the website.

The standard of the jewellery is very high and and there are some great jewellers on the website that I might not have discovered if I hadn't joined.

A few of my favourites are - 

Hannah-May Chapman who has the fabulous Cell Collection, inspired by cells under the microscope. It combines resin, plastics, synthetic fur, base metal and silver to create fun, playful pieces. Hannah states she is a process driven designer, inspired by the natural and surreal world around her. Her work looks so tactile and combines beautiful colours with a range of fun materials.

Acrospheara Brooch by Hannah-May Chapman

 

Catinulus Cufflinks by Hannah-May Chapman

 

Catinulus Studs by Hannah-May Chapman

 
Wing Hang Chan (Kody) makes jewellery inspired by the Birmingham skyline and the colours of the sky. Combining brass and felt with techniques such as powder coating, plating, felting, laser welding and riveting, Kody makes wonderfully tactile and striking pieces of jewellery. Born in Hong Kong, Kody will be graduating from the School of Jewellery, Birmingham this year - one to watch out for!

Silver linings collection by Wing Hang Chan

Lana Crabb works in the most vibrant colours, which I think is great! Working in unusual non-precious materials such as rubber bands, paint, thread, balloons and broken gems, Lana creates small but wearable art pieces that create a statement. I really liked this statement by Lana, 'I aim to create preciousness aesthetically rather than traditionally with gold or gems'.

Small Squiggle Brooch by Lana Crabb

Yellow Tank Studs by Lana Crabb

Pink Peek-a-boo Gem Studs by Lana Crabb

Amanda Trimmer is inspired by comic books and superheroes. Laser cut paper and powder coated metal create brightly coloured and funky pieces that are intricate and beautiful. Amanda says that she used her own imagination when growing up to adapt to the new cultures she faced due to travelling a lot and this shows in her work.

Secret Superhero by Amanda Trimmer

Obscura by Amanda Trimmer

Amy Logan creates jewellery inspired by the fluid lines found in drawings and landscapes. Forming and hammering then powder coating and plating the metal gives Amy a wonderful fluidity to her pieces, which are strikingly elegant.

Gold Wire Earrings by Amy Logan

Grey Powder Coated Chain by Amy Logan

Pink Pendant with Black Chain by Amy Logan

There are many more talented jewellers who have work on the Young British Jewellers website, I think at last count there were 154, but I couldn't write about all of them! 

I have realised that I have been drawn towards and therefore written about four jewellers who all work in mixed media and bright colours. This was not intentional but I think it says quite a lot about me and my jewellery tastes.

Thanks to all the jewellers who allowed me to use their work in this blog post. It's been great fun looking at all the lovely pieces that these talented ladies make. Also thanks to the Young British Jewellers team for creating this wonderful tool and for promoting jewellery design on their website.