This last year and lockdown has thrown a real curveball into all our lives but today I want to focus on the positives. It has given us more of an opportunity to reflect on what is really important in life, rekindle some passion for long lost hobbies (as long as you don’t leave the house), realise how important family are, oh and clear out the kitchen cupboards.

One thing I have seen is women clearing out their jewellery boxes and giving their hidden away jewels some TLC - this is highly encouraged. Not only does clearing stuff out have an effect of mindfulness, helping ease anxiety, but being able to see into your jewellery box and actually wearing some of your jewellery helps us feel more joy in our day to day lives - it's the same as putting on some lipstick or brushing your hair. I’m sure there’s some scientific proof of this somewhere but just take my word for it.

But what happens when you go through your jewellery box and you find pieces that you haven’t worn for years and have no intention of wearing? I imagine it doesn’t have the desired effect as above. Maybe you have your grandmother’s art-deco sapphire engagement ring in there that is just far too worn and delicate to wear. Or your engagement and wedding ring from a previous chapter of your life - as if you’re wearing those!

What if I told you that there was a wonderful experience you could embark on that would make you feel better about these jewels that are just gathering dust? You could ‘wave a magic wand’ and your grandmother’s ring would be as good quality as when it was first made 100 years ago. Or, you could completely change how your old engagement and wedding rings looked and wear a design that represents what you choose.

Well, there is no magic wand but these things are entirely possible with jewellery redesign, maybe you’re aware or maybe not. 

‘But Roseanna, we’re in lockdown so how on earth am I going to have my jewellery redesigned?’ 

It’s actually as simple as when jewellery shops were still open, maybe even more so because you don’t have to traipse to town in the rain to visit a jeweller that may or may not be able to help. You can sit, in the comfort of your own home, jump on zoom and take it from there!

If there is one thing that I have learned this year, is to change my approach to bespoke jewellery design and go virtual. Try and bring it into the modern world of technology. 

So, when we are faced with a pandemic-lockdown and you have the desire to ask some questions about jewellery redesign I make it really simple for you with my virtual design process. 

We have a coffee on zoom (or a phone call, remember those?) and you can ask me all the questions you want - I’ll ask you some too. We speak about the jewellery you have and the jewellery you’d like to create, we embark on the ‘heirloom journey’. 

Maybe you have jewellery that simply needs repairing or valuing - we can cover that too.

If you decide we’re on the same page and you’d like to look at some designs, I will sketch you some ideas based on our conversation and any inspiration you have and them to you via email. The whole design process will be done back and forth on email and with conversations in between where necessary.

Once you’ve fallen in love with a design and we have each detail perfect, me and my team of expert goldsmiths will begin the creation process. If we’re redesigning your jewellery, I have a ‘special delivery’ process so you can safely deliver your jewellery to my workshop but we can discuss this in our initial conversation. Similarly once your jewellery is complete, I will have it couriered to you safely so you can open it with a glass of champagne.

The whole process is still as magical and in some cases therapeutic (it’s high up the self-care list) as if we were sitting in front of each other, in these times we just have to adapt slightly and under no circumstances do I believe we should put our lives on hold for things to get back to normal - life is too short in my opinion.

If you’ve had a look through your jewellery box and stumbled across a piece (or pieces) of jewellery you don’t wear anymore why don’t we have that coffee? Click here to book in a time suitable for you, and we can have a no obligation conversation about what is possible.

Want to read more about jewellery redesign? Here is some inspiration from previous customers of mine, all designed virtually in 2020.