Ladies at the Bench: Canterbury Women Inspiring Inclusion
As International Women’s Day approaches, we hear from some of the team at Canterbury’s Justin Richardson, crafters of fine bespoke jewellery, about where their inspiration comes from, what empowers them and their dreams for the future.
International Women’s Day, held annually on 8 March, is a “global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women”. In support of this important date, which also aims to accelerate women’s equality, Justin Richardson asked the ladies in their workshop about various aspects of their job. Here’s what they had to say:
WHAT LED YOU TO BECOME A JEWELLERY DESIGNER?
Jo: “I’m not a designer but a gemmologist – I have worked in retail for too many years to mention now, but my career developed from working in a stationery and gift shop, to a vintage and contemporary writing instrument boutique, to jewellery, so it’s not been a long road but a rather dedicated luxury carriageway. Jewellery began to fascinate me – or rather gemstones – and with ruby being my birthstone, I quickly realised how much I wanted to specialise within the industry.”
Liz: “I have always loved making things – I spent a lot of time as a kid making bead bracelets, pouring over boxes of them and selecting my favourites. Now I get to do that daily – only with gemstones and precious metals!”
Helen: “I did a ‘make a ring in a day’ workshop which triggered my interest, I booked onto a load of workshops. I then investigated how to become a jeweller and found an apprenticeship scheme – the rest is history.”
IF YOU HAD TO DESCRIBE YOUR DESIGNING STYLE IN THREE WORDS, WHAT WOULD THEY BE?
Jo (commenting on her jewellery style rather than designing style): “Colour, texture, and simplicity.”
Liz: “I’m definitely still on the path of discovery, as so many different styles inspire me, but I really like quite tactile and bold pieces. We have a bit of a joke about it at work, but I lean more towards quite organic styles. I really find ancient jewellery particularly inspiring.”
Helen: “Traditionally-made, modern, unique.”
WHO IS YOUR STYLE ICON?
Jo: “I do tend to linger on Instagram posts by Oscar Heyman, any other post with rubies featured.”
Helen: “Not necessarily an icon, but I admire Harry Rose Jewellery as well as many others and some of my fellow apprentice friends.”
WHAT EMPOWERS YOU AS A WOMAN IN THE INDUSTRY?
Jo: “I know that learning doesn’t stop in the classroom. Even if we don’t always have access to traditional learning environments, I like to learn, and am well supported by Justin and the team as to wherever I might find value in training courses. I like to find new challenges, to grow and develop each day, whether that’s learning from mistakes, cultivating new relationships both professional and personal, or teaching myself a new skill.”
Helen: “I feel empowered when respected and seen as an equal by fellow makers. I have worked hard to get where I am, so for this to be recognised is greatly rewarding.”
WHAT PIECE OF ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO BUDDING JEWELLERY DESIGNERS?
Jo: “Make sure you love what you do. If you don’t love it – please, please, please don’t do it!”
Liz: “Just that perseverance is key. It certainly isn’t an easy profession but keep pushing and it really is incredibly rewarding. There’s nothing like sitting down with a customer whose piece you’ve designed and made and hearing them tell you it’s even better than they imagined.”
Helen: “Ask questions and pick everyone’s brains – knowledge is powerful but what I would suggest most is to be patient with yourself and your skills.”
AS A JEWELLERY DESIGNER/MAKER, WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST CHALLENGE?
Jo: “My biggest challenge is keeping up to date with the ever-evolving parts of the industry – in particular the new and old simulants and synthetic equivalents to natural gemstones. There is a big movement in laboratory grown diamonds at the moment – some are sneaking into melee parcels and, as chemically they are exactly the same as a natural diamond, they are not the same value and must be kept separate. Detection is nigh on impossible with the day-to-day field kit, and new tech is constantly being developed to create new ways of detection. It’s a tough one, but I am attending a course on lab-grown detection, so that will be really interesting.”
Liz: “I would say one of the biggest challenges is when you have an idea or design and during the making process you realise it isn’t quite going as planned. It takes a lot of problem solving and thinking on your toes. No two jobs really ever are the same – something that worked last time, might not the next.”
Helen: “My own brain! I am my own worst critic.”
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WHAT IS THE BEST PART OF YOUR JOB?
Jo: “Giving a client their bespoke piece of jewellery. The joy and amazement in their faces when they see what started out as perhaps a scribble on the back of an envelope become something that can be worn, admired, and enjoyed. And even be handed down through the generations to become a future heirloom. The end smile is the best part.”
Liz: “We recently visited Inhorgenta in Germany which is one of the largest jewellery trade shows in the world. It was incredibly inspirational – needless to say we were all like children in a sweetshop in the loose gemstone hall.”
Helen: “The relationship you should build with customers, jewellery is quite an emotional thing and the joy I get when handing over a finished piece makes all the hard work worth it.”
WHAT IS THE WORST PART OF YOUR JOB?
Jo: “When things go wrong – an order may be delayed, there may be workshop/manufacturing issues, stones can break, pieces of jewellery that are being repaired may be found to have bigger problems once inspected in the workshop. The list can be endless. But we all learn every day, and the best way to deal with it is to be open, honest and upfront. To clients as well as colleagues.”
Liz: “In all honesty, it’s probably the amount of time spent crawling around the floor looking for tiny and expensive things that have been dropped.”
Helen: “Making mistakes. No one enjoys making mistakes but what I have learned is there is always something to learn from them.”
WHAT DOES THE FUTURE HOLD FOR YOU? AND WHAT ARE YOUR DREAMS/ASPIRATIONS?
Jo: “I hope to become a fully registered jewellery appraiser soon, there are a few rigorous hoops to leap through, but it is all work in progress. I never think too far ahead – just enjoy the moments.”
Liz: “I really enjoy working here and the variety of work I get to see and do. My main aspirations right now are just to continue progressing and making pieces that are interesting and unusual.”
Helen: “I would love to host my own workshop and help spread the joy of making jewellery, and it would make my journey a bit of a full circle.”
ANY FUNNY STORIES FROM THE BENCH THAT YOU’D CARE TO SHARE?
“About a week into my first job in the trade, I was weighing a diamond and a colleague suggested I weighed it up the other way to see if it weighed the same – needless to say it did!”
• Visit justinrichardson.co.uk
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