Jewellery Reimagined 2025

Doesn’t time fly when you’re having fun, or should I say working hard? I don’t know, but I know I wouldn’t want to be doing anything else!

It’s been a while since my last blog post and my newsletter, needless to say I don’t spam my mailing list.. I don’t have the time! I am not the best at keeping you all updated, so I thought this was a great opportunity to share what we are up to.

January 21st saw us reach our 2nd Galley birthday milestone. We celebrated with the launch of our second exhibition ‘Jewellery Reimagined: a new life in a new form’. I always get asked where the exhibition is taking place… we might only be a small space, but we host it right here in the gallery in our large center cabinet.

This exciting showcase features the innovative work of three jewellers and one maker who challenge traditional ideas of jewellery. From transforming discarded items into wearable art to reimagining old, unloved jewellery into something fresh and exciting, this exhibition celebrates the beauty of giving objects a new purpose, breathing new life into the unexpected and redefining what jewellery can be!

So far, the exhibition has gone down a treat, with pieces selling straight away. I love showcasing what the contemporary Jewellery and Craft industry here in the UK has to offer. Showing our customers what is out there and opening their minds to a different side of the industry.

The exhibition is on in the Gallery until Saturday 29th March, we are open Tuesday-Saturday 10-5 and I’d love to show you all the incredible selection of work we have. Here’s a little bit on info about each of the makers to give you a heads up before you visit:

JO POND

Born in Chiswick, London, Jo is now based in rural Derbyshire. After lecturing at the School of Jewellery in Birmingham for fourteen years and becoming a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, she now works full-time as a studio jeweller. 

Discovering jewellery during her formative years at South Hill Park Arts Centre, Jo Pond progressed through Berkshire and Loughborough Colleges of Art & Design, establishing her design process some years later, during her Masters at the School of Jewellery in Birmingham. 

 "I come from a family of 'Ponds' who appear to have a genetic necessity for hoarding; digging up metal detector finds was the foundation of a passion for objects which others might not quite appreciate. This fashioned the beginnings of a lifetime of habitual collecting. Utilising this drive to accumulate the unconventional and unwanted, coupled with an aesthetic appreciation of the details of decomposition and change, I choose to incorporate items potentially paradoxical within jewellery, to create beautiful and on occasion, confusing objects. Employing symbolic references of form, material, and technique, I dabble in the potential for wearable items to become vehicles for communication; whether through sense, nostalgia, or knowledge."

JED GREEN

Jed is inspired by the use of inexpensive everyday materials to create unique and precious pieces. Borosilicate clear glass tubes, commonly used in science and industry, are cut, carved, and lamp worked to form various shapes. Moving pieces or clusters of these are linked together by drilling and pinning. Colour is applied by painting the interior of the glass wall and applying handmade transfers to pattern the outside.

She is constantly searching for new ways to express her creativity and inspirations in glass. There is a fragility and lightness in her work, and the use of colour and form make each piece unique and eminently collectable.

Jed exhibits her work regularly in the UK and USA, showing at Made London, Goldsmiths Fair London, Mad About Jewelry at the Museum of Arts and Design New York and SOFA Chicago. A piece of her work can be found in the permanent collection at the Museum of Art and Design New York.

MICHAELA MCMILLAN

Michaela makes bold, colourful sculptures using recycled materials, creating a next life for unwanted objects.

"My work is influenced by a childhood of parables with hidden messages, and parents with a ‘Good Life’ philosophy - Grow Your Own, Make Your Own and Recycle. It makes me smile to remember. I’m sure it was often done out of financial necessity, but that mentality has stayed with me.

My collections are statement pieces intended to be playfully serious, that hold parables about our lives today within them. They start as pages of words and ideas and are interpreted using recycled and found objects with decoupage, assemblage, and stitch. The pieces are visions of my imagination mixed with realities, depicting scenarios of animals, people, and nature. They are flirtatious sculptures with hidden secrets for your home, adding a colourful twist and talking point to make your space unique and eclectic. They focus on telling stories through unusual materials, to become objects that are cherished, loved, and bring you pleasure."

RACHEL BUTLIN

Rachel's classic collections using mixed media have actually been shown and sold here at Olive Rose since the day we opened! Incorporating recycled elements is an everyday occurrence for Rachel.... regularly using discarded knitting needles, chop sticks, and paracord.

For this exhibition, Rachel has sent us some work from her collections, including 'ReclaimReimagine- a collaboration with Katie Lowe ceramics', 'Material Matters- isolation brooch project' from lockdown 2020 and 'Scrap Merchants' collection where everything was made from discarded waste materials and given a new life!

Rachel seeks to challenge the concepts of contemporary jewellery, producing a range of high-end , mixed material pieces. She loves to challenge the way in which people perceive a piece by creating small-scale sculptures that can be worn on the body, in a way chosen by the wearer.

 We also asked our existing jewellers to submit some pieces if they had anything they felt sat well within the title "Jewellery Reimagined "

These 3 wonderful jewellers submitted a selection of pieces:

Carla Edwards uses resin to make her jewellery, she collects the leftover dried pieces and scraps, and repurposes them into these "Terrazzo" style one off pieces!

Julia Thompson makes luxurious ethical pieces with an emotive edge. These special designs have been made using unique pieces julia had made and collected over her journey as a jeweller. Raw Mexican silver, from her training days, broken pieces of stone that would otherwise be discarded, and precious original acid etches of her signature magpie.

Cath Hill Jewellery, known for her one-off pieces of 'wearable art' where each piece is made by pushing the limits of the materials in response to the world around her. These pieces are from her collections: Rework, Reborn, and Amalgam.

We have some exciting things planned for 2025. To keep in the loop check out our Instagram account @oliverosejewel or Facebook page Olive Rose Contemporary Jewellery.

Hopefully ill do another blog soon and not leave it 20 months!!

Emma xx