THE JOURNAL
3 MINUTE READ
Meet The Boutique Jewellery Designers Setting The Style Agenda
Words by Chris Elvidge
31 May 2023
Pearls, charms, blackened diamonds, hammered gold. The men’s jewellery scene is alive with creativity, and the biggest trends are being driven by a global network of small, boutique designers. There’s Mr Fernando Jorge, a Brazilian-born designer based in London who shapes gold into delicate bracelets and necklaces that resemble rope. Ms Marie Lichtenberg, who harnesses the skills of master craftsmen to create timeless future heirlooms inspired by her Martiniquan and Creole ancestry. In Los Angeles, home of an emerging local craft scene that’s garnering some attention, designers such as MAOR and Spinelli Kilcollin are pushing creative boundaries with collections inspired by modern architecture and the cosmos. There’s never been a better time to expand your horizons. Here are five pieces we’re picking up for summer…
01.
The Marie Lichtenberg Bonheur locket necklace
Designed in her Parisian atelier and crafted in collaboration with artisans from around the world, Marie Lichtenberg’s eponymous jewellery brand features modern-day talismans such as this charm necklace, strung with freshwater pearls and finished with a gold and diamond locket inscribed with “BONHEUR” – a French word meaning happiness or good luck.
02.
The MAOR Consi gold pearl bracelet
Born in Israel, Mr Maor Cohen spent a year travelling the world with a surfboard before eventually winding up in Los Angeles, where he launched his own jewellery brand. This eye-catching bracelet is part of MAOR’s Pnina collection, named after the Hebrew word for pearl.
03.
The Fernando Jorge Fluid bracelet
A graduate of London’s prestigious Central Saint Martins school of design, Fernando Jorge channels the sensuality of his native São Paolo, Brazil, with his impressive metalwork. The 18-karat gold in this Fluid bracelet takes on an almost organic form, enveloping the precious jade like a stream of water flowing around a rock.
04.
The Spinelli Kilcollin Sirius ring
Spinelli Kilcollin, a husband-and-wife duo based in the jewellery district of Downtown LA, is known first and foremost for its stackable Galaxy rings. Named after one of the brightest stars in the sky, this Sirius ring is designed to complement other rings in the collection – but works just as easily worn by itself.
05.
The Spinelli Kilcollin statement earring
From the same Los Angeles designer comes this single hoop earring, an elaborate design in 18-karat gold and studded with 24 blackened pavé diamonds. It’s a much more wearable and discreet piece than the overload of precious materials suggest, coming in at just a centimetre and a half in diameter.