Disa Allsopp: Jewelry Designer

I’m pretty voracious when it comes to devouring my Instagram and Pinterest feeds — they’re a constant source of beauty and new ideas. This is exactly how I first came across one of Disa Allsopp’s “spaghetti rings.” So it was with great joy that I had the opportunity to meet her and see her collection at the NY Now show. Here I am trying on three of her spaghetti rings, with bezel-set garnet, peridot and aquamarine. She has perfectly captured that fine line between luxe and organic, don’t you think?

disa allsopp spaghetti rings
Here’s another spaghetti ring, sprinkled with diamonds.

disa allsopp 18k and oxidized silver spaghettig ring with diamonds
Disa, a London-based jeweler, set up shop in 1996. She works in 18K gold, sterling silver, and gems, and she hand-fabricates each and every piece right in her studio. She is inspired by the jewelry of ancient civilizations, from Roman to Greek and beyond. I can certainly see this influence in her work. Take these blue sapphire and gold rings, for instance. It’s hard to determine if they’re new or straight out of the Victoria and Albert jewelry collection!

disa allsopp blue sapphire rings
My lovely mom, who was at the show with me, modeled this necklace, where hand melted pieces of silver are strung on silver wires. It really makes a personal style statement. (SO your look, mom!)

disa allsopp necklace
Disa showed me one of her newest designs — these three and four stone rings. SO pretty in garnet, tourmaline, peridot and yellow beryl.

disa allsopp triplet rings
Very happy I had the opportunity to see this creative line in person. Disa, it was a pleasure meeting you!

disa allsopp and amy roseveare

Ruth Tomlinson: Designer

It never ceases to amaze me that after 5+ years of jewelry blogging and into my 18th year of personal styling (where I pretty much am in the stores constantly), I can STILL come across such unique jewelry designs…those that stop me in my tracks and speak to me. This is exactly what happened as I walked down the first row of the NY Now Handmade show in New York City. I have a new jewelry crush on Ruth Tomlinson. Once I started chatting with Ruth, I was even more hooked. She is soft-spoken, yet passionate about her work. She is incredibly talented with detail, and when you see the intricacies of her pieces, you are truly drawn into a miniature world of gold and gems.

ruth tomlinson rings
Ruth led me on a tour of her four collections. The first up was Lustre, which features lots of diamonds. You can see both raw diamonds, just as they come out of the ground, right next to faceted stones in this collection. She told me how she really appreciates the inner glow of the stones and how they add a bit of mystery to the piece. I completely agree! This particular ring includes grey, champagne and white diamonds in 14K gold. She selects what carat of gold to use based on what will best complement the colors of the stones.

ruth tomlinson diamond cluster ring with faceted pear
Ruth graduated with an MA from the Royal College of Art, and still resides in London, where her line is all made in studio. (Note to self: visit studio on next trip to London!) Though she does sketch designs, she is also very led by the process itself, seeing where the materials take her. She is constantly drawn into a miniature world. Boy, do I like this world!

Midas is the next collection I explored. Inspired by her travels in India, it’s full of color and reminiscent of treasures from long ago.

ruth tomlinson rings from the midas collection
The stacking bands in this group are quite swoon-worthy as well. Perhaps I need one?!

ruth tomlinson stacking bands
Next up was the Hoard collection, based on found treasures such as Victorian and Georgian diamonds. I could see many of these rings as alternative bridal options, couldn’t you?

ruth tomlinson diamond rings
How about stacking a bunch together? Fine by me! These four rings include all old hand-cut diamonds.

ruth tomlinson diamond rings
Ruth was wearing a couple bracelets from the Hoard collection as well — SO lovely!

ruth tomlinson bracelets
Last, but certainly not least, is the Encrustations collection, inspired by the sea. Aqueous colors, pearls and shades of aqua, coral, tourmaline and more all in textured gold. Delicious!

ruth tomlinson rings
Looking through this collection on her website, I’m quite enamored with this tourmaline and diamond ring. The subtlety and combination of hues is fabulous.

ruth tomlinson tourmaline and diamond ring
If you are as entranced by this line as I am, then take a couple minutes to watch this video which takes a closer look at her inspiration and process.

Inspirations from Ruth Tomlinson on Vimeo.

Such an absolute pleasure to meet you, Ruth! I appreciate all your time and creativity.

ruth tomlinson and amy roseveare

Brooke Gregson: Designer

I’ve had a crush on Brooke Gregson’s jewelry line for many years, and I was lucky to have the opportunity to meet her in person and play with her jewels at the Couture show. Does her name sound familiar to you? You may know her for her well-known woven silk bracelets with gemstones. Simply divine.

brooke gregson woven silk bracelets
If I had my dream, I’d probably pick this boulder opal ellipse silk and gold bracelet for myself. Isn’t it gorge?!

brooke gregson boulder opal ellipse silk gold bracelet
The lovely Brooke was raised in California and now lives in London. She has studios both in her Notting Hill neighborhood and in Los Angeles. Since founding her business in 2004, Brooke has always maintained strict quality in all her pieces, each hand-made with the assistance of master craftsmen. I was particularly entranced with her engraved pieces. I don’t know which of these three rings I like better. The engraving is all done by hand, and is inspired by her watercolor paintings. (Yes, she paints too!)

brooke gregson engraved opal rings
Can you see the wide array of colors in the boulder opals? Brooke carefully selects each stone she works with and often chooses gems which others may have overlooked, as they didn’t seem “perfect enough.” It shows how she can see the beauty within. This substantial cuff is another in her engraved series. No…I did not want to take it off!

brooke gregson engraved boulder opal artemis cuff
The two collections meld together effortlessly, as seen in this stellar stack she posted on her Instagram feed. (If you want a riot of color in your feed, I suggest following Brooke Gregson.)

brooke gregson bracelet stack
I was also drawn to her Ziggurat collection, so named for the rectangular stepped temples from ancient Mesopotamia. Here are two rings from this group.

brooke gregson ziggurat rings
The larger of these two rings is named the Hoffman Boulder Opal Sapphire ring. Don’t you think the color combination is so unique? I think Brooke’s talent in painting and drawing has really opened her eyes to mixing colors in ways that others may not think of.

Here are some Ziggurat necklaces layered together.

brooke gregson necklaces
Once again, I’m in awe of the colors in this complex Ziggurat necklace, composed of boulder opal, turquoise and pink sapphires. It really pops!

brooke gregson boulder opal turquoise ziggurat double bar necklace
If you’re looking for some alternative bridal rings, one of these may be what you’re looking for. I’ve got on the Eclipse Diamond Ring and the Ziggurat Frame Diamond Ring. Which would you choose?

brooke gregson geometric diamond rings
Truly, this line is organic elegance at its best. It’s a jewelry goal to one day own a piece myself. Thanks so much for spending time with me, Brooke! I look forward to our next meeting.

brooke gregson and amy roseveare

Jo Hayes Ward: Designer

I’m so glad I had time to pop into the Rock Vault at Couture before I had to jump on my flight home, as I was blown away by the architectural designs of Jo Hayes Ward. The Rock Vault, run by the British Fashion Council, is a talented group of British fine jewelry designers exceptionally curated by Stephen Webster. I can certainly see why Jo’s line is part of this impressive line-up!

jo hayes ward stacking hex rings
This set of six hexagon stacking rings is made of “little bits,” as Jo described to me. I adore the different shades of gold (particularly the intriguing shade of warm white gold) mixed with diamonds. Jo dreams up these incredible designs, and is then able to use CAD to assist in making 3D models, which she then prints in wax and casts. It’s a perfect intersection of technology and jewelry, don’t you think?

This sphere ring really give you an idea of the dimension to her designs.

jo hayes ward antique sphere ring
Growing up in London, the spaces and architecture in her urban environment clearly were a huge inspiration. She was a classmate with (the fantastic) Polly Wales at the Royal College of Arts, where she received her masters in goldsmithing, silversmithing, metalwork and jewelry in 2006. Upon graduation, she launched her line from a little workbench right in her own bedroom.

I recently received some images from Jo of her latest and greatest, so I want to share those with you. First up is this shimmering pair of earrings.

jo hayes ward earrings
To demonstrate how her earrings catch, reflect and refract the light when they move, take a look at this video.

She has also started incorporating colored gemstones in her designs, as seen in these rings, which include aquamarine, sapphire and tourmaline. You can see how they easily stack, or can be worn individually.

jo hayes ward rings
jo hayes ward rings
Of course, one can never have enough diamonds, right? So the multi-sided stratus rings edged in diamonds are clearly a girl’s best friend. Again, I’m swooning with the unique color this warm white gold, as seen on the ring on the right.

jo hayes ward rings
Just in this past (almost) year, since I originally met her, I’m in awe of how her designs have evolved and her line has grown. I hope to see her soon, so I can try on some of these beauties in person!

 

Amy and Jo
Amy and Jo

jo hayes ward ring