Spotlight on Jen Cunningham

Right now our highlight is shining on Jen Cunningham and her bespoke, landscape motivated jewelry.

Jen is a Scottish jeweller, producing 1-off items and partnership rings impressed by her clients’ favourite mountain ranges, landscapes and towns. Using ethically sourced treasured metals, she can encapsulate your favorite put in beautiful detail.

If you are not emotion blown absent by off-the-shelf wedding ceremony rings, then why not style and design your individual, impressed by someplace you really like? Just after all, this meaningful section of your working day will be with you for the relaxation of your existence.

Go through on to find out extra about how Jen works and be inspired…

Explain to us a lot more about you. How did you get into building jewellery?

I examined jewelry and metalwork style and design at college after owning a love of jewellery instilled in me by a extremely inspiring artwork teacher at college. It was at uni that I realised my passion for Scottish landscapes could be translated into wearable jewellery. I graduated in 2007 and promptly experienced orders for wedding rings as they have been so uncommon from the significant street presenting.

Alternatively than owning a range of rings you can purchase from, I make my rings to purchase. I can use your favourite mountain selection, landscape or town and turn that into your wedding day or partnership rings. With around 15 years of prior commissions to assist you attract inspiration from, you can visualise how your ring could possibly appear. I also have a range of samples so you can see the quality of my function if you’ve not noticed my work in human being before.

In 2017 I went to a symposium about moral building, that gave me the push I desired to transform my doing the job tactics to be extra moral. I now offer recycled metals as conventional in all my jewellery, and can also give Solitary Mine Origin and Fairtrade source valuable metals far too. I source Canada mark diamonds as very well as gemstones from suppliers who get the job done specifically with the mines they get their stones from. I know picking rings can be a fully new experience for folks, so I’m constantly content to chat about what all these distinct phrases mean.

What do you appreciate most about your work?

I enjoy functioning with my clients – they are often the loveliest folks and I hear the finest stories from them. I really like discovering the causes why unique spots are extremely critical to men and women, tales of holidays and proposals up mountains (or be a small portion in them happening). I get to hear the nicknames they want secretly engraved inside rings.

I really do not know if it’s a thing about the mutual link we have a appreciate of landscapes, but every single human being I have labored with I have gotten on nicely with. I think that is really essential for clientele when selecting who to work with you’ve obtained to like and have faith in the man or woman that you are going to be asking to make some pretty particular rings for you.

Who, or what, inspires you?

It is reasonably clear that Scottish landscapes and mountains inspire my operate, I adore being capable to create exact representations of those people mountains or cities for my clientele. I grew up reverse the Isle of Arran on the south-west coast of Scotland and that supplied the original inspiration for me when I was at uni. You’ll continue to see Arran and Goatfell parts in my collections even now.

I’m unquestionably impressed by my clients’ tales. I imagine when I know much more about why a spot is so distinctive to them, anything transpires as I’m creating it, it gets to be infused with that pleasure and which means.

I like becoming amongst the mountains of Scotland, I’m a honest weather hiker I’d say I’ve only completed a several munros but for me, there is a flexibility that will come from just staying *in* the Scottish landscapes. There’s an indescribable emotion I get from being nearer to character although also experience insignificant in the grand plan of points. It is moving and effective remaining in the mountains, if you’ve go through Nan Shephard’s The Living Mountain, the emotion I obtained when looking through that book is what I’m making an attempt to develop when people have on my rings.

Where do you see by yourself in 5 years’ time?

Oh, this is a fantastic concern!

In 5 several years time, I’ll have a separate (from my household) studio established up, with room for customers to arrive in and see where I make their marriage rings. I’d also appreciate to host make-your-personal partnership ring lessons for clientele too.

I’d appreciate to be employing extra Fairtrade and Single Mine Origin cherished metals in my marriage ceremony rings, as very well as providing additional back to the communities in which mining normally takes spot. Frequently gold mining is artisanal, or small scale, not the enormous open pits you see on the web. So when I obtain gold from suppliers like that, who can trace all the way again to the mine, my purchasers know they are encouraging miners and their family members who might all function in the market and they can devote that back into restoring the landscape as soon as the mining is finished.

I’d also like to enhance my donations to help with path erosion and rewilding tasks within the Uk, to make sure these beautiful spots are about for yrs to appear. I at the moment plant a tree for each individual in a romantic relationship when an individual buys a ring for a celebration from me, even if they are only buying 1.

Convey to us a secret…

I have got a great poker experience when it arrives to secrets and techniques. I’ve had to retain so quite a few techniques for my consumers about proposals and shock presents.

On a day off, where by will we obtain you?

You’ll likely discover me at the beach walking my pet dog, Alder. I grew up in a coastal village in south west Scotland so any time I can I go to the beach, any beach front, as it seriously refreshes me.

Something else you’d like to share?

I really do not include zeros to my charges if you mention the phrase “wedding” or “civil partnership”. Generally persons seem fearful to mention the phrase, and I realize why. Never fret, I rate every little thing the similar for any celebration and use the most up-to-date gold value to get the job done out my prices.

What Jen’s couples say:

“Jen produced our wedding day rings, which include a landscape that has big importance to us. Her do the job is certainly unbelievable, and she met the transient flawlessly. She is so talented and unbelievably welcoming and accommodating. She’s also so knowledgeable, offered us with so a lot of possibilities, and saved us up-to-date each move of the way. I would totally endorse her to anybody, and will be making use of her once more for further parts.”

“Jen made mine and my husband’s wedding ceremony rings. They are exceptionally beautiful and precisely what we required. They are unique to us and we are so content with what Jen developed for us. I are not able to propose her hugely sufficient she is so helpful and educated. We could not be happier with the entire procedure.”

“Our working experience with Jen was next to none. We requested two bespoke wedding rings, plus a bracelet and pendant. They are all stunning and we are thrilled. Acquiring personalised jewelry for these types of a distinctive occasion is excellent. Jen is so skilled, helpful and client all through the commissioning system.”

In adore with Jen’s landscape encouraged jewellery? We are much too! To see far more of the magical delights she makes head on over to Jen’s web page.