Brooches

  • Domino

    I call this brooch my domino brooch, I do realise it’s not a true domino.  It is made of Lucite with diamante.  The brooch is probably American but there are no marks.  The pin has been secured by carefully drilling into the Lucite, this takes skill and nowadays manufacturers will just glue fixings and pins…

  • Prism

    This unique brooch is by the designer Jo McDonald.  It is made of hand cast Parian-ware porcelain with silver tips to the top and the bottom.  So what makes this such a special brooch?  Well, I first met Jo at the Goldsmiths’ Fair in 2015.  Goldsmiths’ Fair is an annual showcase held at Goldsmiths’ Hall. To…

  • Poinsettia

    This poinsettia brooch is enamel on metal and is quite three dimensional in nature.  During December I try and wear a Christmas themed brooch most days, I like this one because it is not a tree! Legend has it that in the 16th century a young girl in Mexico called Maria too poor to provide…

  • Sputnik

    This spikey brooch is by Hobé is sometimes known as a ‘Sputnik’ brooch.  During the 1950s and 60s the ‘space race’ inspired many jewellery designers. William Hobé was the son of the French goldsmith Jacques Hobé who founded Hobé Cie in 1887.  William emigrated to America in the early 20th century establishing a theatrical costumes…

  • Map of Amsterdam

    This brooch is designed by Roelinde Boot an artist and designer from the Netherlands.  Roelinde graduated from the School for Goldsmiths in Schoonhoven, a city south of Amsterdam.  Her main source of inspiration is the rich heritage and imaginary of land and city maps.  The contours and patterns of roads, rivers and canals are used…

  • Poodle

    This strutting pink poodle is designed by Louisa Camille for Erstwilder.  Louisa Camille is based in Melbourne, Australia, so this pink madam has travelled over 10,500 miles to join my collection.  When you buy a piece of Erstwilder jewellery it comes in a distinctive round box with a pink lid.  Erstwilder brooches are made of…

  • Fan

    This Fan brooch is marked silver and ‘Siam’.  Since 1949 Siam has been called Thailand. The majority of Siamese Silver jewellery was made between 1930s and 1990s, with figures, buildings or animals depicting characters and scenes from Buddhist and Hindu tales and religious texts. Unusually for a piece of Siamese silver, my brooch depicts a…

  • Mr & Mrs Squirrel

    These two brooches depict a pair of squirrels. A gentleman in a top hat, possibly holding a baton or scroll, why I’m not sure, and a lady wearing a hat and holding a bunch of flowers, which makes far more sense, were manufactured by Coro.  They are known as ‘jelly belly pins’ because their middles…

  • Lollipop Sticks

    This unusual brooch is by Belgian designer An Alleweireldt who is now based in London.  An takes her inspiration from working with the possibilities and restrictions of daily materials.  She finds new ways to combine these everyday materials with precious metals and gem stones. She has used rubber flooring tiles, vinyl records and string.  But…

  • Lucky Cameo

    This is the first cameo I ever bought. I had to fight off several dealers at an auction in Oxford who also had their beady eyes on it.  It is a large shell cameo, set in gold.  The overall brooch measures three inches across (7cm) with the actual cameo measuring a full two and half…