Jewellery is so often associated with a happy event. To mark a birthday, anniversary or significant milestone.
What do you do with jewellery that has been given to you by a loved one or passed down to you, that just isn’t to your taste? Or if a relationship turns sour and you no longer want to wear that piece?
I’ve helped to remodel special jewels for some lovely clients over the past couple of years. Each has their own reason, and each story has a happy ending.
To me, taking a piece that has lost its appeal, or that is unworn, and transforming it into something that you truly love is really powerful because you are redefining your jewellery. Instilling new meaning that reflects where you are right now. That can only ever be a positive thing.
Another huge motivation to remodel jewellery is that environmentally it’s extremely sound. I am constantly striving to be more eco-friendly. As well as scrutinising my materials and supply chain, I love the idea of recycling existing jewellery. To reuse existing gold and gems is a green solution to creating a new design - it makes me deeply happy to be part of that process.
I’d like to share two stories of people whose jewellery I remodelled - Patsy's and Varsha's.
Patsy’s story
The lovely Patsy came to me with two rings - one I had previously made for her (given to her by an ex partner) plus another ring that no longer served her. Both rings resonated negatively.. She knew would never wear them again, so after some discussions she took the plunge and we melted them down until we were left with a blob of 18 ct gold and 3 stunning diamonds. What a cathartic experience! 
We created three brand new rings, which represent a whole new chapter for Patsy. She claimed her jewellery back for herself - it’s the ultimate power move. I LOVE her story.
You can read Patsy’s full story here. 
Varsha’s story
Jewellery lover Varsha was given a ruby ring as a child by her grandmother that was very precious to her but she found she never actually wore it. She turned 40 recently and had organised a big trip to South America until Covid scuppered plans. She decided to create a different memory by repurposing the ring, continue the family memory and enjoy a special gift to herself. 
I’m so pleased Varsha is happy with the end result - she explains; ‘every time I look at the ring, I get a sense of time and place...the family heritage, the birthday momento and this strange time we are currently living in! What I love the most is that what Jo has created feels really timeless, elegant yet also contemporary, modern and seriously cool all in one....and is something I can wear every day as well as on special occasions.'
You can read Varsha’s full story here.
There are more remodelling stories on my website here.
Useful FAQ’s about repurposing, custom and bespoke can be found here.