Based in Sydney, New South Wales, Siân Jones has been making waves with her Jewellery Brand – Bert Jewellery. With innovative fantasy designs, encapsulating her experiences around the globe, she goes above and beyond in designing bespoke pieces to wear for generations.

Humble Beginnings

Siân’s journey in jewellery began at a young age when she watched her great uncle working metal in a blacksmithing workshop. With this memory in tow, her love of art and design flourished. This was evident all through high school, eventually leading to the desire to study an Art and Design Diploma in college. “It was a course designed to expose us to many different aspects of the art and design world. I naturally gravitated to smaller-scale art and especially metalwork”. Following this, she pursued jewellery and goldsmithing at the well-respected Birmingham School of Jewellery.

“After I completed my 3 year BA (Hons) I started working for a jewellery company in the city’s Jewellery Quarter.” Following gaining experience in the UK, she was struck with the challenge of the Global Financial Crisis, a blessing in disguise which caused her to explore travelling to Australia. “After seven years as a sponsored employee at a Gold company in Sydney, I was able to become a citizen and was then, finally, in a position to set up my own business – something that I’d dreamed of since university.”

Style Flourishing

Bert Jewellery has a unique style which has flourished from the ordinary to the extraordinary. Through working for other companies and creating rings and necklaces of traditional styles including diamond solitaire engagement rings, Siân had always wanted to make more creative pieces. ” I started to think about pieces that I would want to wear myself and these tended to be more asymmetric and colourful, championing sapphires.” Now her unique style has allowed her to create bespoke pieces that last a lifetime.

Beyond simply making amazing pieces, Bert Jewellery also makes great effort to make the customer experience one which is unforgettable. “I think people skills are high on the priority list. It’s important to constantly remember that customers are investing in possibly one of their most important and most memorable purchases.” Bert Jewellery strives to help all of her clients, however Siân stays true to her roots. “Gut instinct is also crucial – having the confidence to say no to some opportunities or designs if it doesn’t align with my style or ethos, even when they might be tempting.”

Intricate – Intimate – Individual

Curated for the taste of every single client, Siân is an advocate for the belief that “a piece of jewellery always starts with the main gemstone.” Each customer leans towards a different gemstone, a different cut, a different size, etc. As such, Bert Jewellery shows potential customers a curated selection of gems based on their preferences. The bespoke process then continues with customers being “drawn towards specific colours, shapes etc.” This then allows Siân to do her magic and “weave in personal aspects of the customer’s story to the design”. This allows for a unique and intimate piece to be created which the customer can truly connect with. “I see this as the epitome of bespoke jewellery – balancing both the client’s desires and what the piece symbolises while honouring the gemstones and shapes in a balanced and cohesive way.”

Siân’s incredible talent for pairing the customer’s thoughts and values with her vision for metal and stones has not occurred just by itself. She has honed her skills through her incredible dedication to learning and finding out more. A perfect example of this is through her studies in Birmingham. “The jewellery course in Birmingham was very hands-on and comprised four days a week of practical studies. I learnt very quickly that if I missed a day I would certainly miss some foundational skills to my craft. They taught me soldering, wax-carving and casting, drawing wire and stone-setting techniques as well as hand raising for larger scale pieces – large fruit bowls, etc. It was invaluable to my whole understanding of jewellery making” Undergoing this course established the basis for Bert Jewellery, allowing Sian to create these incredible pieces for clients of all kinds.

Worldwide Experience

With the start of her career in 2009, Siân takes inspiration from her travels around the world. From discovering the “jewellery scene in the UK, especially in London” with vibrant designs, to delving into the underground silver mines of Bolivia. Each piece is inspired by a part of the journey which Bert has developed through. “I grew up with my mother wearing interesting and unique West African jewellery – hand-painted beads and gold pieces utilising interesting techniques. The different art, architecture and design evident in different regions really influences me, not to mention the gemstones from certain countries – I feel privileged to be able to work with Australian sapphires”

Bert Jewellery also places a large emphasis on the ethical sustainability behind each and every one of their pieces, with her “recycled gold adhering to the standards of the Responsible Jewellery Council” and gemstones which can be placed to time and locality. “Customers are especially interested in the traceability and sustainability” of gemstones and metals used in her jewellery. One of the many reasons she “champions the use of Australian sapphires, especially ones that have been sourced and cut from small scale operations from the gemfields of Queensland”. An advocate for fair pay and treatment for miners and operators, Siân ensures that all her products follow the safety protocols and standards that are set in Australia. “Taking advantage of less fortunate workers in other countries just isn’t something I want to be a party to.”

Evolving through Experience

Bert Jewellery has evolved through a variety of challenges, leading to vast amounts of growth once overcome. Siân first started in the jewellery industry 17 years ago in a highly male-dominated field. Especially at the time, Siân felt that she had to work a whole lot harder just to be listened to and taken seriously. “Thankfully this has improved immensely and there’s much more equality.”

Another challenge which was present at the setup of the company was the financial aspect of the business. Purchasing materials and being able to create custom pieces was difficult, but fortunately, as orders started to trickle in, upfront deposits allowed the purchasing of materials and funded Bert’s growth. “Now I think of it, there were so many challenges! Starting out and not having a back catalogue was tough too. I knew I had the skill but without having examples of my work, the business was based a lot on trust. Luckily I had a lot of friends getting engaged at the time and asking me to make their rings, so that helped build up my portfolio.”

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A Message to Future Jewellers

Never underestimate the power of recommendations. “Without doubt my greatest achievement is that I have barely advertised my business and have instead relied on word of mouth and recommendations. Knowing that there are groups of friends out there that all wear a Bert Jewellery ring makes me incredibly happy. Imagining people telling friends about my work is exciting to me.”

Additionally, don’t forget to prioritize yourself over ambition. I worked far too much and too long hours for the initial few years in business. Nowadays I am very strict with the hours that I work. I’m aware that I may well lose business by not being open/available on the weekends but by focusing my work into standard work hours I can maintain a better balance and not get burned out. My time outside of work is important to me and I’m very good at switching off all notifications outside of work hours. I love what I do, but I love the buzz and excitement I get for jewellery after I’ve had a break for a short while too. 

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Published By
Chathula L. Kiripitige FGAA. GIA AJP