Featured Seller: Niamh Spain Jewellery Designer
1. Who is Niamh Spain? Tell us a little something about yourself.
I’m a jewellery designer and I run my own business “Niamh Spain Jewellery Design”. I started the business in 2010 when I finally figured out that I wasn’t cut out for an office job! I studied metal design in NCAD and graduated in 2008. Throughout college and after I worked in offices and found that my creativity was ebbing and that I needed to do something about it. I started making jewellery again in my kitchen with a chef’s torch and a portable bench. Not ideal but it was a start! I loved the freedom I had doing my own thing, working on my own terms and not to someone else’s brief. I made the decision to make a go of it and start my own business. I worked hard to get everything in place and in October 2010 I launched Niamh Spain Jewellery Design. I now have a purpose built studio, complete with a proper torch and bench! I love my job and wouldn’t trade it for anything...
2. When did you know you were going to be a jewellery designer?
When I left school I did a portfolio course in Ballyfermot College of Further Education. There I studied printmaking and fell in love with it. I was convinced I was going to do printmaking in NCAD but then I did a two week course in metals while I was in core year. I had never worked with metal before but felt an instant connection with it. I made my first ring with a stone set in it and I was hooked. There’s no better feeling than making an exciting piece of jewellery and then wearing it.
3. Where does your inspiration come from?
I get inspiration from many different places; it really depends on what I’m working on. When designing my own collections I look to architecture and geometric shapes that you find in everyday objects. If I am designing a commission for a client I try to take inspiration from the things that they love and with a little bit of what interests me thrown in. That way I can design something that the client will have an affinity with but is still very much my own style. Sometimes it’s not so easy though!
4. What is your creative process?
When I want to design something new I usually start with looking at my inspiration. It might be a photo I’ve taken or an object I find interesting. I then deconstruct the photo or object down to its simplest forms to see what shapes stand out. I like to draw on Illustrator as I love geometric shapes and it’s easy for me to draw, move and scale these shapes on the computer. Once I have something drawn that I think I can work on, I start thrashing out the idea in metal. This is what gives me the final design as it’s only when you start to make the 3 dimensional object that you know what will work and what won’t. Sometimes I just start with metal, especially if I need something new to wear for a special occasion and panic sets in! I have lots of random bits of jewellery in my jewellery box...
5. What is your favourite piece in your collection and why?
Rings are my absolute favourite things to wear. And to make! My favourite piece is my Topaz Ring. It was the first ring I made where I experimented with the setting, stacking the squares on top of each other like a precarious pile of books. I think the colour of the topaz is very striking, it’s a really clean blue which fits in well with the crisp lines of the ring. I also like the texture of the ring, it has a rough scratch finish that contrasts with the polished finish on the topaz. I really enjoy wearing it.
6. Can you tell us what you are currently working on? What will we see in your new collection?
At the moment I’m getting ready for Showcase, a creative expo in the RDS. I’m making some new pieces that I’ll launch at the show. I recently started working with Perspex after my grandmother asked me to make a mobile for my niece. I loved working with such vibrant colour so I introduced it into my jewellery range in November with some bangles. I’ve designed two new collar necklaces to tie in with these bangles and I’m really excited about how they will be received as they are very different from my other necklaces. I design a special edition piece of jewellery every season so there will be plenty more new work coming in 2012!
