Many jewellery companies these days call themselves ‘bespoke’, producing beautiful work that is indeed to the customer’s specifications. At La Jewellery though, we like to think we take it a step further, to make bespoke mean ‘utterly unique’, ‘inspirational’ and most of all, ‘magical’.
Why do we think this? Well, come with us on a journey….
…Into the distant and mythical past of Wales, a land of mystery and beauty, where myth and history combine in the hills themselves to whisper of times gone by, of heroes and dragons, of ethereal maidens and of the most famous of all British heroes, King Arthur. All of this surrounds us as we work and, in the spirit of truly believing that what we produce should be as beautiful as we can possibly make it, we listen.
Our designer, Lisa Anne, lived and worked in Wales for 15 years and still has a small design studio there but has now moved to the county of Shropshire and she believes wholeheartedly in its magic, seeking and finding endless inspiration in her environment, in the changing moods of the landscape itself and in its old stories and hidden hollows. In her work can be found the chattering of the silver stream, the voice of Merlin and the sound of a hawk circling above the mountains. She loves what she does and in every piece she creates, she hopes to pass a little of that love onto you, the traveller who has found their way here.
Alongside this, Lisa Anne and the team within the company believe very firmly too in the tangible value of life and lessening our impact on the environment in which we live, while sacrificing nothing of quality. To this end, we always aim to purchase our materials and packaging from local sources and leave a ‘lighter footprint’ on this incredible landscape by using recycled packaging and card wherever possible.
Pieces are accented by fresh-water pearls, semi-precious stones and glittering Swarovski crystals in beautiful colours and shapes and we will always attempt to match your colour scheme.
At La,we hold our work close to our hearts and we back it with the highest standards in craftsmanship and customer service. From choosing your piece, to the day you hold it in your hands and beyond, you can expect us to listen and provide the best service available. We care very much about our customers and we are always interested in what you think. We will therefore always welcome any feedback you may be kind enough to provide us as we seek to constantly improve our service further still.
One last thing before you go and see for yourself. We think it is important to tell you a little about the metal with which we work.
Silver….the very word conjures up thoughts of moonlight and the magic it bestows. Of all precious metals, silver is the one which speaks to us at La, possessing its own life-force and spirit, leading us down pathways we could never have imagined. Through exploring its nature, we have learnt to let it show us things hidden from view, to allow it to tempt us into a merry dance expressed through creativity. You need not take our word for it, we believe that the unique beauty and elegance of the pieces here will show that what we say is simply the truth.
So now, please, explore the site at your leisure; we have told you what inspires and guides us, come with us and play and we will let the true magic of silver and our pieces speak for themselves.
As a working mother myself, I know how important family and social time is.
At La Jewellery, we employ part time staff and we pay them over minimum wage per hour. This is not a boast to make us look good, it is simply a fact and it is done consciously, to support the principles we operate under. Quite simply, we value our staff and the system of payment we employ, ‘piece work’ (a system where payment is made per item of jewellery completed), enables us not only to pay them in accordance with our commitment to their skill and creativity, it also allows both me and them a greater sense of work/life balance. In addition, it fits in with our ‘Fair Trade’ policy, which we believe should be an integral part of the British culture as much as it is abroad.
So, our jewellery assemblers are paid in a way which best facilitates them working from the comfort of their homes, meeting the needs of family members and living life with a greater degree of freedom, while still gaining an income. It also allows us as a company to further our belief in the principles of the ‘SLOW’ Movement and fulfill these beliefs in a tangible way.
At the moment, I am the only full time member of staff but this is my choice; La is my baby and she needs me to nurture her (but she has allot of very caring relatives!) Most of my design work is done at home in my design studio overlooking the serenity of the Shropshire countryside, in a quiet space so that even when I am working, my life is filled with a sense of beauty and peace. We also have a small design studio is South Wales and in Cornwall. This means too that I can also be there for my family – Stuart, Annastarzzia, Jake and to walk our little dog – Brew, a mad and playful Jack Russell. (Brew understands peace too, but usually only when asleep….)
Life is for living and at La, we never, ever forget that.
And finally….
Our workshop studio is in a secret location, not because we are international double agents or anything, (we’d be really bad at that anyway) but because of the nature of our work with precious metals. We are also not permitted visitors due to health and safety regulations – large blow torches and women with hammers! – as well as the fact that it contravenes our insurance policy and tends to slow down our production …… Jewellery making is a very meditative process and requires skill and commitment to each piece being worked on, therefore we respect that and allow ourselves the uninterrupted time to create.
