An Interview with This Story Jewellery
Much like with the clothes we wear, the jewellery we choose to accessorise with helps us express our innermost personalities and create our own unique style. Whether it’s a brand new piece or a family heirloom, jewellery has always been used in a symbolic way, be that an engagement ring or mourning necklace, and for Anna Sweet, this is what is so beautiful about jewellery. The proof is in the name of her small business ‘This Story Jewellery’ where she sells beautiful hand-made silver and gold rings, necklaces and earrings, all of which tell their own individual story.
I first came across Anna’s business around two years ago and I instantly fell in love with her designs, both chunky and delicate at the same time they could be worn for almost any occasion and with any outfit.
Perhaps I am biased, given the fact that I have actually collaborated with Anna before on a necklace called ‘The Bleeding Heart Necklace’, where a percentage of the profits were used to help give period products to homeless shelters. But, after having seen the process Anna uses first hand and feeling the quality myself, I can quite safely say that This Story Jewellery is going to do some pretty spectacular things!
Here is what Anna has to say about This Story Jewellery:
Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your small business?
“Hello, I’m Anna, I’m a jeweller from Margate and I run a small, ethical jewellery brand called This Story. I handcraft all of my jewellery using a really ancient process that’s about 6000 years old, called Lost-wax casting. Each piece is hand-sculpted from wax, it’s then cast into recycled sterling silver, and moulded so I can create small batches of each piece. I’m inspired by anything dreamy and magical, and I like to think my jewellery brings some luck and good fortune to its wearer.”
Anna Sweet, founder of This Story Jewellery
Why did you create This Story Jewellery?
“I’ve always been infatuated with the way jewellery is able to transport us back to a time and place or remind us of someone. I love hearing the stories jewellery can provoke, and because of my fascination behind the story, I was never able to connect with jewellery that I could buy on the high street or jewellery that was particularly in fashion at the time. My own personal collection is made up of pieces I’ve bought for myself during special times in my life, or vintage pieces that have been passed down by loved ones. I wanted This Story to be a luxury, handcrafted jewellery brand that stood for ethical practices and created jewellery that held meaning, unlike lots of the mass-produced jewellery you find on the high-street.”
Have you always loved jewellery?
“Yes, always. I’m such a treasure hunter and as a child, I spent a lot of my time combing beaches or my Mum and Nana’s jewellery boxes looking for sparkly things. I once found a pearl in its shell when I was young and it’s been in my jewellery box ever since. I need to design a special piece of jewellery for it so that I can wear it forever!”
How did you first get into creating jewellery from scratch?
“I was living in Australia at the time and I had a very stressful job as a National Visual Merchandising Manager which required long days and travel, so I was looking for an outlet to be creative. I had no idea what hobby would interest me long enough but one afternoon in a charity shop my eye caught a book called ‘How to create a free-range life and escape the 9-5” it was full of questionnaires that ultimately led you to your true passion. By the end of the book, I had this really strong urge to learn how to make jewellery. So I spent hours watching YouTube videos and researching tools and equipment I needed to make rings. When I felt like I knew enough I bought the basics and in my free time, I would just sit there and create. Nothing ever went right but I’d learn from it and start again. I became obsessed with making things, I’d never made something from scratch before and it was the best feeling. I’m forever grateful for picking up that book! I feel like life is full of those little moments that were supposed to happen, but at the time you don’t realise how life-changing it’s going to be.”
Your pieces are always one of a kind and often run for a limited time, how important is it for you to create pieces that are individual and tell their own unique stories?
“I think storytelling is and will always be at the heart of This Story (maybe I’d have to change the name if it wasn’t!) but for a long time when it came to my core range I definitely got caught up with writing the story of each piece myself, and then I came to realise that I can’t write the story for each piece. I can tell you the inspiration behind it and what it evokes in me, but I can’t tell your story and what it evokes in you. So now I find peace in knowing that you’ve chosen or have been given a piece for your own story and how it resonates with you. I make a lot of custom jewels too and that’s great because it’s completely one-off and I get to be nosey and hear some of the best stories from them. But creating small batches of jewellery and keeping them limited is important to me because it’s nice for you to know that you’re one in a few that will own it and it goes against mass consumption which I really dislike in the world.”
As a small business working with metal, how have you gone about making your brand as sustainable as possible? And has that been difficult at all?
“The jewellery industry can be a really awful place for ethical and sustainable practices and the mining conditions are still very poor and bad for the environment, but with the changes that are slowly happening it is possible to be sustainable. A lot of time and research goes into being sustainable, as well as investing a lot of money, which isn’t always possible when you first start out. I’m so happy to say that all of my jewels are made with recycled silver which is silver that is already in circulation and doesn’t contribute to more mining. My packaging is made using recycled or recyclable materials, my gemstones are sourced from an ethical supplier and I don’t use any animal by-products in my studio. Getting to this point has taken lots of research and I’m always learning and implementing changes as I grow.”
The ‘Stolen Heart’ and ‘Wild Heart’ rings
What’s your favourite piece that you’ve ever created?
“That’s such a hard question because I see them all as my children haha! I did make an alternative opal and emerald engagement ring last year that definitely has a piece of my heart and soul with it. It was very colourful and magical, and very hard to let go of!”
What’s on the horizon for the future of This Story Jewellery?
“I definitely have my heart set on a little shop one day. A little pink shop by the sea, that’s full of treasure and dreamy things, with a little vintage jewel curation too. I love having an online business but I’m old school and have worked in retail my whole life, so I would love to have my own shop that I can make my own and I can meet people and they can watch me make their jewellery. I absolutely envision making jewels until I’m old and grey, along with lots of other things I imagine.”
The ‘Wild Heart’ necklace
And finally, my question I ask in all my interviews, what does fashion mean to you?
“Fashion to me is about individuality and it can be the most liberating form of expression. Fashion has been my entire life, for a long time it was my career and I was always immersed in it. The way I shop and view fashion has definitely changed over the years and I no longer look to the trends, I buy what I feel most comfortable in, and I’m now very conscious about how I shop because of the detrimental effect it has on people and the environment. I love finding vintage pieces and shopping small where I can, I just buy less but invest in pieces I’ll have for a long time.”
To follow Anna and her journey with This Story Jewellery…
Website: https://thisstoryjewellery.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisstoryjewellery/
