Resident Jewellers
Islay Spalding
Islay Spalding is a jewellery designer/maker who specialises in bespoke commissions for Kilt Pins, and contemporary jewellery, including wedding and engagement rings. She believes in quality craftsmanship and meaningful design, aiming to combine organic complexity with modern simplicity, creating unique pieces that are unusual and distinctive yet practical and pleasing to wear.
After graduating from Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design in 2005, Islay set up her workshop in her parent’s garage before moving to a shared workshop in Dundee a couple of years later. Here she had many happy years working on her own jewellery collections for sale in galleries, doing craft and trade shows, establishing the bespoke Kilt Pin part of her business and creating the Man Pin brand with fellow workshop buddy and woodworker Louise Forbes. Islay is a proud advocate for the city and is actively involved in making it a more creative and vibrant place. After dreaming of owning her own workshop filled with jewellers and makers Islay finally bit the bullet in 2020 and opened Double Door Studios in Dundee city centre, now her jewellery home.
Islay’s Kilt Pins are an abstract take on the traditional style and use elements such as grooves and notches to signify dates, hillscapes, landscapes and coastal outlines and pieces of music or lyrics to bring that personal meaning to the design and make it unique to the wearer. They are hand fabricated, usually in Sterling Silver, using a variety of techniques from photo-etching to wax carving and casting, and can include other metals or materials such as wood and semi-precious or precious stones.
As well as her commissioned work, Islay makes evolving collections of jewellery which she sells online and through local galleries. Inspiration varies and intertwines between surrealist art, geology, landscapes and environments, architecture, a sense of place and the beauty of the between. These range from colourful and chunky Biomorphs and Biocubes in resin and silver, to angular and geometric Oddgons and Dundee Deltas.
Islay is currently working on a set of silver and gold brooches and Kilt Pins, incorporating pieces of agate from a local quarry, to be part of a burgeoning collection of geology inspired work.
http://islayspalding.co.uk/
Christina Vernon
Christina Vernon is a designer, maker and enameller from Arbroath. In 2016 Christina graduated from Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design with her BDes (hons) in Jewellery and Metal after completing her HND Jewellery at City of Glasgow College.
After Christina graduated she worked from a tiny shed at the bottom of her parents garden until moving into a larger space at WASPs Dundee which she shared with fellow resident Holly McAfee, before they both moved to Double Door Studios in the heart of Dundee.
Much of Christina’s inspiration comes from the harbour area of Arbroath and the Angus beaches. She is drawn to the shapes and colours of the creels and other fishing paraphernalia found stacked around the harbour.
You can find Christina’s work at Tayberry Gallery in Perth, Pretty Fly Workshop in Broughty Ferry, Saltwater Gallery on Arran and always at Double Door Studios.
@christinavernon_
www.christinavernon.co.uk
Holly McAfee
A graduate of Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art & Design (2010), designer Holly McAfee draws inspiration for her delicate and detailed jewellery collections from the natural world that surrounds her. Holly uses traditional metalworking techniques to recreate textures she finds in nature, forging them into wearable works of art.
Inspired by ethical practice, and in line with vegan principles, no animal products are used in the creation of Holly’s work. Wherever possible, she opts to use recycled metals and more eco-friendly alternatives to the usual jewellery workshop chemicals. Stationery and packaging are also chosen carefully to ensure materials can be reused or recycled.
Holly’s latest collection of contemporary fine jewellery is delicately striking, tactile and organically textured. Tumbling gold petals define each design, individually formed and arranged with precision to convey a sense of movement. The collection is made to order, to the client’s preferences, in recycled 9ct or 18ct gold.
www.hollymcafee.co.uk
Ieva Jankovska
Studio jeweller Ieva Jankovska creates bespoke art jewellery and objects as well as small batch fabricated adornments that appear effortless and familiar while maintaining their distinctive character. Her designs project a simple and graphic aesthetic that is built upon a rich and sometimes ambiguous conceptional complexity. Seamlessly blending traditional hand-making techniques with contemporary computer-aided design (CAD) tools helps Ieva’s designs to shout quietly.
Ieva is passionate about passing on her knowledge of art, craft and design to the next generations. She lectures at the Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design, Dundee. Her role as an educator also extends to the Central Scotland School of Jewellery in Dunblane and the V&A Dundee.
www.ievajankovska.com
