Meet the maker: Kathryn Williamson

Perched on the edge of a cliff overlooking the Firth of Forth, Kathryn designs and makes her wonderful jewellery in a gem of a studio. 

If Kathryn is ever short of inspiration (which we very much doubt ever happens) she just has to look up from her workbench to the amazing view out her window. Her enchanted studio is based at the bottom of her garden and inside it is a meticulously organized Aladdin's cave, full of so many treasures you don't know where to look first.

(We admit that we might be a little obsessed with her pliers)

Kathryn is a collector of found treasures, she might even admit she is a bit of a magpie, not that she seeks the sparkly or glittery kind of treasure but rather she searches out pieces of sea worn ceramics on the beaches of Fife. She has a designers eye and touch to mix the found with the treasured and make it magical. 

Inherited and collected objects, textiles, ceramics from Scotland’s decorative heritage and finds walking the Fife shoreline all inspire her choice of texture, pattern, shape and colour. The layering and mix of this is where Kathryn's alchemy comes into it's own.

While visiting her studio, Kathryn very generously allowed me to take a quick snap of her treasure trove of finds - isnt it wondrous?!

Her designs are fabricated in recycled silver using traditional fine jewellery skills, using the rolling mill, etching and hammers and all are hallmarked in Edinburgh.

 

The final pieces combine silver with laser engraved acrylic and found beach ceramics in different combinations creating a subtle blend of colour, balance and rhythm inspired by the precise layout of museum artefacts where neighbouring elements have a different narrative or memory.  Making them the perfect partner for us to sell in a museum. 

For our Plastic: Remaking our World exhibition (see more here) Kathryn challenged herself to make items using found plastics. All her work is made using recycled silver to start with, so adding in found plastic seemed a logical step. 

Kathryn more than met this challenge, with a carefully curated range of jewellery, from rings to statement necklaces proving once again that trash can truly be treasure. The pieces are all one offs and are made with found ocean plastics, recycled silver and found sea pottery.

Kathryn even engraved some of the found plastics

You can find some of her work in our shop and some more online here >

The pieces are all one offs and are made with found ocean plastics , recycled silver and found sea pottery.

Kathryn's view

Kathryn combines astute business acumen with design magic. We think she might be a design faerie as her jewellery is enchanted with charm. If you are looking for a talisman to treasure or gift a loved one with, then look no further.

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