We are so delighted to welcome the wonderful IZABO Jewellery Design to Resident Artisan. Nestled in the heart of West Sussex, IZABO Jewellery Design is a contemporary jewellery brand with bohemian influences, inspired by the Sussex countryside and beyond.
In an engaging conversation with Izabella, the founder and metalsmith behind IZABO Jewellery Design, we were afforded a glimpse into the narrative that has shaped the brand and got an exciting peek at the brands ambitious plans for 2024.
Izabella’s Journey into Jewellery Making
Izabella’s Borsos's path to becoming a full-time jeweller at the end of 2023 is a lovely tale of how following her interests and hobbies has led her to success and being able to turn her passion into her career.
"I was always interested in jewellery, especially in gemstones," Izabella recalls. She says she always enjoyed expressing herself through her style including clothes, tattoos, hair, and, of course, jewellery. This inclination led her to explore jewellery making further in 2019, focusing on gemstone and sea glass pieces and marking the inception of her journey into jewellery making.
Her journey into jewellery making began with wire wrapping gemstones and sea glass, a craft she found herself delving into following a family holiday to Cornwall in 2020. There, the family collected sea glass, an activity her daughters especially enjoy. Sea glass, as she explains, is polished glass found on beaches, which attains a frosted texture from being tumbled by sand, stones, and the sea.
Despite her initial enjoyment of wire wrapping, Izabella branched out into working with silver clay. Silver clay, she discovered, offered a malleable medium that, upon firing, transformed into fine silver, a process she describes as akin to magic. This revelation was a breakthrough, dispelling her initial fears of using a heat and unleashing a profound sense of achievement and satisfaction. "The first firing... it just clicked straight away," Izabella enthuses.
Exploring jewellery making materials and techniques:
As Izabella further tested out different jewellery making techniques, she discovered increased enjoyment in the process of soldering and firing silver. This realization marked a pivotal moment in her journey, as she transitioned from experimenting with silver clay to embracing silversmithing. Armed with basic kit, she began crafting stacking rings, earrings, and other pieces that suited her personal tastes and that she enjoyed wearing herself.
Her creations quickly caught the attention of friends and family, sparking inquiries about whether she intended to sell her pieces. Despite initially dismissing the idea of turning her passion into a business, citing her then-fulfilling career in social care, there was a continuous pull towards jewellery making. Izabella dedicated herself to mastering her craft, leveraging online tutorials, books, and videos to expand her knowledge and skills in silversmithing.
Izabella of IZABO Jewellery Design
Izabella’s sources of inspiration
Describing her style as eclectic, Izabella finds muses in nearly everything around her, transcending the boundaries of traditional jewellery design to incorporate elements that resonate on a personal and aesthetic level. Initially drawn to the organic beauty of sea glass and the versatility of metal clay, she soon realized that her true calling lay in the creation of pieces that melded gemstones with bohemian and ancient aesthetics.
This inclination towards creating jewellery that is not only unique but also wearable in everyday settings reveals Izabella's desire to craft pieces that stand out without overwhelming. Her designs strike a delicate balance, embodying a bohemian spirit with a touch of the ancient, yet always maintaining a sense of practicality.
Moreover, Izabella's academic background in ancient Egyptian history and her lifelong fascination with ancient cultures significantly influence her artistic vision. Recently she has been exploring jewellery of Ancient cultures further through books and exhibitions.
One of her notable pieces, the Wanderlust Pendant, encapsulates this blend of personal experience and artistic inspiration. Conceived after a family holiday in the Scottish Highlands, the pendant reflects her love for nature, highlighting how personal experiences and the natural world inform her work. Additionally, her surroundings in Henfield, Sussex, with its community of artisans and the scenery of the nearby Sussex countryside, provide a constant stream of inspiration.
By embracing a broad spectrum of influences, from the ancient to the contemporary, and from the natural world to her immediate environment, Izabella has crafted a distinctive style that resonates with a diverse audience.
Izabella’s take on building a sustainable brand
From the inception of her brand, Izabella has been committed to environmental responsibility, reflected in her choice of materials and the thoughtful management of her production processes.
Izabella's chooses to work exclusively with recycled silver and all of her packaging is eco-friendly being either recycled or recyclable. She also has a careful process in place for the management of offcuts "I save all my offcuts down to the sawdust in the studio," Izabella explains. She recycles everything, from failed designs to silver scraps, using a rolling mill to repurpose materials for new creations. This cyclical process ensures that nothing goes to waste, creating a true closed-loop system within her studio.
Looking forward to 2024, she plans to adopt an even more sustainable approach to her craft. This includes a shift away from producing one-off pieces on impulse, towards a more deliberate and considered production strategy that further minimizes waste. One solution Izabella is exploring is the concept of customizable designs, where a single piece can be adapted to suit individual preferences, such as offering different stones in the same design.
Signature pieces from IZABO Jewellery Design
At the heart of IZABO Jewellery Design's collection lies a selection of signature pieces are ever popular with customers.
Among these, the Wanderlust Pendant stands out as a popular customer favourite. The Wanderlust Pendant, as Izabella describes, is her method of "putting a picture together," a creative outlet for someone who doesn't draw or paint in the traditional sense.
In addition to the Wanderlust Pendant, IZABO Jewellery Design is known for the ever-popular Copper Turquoise pieces.
Izabella's passion for working with gemstones is evident across her collections. She aims to push this element further, integrating gemstones into her designs further this year.
Recycled sterling silver Wanderlust Necklace
The biggest milestones in the IZABO Jewellery Design so far
One of the most pivotal milestones for IZABO Jewellery Design was Izabella's decision to dedicate herself to her craft on a full-time basis. This leap of faith transformed what was once considered a hobby into a professional and personal calling. Izabella recalls the moment with a sense of wonder, acknowledging the shift from her initial belief that jewellery making would never evolve beyond a pastime.
Another landmark moment for IZABO came with Izabella's participation in her first market. The experience of selling her jewellery to people outside her immediate circle of friends and family was a turning point. It proved that there was a genuine interest and demand for her unique, handcrafted pieces. The immediate custom orders and positive feedback gave Izabella the encouragement to keep pursuing her jewellery making dreams.
And to top it all off, last year Izabella was lucky enough to move into her custom built jewellery making studio where she now holds her jewellery making workshops which are a big focus in her future plans.
Welcoming IZABO Jewellery Design to Resident Artisan
With so many exciting plans for 2024, we are delighted to welcome IZABO Jewellery Design to Resident Artisan where you can now shop all of Izabella’s beautiful creations and book onto her jewellery making workshops.
