The Laings Journal
Sally Fenton and Megan Louden are the bespoke design duo based in our Flagship Glasgow store. The talented team are tasked with designing an array of jewellery pieces that are unique to each individual.
We previously spoke to the team about what attracted them to jewellery design and how a bespoke piece is built. Here we chat to them about some of their favourite creations…
Describe your typical working day?
Sally - No two days are ever the same. Sometimes we are busy with client meetings and other days we can spend time researching, designing and catching up on admin work.
Megan - There are normally emails to respond to, both existing client correspondence and new enquiries. I will to speak to the in house goldsmith, Stuart, along with the service team and in-house valuer on a daily basis. Sometimes there are sketches to do or problems to solve and I enjoy getting moving on a job as quickly as possible so that everything is fresh in your mind.
What’s your most memorable work moment?
Sally - We had a design job where we made 5 different pieces from one sapphire and diamond ring. The ring had been the customer’s mothers, who had sadly passed away. Each lady got 2 diamonds to create a piece of jewellery to remember their mother by, a beautiful sentiment. My most memorable moment has to be when they all came in to collect their items as a family. It was so lovely to see their faces and they were all so pleased!
What’s been your favourite bespoke design that you’ve worked on?
Sally - Another job that I really enjoyed working on was a remodel of the customers own stones. She had 30 diamonds and sapphires and we used CAD to create two very different rings. They were both showstoppers
Megan – There was a simple design recently, but often the story behind the brief gives pieces more meaning. A 3-stone ring was being split up to create a solitaire pendant, as a gift to be worn by the daughter-in-law on her wedding day. We helped tie in the design with her engagement ring style to create a simple, but elegant piece. The 2 remaining diamonds are being stored away for the other sons. I'm looking forward to working on these two designs in the future!
What’s the best part of the job?
Sally - For me it’s seeing our customer’s faces light up when they see the finished product. It’s a great feeling knowing that you helped make something really special and meaningful to them.
Megan – For me it has to be a culmination of seeing all the different stages coming together – sketching ideas, designing the details, selecting stones, seeing how items are going to be constructed. Seeing something go from a flat drawing to a finished product is so satisfying and it gives you a real sense of achievement.
Thank you for taking the time to meet our Bespoke Design Team. Follow our latest news on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Pinterest, or if you have any questions please pop us an email at [email protected].
Laings xXx