Zoe Whiffen

Tell us about your role. Each day is unique and one of a kind. The day might begin with a jewellery design consultation. Sketching and designing with our customer focusing on shapes, form and finish to develop the beginning of a custom design idea on paper. We explore unique design ideas, suitable stones, setting options and precious metals. These designs are then developed in CAD to give the customer a 3D visual of their creation. The next job of the day will be spent at my work bench repairing broken, much loved and treasured pieces for our clients. These could be ring resizes, soldering chains or repairing broken earrings. After these are complete I move on to hand-making one of our custom design pieces. These pieces vary and could be rings, bangles, earrings or pendants. Today it was a ring, and I started with a lot of measuring and planning. First, I look at the CAD design, take the custom design measurements, metal weights, metal type and then work on bringing it to life. With a little mathematics I start the melting process to liquify the gold into an ingot. This is then rolled into a bar, to create our desired length and width and forged into shape using hammers, a ring bender and a lot of hand strength. At this point the form starts to take basic shape and the pieces are soldered together, filed and polished. Next, I create the settings for our gems by making gold wire, saw piercing the design features and hand filing the shape to create the perfect home for our client’s heirloom or selected gems. Then I solder the setting into place and onto the ring. From there it’s on to the final touches, polishing and then to Matt for stone setting.

What motivates you in your role and business? I’m inspired by love and sentiment, the ability to connect people and time to memories by bringing to life inspired, meaningful, creative and innovative pieces of jewellery. The idea that these pieces will be treasured and hold meaning to those that wear them is extremely motivating. I love that each piece we create will transcend our lifetime and become a treasured heirloom for our generation and many more to come.

What is the most interesting part of your role? Working with precious metals and gemstones and forging these by hand to take shape and become wearable pieces of art. Do you have a goal this year for yourself personally or in business? My main objective this year is to co-design and develop our own Matt Loretan Jewellery designs with Matt and launch these designs in an e-commerce store on our soon to be launched new website. Keep a look out on our socials and on our website: mattloretanjewellery.com.au for updates.

What would you say is your greatest professional accomplishment to date? Successfully changing my career from an Event Planner to pursue my passion for creating unique bespoke pieces of jewellery and achieving a sustainable and successful career transition.

What has been your biggest inspiration and why? I am most inspired by love, nature and the individual stories that inspire people to come into our studio and start the custom design process.

I get to hold gems that have formed naturally protected by nature deep within the earth over many years in extreme conditions, each rare, beautiful, and unique. To get to work with these gems every day, to be able to armour up these beautiful stones with precious metals that have existed for more than 4 billion years and tie love and connection into these pieces fills my heart with joy and inspires me to be innovative and creative. I believe that jewellery is wearable art, each inspirational story allows me to design with purpose and take pride in creating a treasured heirloom that has been made by my hands with so much love.

What one professional piece of advice would you give any reading this? It’s never too late to change your career and pursue your happily ever after. With a little determination and hard work, you can achieve anything.