O N E T O WA T C H
WILLIAM WE L S T EAD A widely travelled jeweller with a talent for finding beauty in unexpected places Stella Tennant
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els everywhere to find the right ones (I love the idea of going off on a trip to India to search for precious gems — there’s a romance to it). Each piece is individual, and the settings are minimalist to show off those beautiful stones. I remember especially one lovely necklace with gold wiring and these brown, fairly dirty diamonds — even so, they still had that amazing sparkle that only diamonds have. No one else makes jewellery quite like that. William’s career has been a long, windy, fascinating path, and it’s amazing to see how far he’s come, and to guess how far he’ll go. He is a dear friend and a remarkable jeweller. Make no mistake: William Welstead is one to watch.
’ve known William Welstead ever since he started out as a jeweller about 15 years ago. He’d become interested in jewellery after seeing beautiful stones on sale in Kashmir and Nepal, and he stayed to learn about them in the workshops there. He’s like that, a real traveller. The sort of person who hops on a plane and then, before you know it, he’s working with a bunch of hand loomers in some curious backstreet in Kathmandu. He’s just incredibly engaged wherever he goes. That’s what makes his work unique. Jewellery is usually about perfection. William prefers to use stones that aren’t necessarily flawless, but do have charm. He trav66
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5/9/12 18:06:18