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“Many, many, many years later when I started in Neiman Marcus, the head buyer for precious jewellery at the time said ‘Margot, we don’t have very many people like you, where you design this magnificent jewellery, and you’re comfortable standing behind the counter talking to the clients, but you can also run a business’.

“I thank my parents for that,” Margot says.

Speaking of Neiman Marcus, how does a designer from regional Australia come to be showcased in one of the most prestigious stores in the USA (two if you include Margot’s subsequent success in Bergdorf Goodman).

“I always had it firmly in mind that there are seven days in a week and 52 weeks in a year and that I could do what I was doing for 25 million people in Australia or I could do it for 300 million people in America,” Margot explains.

“But it was actually my husband who was pivotal in me being in Neiman Marcus.

“I think it’s common in creative people that you never think you are ready, and I would have been on the other side of the glass looking in for much longer if it wasn’t for him,” Margot admits.

“We were in Dallas and Peter asked me to meet him at Neiman Marcus where he was having lunch.

“When I walked into the downtown store, which was also their corporate headquarters, he was standing in the precious jewellery department talking to the manager, Patti Mitchell, and he said ‘Here’s my wife, she’s a fourth generation in her family’s business and she’s a jewellery designer, you really should have a look at her work’.

“I could see poor Patti, who has since become a very dear friend, thinking ‘Oh no, not another husband who thinks his wife is a genius’.

“Luckily, she looked at me and the jewellery I was wearing and phoned the head buyer, Lisa Haddow, who happened to be in that particular store on that particular day, and Lisa asked if I could come back at 4pm.

“I went back, showed her the 30 pieces of jewellery I had with me and after about 40 minutes Lisa said ‘I think this would be perfect for 14 of our 40 stores and we’d like to start doing business with you’.

“They still say they have never before or since taken on a new vendor like that so it was really remarkable.”

Then came the hard work, creating a selection of pieces that would showcase Margot’s design aesthetic while appealing to a new and discerning clientele.

“It’s not easy to put together a collection of precious jewellery, it’s a huge investment and I was really starting from scratch,” she explains.

“My heart wasn’t in repeat pieces, so from the very beginning it was a one-of-a-kind business.

“While I don’t design for a certain type of person, I can usually tell when somebody walks in, exactly the piece of jewellery they should have.

“It’s just instinct but people are very kind in accepting my suggestions as well.”

So how do you create a bespoke collection? And what is the process and inspiration behind her eclectic designs?

“I love meeting new people and seeing new places and learning new things, and I think that’s been very much an inspiration for the direction my jewellery design has taken,” Margot says.

“I’ll be inspired by walking through the couture department and seeing what amazing things international designers are doing with fashion, or going to a Museum of Modern Art and seeing a particular exhibition.

“As for the stones, I don’t go shopping for gemstones because you can’t, it’s just what rough is being cut, it’s what’s available, and what works with what I already have.

“I find a good gem simply talks to you and quite often I will sit down with all the precious stones out, or all the pearls, and I’ll just put them together until I think they look amazing.

“Then I’ll do a sketch to get the idea across to the people who do the computer-generated drawing, which then goes to the workroom.

“From there it’s a matter of looking at the design regularly and adapting it until it organically develops into its final form.

“I might have had something in the vault for five years, or even ten years sometimes, before I use it,” she adds.

“Luckily, gemstones don’t age and they don’t go off, they just keep increasing in value.”

Which brings us full circle to World of Wonder: Margot McKinney, a very personal and much anticipated exhibition which showcases a stunning selection of Margot’s creations alongside five generations of history and storytelling.

“It is an incredible honour and I’m very grateful for the support of the MoB Chairman Sally Anne Atkinson and CEO, Renai Grace,” says Margot.

“I’ve never worked with a more professional, intuitive, creative, detail orientated group of people.

“It was very difficult to distil my whole career into the pieces on display but I feel it is a marvellous representation of the work I have done over the past 20 years.

“It was so wonderful to see some of my older pieces again – and I am indebted to my collectors for graciously agreeing to lend them for the exhibition – and then there’s one piece that will be finished three days before the opening so we have literally gone the full gamut.”

For Margot, it is especially poignant that the exhibition is being held in her home city. "Before the lockdowns, I was travelling for eight months of the year and I love it, I find it exhilarating,” she says.

“The people I have met over the course of my career, and the fabulous friendships and relationships I have developed, have enriched my life enormously.

“The flip side of that has been that being home for an extended period has just been the best gift.

“We truly live in one of the most amazing cities in the world and we are so lucky to have such an enviable lifestyle.

“We’ve got those beautiful beaches so close north and south, we’ve got Toowoomba where I grew up nearby.

“There is nowhere I would rather live than Brisbane, and to have spent two years hunkered down here has been pretty wonderful.” Her bold jewellery designs feature in the collections of discerning buyers around the world and now Margot McKinney OAM has unlocked her archives and revealed the family story behind her brand in an extraordinary exhibition at Museum of Bris bane.

Showcasing timeless elegance and some of the world’s rarest gems, World of Wonder: Margot McKinney features four areas of focus: Family History, World of Pearls, World of Opals and World of Colour.

Journey to a treasure trove of memories and mastery and let Margot’s designs and inspiration transport you to a true world of wonder.

Tickets from $15.

World of Wonder High Tea & Tour

Make your visit to Museum of Brisbane truly wonderful with a World of Wonder High Tea and Tour.

In this exclusive experience, you will be taken on a guided tour of the sparkling World of Wonder: Margot McKinney exhibition before returning to the jewel-toned Dome Lounge for a luxurious high tea.

Sit back and relax as you enjoy a selection of tantalising sweets, fluffy scones, ribbon sandwiches and tea or coffee courtesy of Dandelion & Driftwood.

Available for select dates from July through to September. $80 per person (minimum 2 people).

Bookings essential. museumofbrisbane.com.au

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