Shaun Leane - the romantic jeweler....

ABOUT SHAUN LEANE

Celebrated world-wide for his modern romantic jewels that push the boundaries of contemporary design, Shaun Leane began his career training at the bench in London’s jewellery quarter, Hatton Garden.  This grounding enabled him to break entrenched traditions, play with conventions and bring a fresh dynamic spirit to exquisitely crafted, fine jewellery.  

  

 While working as a goldsmith, Leane began a long-standing collaboration with the late Alexander McQueen, creating provocative catwalk jewels that have become iconic milestones in the art of couture jewellery. 

This high-profile collaboration acted as a catalyst to Leane’s burgeoning desire to blend technical perfection with creative freedom, and in 1999 he launched the first collections of Shaun Leane Jewellery. 

 

Since then, Leane has been responsible for creating a new genre of jewellery; precious, poetic, with a sense of eternity, yet relevant to today’s world.   The powerful, emotive and often poignant beauty of Shaun Leane jewellery is underlined with sentiment, stories and meaning, tapping into the history and heritage of jewellery. 

Alongside his award-winning collections, Shaun Leane has worked on one-of-a-kind projects and collaborations with, amongst others, artist Sam Taylor-Wood, Givenchy and Parisian master jeweller Boucheron.  His work has been displayed in renowned galleries and museums around the world.

 
Shaun Leane has been named U.K. Jewellery Designer of the Year, on four occasions, and his jewels described by Sotheby’s as “antiques of the future.”   

As his themes, inspirations and impeccable hand-crafting skills are continually evolving, liberating creativity, so Shaun Leane Jewellery is evolving from an individual artist-jeweller into one of the world’s most exciting and trailblazing luxury jewellery houses. 

Shaun Leane trained in Hatton Garden, London's Jewellery Quarter, is a member of the Institute of Professional Goldsmiths and had spent thirteen years in a traditional English workshop focusing on diamond mounting and antique restoration before entering the world of Fashion. Awarded UK Jewellery Designer of the Year 2004 & 2005, Shaun Leane is internationally celebrated for pushing the boundaries of Jewellery design.
 

In 2006, Shaun snapped up the title 'UK Luxury Jewellery of the Year' just a year after his first full Diamond Collection was released in celebration of his 20th year in the Jewellery trade. In the same year, he was granted Freemanship of the City of London for his contribution to the UK Jewellery Industry.

 Shaun Leane Limited was started in 1999. Since then his collections have become widely available at some of the world's most exclusive boutiques and department stores in London, New York, Los Angeles, Moscow, Tokyo and Hong Kong. 

 In 2007, Shaun Leane's first retail outlet opens in the luxury department store Selfridges in London.

 With a client list including Sarah Jessica Parker, Gwen Stefani, Kate Moss, Liv Tyler and Sir Elton John, Shaun is now one of the UK's hottest jewellery designers.

Taking inspiration from his commissioned work, Shaun's mens contemporary jewellery is created with the same visionary precision. Silver cufflinks and opulent mens silver pendants are fine examples of this master at work.

Despite having a growing business, Shaun likes to spend as much time as possible at the bench. His level of involvement and acute design instincts are reflected in the stunning Jewellery he produces.

 
Alongside his collections and bespoke pieces he produces for clients, Shaun also creates some of the most iconic catwalk pieces we have seen today.

 
Past catwalk collaborations have included acclaimed projects with Alexander McQueen, Marc Jacobs, Givenchy and artist Sam Taylor Wood. His work with Fashion designer Alexander McQueen spans thirteen years and has brought international recognition.

Shaun's History:

1985 - 1998 Traditional English Jewellery Co. - Apprenticeship and full time employment as jewellery maker focusing on diamond mounting and antique restoration. During this time, Shaun has worked with some of world's most respected luxury Jewellery houses such as Asprey, Garrard and Mappin & Webb. Shaun's bespoke clients include the Family of the Sultan of Brunei.

1991 Attained advanced level City and Guilds in Fine Jewellery and Design at Sir John Cass, London, England.
1995 - present Alexander McQueen - Employed freelance as main jewellery designer and catwalk sculpture designer maker.
1999 - present Shaun Leane Ltd. - Founded the company which designs and makes silver and diamond jewellery collections and bespoke one off designer jewellery pieces.

2004 Jewellery Designer of the Year - UK Jewellery Awards.
2005 Jewellery Designer of the Year - UK Jewellery Awards, London.
2006 Luxury Jewellery of the Year - UK Jewellery Awards, London.
2007 Winner of Tanzanite Celebration of Life Award - New York.
2007 Winner of Town & Country Couture Design Award: Best of Bridal – Las Vegas

Magic in silver. Stephen Websters Mens Jewellery Collection.

Stephen Webster is the ultimate diamond geezer.  From a modest start in the Thames estuary town of Gravesend, near London, he has attracted some of the entertainment world's most alluring glamorous clients and established a loyal continually evolving, global customer base and in honour of his enthusiasm, commitment and creativity, has achieved several clean-sweeps in the jewellery trade's glittering prizes.  

Four-times 'Luxury Jeweller of the Year' in 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2005, 'Jewellery Designer of the Year' in 1997, 1998, 2000 and 2006.  He is a freeman of the city of London.

But while the jewels in Stephen Webster's beautiful pieces may be exquisitely multifaceted, his vision has always been singularly focused.

With magpie-like tendencies apparently hardwired into his DNA, Webster's love of things that shimmer and glisten found him attending a Jewellery and Silversmith course at Medway College of Design aged just 16. 

During that very first term Stephen found himslf fired up with a passion for jewellery design and craftsmanship that remains at the top of his professional agenda to this day.

What makes Stephen Webster such an effortlessly contemporary, unconventional but persistently relevant star in the fine jewellery firmament is the way the designer cleverly blends a love of traditional craft values with his innate love of contemporary music, fashion and modern, rap 'n' roll street styles.  It's a unique and edgy approach that has been some 30 years in the making.

Meanwhile, his unassailably stellar celebrity client roster continues to grow at pace. The past few years have seen Stephen fashioning beautiful, one-off pieces for the likes of Madonna, Sharon Stone, Kate Moss, Jennifer Lopes, Cameron Diaz, Pink and Christina Aguilera. 

He’s also made mens jewellery for Elton John, Jay Z, Ozzy Osbourne, Johnny Depp, Nicholas Cage and Michael Stipe.

Thanks to Stephen Webster's influence and passion, the men’s market has become a key area of growth.

 
With his Stephen’s industrious talent he has helped coloured gemstones and fine jewellery back into the fashion zeitgeist and has been a key player in attitudes to jewellery.

"Things have changed" he says. "The fear factor, the reverence and the rather staid formality have all but disappeared. Magazines now have fashion shoots featuring cheap H&M jeans worn with £5000 diamond rings. Having a diamond-studded accent to a watch or a piece of jewellery no longer marks a customer as a flashy, ostentatious type. It just makes a person look more…lively."

Stephen's History After completing his training under Tony Shepherd, a former Prime Warden of the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths, Stephen worked as a craftsman for several established London design houses. 

Amongst many highly regarded commissions was the honour - on two occasions - of setting the De Beers Diamond Stakes Trophy.

In 1982 he moved to Canada to set up and run a small studio designing and producing for an independent jeweller.  After returning briefly to the UK in 1984, Stephen could not resist the opportunity to move to sunny California where his bold style, employing unusual and exotic gems, continued to take shape with the help of an open-minded and enthusiastic audience.

Confronted by resistance to his bold and colourful style of jewellery in the UK, Stephen continued to focus on his market in the USA.  Slowly but surely collections such as ‘Jungle Fever’, ‘Crystal Haze’, ‘Thorn Noir’ and ‘Attention Seeker’ provoked intrigue and acceptance for the British designer that followed no trend.

In 1988, Stephen returned to London to establish the company that is now known as Stephen Webster Ltd.  

Now, with one of the largest jewellery manufacturing and design studios in London’s West End, Stephen Webster is widely considered to be one of the international scene’s most accomplished and exciting designers.

His company has expanded worldwide with independent boutiques in Seoul, Moscow & St Petersburg and over 50 concessions in the United States as well as Dubai, Hong Kong, Korea and Japan. More stores are planned for the former Soviet Republics in the near future.

info:www.thornjewellery.co.uk

Stephen Webster's, Stephen Websters, Stephen Websters jewelry, Jewelry, gift for men's, giftfor male, best gift, silver jewelry for men, jewelry for men, best design,jewely design, men's braselets,men's rings

Vivienne Westwood

 

Vivienne Westwood was born Vivienne Isabel Swire in Glossop, Derbyshire on April 8, 1941, she moved to London when she was just 17. In 1970, with Malcolm McLaren she opened the shop Let It Rock on Kings Road, Chelsea in London to showcase their fifties Rock 'n' Roll records and memorabilia as well as fifties inspired fashion designs. 

 

Turning away from the hippy movement, young people started to come to the shop fuelling a revival of the period and it’s popularity increased as Elvis Presley began his 1970s comeback. A design icon of UK fashion was born.

Today Vivienne Westwood also designs fashi

on led yet very wearable Mens Jewellery based on her classic puink designs including Safety Pins and Razor Blades.

 The Kings Road shop was daringly name changed to "SEX" and sold leather clothing adorned with zips and chains, tee shirts emblazoned with slogans and pornographic images, rubber S&M clothing, ripped clothes and tee-shirts with pornographic text and images and Vivienne Westwood began to design clothes for the punk band, the New York Dolls.

 Punk style came together with the music of the Sex Pistols who play their first gig wearing clothes from the shop which has by this time had been renamed again. The clothes were the culmination of the ideas that had pervaded Vivienne Westwood's work. Zips, rips, chains, bondage, porn and slogans all featured to give a look that would go on to make a revolutionary impact on high fashion.

 

The classic proportions of English tailoring redefined Vivienne Westwood's vision as a designer, where English tailoring remaining to this day the foundation of her work. 

Ten years on from 1977 and the punk rock revolution, Vivienne Westwood showed her 'Harris Tweed' collection, as a jibe parody of the most English of ladies.

 With the opening of her exclusive Mayfair store and the first US flagship store opening in the SoHo district of New York, Vivienne Westwood became regarded in the industry as one of the top 10 designers in the world and in July 1990, she showed her first complete menswear collection in conjunction with Pitti Uomo in Florence. The collection included designs for mens jewellery and accessories.

Luxury diamond cufflinks and Skull Pendants from Vivienne Westwood's precious range are also available from Thorn Jewellery as special order items.  Please contact us for catalogue and availability enquireys.

Her success in the fashion industry has brought Vivienne Westwood the greatest of honours, now having an OBE for her services to the British Fashion Industry and was awarded the Queen's Award for Export. 

In January 2007 Vivienne Westwood was awarded a DBE

info:thornjewellery.co.uk