Article by: Western Morning News
An unorthodox approach can transform designs
Off the bustle and clutter of St Ives’ Fore Street is the cool marble calm of the Gauge Gallery. One uninterrupted display counter wraps around the room. Owner Ed Wilson allows nothing superfluous in the jewellery he selects from modern designers: every piece has a presence under the glass.
“I choose things that are design led and up to date: made to a really high spec but not so traditional,” he said.
“I include artists I’ve met through the trade, and others I like who are up and coming. Several of them are really sought after and worn by celebrities.”
I admire the sweeping silver shapes of Rob Morris’s pieces, Swatch watches, clusters of odd charms from Catherine Hills, and the sharp Perspex triangles of Lua Lua.
“Those were all over the Parisian catwalks last year,” Ed tells me.
There is even a rock ’n’ roll element, with glittering skulls and swallows clearly drawn from tattoo art. Kelly Osbourne could shop here.
Ed can choose his designers with a more practised eye than many. In the back of the gallery, he has a small studio equipped with a lathe, a polisher and an ultrasonic cleaner for jewels. Here he makes his own contemporary jewellery.
His background is a characteristic Westcountry blend of bohemian and traditional. Born and bred in creative St Ives, he was bitten by the jewellery bug when he travelled in his 20s to
South and Central America. He admired the turquoise and silver and thought:
“I’d like to have a go doing that.”
Back home he bagged an apprenticeship with silversmith Tim Lukes, who from his St Ives base made traditional silver sculpture for Bond Street jeweller Asprey’s. For five years Ed worked on grand statues of pheasants and stags and other traditional designs, and learned to produce a piece to a high standard.
His tastes, however, were not only modern, but experimental. On his rings, he fuses different metals into dunelike patterns, a technically tricky feat. Ed has produced a range of “kinetic” rings, which have moveable parts. I try on a chunky silver ring with a smaller gold band around the middle. My fingers enjoy turning and turning the band – this could get addictive.
“I like the idea that it moves,” said Ed. “I want to do something different and make it playful.”
His ideas include another style of kinetic ring that moves like a cog, and a dome-shaped ring inside of which a diamond can rattle around like a children’s toy.
Though he cut his teeth on silver, he is eager to get his hands on as many metals and gemstones as he can. “I’ll use gold and silver, platinum, palladium – everything I can get my hands on,” he said. His pieces in the display case range from diamonds and rubies to blue tanzanite, purple tourmalines, and even a “chocolate diamond”. Ed also wants to find gold in the disused mines of Cornwall for special Cornish wedding bands.
His unorthodox approach attracts like-minded people who want to change an heirloom that doesn’t suit their personality. “People can’t afford to buy new pieces of jewellery, so I can rebuild pieces that they bring in,” he said. “I had a woman in who had a diamond ring from Tiffany’s that she didn’t like, so I took the stone out and re-made it for her.”
This transformation epitomises Ed’s approach: workmanship and materials based on tradition, but re-shaping them into something fresh.
By: Gillian Molesworth
BRIGHT FUTURE FOR GAUGE GALLERY AS DESIGNER TAKES THE HELM
It promises to be a bright future for St Ives gallery Gauge with the news that Cornish jewellery designer Ed Wilson has taken the helm.
Ed, who is developing a growing reputation as a ring designer, including his kinetic and bespoke engagement and wedding rings, which he makes in the gallery, says he has high hopes for Gauge, which is in the middle of Fore Street in St Ives.
Already home to the work of some of Cornwall’s brightest jewellery designers, in addition to leading national names such as Paul Spurgeon and UK Jewellery Designer of the Year, Shaun Leane, the only gallery in Cornwall to have his work, Ed hopes to put the gallery firmly on the jewellery map.
With plans to bring in a range of rolling exhibitions from some of the UK’s most exciting jewellery designers, Ed also hopes to make Gauge the destination for bespoke engagement and wedding rings in Cornwall.
“The aim is to make Gauge a gallery that is renowned throughout the region not just for the quality of its work, but for the creativity of the jewellery that we stock. We have already lined up some fantastic designers, working in a range of materials and styles and are really looking forward to having their work here in St Ives.
“I really want to push our ring design and make Gauge synonymous with that. We already have customers from around the UK whose engagement and wedding rings we are designing, but need to let people in Cornwall know what we can create for them. Many people wrongly think that bespoke rings will be expensive, so one of our challenges is to change that perception,” said Ed, who grew up in St Ives before leaving to study and then work in London, before returning to Cornwall.
For more information on Gauge, visit www.gaugegallery.co.uk or call 01736 795107.
CORNISH DESIGNER HIGHLIGHTS THE VIRTUE OF NEXT GENERATION JEWELLERY
For many people who have been left jewellery, had it handed down to them or have a piece they no longer want to wear, one of the conundrums that usually arise is what exactly to do with it.
The fact that is has been handed down or left in a will gives it real sentimental value, but all too often it is not the type of jewellery you would wear, so more often than not it ends up left in a safe or at the back of a drawer rarely seeing the light of day.
But thanks to talented Cornish jewellery designer Ed Wilson, you can breathe new life into old family jewellery, by using it as the basis for a completely new piece.
Ed is able to produce commissions for clients using elements of the jewellery such as precious stones and metals such as platinum, which the jewellery is made from, as the basis to create a brand new bespoke and stylish piece.
His latest piece – a platinum ring clasping a teardrop diamond, which was previously in a necklace brought from Tiffany’s in New York, but was no longer being worn is an example of just what can be produced from old jewellery.
“I think we all know someone who has been left jewellery or had it handed down to them, and because of its style or design, it is not something they would ever wear despite the fact it will have great sentimental value – which is a real shame.
“Next Generation Jewellery however, enables people to keep family jewellery, exactly where it belongs – in the family – but gives it a brand new lease of life where it can be enjoyed and used by the current owner whilst retaining the essence and the emotional attachment of the original piece.
“Whether you want to use just one particular feature such as a diamond or precious stone or as much as possible, it’s a fantastic way of creating a new piece for today – one that retains the family aspect and actually makes it a much more interesting piece, because of the history involved,” said Ed.
“The beauty is – particularly when using precious stones from older items – that you already have the most expensive element of the jewellery – so the cost of creating a new piece can be significantly reduced,” he added.
If you have a piece that you would be interested in turning into a Next Generation piece, call Gauge Gallery on 01736 795107 or email info@gaugegallery.co.uk
GO BESPOKE TO MAKE YOUR WEDDING DAY EXTRA SPECIAL
Looking for something different to help seal your wedding day?
According to up and coming Cornish engagement and wedding ring designer Ed Wilson, more couples are deciding to have their very own rings made for them to help seal their special day.
Ed, who is developing a growing reputation across the UK for his bespoke contemporary engagement and wedding rings, says increasing numbers of people are turning their back on mass produced high street rings in favour of something made to measure.
Ed’s latest creation, Stars Over Mountains, is a style of ring that is proving particularly popular for couples having civil partnerships. Made from 9-carat white gold with black and white rhodium plating, which is then set with diamonds to create a really distinctive wedding band.
Working from Gauge Gallery in St Ives, West Cornwall, Ed is keen to change perceptions that bespoke engagement and weddings rings are out of most people’s reach.
“As a ring designer and maker, we can create rings in any metal and style to suit individual tastes and preferences. The beauty is that the ring becomes even more personal and important part of the ceremony and the vows being made.
“Many people though, think that bespoke wedding rings will be just too expensive so don’t even go and speak to a ring designer in the first place, which is a real shame. One of our goals is to change that perception, and encourage more people to think about contemporary wedding rings that are hand made just for them, ” said Ed.
For more information on Gauge Gallery and what they could create for your special day , visit www.gaugegallery.co.uk or call 01736 795107.
ST IVES JEWELLERY DESIGNER CREATES CORNISH RINGS
Cornish jewellery designer Ed Wilson, has used the Cornish colours of black and gold as the inspiration for his latest wedding ring creations.
The designer, who runs Gauge Gallery on Fore Street in St Ives, has created two Cornish inspired rings, using oxidised silver and gold and also a gold and Rhodium–plated ring to create the black and gold of the Cornish colours.
Available in both men’s and women’s sizes and designs, Ed said the idea for the Cornish rings stemmed from the strength of feeling for Cornish Heritage that is evident throughout the county.
“People are rightly proud of their Cornish roots and this is very evident at weddings where the Cornish Tartan is often worn and other jewellery such as cuff links with the St Piran’s Flag are embossed on them. However I had never seen that theme added to rings so thought it was about time we put that right and weave the colours into contemporary ring designs.
“I am really pleased with them, the gold gives the ring a really nice contrast in both the Silver and the darker Rhodium-plated rings and the reaction so far has been really positive from everyone who has seen them.
Prices start at £150 for the Silver rings and at £300 for the Gold rings. For more information call Gauge Gallery on 01736 795107 or email info@gaugegallery.co.uk
Ed’s background is a characteristic Westcountry blend of bohemian and traditional. Born and bred in creative St Ives, he was bitten by the jewellery bug when he travelled in his 20s to South and Central America. He admired the turquoise and silver and thought