We spoke to the London based jewellery maker, Immie Spilsbury, all about her unique pieces and creative journey so far. Immie began making jewellery when she started studying at Central Saint Martins in 2018.

Now in her final year, Immie has developed her practice considerably as she receives ongoing requests for bespoke commissions via Instagram. Probably best known for her chunky rings, Immie’s pieces have an element of playfulness and irony about them. For example, she made a collection of coronavirus themed pieces at the beginning of the pandemic which included a couple of rings that said ‘CORONAVIRUS’ and ‘WASH UR HANDS’ on them. Read on to hear more from the exciting young designer and jeweller.

Tell us about your journey as a creative and what influenced you to get into creating bespoke jewellery?

I’ve been interested in jewellery since I was about 14 when I bought and sold antique pieces at markets in London. This helped me learn about settings, materials, hallmarks and designs. I started making my own jewellery at Central Saint Martins in 2018. Seeing my ideas manifest themselves in chunky gold and silver really fired my enthusiasm for creating jewellery and I haven’t stopped since. I started receiving commissions for bespoke jewellery a couple of years ago via instagram. Some have been collaborations with other artists, and others include personalised name/word rings which I’ve been creating for people for a few years. These commissions are ongoing, but as I’m in my final year there’s a wait list.

Describe the style of your jewellery?

The current style of my jewellery is bold, playful and contemporary. I love to create weighty pieces, especially when designing rings. My style is always evolving so each new collection will have a different feel to it, depending on my inspirations at that time.

How do you create jewellery in terms of the actual construction of the pieces?

Each piece requires a totally different process but most of the rings and pendants I make are hand-carved in wax and then lost wax cast. I then de-sprue, file and polish the pieces. Sometimes I use my barrel polisher, which burnishes the jewellery by tumbling and creates an all-over shine, but if I want a high polish I use my pendant motor.

What inspires your work?

My inspirations change regularly (it can be anything, conversations, ephemera or iconography) and I don’t always re-visit ideas after I’ve created a piece or collection that I’m satisfied with. But there are exceptions to this such as my tooth jewellery and name rings which I’m continually developing.

One of your most popular pieces is the ‘FUCK BORIS’ ring - what made you want to create this?

I created the ‘FUCK BORIS’ rings as part of a small collection at short notice for one of Stormzy’s music videos. They are a one-off product, but as the rings were my most popular post on Instagram I chose them as my 2nd giveaway- anyone can apply and the winner will be picked via an online generator and announced on 1st Feb.

Where do you wish to take your work in the future?

I graduate in June this year so I’ll begin a new collection for my website, alongside creating commissioned work. I’m not sure what form my new collection will take yet, but I keep an open mind and work from my influences. I also have some collaborations planned with other artists which I love doing, I think it’s a good way to produce unexpected work so will continue to collaborate throughout my career.