Guilded Gems

Christine Walsh has nurtured a passion for unique, handmade jewellery since childhood and now creates individual pieces from her studio in Surrey. She sources the finest stones from around the world and sets them using mixed metals and textures, producing jewellery pieces that are truly unique. Christine's pieces are always beautifully finished with an outstanding eye for detail. The layers of copper and silver in this ring have been hand textured and then deeply oxidized and brushed to enhance the textures and add depth to the metal. The detail that makes this overlay ring really special, is the texture on the inside of the ring band.

As the heart was once widely believed to be the seat of the human mind and the centre of all emotions, stylized images of hearts have been used for hundreds of years as symbols representing love. What better way to send a message to your Valentine, than with a piece of British handmade ‘heart’ jewellery? Click on the images to buy directly from the designer's website, or use the 'tell a friend' icon above (tell a lover?) to drop a hint for the 14th!

With 2012 firmly here, along with it come the promises that we make to ourselves each year - to change our habits and try new things. With this in mind, Guilded Gems brings you four British designers whose boundless creativity means that they are constantly producing something innovative. As always, the images link through to makers own websites.

Lush jewels for the party season and all from British jewellers! Click on the images to buy directly from the makers.

The classic look of yellow gold has been side lined for over a decade in favour of its 'whiter' cousins; palladium, platinum, titanium and white gold. Now with the rising value of gold as a commodity and the resurgence of all things vintage, yellow gold jewellery is making a stylish comeback. All designed, handmade and for sale in Britain - click on the images to buy directly from the designer.

Sophie Marsden's current collection of pieces are manipulated by hand out of single sheets of silver. These have been inspired by geometry and the symmetry in nature. She has based her designs on geometric principles and has used texture and form to create pieces of jewellery that are both elegantly simple yet infinitely profound.
The really beautiful touch that can’t be seen in this photograph is that the inside of the ring bands are beautifully embellished. The really amazing thing about her rings is that the only thing keeping them together is the physical shape of the metal. No solder, no rivets, no fusing, just beautiful feats of engineering.