There is little more precious on the planet – and I mean that in the monetary sense – than gold and gemstones, but there is another natural material that is vying for attention in contemporary luxury jewellery: wood.
Brazilian-born jewellery designer Fernando Jorge showed just how precious wood can be at the PAD art fair in London this autumn. His Deep Stream collection didn’t skimp on gold and diamonds, but the jewels’ true siren call, which had collectors massing at his stand, was its use of smooth cuts of deeply hued Amazonian Red Louro.
In Deep Stream, thick waves of wood wrap around wrists to create bold cuffs, while sinuous swirls drop from lobes as statement earrings. Lip-like cuts lock around a trilogy of diamonds in a cocktail ring that seems to coquettishly present the stones within a kiss. It is a collection that begs you to run your finger over its smooth curves.
“An ethically sourced wood from the Amazon is just as precious and exciting to me as a rare gem,” says Jorge, who paired the dark hardwood with droplets of yellow gold and pear-shaped brown diamonds.
This is an important point. For those seeking jewellery with sustainability credentials, responsibly sourced wood can offer exciting possibilities. Danish architect and designer Sarah Müllertz is so committed to the concept of wood as a precious material that she does not use any gems in her jewellery brand Kinraden. Only silver, gold, and Mpingo blackwood, which is sustainably grown in Tanzania. Kinraden buys offcuts of the wood that are the by-product of manufacturing wind instruments.
Kinraden started out faceting the wood in the shape of gems and setting it in signet rings as a literal gemstone alternative. Now, it gently curves strips to create striped designs that alternate between precious metal and wood. Its Doric earrings with pendulous Mpingo drops are an icon of the brand.
“We need to find and use beautiful materials in new ways,” says Müllertz. “We cannot continue in the same way we’ve done before.”
For those concerned with issues around sourcing new wood, Los Angeles jeweller Emily P. Wheeler recommends fossilised or petrified wood as a safe bet. This is the preserved remains of ancient trees and woody plants that have been transformed into stone over time, and can often present different colours like blues or oranges. Though she uses ebony in her work (Wheeler bought a log from a sculptor who in turn bought in in the 1960s), she cautions that "precious wood is precious for a reason and shouldn't be harvested today”.
In the hands of the right craftsperson, the possibilities with wood are vast. In Boucheron’s 2022 high jewellery collection Ailleurs (French for ‘elsewhere’), creative director Claire Choisne used richly veined Palissandre Santos wood, carved into petals for the floral Earth Woman Bois Diamant brooch. And for the Volcano Man Bois Brûlé Diamant torque necklace (designed with men in mind, but totally genderless), Boucheron replaced the traditional gold ring with 3,000-year-old marsh oak charred using Japanese technique chou sugi ban to strengthen it, and combined it with a diamond pavé knot.
Marie Lichtenberg – former fashion editor at French Elle, and now designer of the most achingly chic and playful fine jewels – has used black ebony wood to create dice charms (the numbers mapped out in diamonds), and as panels for her iconic six-sided tubular lockets.
One of which even cheekily has Touch Wood written on it in gold, reminding us of that other very good reason to wear wood close to our skins: it’s incredibly good luck.
