Precious Metal Award

Posted August 13, 2014 |

AWARD SPONSORED BY NATIONWIDE JEWELLERS - As the largest jewellery group in Australasia, representing more than 500 independent jewellery stores, Nationwide members enjoy a comprehensive range of marketing, merchandise and cost saving benefits, many of which are totally free. Even though jewellery stores in the Nationwide group don’t pay any fees or charges, they receive excellent discounts and rebates.

Nationwide is proud to support and celebrate Australia and New Zealand’s most exciting jewellery designers and retailers.

The entrants

Designer: Tabitha Higgins
Item: Locket
Name of piece: Idris
Description of piece: 18-carat and 24-carat gold locket. External decoration hints at hidden internal treasures: a dragon curled up on one side guarding various precious gemstones moving freely under glass in bright fire enamel.
Motivation: I like the idea of secret hidden aspects that need to be discovered. The wearer is the keeper of the secrets. The cracked egg hints at more and the dragon satisfies the fantasy.

Designer: Riki-Mojag Tait
Item: Ring
Name of piece: La Patineuse
Description of piece: Double fingered ring in the style of an ice rink with filigree, hearts and fleur de lis. A mechanical system inside the ring allows the figure skater to turn around the circular track and spin on the spot.
Motivation: Someone I know is an artistic roller skater.

Designer: Nicholas Theochari
Item: Ring
Name of piece: Esprit
Description of piece: 18-carat white gold tension set design with .91-carat round brilliant cut diamond suspended within a floating coil which spirals down the finger.
Motivation: Pushing boundaries. Meditating on the wonders on the cosmos.

Designer: Benjamin Hart
Item: Pendant
Name of piece: Pursuit of Happiness
Description of piece: It is a stylised image of a lotus flower separated into four individual panels featuring white gold and yellow gold. The mechanics enable it to rotate vertically and horizontally, allowing the wearer to achieve multiple looks from one pendant.
Motivation: I was inspired by Will Smith’s character in ‘Pursuit of Happiness’ and how a rubik’s cube started his journey to success. I felt the symbol of the lotus flower is a perfect representation of the movie’s title.

Designer: Jason Ree
Item: Neckpiece
Name of piece: Lepidoptera
Description of piece: Neckpiece made from eight different coloured golds. More than 1,000 individual pieces are used. Set with sapphire and diamonds.
Motivation: Motivated by a picture of a rainforest moth in a magazine I was reading.