The story of Cornelian…

Some of my earliest memories are of beachcombing with my grandmother, Cornelia, and my family along the shores of South Africa. We’d spend hours wandering the coastline, searching for little treasures amongst the sand and seaweed. We looked, in particular, for Cowrie shells, fragments of Carnelian, and pieces of smoothed Chinese porcelain that had washed ashore from a Portugese shipwreck, almost 500-years before.

My grandmother’s home by the sea was named after her - Cornelian, and it is from this place, and from those memories, that my jewellery business has taken its name. It felt only fitting to carry a piece of that history and nostalgia into something of my own.

Creativity has always been a constant in my life, taking different forms along the way.

Over the years, I’ve found myself drawn to all kinds of creative outlets from painting, sculpture, photography, knitting and other fiber arts. I’ve carved stamps, made stuffies, and built paper-mache shelves and sea-creatures to line the walls of my house. These days, I work as a tattoo artist, another medium that allows me to turn magical ideas into something tangible.

Looking back , it feels like every creative endeavour and new skill has been leading me here. I’m so incredibly excited to finally be creating the jewellery I’ve been dreaming about these last few years, and I’m so thrilled to share them with you.