5 Jewellery Designs That Will Make You Completely Fall In Love
There’s something about a fabulous piece of jewellery that just captures our hearts. Whether it’s a luxury necklace you buy for yourself or a family heirloom like your grandmother’s wedding ring, jewellery is a personal treasure that can hold memories, stories and connections. In a world where so much is the same, we love to promote independent designers who create beautiful, high-quality, and meaningful pieces. In this guide, we’ll introduce you to some of the luminaries of the jewellery business that will inspire you to find the perfect piece, pre-loved. It’s the best way to shop for fashion in a climate-friendly way.
Pippa Small
Pippa Small has been creating simple yet sophisticated jewellery for over 25 years. As a lifelong adventurer and learner, her jewellery is infused with a collection of rich memories. With a keen interest in indigenous and tribal peoples, Pippa Small travelled the world from a young age, gathering experience and inspiration from artisanal jewellery making traditions. She has used those experiences to imagine jewellery that evokes a strong sense of place. Whether or not you have travelled to those places personally doesn't matter — this is jewellery that can transport the wearer and create emotional connections from afar.
Despite her diminutive name, Pippa Small has made big waves in the world of ethical jewellery making. Motivated by her connections with local craftspeople in the various countries she has travelled to, Pippa established a programme to restore traditional crafts in war-torn countries to create jobs and opportunities. This work has influenced her creations, using motifs drawn from exotic places such as Jordan and Bolivia.
The care that Pippa puts into fostering human relationships is reflected in the distinctive pieces that she makes. Her collections are characterised by organic shapes, vibrant colours, and a fondness for ethically sourced stones. You can layer the jewellery for a playful and eclectic look rooted in connection, authenticity, and joy. Each piece is so unique that Pippa has established a devoted following of collectors. To start or add to your own Pippa Small collection in the most sustainable way, consider purchasing pre-loved pieces on Vestiaire Collective.
Melissa Joy Manning
Melissa Joy Manning is one of the most sustainable jewellery brands out there, so it comes as no surprise that she’s a big favourite around Vestiaire. From start to finish this line is committed to making ethical choices. That means using only 100% recycled metals and sourcing no-conflict diamonds. Each product is made by hand in a zero-waste design studio in California, and every shipment is carbon offset to lower emissions. But this brand is not jumping on the green trend: Melissa Joy Manning has been committed to these environmental practices since 1997!
The great thing about sustainably-made jewellery is that it is just as beautiful as unsustainable pieces. A team of artisans expertly crafts Melissa Joy Manning’s creations, revealing a product that feels luxurious and precious. Her jewellery is meant to be a talisman, gaining meaning the more a person wears it. A piece that becomes an exquisite heirloom will likely be treasured for many years rather than disposed of, which is an integral part of good environmental stewardship.
Melissa Joy Manning offers breathtaking one-of-a-kind pieces, including unisex options and non-traditional wedding jewellery. One of her most popular assortments is the Birthstone collection which provides a unique selection for each month of the year. It’s a great way to celebrate a special person in your life, or even yourself! She uses the natural world to inspire her limited-edition pieces, but don’t fret if you missed out on a favourite design. Our community offers Melissa Joy Manning necklaces, bracelets and earrings pre-loved on the Vestiaire app.
David Yurman
David Yurman is a timeless brand based in New York City that merges the talent between a sculptor, David, and his wife, Sybil, who is a painter. Their love story is the basis of the entire company and perhaps why David Yurman’s creations seem to be infused with passion.
David Yurman’s name became renowned for his signature cable bracelet, which has been the common thread throughout every collection that has followed. These bracelets retain their value very well making them excellent options for the second-hand market. Yurman is also recognised as a master of mixed metals and pioneering the use of non-traditional metals like meteorite. As a result, David Yurman has one of the most well-developed men’s jewellery lines globally.
But this prolific designer has something for everyone. Similar to the Chrome Hearts style of many e-boy and e-girl fantasies, David Yurman’s gothic heart amulet is a distinctive and striking piece that will get you noticed. It’s a unisex option that can help define your look and express your personality.
If you are looking for diamonds but don’t want the typical settings, David Yurman has a patented cushion cut that promises your ring will be unique. The company has a highly selective standard for the quality of diamonds they use and has a strict conflict-free policy.
So, no matter your gender, age or occasion, David Yurman has you covered for all your high-end jewellery needs. Just remember to shop using the Vestiaire app so that you can buy a coveted David Yurman piece sustainably.
Jacquie Aiche
The boho beach vibe isn’t just a look for summertime— it’s a lifestyle. For the carefree spirits who prefer their accessories to be more fun and less conservative, we introduce you to Jacquie Aiche. This LA-based designer brings all the California sun into her designs but adds a beguiling twist inspired by her Egyptian background. She blends motifs and shapes from the Middle East with gemstones honoured by Native American cultures to form a truly meaningful piece of jewellery.
Rihanna is credited as the first celebrity to don a Jacquie Aiche design, but she is not the last. The world’s rich and famous have reached for the designer’s trademark gold body chain to lend an air of provocativeness and rebellion, like Beyonce on her ‘Lemonade’ album. She even designed a custom-made engagement ring for model Chrissy Teigen’s nuptials to John Legend. But Jacquie Aiche is far from being out of the realm of the everyday wearer. Her pieces are incredibly easy to wear and tons of fun to stack for a unique look. Besides the usual assortment of necklaces and earrings, Jacquie Aiche has pushed the boundaries of jewellery by creating breathtaking waist chains and finger bracelets for an intriguing vibe that we can’t get enough of.
These pieces were made to empower women by offering talismans that carry symbolic meaning to boost the mind and soul. Jewellery crafted with so much intention deserves to be purchased in the same thoughtful way. So, if you’re a wild child who also cares about the wilderness, you can add some whimsy and good vibes to your jewellery collection in an eco-conscious way by picking up Jacquie Aiche creations pre-loved on Vestiaire.
La Manso
You might have noticed Instagram has been a lot more colourful recently, thanks to the trending jewellery brand La Manso. The designer’s coveted rings have been spotted on the social media profiles of celebrities and fashionistas like Dua Lipa and Bella Hadid, you know, the types of girls we just know we would be friends with if we met them. Miley Cyrus donned a total of eight of them for her 2020 music video Midnight Sky.
La Manso is a Barcelona-based company that speaks to all of our childhood dreams and ‘90s fantasies about what jewellery could and should be: fun, expressive, playful, and funky. It’s a breath of fresh air in the jewellery market that manages to be nostalgic and oh-so-current at the same time. Rather than working with traditional gold and silver, La Manso uses acrylic resin for their distinctive, maximalist rings. These materials allow for very colourful and cheerful designs that will brighten your mood and the mood of anyone who sees you wearing them. The creations are chunky, bold, and anything but shy. La Manso has quirky names for each piece, like the “Princess Leia” or “Send Nudes,” that reflect the overall cheeky aesthetic of this company.
Full disclosure, La Manso rings are made from plastic, which can end up causing harm to our planet if we are not careful. But there is an environmentally responsible way to wear plastic jewellery: by purchasing pre-loved pieces from Vestiaire Collective. Buying second-hand extends the lifespan of these beautiful creations, which prevents plastic from ending up in landfills or clogging the oceans. It also discourages the toxic manufacturing of new plastics. So don’t hold back! You can have a vivid, vibrant La Manso — or stack several — in a sustainable way by shopping them on the app.
We don’t blame you if one of these fantastic designers has made your heart skip a beat. After all, these five labels represent some of the most inventive and soulful designs in the entire industry. But even when a designer crafts jewellery with a priority on ethical materials and responsible practices, the truth is that buying new jewellery is never going to be a zero-pollution purchase. Mining for precious metals, and the chemicals required to process them, can, unfortunately, create harmful effects for something so pretty.
True sustainability is going to come from the way that we choose to shop.
Luckily, there is a simple way to get a pair of gorgeous earrings for date night or a meaningful bracelet for your loved one that doesn’t cost the earth. Vestiaire Collective is proud to carry pre-owned jewellery from these five talented labels and so many others. We have vintage and newer pieces that have all spent time in someone else’s treasure box. Rather than making them less special, acquiring pieces pre-owned actually makes them even better. It demonstrates your commitment to the climate when you choose pre-loved jewellery over new and can even act as a wearable daily reminder to make conscious choices for the planet.
Many people are beginning to understand the harmful effects of the fashion world and choose to shop second-hand for their clothes. We need to start doing the same with jewellery. Why not be an agent of change by making your next jewellery purchase easily on the Vestiaire Collective app? You’ll see that second-hand sparkles just as brightly.