Monica Vinader calls on jewellery designers to enter competition

Jewellery brand Monica Vinader has launched a sustainable design competition open to all jewellery designers and makers in the UK. 

The competition ‘New From Old’ is focused on creativity and new beginnings to shine a light on the next generation of jewellery designers, added the brand. 

The brief of the sustainable design competition is for young talent to create jewellery using recycled materials and showcase what ‘New From Old’ means to them to win 5,000 pounds and the chance to launch their collection on monicavinader.com.

In the design brief, Monica Vinader states: “A new year, new beginning, new generation, new hope. Show us how you want to inspire others with your creativity, while drawing inspiration from recycled or found materials.”

The designs should only use sustainable materials, as well as reflecting on the Monica Vinader ethos that jewellery should be for everyone and be wearable every day without “compromising beauty, sustainability, quality or design”. 

Monica Vinader launches sustainable jewellery design competition

Jewellery designers and makers must submit a three-piece wearable collection using materials frequently collected from the brands recycling programme, silver, gold vermeil and gemstones, or other materials found or recycled in the UK. 

In the briefing pack, Monica Vinader calls on jewellery talent to demonstrate “original creativity and fresh thoughts” while ensuring that the collection showcases “wearability and accessibility” in the demi-fine category and that it also “reflects value and the feel of luxury for customers”.

UK jewellery talent has until January 11, 2021, to submit their designs, which can be hand-drawn renders or a CAD presentation to designcompetition@monicavinader.com.

The submissions will then be judged by a panel including Monica Vinader, Doina Ciobanu a London-based influencer, model and sustainability advocate, Giles Last course leader of BA Jewellery Design at Central Saint Martins, Caroline Issa from Tank magazine and GianLuca Longo from British Vogue.

They will review the designs and select three finalists who will be given feedback mid-January to refine their collection, ahead of final submissions on January 24. The judges will then convene to decide a winner.

The winner, announced on January 28, will receive 5,000 pounds and will be invited to the jewellery brands Norfolk design studio to meet Monica Vinader, along with the design and development team. They will then have access to all the materials, archives and stones to prepare their collection. The final collection will go on sale in 2021 on the brand’s website. 

Image: Monica Vinader website