Crafting a creative collection
Louise Wright combines farming life with creating a unique range of handmade designs for Fred & Emily Jewellery, made from recycled silver and gold. Interview by Kate Chapman.
Creating jewellery with a special emotional attachment is what drives farmer-turned-silversmith Louise Wright, whose beautiful pieces are inspired by her rustic surroundings.
Keen to launch a new creative venture, Louise, who farms near Caistor with her father Paul and sister Clare, hand-makes timeless silver jewellery under the brand Fred & Emily Jewellery, named after her children.
Alongside bespoke commissions, her stunning range includes rings, necklaces, bangles and earrings as well as collections for men and children. All of her jewellery is made from 100 per cent recycled silver and gold.
“Jewellery is really personal, I love how it makes people feel,” says Louise.
“I like to understand people’s emotional connection to a piece, whether it was bought for them by someone else, a personal commission, or if they have saved up for something special.
“There’s an emotional attachment linked to how it makes them feel when they wear it and that’s different for everybody.”
After growing up on the farm, Louise left home to complete an industrial design degree at Sheffield Hallam University. She spent a few years travelling before settling in London, running events for Chelsea FC and later CRUK, and returned to Lincolnshire 12 years ago with her husband Alex and their two children.
“I was always very creative when I was younger, but I didn’t work in a creative role for around 20 years,” she recalls. “I moved back to the farm and now grow wheat, barley, sugar beet and potatoes. We also run three holiday cottages in a converted barn, The Old Granary, at Owmby, so we’re quite busy, but I had this creative itch and wanted to build another business.”
Unique designs
It was a night out with friends in spring 2022 which led to Louise’s lightbulb moment. She came up with the idea of launching her jewellery business after taking part in a silversmithing workshop.
“It was just a fun evening, but after two hours I knew that jewellery making was what I wanted to do.
Within a few days I’d bought lots of tools and began making my own pieces,” she says. “I’m mainly self-taught but have done a few courses at Grimsby College. I enjoy seeing what happens when I use new tools. It’s a lot of trial and error!”
Louise’s influences come from her rustic surroundings, as well as architectural and structured shapes.
She doesn’t produce perfectly cut pieces – her designs are handcrafted, and each one is different.
She smiles, “They’re perfectly imperfect. There are some amazing jewellers out there making some wonderful pieces. I love making what I enjoy wearing, thankfully others like my designs too.
“Commissions push me out of my comfort zone. I’m often using skills and tools I’ve not used before, so I do find it a little bit scary, but I love the challenge that comes with this too.”
Louise’s design process is varied, she loves exploring new methods and techniques when working on her collections, sometimes sketching ideas out before making them.
“Sometimes I work with cardboard to create shapes, other times I just sit and play with silver, which is probably my favourite way, just seeing what happens,” she adds.
“That piece may sit on my bench for a month or two and then go in a completely different direction. It might be curated into a collection or could be a standalone piece.
“I use wire or sheet in different ways, manipulating it with hammers, files or heat. I also work with silver clay and wax for casting. There are lots of different creative methods of manufacture. It’s almost overwhelming, as there’s so much you can do – and only so little time! That’s the joy, as you don’t know what you’re going to come up with next!”
Growing the business
Louise’s work is stocked in The Little Gift House, in Caistor, and The Shop, in South Elkington. She also sells her pieces through her own website and social media, thanks to support from her husband’s marketing agency Knapton Wright Ltd, which she’s also involved with.
She attends in-person events such as the Lincolnshire Food & Gift Fair, plus other county shows, which she cites as a wonderful opportunity to meet clients and get their feedback.
“I love it when people take pieces internationally – it’s amazing to be sent photos of someone on a beach in Australia wearing my designs!” says Louise. “Working with jewellery is wonderful when you see other people wearing it, or they come up to you at an event to tell you how it makes them feel.”
Louise says her jewellery business fits in well alongside her farming life, although it is a second full-time job. Moving forward the plan is to continue growing her brand.
She adds: “My family is incredibly supportive of Fred & Emily Jewellery. I’d love for my brand to be known nationwide. I like making pieces for people to wear day to day, for dressing up at night, to wear while exercising, or to work, while they’re looking after the children – in all aspects of their lives. I design jewellery to be worn, not stored.
“I’m a mum, a farmer and a jeweller, as well as lots of other things. I have all these different aspects to my life that not everybody sees, and that’s what got me thinking about the ampersand in my brand name – how we’re all so much more than what people see.
“My jewellery represents all these different parts of our lives. It’s about remembering how you feel and who you are when you wear it.
“That’s why I love making it, it’s all about the special emotional attachments people have to each piece.”
Louise is always looking for opportunities to collaborate and work with new stockists. See fredandemily.co.uk for more information.
Photographs: Fred & Emily Jewellery/Katie Buffey
We Recommend
Never miss a copy!
Big savings when you take out a subscription.
Lincolnshire Life Magazine Newsletter 12/25 - mailchi.mp/lincolnshirelife.co.uk/lincolnshire-life-magazine-newsletter-12-25