EXPLORE
Jewellery
Pearls
'All That Glitters' Week One: Statement Earrings
September 06, 2022 3 min read
Have you been keeping up to date with the BBC2 talent show ‘All That Glitters’? The show, hosted by Katherine Ryan alongside renowned British jewellery designers Shaun Leane & Dinny Hall, follows eight talented jewellers completing a variety of weekly challenges set to whittle the contestants down to one final winner.
Here at Azendi, we obviously adore anything to do with jewellery and it is exciting for us to see a prime time television show all about the design and creation process. We love being able to watch unique pieces of jewellery come to life and it is fascinating to see the techniques on show and all the varied styles of jewellery on display.
As the team here are clearly going to be glued to the whole series we have decided to have a look each week at the styles of jewellery featured and highlight the skill and the craft required to make each piece of jewellery.
Statement Earrings
The first challenge saw the contestants tasked with creating a statement drop earring, which could be worn as a single earring in an asymmetric look. This is a fashion jewellery trend where one statement earring is worn in one ear, with a smaller more subtle piece in the other ear. This is a fresh way to wear your earrings and is a different look from the traditional 'matching pair'. Of course there is nothing wrong with wearing a bold matching pair of statement earrings if you wish!
The asymmetric earring trend
Cabochon Gem Stones
The jewellers were given the choice of three gemstones to set in their earrings; opaque red carnelian, deep blue lapis lazuli, or striped green malachite. These stones are all opaque and rich in colour; perfect for a statement earring. The gemstones were all 'cabochon' cut. A cabochon cut stone is very different from the traditional faceted stone which you may be used to seeing, in a diamond ring for example. A cabochon stone displays a smooth rounded shape and is highly polished in a dome shape, as opposed to a faceted cut with many faces and edges. Cabochon cutting particularly suits opaque stones and is often used to display the unique inclusions and banding in colourful stones such as malachite and agate. We have chosen cabcochon cut stones in both our Avalon and Ithica collections, to display the rich colours and patterns in the gemstones.
Cabochon cut stones on display in our Ithica collection
Our Favourite Designs
It was fascinating to watch the different interpretations of the design brief come to life, and the intricate work in cutting and shaping the sterling silver. In just a few hours, eight incredible earrings had been created. Which design was your favourite? We loved Emma's peacock feather earring, but our two favourites were the geometric Art Deco earring made by Tianne, and the textured circular drop created by Piers.
Art Deco is a classic enduring style and the pierced triangle design was so accurately cut out by Tianne. It must have been so incredibly hard to do in the limited time the jewellers had for the challenge! We thought that the green malachite stone was the perfect choice for this piece as it really reminded us of the rich jewel tones of Art Deco fashion and decor.
Piers' more organic style featured a rippled disc of sterling silver hanging beneath his cabochon lapis lazuli stone. The pretty wave disc caught the light beautifully and we could imagine the earring shimmering as it is worn. The blue lapis stone was the perfect choice to fit his theme of rippling waves of water.
Tianne and Piers' Statement Earring Creations
Get The Look
If you loved the Art-Deco style of Tianne's earring you might like the chain drop earrings from our Horizon collection. These earrings feature delicate chains, creating a classic trianglular drop shape. The earrings are set with deep blue lapis howlite. For an asymmetric look you could pair one of the drop earrings with the smaller rectangular blue howlite stud earrings from the same collection.
Art Deco Statement Drop Earrings
If your preference was for Piers' more organic shaped textured drop earrings then you will like the similar textures found in our Artemis collection. These striking three-quarter hoop earrings featured a dangling disc, finished with an eye-catching hammered effect. If you want to pair them with a mis-matched, but complimentary, piece then try the Textured Disc Stud Earrings from the same collection.
Organic Textured Statement Drop Earrings
You can find more statement earring designs in our earring selection here: Drop Earrings
We can't wait to see what the jewellers create in Week 2! Make sure you keep an eye on our blog for our insight on the latest creations.