Jennifer Koche, designer of the buzzy jewelry line Storrow, gave BE an exclusive glimpse into her world of vintage inspiration, symbolism within her pieces and ways of storytelling through charms. Read the rest of the interview in the full blog post at the link below.
How does jewelry help communicate a story? Do you have any favorite stories from your own experiences or a client that jewelry played a part in telling?
Jewelry serves as much more than just an adornment as it has the ability to communicate a story through its symbolism and meaning. In the case of Storrow's charm format, it can convey a bunch of personal stories that can be collected and layered together over time. A customer can use each charm to represent a period in their life, stacking a series of stories and memories together all at once. Each charm story is personal to its owner and helps connect both past and present.
I love when customers find pieces within the line that evoke deep meaning and memory. Most recently, I met with a customer that was really drawn to our birdie charm. Her grandmother both loved birds, and was named Birdie. I felt it was kismet.
A lot of your inspiration comes from years of collecting vintage and antique jewelry. What special details or techniques from these findings do you bring into Storrow?
I love the intricate craftsmanship and attention to detail from the Victorian era, each piece having the ability to tell its own story while embodying the sentimental expressions of the time. I've been inspired by a lot of the motifs found during this era and have adapted a handful of the techniques of the time into storrow. I use a lot of enameling which was highly popular during this time, as well as seed pearls within borders as an accent. Additionally, I have been inspired by design details and borders widely used during the Victorian era. I've also incorporated stones popular in antique jewelry such as bloodstone, onyx and garnet, but have also layered in brighter more modern stones as well for revival.
Symbolism often appears in different eras of antique jewelry, what are some symbols that hold meaning to you that you use in your designs today?
Storrow heavily incorporates motifs that hold symbolism from the Victorian era. Motifs that I personally love aesthetically but also for what they convey. Hearts that represent love and affection, stars and moons that showcase a celestial theme often symbolizing guidance, birds representing freedom, particularly swallows that represent safe return & bees that symbolize community and loyalty.
Charms are a huge part of Storrow - how do you encourage shoppers to create their own unique expression using charms?
The beauty of storrow is that there are no rules. Charms are meant to be unique to their owner, mixing and matching in a way that suits the wearer. I personally wear mine in a cluster, complementing some of my older personal pieces alongside storrow and encourage the customer to do the same. The clip bails allow for flexibility with other jewelry. I also love wearing a full charm necklace and rearranging for different combos based on an outfit.
You also use a lot of great color and unique stones in your line. What do certain stones represent to you and your customers?
I love using non-traditional stone combinations and offering a wide range of selection. Oftentimes mixing in the opaque with translucent stones for more depth in a piece. Customers often feel very drawn to a stone as they hold particular personal significance. I use a lot of opal, lapis, tourmaline, malachite, turquoise, representing a wide range of meanings such as protection, transformation, growth, prosperity, wisdown, truth, etc.
