‘I make jewellery to support my family, but such luxuries feel dystopian in times like these’

I always knew I wanted to be a designer… even if I didn’t know it consciously at first!

My folks are conservationists of an 18th-century building and they were hugely active in the movement to save Georgian Dublin from demolition in the 60s and 70s. In a way, I think that being surrounded by all that craft and seeing my dad meticulously restoring stucco plasterwork with homemade moulds made from plasterwork salvaged from a skip planted the seed of my creativity. As kids, we were always drawing or making something! 

I went to a very academic school and studying art or design just wasn’t encouraged unless you were truly gifted or truly struggling academically. 

It sounds crazy now but that’s the way it was in those days! I was just averagely creative as most kids are so I actually never really considered design as a career. After leaving school, I got a degree in Commerce from UCD and then went on to work in business. It wasn’t until a few years in that I just couldn’t shake my desire to investigate a more creative direction. I went back to college in Edinburgh and then Brighton and now have qualifications in fashion, textiles and graphic design as well as having done various short courses in jewellery, social media, digital marketing and product photography.  

We focus on classic designs such as necklaces, earrings and bracelets that are comfortable to wear and will last well over time. 

We use premium, EU-regulated 14kt Goldfill rather than gold-plated silver which is more commonly seen on the EU market as it lasts so much longer. We make a lot of delicate pieces for layering but we also do some great statement earrings for a bolder look. 

In general, I love brands that use great materials and focus on wearable classic designs but then bring a playful twist like a pop of colour or a cut-out feature. 

I love Sian Jacobs for amazing quality cashmere – really weighty, gorgeous colour palette, classic designs but with a contemporary twist and Sian works with small family producers/fair trade initiatives in the manufacturing process. The Landskein for coats, stunning cuts and quality heritage fabrics. I love the beautiful bags by August Night as they are so imaginative and Caoimhe’s drapery is just stunning – especially the Molten series! You can really see the skill and her experience from working with fabrics at John Rocha. Nicki Hoyne is another favourite for gorgeous shoes as they are fun! 

I didn’t have any money starting out and I had to self-fund and grow organically which meant it was very slow to build an actual “real” business. 

I became self-employed out of necessity during the last recession due to limited employment options in Ireland. I began very small with a stall at Cows Lane Market making and selling various things – from clothing and illustrations to jewellery. From there, I moved on to rent a retail space in Temple Bar with a few others. After doing that for a few years, buyers from other shops approached me to stock my work. It took me years to build up cashflow to begin a wholesale business and cashflow is still always a struggle as I mainly try to self-fund. 

The reality is the banks are slow to lend to self-employed, small businesses and enterprise boards while good for mentoring and courses, are also not really giving capital to creative businesses. 

The government initiatives are also out of touch with modern-day business practices such as sub-letting from bigger organisations, which is disappointing. There was great talk of small business support last year but businesses renting from bigger landlords like WeWork, Iconic Offices and Digital Hub were excluded as they focused on the old-fashioned concept of “own door” businesses. Similarly, Covid supports cut out a lot of people for various reasons that were out of touch with the business environment in Ireland at present.

The best business advice I’ve ever gotten? “Stop overthinking it and just try, just aim for perfectly imperfect.” 

I got that advice when I was doing my first tradeshow. I felt like it wasn’t good enough or I wasn’t ready but then I got around 20 stores to stock my work the first time I exhibited. I try and apply that idea to everything in business now as the industry can be fast from season to season and it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. I know every year I am capable of better but actually the limitations of doing everything from research to design, sourcing and buying, managing staff and production, liaising with stores and organising digital marketing campaigns means that there is literally more work than hours in the week or staff to help so you just have to decide that “perfectly imperfect” will have to do. Also “comparison is the thief of joy”. If you compare your business trajectory to that of other people, you’ll feel a bit disheartened so best not to. You don’t know the realities of others’ finances when comparing two businesses’ growth so it’s rarely comparing like with like. 

You need to know how the retail market really works and be realistic about what will sell – particularly when working in a market as small as Ireland.

It’s important to think about what margin you can give the retailers so that it works for both you and them. Most stores in this economy need to mark up a lot from what you charge them which quickly makes things very expensive for customers. That has a huge influence on bringing products to markets and on product development as you have to work out what you can charge, what customers can reasonably be expected to pay AND ultimately what you can make.

We’ve had some great highlights over the years. 

Last year we were commissioned by Avoca to design and make a limited edition collection to commemorate the 200-year anniversary of the business. It was a great honour to be involved in that campaign and a real highlight. Also, I would say successfully selling for five years in Arnotts as part of the Irish Jewellery Collective was another very proud moment. Being part of Arnott’s was truly a dream come true, particularly for me as a Dublin girl who grew up knowing the iconic Arnotts well! My grandmother once won a prize to exhibit her fashion designs in their windows as part of the Grafton Academy’s course. That story and pride in that achievement was part of our family history so when I was asked to sell there it was so nice. Running our own pop-up concession in Heal’s department store in London was another great moment. We definitely plan to do our own concession in another major department store in the coming years.

I hope we will be remembered as a brand that embraced the ethos of commerce with a conscience! 

Earning a living while trying to help people too…whether that’s by enabling the people who work here to pursue their desire to work in the creative industries or by using our social channels to amplify the bigger issues close to our hearts. Over the years we have been able to donate funds to causes we care about as part of our Share The Love initiative, particularly during the Palestinian genocide. We have donated a decent amount of money to people on the ground there and have made donations over the years to charities here or fundraisers including Women’s Aid, Unicef, Ireland, Pieta House, Focus Ireland and The Irish Refugee Council amongst others. We aim to continue this philanthropic endeavour as we grow. 

While I support myself and my daughter by making and selling jewellery it does feel very dystopian talking about such luxuries in the times we live in.

For that reason, I try to make it sit with my conscience as best I can and sell the best products we can. When we say “best” we mean longevity. Will it last well over time or will it ultimately end up in landfill? Have people been treated fairly in the manufacturing chain? Can the materials be recycled at the end? Can the gold be put back into circulation? Is the gold certified, ethically sourced and conflict-free? Are we limiting the numbers made so as not to incur an unnecessary weighty carbon footprint? Do we offset our carbon footprint by donating to environmental projects? Do we donate some of our profits to causes we care about? Can we use our social channels to amplify the bigger issues we care about? Can we do better next year? That’s how I want to remember my brand anyway but it’s a journey, not a destination. There’s still a lot we can do to help others as we try to grow sustainably.

I’d love Alana Hadid to wear our pieces as she is such a beacon of light and hope using her platform for the good of humanity and to speak out against the injustices happening in the Middle East, Congo and Sudan. 

She’s also half Irish so that’d be a nice coincidence! Nicola Coughlin is another person I’d love to count as a customer because I am so inspired and impressed by how she uses her platform. She’s not afraid to speak out about the Palestinian genocide despite being warned that, in Hollywood, it could affect her career. And of course, I’d get the great humanitarian and photographer Misan Harriman to shoot the campaign!

Scribble & Stone was one of almost 400 Irish brands to exhibit their work at Showcase, Ireland’s Creative Expo this year. One of the country’s largest international trade shows, 2025 marks the 50th anniversary of the trade fair.