Tired of the same old jewellery brands? Here’s how to find something different

Search: “Sterling silver gold hoops”. Add to basket. Next day delivery. Open. Wear. Lose. Repeat. When it comes to jewellery, this is my routine. I have a bowl next to my bed full of once-worn costume earrings, lonely hoops and studs that haven’t had a back since the day they were bought. I tend to wear the same pieces on repeat, re-ordering them when I lose them down the plug or “put them somewhere safe” only to find I can’t for the life of me remember where this is.

And I never have any strong reactions, either way. I don’t spend a lot on my jewellery because I’ve always found there’s such a huge gap in the market between the big names on the high street and those stocked behind glass cases in Selfridges. I’ve been perpetually searching for a middle ground, and, ladies and gents, I think I may just have found it.

Enter JewelStreet, the world’s number one designer jewellery website. Think of it as the Net-a-Porter of the jewellery world, just with a slightly more affordable starting price bracket and a shed load more of choice. Featuring designers from all over the world, you can navigate by jewellery type, price, material, gemstone, colour – the list goes on. I found this particularly handy as, although I love stumbling across new designers and styles, I do have a go-to style when it comes to earrings and necklaces, and that is pretty much always gold.

Rewind about a year, and you would never have seen me in anything other than sterling silver. I swore against gold in every capacity, whether it was featured as hardware on bags or as buttons on jeans. One day, I decided to test the waters with a little bit of bougie costume jewellery and I haven’t looked back since.

Ever since then, my collection of gold pieces has expanded. I’ve dabbled with a variety of different styles, shapes and sizes, stacking up rings and necklaces or paring it all down with a minimal chain; whatever I’ve dabbled in, I’ve always returned to the same thing – simple pieces with a special edge. If the earring is oversized, I’ll keep it monochrome. If the pendant necklace is simple, I’ll enjoy an engraved element or a bit of texture. I’ve found my feet with my own personal jewellery style, but, in some cases, this isn’t always a good thing.

Men, jeans, jewellery – it’s the same, age old problem, right? I know what I want, I just can’t find it anywhere. Whilst I seem to have sourced a boyfriend from the man-pool pretty well, I’m always at a loss for beautiful jewellery that feels special. And yes, I have a few pieces that were gifted to me by friends and family, and the sentimental value of those is priceless, but what about when I want to buy a little gift for myself?

Once I’ve gone past the go-to names of Monica Vinader and Missoma, I’m at a loose end. I want something different – something special – but the trouble is, I just don’t know where to look. Other than trawling through fashionista’s Instagram accounts desperately looking for a link here or a tag there, I resign myself to the same old pair of ASOS hoops that will inevitably get lost in the shower yet again.

Until now.

JewelStreet is home to over 600 independent jewellery designers. Yep, I’ll let that sink in – 600. That’s why I’m excited to be working with them and showing off the pieces that I picked out from the sea of options, because I not only think the site is useful, but that is also presents jewellery designers with an amazing opportunity to get their items in front of fresh new eyes.

For example, I had never heard of UK based Roz Buehrlen before, but when her iconic swallow studs arrived, she’d included a little information pack introducing herself and the brand and the processes behind her jewellery making. The same goes for Emily Mortimer, who, being a Suffolk girl like myself, was probably a stones-throw away without me knowing it. That’s the beauty of JewelStreet – discovering new designers and new pieces that are more than just high-street throwaways. They are special items to be worn, to be shown off, to be enjoyed.

All I can say is apologies in advance to your bank balance, and happy shopping.