Richmond is buzzing with creative energy this summer as a group of outstanding emerging jewellery artists step into the spotlight at New Designers 2025, one of the UK’s most celebrated showcases for emerging design talent.
Held at the Business Design Centre in Islington from 2–5 July, this national event features graduates from across the country. But this year, Richmond is especially proud to cheer on its own rising stars.
In 2023, Richmond Adult College launched an exciting new qualification in Silversmithing and Jewellery Manufacturing. The course has quickly grown into a hub of creativity, skill-building, and artistic exploration. Now, graduates from both the 2024 and 2025 cohorts are proudly exhibiting at New Designers, sharing their vision, technique, and passion with the wider world.
“This is more than a showcase—it’s a celebration of craftsmanship, sustainability, heritage, and storytelling,” said course leaders. “Each artist brings something incredibly unique to the table, and together, they’re redefining what it means to be a jeweller today.”
From ancient symbolism to modern foraging, sea glass to social justice, the group’s work spans powerful themes and techniques—from Keum Boo, Mitsuro Hikime, and repoussé, to eco-conscious practices using recycled silver and pre-loved pearls. Many of these artists are also exhibiting publicly for the very first time.
Meet the makers below and discover how Richmond’s homegrown talent is making its mark on the national stage:
✨ Meet Our Artists ✨
Ruth Aitken – Jewellery Artist & Metalsmith
Instagram: @ruth_aitken_jewellery
Based in Richmond, Ruth is a designer-maker whose journey began over a decade ago alongside her work supporting survivors of domestic abuse. Inspired by stories of resilience and strength, her early designs blended delicate structures with cage-like forms, symbols of beauty held within confinement, always ready to emerge and thrive.
In 2019, Ruth became a mindfulness teacher, and this philosophy now weaves through her work. She approaches metal as a collaborator, allowing process and intuition to guide her signature woven wire pieces – contemplative, tactile, and deeply expressive.
Trained under master jewellers including Anastasia Young, Elizabeth Bone, and Patrick Davison, Ruth brings depth, precision, and presence to every piece. Her work has been exhibited at Morley College, City Lit, The Landmark Arts Centre, The Hive Gallery, and most recently, Richmond Art School.
Layla Greening – Mixed Media Artist & Jewellery Designer
Instagram: @MaggiesCreations0056
From her studio in Hampton, Layla works across woodwork, ceramics, sculpture, photography, cake design, and now, jewellery. Her practice is a love letter to material, memory, and the natural world.
Sustainability, preservation, and heritage are at the heart of everything she creates. Whether repurposing old furniture, designing for charities, or crafting jewellery from found objects, Layla’s work carries the warmth of something rediscovered and cherished.
A passionate forager, she gathers inspiration and materials from beaches, forests, hedgerows, and sometimes skips. These raw, weathered elements often become centrepieces in her tactile, one-of-a-kind jewellery. Her designs are playful yet poetic, rooted in nature and alive with soul.
Kiana Masqati – Jewellery Artist & Storyteller in Metal
Born in Iran and now based in Brentford, Kiana’s journey from software development to silversmithing is one of fearless reinvention. After 12 years in tech, she followed her creative calling—finding her voice through metal, texture, and narrative.
Her jewellery is a celebration of Iran’s deep artistic heritage, told through traditional methods like Mitsuro Hikime, Keum Boo, and lost wax carving. Her statement collection, inspired by light streaming through windows, speaks of freedom, transformation, and inner strength.
Kiana also played a pivotal role in curating her group’s New Designers 2025 exhibition, bringing her creative leadership and collaborative spirit to the forefront of this exciting moment.
Sania Nouri – Jewellery Artist & Keeper of Ancient Symbolism
Instagram: @8Minerva_design8
Sania’s practice bridges past and present, material and spirit. A recent Richmond graduate with a background as a curator and art director, she explores ancient symbols and mystical traditions through finely crafted jewellery that resonates on a deeply personal level.
Her materials—copper, silver, and stone—are chosen for their energetic qualities. In her hands, they become more than adornment: they become vessels for connection, healing, and memory.
Each piece is a modern relic, a reminder of forgotten wisdom and our eternal link to nature and the cosmos. Through her work, Sania invites us to remember what we’ve lost—and rediscover who we are.
Sarah Bradley – Jewellery Artist & Ocean-Inspired Storyteller
Instagram: @starandtheseajewellery
Based in Twickenham and shaped by life across Stockholm, Sydney, and California, Sarah’s creative path is a global one, now anchored in the flow of the sea.
Her latest collection captures the gentle movement of kelp, translating oceanic rhythm into sculptural, textured forms. Crafted using Mitsuro Hikime, Keum Boo, and hand-carved wax techniques, her pieces reflect a quiet elegance and deep care for the natural world.
Using recycled silver and pre-loved pearls, Sarah’s work is as sustainable as it is soulful, offering wearers a connection to memory, place, and the poetry of the tide.
Emma Featherstone – Local Maker & Guardian of Lost Craft
Instagram: @Red_Star67
Richmond-based Emma is a passionate maker with a mission: to preserve the soul of traditional silversmithing while crafting jewellery for a modern world. Working exclusively with recycled silver, she brings forgotten techniques (enamelling, repoussé, chasing, and lost wax casting) back to life with care and intention.
Her current Honey and Hive collection is inspired by bees, community, and her quiet moments tending her allotment. Whether it’s digging, planting, or collecting seaglass along the coast, Emma draws creativity from the land and sea, and the overlooked wonders around her.
Her jewellery is a celebration of balance: delicate yet strong, simple yet storied. Each piece is a call to slow down, reconnect, and honour the age-old art of making by hand.
