Amore Jeweller

We tracked down the lovely Alex Monroe for a quick chat

Tell us about how you became a jewellery designer.
By mistake! I was working as a groundsman in Suffolk and dreamt of becoming a fashion designer (I had to keep that secret from my work-mates!). So I tried to get in to a fashion course but failed miserably. The nearest thing (and a way to escape from Suffolk) was a jewellery course, which I immediately loved and I havent stopped since!

What’s your favourite jewellery piece that you’ve designed so far?
Always the next one. Im working on new collections right now so Im only thinking about the new pieces. They get all my attention. But we just made a twiggy ring peppered with diamonds which I love. I love it all really, but if pressed Id say the Vintage Bike, or the pear, I really like the pear, and the Bee of course. And those Peacock feathers oh and what about the Watering can and the key and. Id better stop now.

How long does it take to design a collection? What’s the process?
Argh! It takes forever and its really hard! I say that because Im in the middle of doing it right now and Im at a stage where everything is hard and Im panicking. Ask me again in September at London Fashion Week and Ill say Oh it was sooo easy dwarling. But that would be lying. I start with a concept, go out on research (usually at Chelsea Physic Garden or Kew or into the countryside), then I develop my sketches, do some finished drawings, make mock-ups, work these in to finished pieces, then cross my fingers that someone else likes it too!

Who is a typical Alex Monroe customer?
Theres no such thing, except theyre usually nice. More Marie-Claire than Dazed and Confused. But we sell to women from 16 to 90, and lots of nice blokes buying pressies too!

What do you enjoy best about what you do?
Interviews. Only joking! Making jewellery at the bench no doubt. Im a maker. Thats what I do best.

And a few questions about you:

What’s your favourite

Food?
Japanese. And proper British. Plum Jam on crusty white. Or a big bowl of shrimps, bread and butter, and a pot of tea sitting outside.

Place in the world?
A secret place on the river in Suffolk.

What’s growing on the allotment this year?
You name it. Loads of soft fruit. Just had the last broad bean. Salad, Cucumbers, Toms. Lots and lots.

What’s on the iPod?
At the moment a big pile of drawings and a sketch book. And some biscuits. Musically its probably a bit embarrassing, Ill have a look. Podcasts; the Archers, Desert Island Discs and the The Bike Show. Songs; A, Abdul Abulbul Amir. Z, Nothing so Ill skip to Y. Y, You aint going nowhere from Sweetheart of the Rodeo (love it). In between; Eric Clapton, Messiaen, Don Ellis, Bowie and Belle and Sebastian. A real mix. You wouldnt want to put it on shuffle in public! Its a proper Dads ipod.

Thanks Alex! AO x