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the jewellery we sell. Sweet Romance is
a stunning collection with thousands
of hand made styles covering historic
periods from the Renaissance to the ’70s.
Shelley’s skills are the result of a life-long
passion for both jewellery and historical
periods. Her knowledge of the industry
and the work she produces is incredible
– and as a result, Sweet Romance is
collected all over the world.
Shelley and her partner Sue started
this business in the ’80s. All castings start
from waxes, which are made following
the creation of hand-drawn illustrations
by Shelley. Each item of jewellery has a
historic background, which of course,
makes the design even more special. The
level of detail in each design is incredible,
and this is only enhanced by the high
quality materials used to create each
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heirloom-worthy piece. Manufactured
at the Sweet Romance workshop, using
original American techniques, each design
is hand-forged, stone-set and burnished
by the highly skilled staff of artisans, most
of whom have been part of the team for
many years.
We have recently introduced another
American jewellery designer and
manufacturer to our collections. Classic
Hardware by Karyn Cantor is made with
equal care, love and attention. “Rock ’n’
roll with sass” is how Karyn describes her
designs – and they are just so fantastic!
This wide and varied collection features
the art works of 15 different artists, and is
stocked by rock, vintage and music stores,
museums, galleries and boutiques.
Apart from fabulous jewellery, what
sets us apart? We do not stock ‘for the
moment’ jewellery, or have seasonal
designs. Our collections are available to
our retailers at any time of year. They
need to know they can repeat on best
selling styles when they want to. We are
not fashion driven, or led by the high
street. Instead, our jewellery is glamorous,
elegant, retro and collectable within
its own context. Only the best quality
materials are used. Both companies
register each piece with a design trade
mark and stamp each item of jewellery
so customers will know they have the
genuine article.
Finally, it is important to me that
we offer jewellery with providence. It’s
important to our retailers too. It’s helpful
to know where and how the jewellery is
made, and the history of the designs and
designers. It’s also very important for us
all to know that the craftsmen working in
the studios are employed under local laws,
paid properly and not exploited.
“
We are not
fashion driven, or led
by the high street.
Instead, our jewellery
is glamorous, elegant,
retro and collectable
within its own context.
”
How important is the location and
history of the company to its success?
Location is not important at all to us. As
a distributor, we can work from anywhere.
Our history is only relevant in the sense
that we have had the same collection of
jewellery for 12 years, and I think that
says it all. Continuity is a good thing and
it works. Many of our retailers have been
with us from the beginning.
How has the product offering changed
over the years and how would you
describe your current collection?
The manufacturing and quality, selection
of styles and customer demand have all
remained the same.
Sweet Romance has obviously
grown considerably over the years, and
now includes the new retro jewellery
collection, OLLIPOP. This line alone
has more than 300 individually designed
stunning cocktail rings.
With the recent introduction of Classic
Hardware, we have a much wider range
of very exciting jewellery for retailers to
share with their customers.
How often does DIVINE launch new
jewellery lines?
Usually four times a year. Shelley will
find inspiration in a new story or theme,