MUNICH: You should wear your jewellery in a certain way. I do not want to say with allure but I mean be aware of what you wear and how you wear it. The Munich-based jewellery designer Saskia Diez knows exactly how to put everything together. All pieces she creates seem to blend in together with her way of dressing, her skin, her look and her sensibility for design, form and material.
When I first met her in Berlin during Fashion Week this summer her wooden pearl neck collier immediately got my attention. She seemed to be the ideal person to ask all the questions I always wondered about wearing jewellery the perfect way.
Read below the exclusive interview.
Talking with Saskia Diez about Jewellery
How do you go about designing a piece of jewellery?
In general I take some aspect, it can be tiny, but something that grabs my interest. Something that I would like to create a story around.
When you think of gold, what comes to your mind first? And how about silver?
Gold: glowing warmth.
Silver: mysterious light.
Do you treat your skin specially before putting on a piece of jewellery?
No. In general I am not too busy with my skin treatment.
When getting dressed, do you make your choice first about the dress or the piece of jewellery?
It goes hand in hand. A union. But it happens that I want to wear a certain piece of jewellery and then I think what dress suits it best and goes with my mood.
How do you take care of your jewellery?
I mostly hang the pieces separately. And when silver pieces are oxidized I polish them with a special piece of cloth.
How do you storage your treasures?
I hang them separately.
Where do you go for inspiration?
For me travelling is very inspiring. Already the fact of moving, of walking, of going somewhere makes my thoughts wander and look around.
Is there a book, music, movie or theater play that inspired you for a certain collection?
Ultrafine has a connection to this story of the emperor’s new clothes. Because the necklace is so delicate, you hardly see it, it’s just a glance. It is “as light as a spider’s web: One would think he had nothing on; but that is just the beauty of it.”
How would you describe the feeling of wearing a piece of your collection?
I want you to feel more secure, more mature, more beautiful while wearing a piece of mine. More you.
When you start sketching for a piece, how do you come up with a certain idea, where do you look for inspiration?
A material, a mood, a detail, a technique.
Your scent, Gold & Silver smells of……? And what do these ingredients mean to you personally?
Silver smells of ginger, juniper, coriander, iris, among others. Especially the ginger for me is this mysterious lightness, this sharpness, this concentration that silver means to me.
Gold smells of juniper as well, ambra, magnolia, musk. It has a deepness, a richness, a warmth, a strange beauty.
Your favorite piece, and how do you wear it?
At the moment I often combine some super delicate pieces like the wire rings, a little star on the ear, a superfine bracelet together with a more showing piece from the lace collection, like the lace choker or lace body. And some Gold or Silver perfume, for sure.
I usually wear not more than one eye-catching piece.
Which kind of jewellery inspires you? Are there any other jewellery designers you like to look at?
I am kind of accessible to these beach vendors, no matter how trashy their collections are. But I always have this childish joy of looking through everything as if it was a big treasure box. I like to look, still seldom buy. In general I like to look at traditional jewellery, from India, where every region has its own techniques and styles, from Africa, from Russia, ethnic jewellery. I like the pieces the most where you have a lot of history inside, of a country, of people, of a clan.
Your favorite colour?
This changes with my mood, with the weather, the season. The colours I wear most are black, dark blue, nude, pink, some green, some turquoise.
The paper bag designs and your jewellery collection both symbolises much sensitivity and fragility. Is there a special reason?
I like pieces that look super fragile but in fact they resist a lot and are much stronger than you think. I like touching borders.