Strongly influenced by nature, Fig and Fern Jewellery is a brand with stories to tell.
Founder Ashley Figgis had been searching for an outlet to continue being creative after graduating from Gray’s School of Art, studying Contemporary Art Practice, in 2018.
This led to the crafter purchasing a jewellery making kit and creating her own handmade resin necklaces. And in little to no time, friends were asking to purchase her products for themselves.
“I began making jewellery as a hobby in April last year and by August, Fig and Fern Jewellery was open for business online,” Ashley said.
“I had thought about doing short courses in jewellery for a long time. I decided to take the plunge and self-learn some different techniques using free online resources.
“As things begin to open up again, I’m really looking forward to attending some courses to refine my techniques and add to my skillset.”
Ashley, who is originally from Castle Douglas in the South West of Scotland, currently operates as a one-woman show from an attic room in her flat, which has been converted into an office and studio space.
While she has “always enjoyed being creative in music and art”, Ashley has also worked in hospitality for over five years and is currently employed as the assistant general manager at Paramount Bar in Aberdeen.
She added: “I moved from Dumfries and Galloway to Aberdeen in 2014 after accepting a place at Gray’s School of Art – and I’ve been living and working in Aberdeen ever since.
“Currently employed at Paramount Bar, I have been on furlough for over a year now.
“When the bars closed due to the lockdown and I was placed on furlough, it seemed like the perfect time to try some new mediums and find a hobby to keep me busy.
“I purchased a kit and started making jewellery from resin and before I knew it I had friends asking to buy necklaces from me. Almost overnight, Fig and Fern Jewellery was born.
“When I first started my business, I set up my shop on all of the different social media platforms – including Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and Twitter.
“My main platform is Instagram. I’ve got some really lovely and interactive followers on there, which I am so grateful for.
“Anyone who purchases a Fig and Fern piece is entered into a quarterly prize draw if they post a photo and tag us on social media. It’s a really great way of gaining traction and rewarding our customers for helping us grow!
“I’ve really enjoyed taking part in online craft fairs too, it’s a lovely way of meeting other makers and having the opportunity to showcase your work to new people.
“It’s such a shame we haven’t been able to have artist markets recently, but I am so excited at the prospect of being able to set up a stall with my jewellery on at some point in the future.”
In terms of the Fig and Fern Jewellery range, Ashley creates products with a botanical theme.
Items include necklaces and earrings in an array of vibrant colours, which are perfect for elevating outfits.
Ashley said: “I use resin and metals for my jewellery, incorporating natural materials such as locally foraged plants and flowers. I also offer custom made pieces which can include using specially requested flowers or other materials.
“A lot of my jewellery is seasonally inspired, so the process for making my products begins with foraging. I collect wildflowers, leaves and miniature mushrooms (when in season) which I then press or dry out.
“For my resin jewellery, I spend some time composing different arrangements until I am happy with the layout before encasing the plant matter in the epoxy resin.
“I like to keep my compositions simple and minimalistic to really showcase the beauty of the natural materials used.
“I’m currently experimenting a lot with metal jewellery, which I’m hoping to have in my shop very soon. I’m inspired a lot by the veins and structure of plant matter – I use leaves to create moulds, or imprint their shape directly into the metal.
“As for my most popular items, it would have to be my daisy and buttercup jewellery. Most of my products are one of a kind, but when I have pieces with those flowers in they don’t tend to stay in my shop for very long.
“I also always have rose petal jewellery available as made to order pieces. They are really popular as gifts as I offer them as earring and necklace sets.”
Reflecting on building her business, Ashley has loved being able to grow the brand authentically. And she looks forward to continuing this in the future.
“I haven’t found setting up my business too challenging and I think this is due to the fact that Fig and Fern Jewellery isn’t my main source of income.
“This has allowed me to be a bit more relaxed with it, and allow my little business to grow authentically without the pressure of needing it to do well in order for me to pay the bills.
“When I first started my business, I had been placed on furlough which meant I had a lot of spare time to focus on Fig and Fern.
“I’m so glad to have embraced the opportunity to set up the business when I did, as the initial stages of setting up the business were definitely the most time consuming and required a lot of investment.
“I don’t think I would have been able to have done this without the support which being on furlough gave me, both in terms of time and money. I was also really lucky that we had some unused attic space I was able to convert into a studio for me to work from.
“I think it’s important for me to acknowledge that there was a lot of circumstantial factors which made it easier for me to set up Fig and Fern Jewellery.
“I have so much respect for other business owners who have set up their businesses without the same luxuries I have had, and I’m so grateful for the situation I have found myself in.
“Looking ahead, one of my aims for 2021 is to make Fig and Fern as eco-friendly and sustainable as possible. Our packaging is already fully recyclable, but I’m hoping to work towards more sustainable products too.
“This is why I am really excited about our new pure silver range which I’m currently working on.
“It’s a really interesting process actually – I use a silver metal clay which is made from extremely fine particles of pure, eco-friendly, recycled silver which is bound together with an organic binder. The binder burns out during firing leaving a pure silver piece!
“What I love about this is that it is a waste-free material – any silver clay scraps which don’t get used, I can grind up and turn back into a paste ready to use again.”
This article originally appeared on the Evening Express website. For more information, read about our new combined website.