Story of the Phoenix Pendant, its meaning and design.
In July of 2025 I got kind of scouted to appear on Be Your Own Boss. A True North production for ITV. Presented by Holly Tucker MBE, founder of Not On The Highstreet and Holly and Co.
The premise of the show was, Holly would take a look at my business from what she could find out online. And then she would come and mentor me and give me some advice about how scale and move the business forward.
One of the pieces of advice resulted in the creation of the phoenix pendant - here's the story behind its design and meaning.
1) The advice.
When Holly turned up at my house, one of the things she asked me to do was ‘design a best seller’ for the brand. I wasn’t sure where to start.
She’d picked up the thread of strength and courage through my brand story. Courage to start making jewellery from a young age, courage to turn my hobby into a side hustle and then a business. Courage to quit my teaching job and grow my business.
So this became my starting point.
I already made pendants with symbolic Nordic Runes on, but the runes are quite obscure - you know about them or you don't. I needed a symbol that was instantly recognisable as meaning courage.
2) The meaningful design.
I needed a meaningful symbol, something universal, that everyone would recognise as meaning courage.
I remembered seeing a light show in York Minster, to commemorate 40 years since the lightening struck the Minster. There’s a point in the light show when this huge incredible phoenix flies up one side of the building and then shoots across the ceiling. It was breath taking. That was it. The perfect meaningful symbol of courage.
3) Bringing the phoenix design to life.
I got sketching some ideas and then worked with the incredible Emily Hogarth to turn my sketches into a workable design. She was BRILLIANT. We met on a zoom call (she lives in Scotland, I’m in York) and it was like she could see the image I had in my minds eye.
There was a little back and forth to get the design just right. But I was also tight for time, so I really trusted my gut.
Next I commissioned a company to make a stamp with the image.
4) The overall look of the phoenix pendant also needed meaning.
I didn't want to stamp the design onto a flat disc - or stamp it and then cut it out.
The necklace would be something women would wear everyday. Something tactile that would warm with their body heat and sit close to their hearts. Something they would probably fiddle with on the chain while they thought (I can't be the only one who does that, right?!).
I remembered a science experiment I used to teach, where we would shake a sugar cube inside a crisp tube. The experiment mimics physical erosion, where the cube represents a stone or a pebble and the tube represents the movement of water and the stone bashing against other stone. As you shake the tube, the sharp corners of the cube are rounded until the sugar cube is a ball. I got to thinking about what a lovely metaphor that is for life. And how we're shaped by our journey and experiences.
So I ran with that idea in the workshop. Melting metal to form a pebble, before rolling it through the rolling mill to providea lovely flat stamping surface while keeping those lovely rounded edges.
5) Next I needed to decide on the materials I would use for the phoenix pendant.
This would be a pendant for everyday wear. So it needed to be durable but beautiful. Luxurious but hardwearing.
- 925 Sterling silver - I already work with sterling silver in the workshop, so this made sense. And I could use offcuts from other projects, recycling them 'in house' and thus reducing our wastage the workshop. 925 sterling silver is an allow of 92.5% pure silver mixed with other metals, usually copper, which add to the strength and durability of the metal. For the vast majority of people, sterling silver is also hypoallergenic.
- 9ct gold - I wanted to add a luxurious option for people who prefer their jewellery in a warmer hue (if you are a Spring or Autumn colouring, this collection is for you!). 9ct gold is an alloy of 37.5% pure gold, mixed with copper, zinc and silver to make it durable and more affordable. This mixture creates a stronger metal perfect for everyday jewellery.
It's also really important to me that my jewellery is crafted in recycled metals. This is so much better for the environment than using virgin metal. All the metals we use in our processes are responsibly sourced and our supplier partners are registered with the Responsible Jewellery Council.
6) Making the phoenix pendant's design personalised to you.
I wanted YOU to be able to make the meaning of the phoenix pendant's design personal to you and your loved ones. So I created a way you could add initials and birthstone charms. We make our initial charms in the same way we make our phoenix charms. And our birthstone charms are set with real, responsibly sourced gemstones.
7) All wrapped up.
Every phoenix pendant comes in an FSC certified box, debossed with our logo. Debossing, prints the box with the logo without colour. Adding a stunning luxury to our packaging. You'll also receive a backing card with information about the design on one side. And a handwritten note on the other. Every phoenix order comes with a complimentary polishing cloth. And the whole parcel is sent to you in a plastic free parcel box. We never send any paperwork with our jewellery so its perfect to send direct to the recipient too.
