The Island collection was one of the first collections of jewellery I made specifically for dot&hana. When I was making this website I was living on Barra in the Outer Hebrides, it was in the midst of the pandemic and it felt like I was living life on some sort of alternative universe. Not just because of my location, but because I was, in a way, trying to leave behind everything that had happened during the few years running up to that point. I think I was dealing with a bit denial by staying in some sort of dream state.

Anyway. Barra is quite a nice place to be a dreamer, there’s lots to explore and find, and my husband was brought up there so knows all the secret places to go. I became a bit obsessed with finding the tiniest shells on the beach (I had no idea they could be so small!) and my photo gallery became rolling smudges of colours - sea, sand, seaweed, rocks, lichen, shells and huge views - and I wanted to capture that somehow in my work. So along came the Island collection, little glass pendants filled with smudges of colours inspired by the things I was looking at. I thought I’d show you some of the images that inspired the jewellery…

Barra is rugged! I remember this day well because it was the first time in ages that we went out ‘proper’ walking after a spell of really bad weather. It was still really windy and the waves were awesome, I really appreciated the power of the sea from this vantage point. The colours were beautiful and this is the image that inspired the colours of the Cove Earrings and Necklace.

(Below) This was my favourite beach, it was the one with the best shells! It seemed like a totally different place depending on the weather, but I remember this day for the calmness and the softness that inspired the colour of the Shoreline Earrings and Necklace. 

The Rockpool Necklace and Earring set is probably my favourite Island collection combination of colours, inspired by the colours found in the rock pools near where we were staying. We’d often pop down here for a coffee in the freezing cold and a bit of an explore.

Each of the beads contains little smudges of colour taken from my photographs to make a tiny little memory into something wearable. Evidently, Barra is very blue, and the glass droplets really capture the richness and clearness of the blue sea, but for the next collection I’ve taken my colour inspiration from other bits of life, celebrations and nature. I’ll share that soon!

Rachael x