L'O Dossier: 11 Jewelry Designers to Watch from Around the Globe

When Jennie Yoon founded Kinn in 2017, she initially wanted to replace the family heirlooms that her parents had lost in a home robbery. Today, she creates minimalist jewelry in her Los Angeles studio that shoppers can pass down to their family members. Most pieces are made with recycled 14-karat gold or other metals that are then melted down and refined for a high-quality feel, and every gem is ethically sourced and handpicked by Noon. Through Kinn’s Repurpose Project, Yoon and her team also refurbish or recycle old jewelry pieces into new, custom designs.

Before she was an up-and-coming jewelry designer, Anna Jewsbury studied mathematics and philosophy at Oxford University. Jewsbury leans heavily on the idea of reductionism in her designs for Completedworks: bracelet loops ebb and flow like waves; rings balance delicate pear detailing with bold precious metal settings. One of the brand’s biggest selling points is its low-impact design format: all gold pieces use either recycled or Fairtrade gold, while a large portion of the brand’s silver is either recycled or reclaimed.

The revitalization of vintage works is nothing new in the jewelry industry, but Julia Kazarjonoka has a special gift for creating pieces that embody the luxury and elegance of heritage pieces while still fitting the modern mold. J. Le Renard Jewelry designs are crafted with ethically sourced gems that Kozarjonoka hand-selects out of Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Tanzania. Each bold piece, made with care, by local designers, celebrates the power of felinity.

Under the creative direction of Stephanie Wenk, Sauer boasts eight decades of colorfully refined jewelry pieces. In celebration, the brand recently converted a massive emerald from its archives into an array of pieces—some one-of-a-kind—that defy the bounds of luxury. Sauer not only highlights its Brazilian heritage through its work, but also utilizes recycled gold in its design process.

Aliya Riz has lived all over the world, but in her travels, she discovered a home in Krakow. She teamed up with Dzmitry Hourykau to launch Aurum Bloom: a jewelry company committed to elegance and rooted in history. While Riz and Hourykau find inspiration in Polish culture, the brand’s most recent collection: In Praise of Shadows—derived from Japanese literal icon Jun’ichiro Tanizaki’s novel of the same name—harnesses imagery from Japanese architecture for a line of sleek pieces made with recycled 18-karat gold.

If there’s one jewelry line that today’s biggest celebrities—from Dua Lipa to Bella Hadid—are obsessed with, it's Bea Bongiascia’s namesake brand. After graduating from Central Saint Martins in London, the Italian-born designer developed her whimsical and abstract style into a thriving collection of jewelry. Each piece is made of nine-karat gold and silver, as well as precious and semi-precious stones.

One of the year’s biggest jewelry trends has been kitschy, summer camp-inspired pieces. Lauren Rubinski is embracing this look while adding a refined French edge. By implementing elements of bead-resembling enamel into high-quality gold and silver pieces, Rubinski delivers an upscale alternative to the homemade jewelry trend. Taking inspiration from gems found in her grandmother’s Cap d'Antibes home, Rubiniski contracts a professional Italian goldsmith to make all of her maximalist creations.