Heathergems

Heathergems

Heathergems are imaginative Scottish jewellery pieces, made in Pitlochry, Scotland, from heather stems.

Discover how they are made, from heather stems to unique pieces of jewellery.

1. Harvesting the heather
The heather is harvested in the hills of Perthshire. As heather grows, its stems become woody and no longer provide food for animals. What’s more, the ground beneath these long stems becomes barren. There are vast areas of heather in the Highlands, and we have chosen one of its varieties for Heathergems. So by harvesting heather to make jewellery, we are also helping the landscape to regenerate – if only a little.

2. Cutting the heather

So how do sticks become jewellery? The whole process takes place in our workshop and begins with drying the heather under careful supervision. We then cut the stems with a band saw.

3. Cleaning the heather

The bark is stripped away with specially adapted machines, leaving just the clean stems. The heather is then carefully sorted by size into bundles – a mix of different stem thicknesses helps to strengthen the finished piece. A variety of stems is important to make the block as strong as possible.

 

4. Dyeing the heather

Next we apply dyes, carefully chosen to bring out the natural shades of the heather. The stems are dyed in a vacuum chamber. It can take up to 2 days for the dye to penetrate right through the stems. We then mix the dyed stems to achieve the beautiful variations of colour and pattern that are unique to Heathergems.

5. Pressing the stems

The stems are then soaked in resin and compressed under a pressure of 60 tonnes. The resin helps the stems slide against each other and pack together, and once the block is compressed it binds it firmly. The block is then placed in an oven to dry. The following day it is removed from the mould and the rough edges are trimmed.

 

6. Cutting the block

The block is then cut into slices of various thicknesses. The raw material for Heathergems is now ready to be transformed into a unique piece of jewellery.

 

7. Cutting the shapes

Using a computer-controlled machine, we then cut out the basic shapes for the individual pieces.

 

8. Polishing and sanding

Uneven surfaces and edges are sanded by hand. This requires considerable skill and craftsmanship.

9. Varnishing the stones

We apply up to 5 coats of varnish to the finished shapes – by hand – to bring out the colours and grain of the heather.

10. Assembling the jewellery

Finally, we set the finished stones into necklaces, earrings or ready-made brooch mounts.

 

 

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Composition and materials:

Heathergems are wooden jewellery made from heather stems.

Pieces whose code begins with the letter “S” are made of sterling silver (marked “sterling silver” inside the box).

All other Heathergems pieces are made of pewter and are silver-plated – except for the CHB1 brooch (which is pewter only).

Caring for your Heathergems jewellery:

• Do not immerse the jewellery in water or wear it while bathing, showering or swimming.
• do not expose the jewellery to cleaning products, and avoid contact with hairspray, make-up, perfume or other corrosive chemicals
• the jewellery can also be damaged by sweat
• protect the jewellery from knocks and contact with hard objects, and do not subject it to excessive pressure.