MIN FLETCHER-JONES Jewellery designer and maker
“I want my pieces to be worn, not live in a box,” says jewellery designer Min Fletcher-jones, who is determined that her beautiful creations should be a part of everyday life, not hidden away.
In the garden studio at her Dorset home, Min crafts pieces that are the result of a life-long love affair with jewellery. Her passion began with a Saturday job working for a silversmith when she was just 15. On making her first set of chains, she was encouraged to display them alongside the silversmith’s work and was amazed when they sold out in a couple of days: “I couldn’t imagine that people would actually pay for something I made.” From that moment she was hooked and at the age of 21 began an apprenticeship in silversmithing before setting up her own jewellery business.
After taking some time out to have a family and relocating to Dorset, Min was looking for a way to give her business a boost and reach a larger audience – taking a stall at the Country Living Spring Fair seemed the perfect option, although she was nervous at first. “I didn’t really think I’d sell enough stuff," she says, “but I was just amazed at how much people loved my work. I couldn’t believe the amount of customers who came back at the Christmas Fair and said to me, ‘We couldn’t find you because you weren’t in your usual spot.’ I thought, ‘Wow, I’ve only been here once!’”
Now the Spring Fair is always Min’s first of the year: “It gets me going and excited about making new things. I love it – the atmosphere is brilliant.” She also enjoys the opportunity to chat with her customers. “When you work from home, sometimes the only adults you see are on the school run. At events like the Fair, it’s lovely to talk to people who are interested in what I do and how I do it.”