Every now and then a promising jewelry designer takes the spotlight. For Anissa Kermiche, that time is now—the Parisienne caught the attention of fashion authorities and jewelry lovers for her accessories that are inspired by everyday life. Often, we’d find an object that interests us, but we don’t necessarily want to turn them into something we would wear. Anissa Kermiche is the opposite, finding beauty in the ordinary things, and she now has a collection modeled after fortune cookies and the female anatomy, and everything in between.
Best Places to Shop for Anissa Kermiche Jewelry
Top 12 Best-selling Anissa Kermiche Jewelry
$1,650
$5,235
$995
$595
$895
$2,500
$660
$855
$1,085
$4,495
$1,485
$1,345
The beginnings
Whenever Anissa Kermiche is talked about, her background in engineering is brought up. But her detour is not at all unusual when digging back into her childhood. She has always been into creating jewelry, although not with the same precious materials she is using now. Kermiche made friendship bracelets, as many children would, as well as Brazilian bracelets and took joy in them. As a kid, she was also surrounded by jewelry courtesy of her mother. She wore her rings even though they did not fit and was especially fascinated by her pearls, even the broken ones.
A career as a jeweler was not in the young Anissa’s mind, despite her fondness for accessories as a child. Due to her strict upbringing, she thought that a creative career was not in the horizon, and so she opted for engineering. She graduated, worked for big corporations, but the lack of a chance to be creative in a field that valued accuracy and precision more than anything else disillusioned her. Kermiche remembers clearly the day she decided she could not do it anymore—while taking her usual route to work, she passed by the jewelry boutique which reminded her of her childhood passion for the nth time, which finally prompted her to take a different professional direction. She quit after three years in the industry to chase her dream.
From Paris, Kermiche moved to London to study in the prestigious Central Saint Martins, which finally allowed her creative juices to flow, and immersed herself in Hatton Garden, the city’s legendary jewelry district. Soon enough she founded her eponymous brand and success quickly followed. Her work that are modeled after ordinary things and celebrated women who thrived in their everyday lives made her among London’s hottest jewelry designers to follow.
Inspired by the everyday hustle
Similar to most notable jewelers, Kermiche wanted to create unique jewelry and was dissatisfied with the selection available to her. But she did not want to take herself too seriously, which resulted in her pieces that were quirky and occasionally edgy; her time as an engineer left her craving for a space where she could let some of her humor drop. Unlike others, she did not need to travel to be knocked by inspiration. Her Paniers Dorés earrings which dominated fashion shows a few years back was actually shaped after fortune cookies, and leftover ones at that. Her daily life is enough to feed her itching for design regularly, although she does follow design fairs to keep her collection fresh.
Her Body Language collection is a testament to not taking herself seriously while still creating precious, wearable jewelry. The names were just as funny and interesting: Rubies Boobies, Belly Language, Precieux Pubis, and even had the French for Goodnight, which is actually a hand showing the middle finger, universal for something more offensive than a simple good night. The collection is among her personal favorites, which she put forth as a showcase of her love for sculpture as well as to celebrate women’s bodies.
Currently, she is working on creating more pieces and is fixated on living room fixtures, such as chairs and lamps. Her selection of jewelry are truly noticeable and fitting for the curious, the eclectic and the independent, who do not frown upon a little bit of humor. Inspired by modern artists such as Constantin Brancusi and Francois Morellet, Kermiche wants her everyday-inspired jewels to be suitable for most occasions, gain attention, and empower women who wear them. But they also have a touch of feminine and simplicity in them through lines and curves, which would not make them too overwhelming to actually wear.
Beauty out of modern technology
Kermiche planned to study in London, but found the bustling city to be where she would have wanted to establish a boutique. When she founded her company in 2016, she also decided to have her studio in the Big Smoke. To create her jewelry, Kermiche takes photos for design inspiration that she soon tries to recreate in even the tiniest of details through a 3D software. Once it’s done, she prints a prototype through a 3D printer and waits until the wax model ready, which is when she shapes her metal of choice and sets her preferred stones.
Her jewelry often features pearls, of which she is a huge fan since she was younger. She believes that the precious materials present many possibilities in design, in addition to being timeless and appropriate throughout the day, but also works with 18-karat gold as well as diamonds and rubies.
In order to have more women enjoy her creation, Anissa Kermiche wanted to have a fairly priced selection. Her creations usually range from US$500 – $2000, and are available through retailers in London, Paris, the USA, Canada, China, Hong Kong, Italy, Luxembourg and Russia. Shopping online is also possible through her website, Net-a-Porter, Matches Fashion, Mytheresa and Monnier Freres.
