Magical Mantis earings are a 3D sculpture in 18K gold with welo opals, encrusted with green tzaworites, pink sapphires and diamonds.
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Twin Star - amazing ring with two golden South Sea pearls, like a pair of stars in orbit around their common center of gravity, with diamonds and sapphires set manually in massive 18K gold.
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Falling Star necklace - make a wish when you see the light of this yellow citrine emerging from the darkness of black spinels in solid sterling silver.
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Stingray ring - this 18K gold ring set with diamonds and black spinels floats around the finger making it the perfect background for green tourmalines.
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Night Flower necklace - a Welo opal makes up the center of this flower made of dreamy infinity loops in sterling silver set with different colored sapphires.
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Black Cherry earrings - two beautiful black South Sea pearls out of the water are like two black cherries hanging in a one of a kind setting with green tsavorites, pink sapphires and diamonds
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Falling necklace - in a parallel universe you can fall and be caught at the same time, like this amethyst set in swirls of sterling silver and sapphires.
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Trajectory necklace - center stone faceted sphene follow the trajectory of the neck through the darkness of black spinels.
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Fruit of the Mind earrings - two unusual fantasy cut citrines in a special custom made 18K gold setting with sapphires bear the fruit of a creative mind.
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Tropical earrings and ring - warm hues of red garnets and yellow sapphires in 18K gold in a flower shape for a tropical feeling.
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Golden Locks earrings - green amethysts hide between 18K gold curls, with yellow sapphires to spread more light.
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Fluo Flow necklace - eye-catching green fluorite in a flowing line of sterling silver.
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Loop earrings - diffusion sapphires in loops of 18K gold with black spinels and pearls.
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Trapped necklace - citrine trapped in silver sterling roots set with black spinels.
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Treble Staff - make your own music around the neck with amethyst, black spinels and sterling silver.
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Wise Eye necklace - the eye of a large rutilated quartz with chatoyancy set on a sterling silver structure.
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Tropical Ring - fantastically shaped 18K gold flower with a pink tourmaline center and yellow sapphire petals levitating between the fingers.
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Plant necklace - a Welo opal hides between loops and leaves of sterling silver set with green tsavorites, pink sapphires and black spinels.
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Pearl Harp necklace - freshwater pearl strings hung on a sterling silver construction, making one want to play the harp on the neck.
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Dynamic Flow necklace - triangular citrine caught in a silver wire set with black spinels.
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Autumn Symphony necklace - yellow and pink tourmalines with black spinels set in sterling silver leaves and flower.
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Stingray necklace - spinels flow around the neck in a wave of sterling silver.
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Rock necklace - an unusually cut rock crystal pop in this silver sterling necklace.
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Twin Star 2 - two golden rutile quartz have the shimmering flicker of hidden treasure within.
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Windy necklace - black spinel and green tsavorite leaves blowing in a sterling silver necklace.
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Blue Tooth necklace - Swiss topaz surrounded by orange sapphires and black spinels set in sterling silver.
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Garden necklace - tourmaline and kunzite flower, amethyst bud and black spinel leaves woven together in sterling silver.
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I create fantastical, beautiful jewelry inspired by anything and everything from fairy tales to underwater creatures, from calligraphy and sculpture, to hard sciences and science fiction. Whenever I see a magnificent gem the ideas overflow; my mission then becomes to create the perfect setting for the individual stone, and to transform the lifeless rock into a unique piece of wearable art.
I learned the craft from the masters, by obsessively absorbing every tiny snippet of information I could find. My background in working with optical instrument and microelectronics has prepared me well to work meticulously with small details, and I take pride in that my pieces are beautifully executed from every angle. It's been a long and fascinating journey to learn how to breathe life to my ideas.
I am, one might say, the instigator of this endeavor. What started innocently as a request for Darek to set some pearls bought on a whim on a holiday, quickly turned into an out of control passion for both of us. I got obsessed with learning everything I could about gemstones, which I find endlessly fascinating. I adore how the colors and the light constantly change, and spent hours observing through the microscope.
Today I use what I learned when creating my own jewelry. I particularly love painting enamel jewelry and the process of plique-à-jour. It's complex and risky but the rewards are worth it when I see the final lights and colors interplay in my pieces.
I adore jewelry and dreamt of having jewelry made just for me. One day I met the amazing late Elon Arenhill in his Malmö studio and he made my first pair of beautiful pearl earrings. I showed them to Darek who took one look and immediately got inspired to try it out for himself. And so he made his first pair of earrings, a relatively simple affair made of pearls and gold wire. But he knew he could do better.
Each design became more complex, more refined, and more unique. And so an obsession was born. Without the luxury of training he needed to figure out every step of the process himself, which techniques to use, which tools are the best for the job, even how to make the tools himself when possible. Before we could afford proper tools he had to be particularly innovative, even using the doorway to shape metal. Crude, but it got the job done .
For Darek the final design is everything. But by watching him work I become captivated by the process itself. How the metal and fire, the hammering, the dirt and the grime are all part of making a delicate jewel come to life. It’s fascinating. And then I discovered fire enamel, where the process is arguably even more complex, and my own obsession was born.
The endless array of colors, and high number of variables - kiln, temperature, metals, techniques, - make it a lifelong learning challenge, where no day, and no jewel is like the other.
The story begins with an idea and a quick sketch. I keep the sketches loose as the final design will be heavily influenced by the gemstones we have access to. Once we decide on a design the hard work starts. First we choose the center stones, as these will inform every other decision, like the colors of the surrounding stones and the shaping of the gold or silver.
Then comes the time for the truly time consuming part - making lots and lots of holes in different sizes, then painstakingly setting all the stones, by hand, one by one. It’s a true labor of love as every stone needs to be perfectly set. The final touch is the polish, another time intensive step. But it’s worth being meticulous to truly bring out the shine and sparkle of the piece.
Lucidity ring is almost done, only a few stones left.
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Twin Star ring
In progress, the next step after shaping and soldering is to drill holes in preparation to set diamonds and sapphires all around
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Blue in Black chalcedony earings almost done, waiting for drilling and setting black spinels.
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Night Flower necklace petals almost done, time to put together necklace.
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Fruit of the Mind Construction done, setting and finishing to go.
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Lucidity first part done.
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Autumn symphony necklace avaiting polish to sparkle
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Brilliant cut sapphires waiting for their final destination.
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Work in progress, setting all these stones around the edges too.
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Magical Mantis, all parts done but still a long way to go.
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Night flower,one petal done, the other in progress.
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Autumn Symphony looks like I imagined, just before setting the stones.
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making everything under one roof
Darek N Domanski
designer and creator
Darek N Domanski
designer and creator
Ewa Domanska
enamel artist
Ewa Domanska
enamel artist