Designs ‘wow’ judges in Weston Beamor student awards

Staged in conjunction with the School of Jewellery at Birmingham City University (BCU), the winner of the competition will be announced at 2.30pm on 5 February at Weston Beamor’s stand at the NEC’s Jewellery Show (P44, Q45 in Hall 17).

Joanna Gordon, Claudia Noble and Roxanne Moznabi, all in the second year of the HND Jewellery and Silversmithing course, will be joined by their peers, university staff and Weston Beamor directors to discover who has won the first prize of £500 and an opportunity to have a week of work experience at the firm. Second and third place students receive £250 and £100 respectively.

Before creating their designs using Gemvision’s Matrix CAD software, students were required to identify their target audience through market research and create mood boards and an appropriate advertisement.

Weston Beamor’s head of CAD, Ed Hole, remarked: “We were looking for innovative thinking within the design process, combined with a strong presentation and a real understanding of commercial manufacturing issues. All three students proved they understood these concepts and really wowed us with their creativity.”

Prior to submitting their designs, students visited Weston Beamor’s production facility to gain a better understanding of the jewellery manufacturing process.

Deputy head of the School of Jewellery and course tutor Gaynor Andrews said: “This competition gives our HND Jewellery and Silversmithing students the opportunity to work to a proper commercial brief and to see how the jewellery production process operates. The experience they gain – whether or not they win – is invaluable in helping them to forge careers within the industry. We are very grateful to all the team at WB for sharing their expertise and for giving so much of their time to this annual event.”

Weston Beamor is currently producing prototypes of the three shortlisted designs, to be unveiled on the company’s stand at the Jewellery Show.