CHENNAI: Women and jewellery have an association that dates back to time immemorial. And this is reinforced every time a new designer is born. The newest on the list is Swati Agarwal, a young designer who dabbles in beads, stones and fabric jewellery.
A designer of fervent imagination, Swati designs fashion jewellery for the elite and common folk alike. You may not find precious metals and gemstones in her collection. Instead, what you will encounter is crafted handmade jewellery that Chennai rarely sees.
Despite being a textile design graduate from NIFT, Swati decided that designing clothes wasn’t what she wanted to do for the rest of her life, and took to jewellery making instead. She then forged a plan to manifest her inspiration in the necklaces she now makes, which landed her creations in fashion designer Gaurang Shah’s fashion show in Chennai. “Even before I graduated, I decided that I wanted to make jewellery. I went to Auroville and learned the art. Soon after, I started creating new techniques and designs out of fabric cutouts and left overs of designer clothes, thereby giving my jewellery a different touch,” says the young designer.
“Jewellery designing is not an unusual thing but making handmade statement pieces with unconventional materials was something I wanted to try.”
Silk saris, jacquard, muga silks, jute yarns, beads and marbles are the raw materials in her box. She doesn’t follow a theme; her designing depends on the clothes worn by the customer or the model. “I wanted to make custom-made necklaces that match the dresses one wears. I don’t believe in making a hundred pieces of random handmade jewellery and then trying to sell them,” she says.
At present, Swati is only concentrating on ramp shows. She wants to showcase her collections with big brands that walk the ramp. “I will soon be participating in the Chennai Fashion Week. I don’t believe in commercialising my product. Every piece is unique and is handmade. So I first want my customers to understand my jewellery before they adorn it,” says the jewellery designer.
She is busy preparing herself for the fashion week and has also taken up many orders from her hometown, Assam. “Oh, yes I have been making necklaces for my customers in Assam. Since Assam is famous for muga silk, we are designing long necklaces with marbles interwoven with the silk.”
Swati also conducted a workshop for 40 housewives who are now helping her make the jewellery.