A new generation of jewellers is reshaping the future of luxury by reconnecting craftsmanship with the natural world. Among them is Bibi van der Velden, who translates the beauty and symbolism of wildlife into refined, contemporary pieces.
Imagination has always felt tangible to van der Velden. Born in New York and raised between England and the Netherlands, she was attracted to art at an early age. “I grew up in my mother Michèle Dieters’ studio, polishing her sculptures and tracing their organic curves—a physical connection to form that was ingrained in me early on,” she recalls.
It is this instinctive relationship with shape, texture, and transformation that represents her fine jewellery universe, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this year. With its wild gardens and magical light, her childhood home in England taught her to see the world as narrative.
“I felt like I was living inside a living story,” she says. “That world taught me that everything has potential, that beauty often hides in the unexpected, and that nature is full of stories if you pay attention.”
The story continues in her sculptural jewels, which move, twist and reveal secret realities. Her pieces are similar to tiny kinetic sculptures that she carves in wax before engineering intricate mechanisms. “I move between being a sculptor, a jeweller and a storyteller—often all at once,” she notes.
Nature remains van der Velden’s greatest collaborator, from iridescent scarab wings to 60,000-year-old mammoth tusks. “It has always been the starting point,” she says. “There is so much nature makes that we often overlook.”
Her greatest joy in jewellery design is movement, transformation, and hidden details. Her Rock Pool Ring, for example, hides a mermaid beneath a hinged wave, while her Alligator Wrap Necklace and Bracelet lock when the alligator bites its own tail. “The pieces I create feel alive because of nature. They are pieces you interact with, uncover, and experience, not just look at.”
Currently residing in Portugal, her first ideas are sparked by the Atlantic Ocean and rugged landscapes, and she works between her Amsterdam studio and artisans in Bangkok. “Each place gives me something essential,” she explains. “Together, they create a rhythm that shapes my creative process. I’ve worked with the same craftsmen in Bangkok for 20 years, and their skills are extraordinary. The city is a hub for remarkable stone dealers, allowing me to carve wax, experiment, collaborate closely and immerse myself in the technical side of jewellery.”
Marking a defining chapter, she opened her first flagship store in Amsterdam last September, a multi-sensory sanctuary evoking geological strata, concealed chambers and sculptural ritual. In addition, she revealed her most personal collection yet, Bibi’s Bestiary, a collection of 37 animal charms.
“Each sculptural charm is a small talisman of transformation or protection, a personal mythology in gold,” she says.
The Enchanted Forest will launch this year, expanding her exploration of nature’s magic. Even as van der Velden enters her third decade, her ambition remains unchanged: “When someone wears one of my pieces, I want them to feel a connection to nature, transformation, and discovery. I want the jewellery to become a meaningful fragment of the natural world that they can carry with them.”
