Travelling the world to discover extraordinary stones and inspirational production techniques, her designs exude an irreverent sense of fun juxtaposed with a timeless elegance. The Duchess of Cambridge, for example, frequently wears her Annoushka Baroque Pearl Earring Drops to complete her ‘classic contemporary’ daytime wardrobe, and Rihanna and Gwyneth Paltrow are loyal supporters of Annoushka’s layered style.
In 2012, Annoushka was awarded a MBE by The Queen for her services to British jewellery industry, which spans three decades and began with Links Of London, which Annoushka and her husband John Ayton founded in 1990. She has been named Jewellery Designer of the Year, Gift Designer of the Year, Brand of the Year (twice), and she was short-listed for the Veuve Cliquot Businesswoman of the Year. She has also taken an active role in nurturing creative talent, initiating a very successful annual jewellery design project with students at Central St. Martin’s College of Art and Design and working alongside a small number of handpicked guest designers, mentoring them and exhibiting their collections at selected Annoushka stores. She and John live in Chichester, Sussex and in London, with their four children.
My favourite website... For fashion I love Matches Fashion - And for sheer ease and simplicity, it is hard to beat Amazon Prime!
My favourite apps... I’m always out and about in London, rushing between my flagship boutique in Chelsea to my home in Pimlico and meetings everywhere in between. I love Citymapper. I have just come back from a wonderful holiday in Hydra, Greece, and have so enjoyed wonderful peaceful evenings lying on the terrace using Star Walk to identify the stars and constellations.
Blog of choice... In Detail - Founded by jewellery consultant and industry commentator Beanie Major, In Detail tells the stories behind pieces of jewellery from bespoke diamond engagement rings to a hand tied friendship bracelet - she fully immerses her readers into the beautiful world of luxury jewellery.
Most recent buy online... from Biondi - I always go to before a beach holiday for fantastic beach clothes and swimwear. Being half Brazilian, Claudine is brilliant at designing lovely cover-ups and hats.
Book just downloaded/read... ‘This is Going to Hurt’ by Adam Kay, which is a fascinating book telling the secret diaries of a junior doctor. I have also just downloaded Zadie Smith’s ‘Swing Time’, which I am really looking forward to reading as I love the way that she champions women in her writing.
My favourite podcast... I recently stumbled across Margie Broadhead’s Desert Island Dishes, which is a series of episodes where she interviews inspirational people within the food industry and also general food lovers. I have always had a real interest in food, despite the fact that I am not a very good cook! It is an interesting way to find out about people’s lives, through their stomach!
My favourite Instagrammer... My daughter Marina has started a luxury accessories brand called London Velvet and their Instagram @londonvelvet is full of amazing places and pops of colour. I love to travel so @condenasttraveller always fills me with inspiration for future adventures.
Most worthwhile newsletter subscribed to... I have to admire Sheerluxe for the amount of fantastic content they produce. I recently took part in their Success Stories podcast hosted by their founder and editor, Georgie Coleridge Cole where we discussed my jewellery career and how I came to be where I am now. I love their mix of business, fashion and beauty so their newsletter is definitely worth subscribing to.
Standout online memory... When we took our first million online. It was so exciting because it really showed the appetite for online luxury shopping for today’s customer.
Favourite communications tool/app... Slack - We use Slack in our head office which means that my team can communicate between one another with great ease, eliminating the endless chains of emails back and forth. We have also recently integrated Hero onto our website, this tool allows customers to speak to a dedicated personal shopper at the touch of a button. Annoushka jewellery advisers can chat, send live videos and photos of my designs to the customer in real time. I think this is a really exciting move into the future of luxury shopping.
iPhone or android... Definitely iPhone!
September 2018