Atelier Camp & Co knows with old jewellery

A broken necklace or an outdated bracelet? Don't put it in a drawer, take it to Atelier Camp & Co. 'Golden Girls' Iris, Floor and Marleen will turn it into a beautiful new piece of jewellery, made to measure and according to your wishes.

BMUL 20210617 3093

DATE

30 August 2022

TEXT

Jasper Gramsma

IMAGE

Brian Mul

Atelier Camp & Co knows with old jewellery

A broken necklace or an outdated bracelet? Don't put it in a drawer, take it to Atelier Camp & Co. 'Golden Girls' Iris, Floor and Marleen will turn it into a beautiful new piece of jewellery, made to measure and according to your wishes.

Atelier Camp & Co on Vos in Tuinstraat next to Hotel Des Indes is almost literally a jewel box. Behind the gleaming windows in the monumental façade, the gold and precious stones shine out. Iris Camp and her employees Floor and Marleen make most of the jewellery themselves, in the workshop at the back of the shop.


'We are a strong team and we are also friends'

"We are a strong team and we are also friends," Camp notes with satisfaction. "All three of us are goldsmiths and in addition we each have our own expertise: Floor is from the appraisals, Marleen does the repairs and I put the gemstones in the jewellery." Sure, the ladies make free work ("unique pieces, we only make them once") and have their own collection, but they are also the place to go for a personalised design.

Iris Camp (centre) and her collaborators Floor and Marleen.

"Many people do have a broken piece of jewellery or an heirloom that is out of date. You can have a beautiful new piece of jewellery made from that old gold with us, preserving the history and emotion," Camp explains. "From cutting and updating to remelting for your own design: anything is possible."


'It is important that the colour of the gold and that of the stones match the skin tone'

How do Camp and companions then arrive at the right piece of jewellery? "People often collect pictures, so we can see what someone's taste is: lots of frills or just plain, colourful or subdued," says Floor. "And it's important that the colour of the gold and that of the stones match the skin tone. Sometimes people want a blue stone first and end up leaving with a green one!"

They belong together and yet they are different, these 14-carat yellow gold earrings.

Looking at these 14-carat yellow gold earrings, one immediately understands the name of the applied stone: watermelon tourmaline. Here subtly framed by diamonds.  

The extensive use of gemstones is Atelier Camp & Co's trademark. "People who want something unique come to us," says Camp, who describes her style as "classic in a modern way". Floor explains: "Traditionally, a lot of work is done with stones, but because we incorporate them into the jewellery in a slightly different way and use unpredictable colour combinations, the result still becomes contemporary."

Bracelets and necklaces

Currently, a number of fashion trends are reviving in jewellery land. "My grandmother used to wear the 'closed forever', a thin link for bracelets and necklaces," recalls Marleen. "That was out for a long time, but is now totally hip again. By using different link sizes you get a dynamic effect, which makes it of today anyway."

Golden edge

That the studio, coincidentally, consists of only female goldsmiths, Camp calls special: "Until 20 years ago, this was a real male profession." The Limburg native herself knew early on that her future would have a golden edge. "Since I can walk, I have been fascinated by everything that shines. First, I had enrolled in another course. I wasn't accepted there, thank God." 

www.ateliercampco.com

date 30 August 2022
text Jasper Gramsma image Brian Mul

Atelier Camp & Co on Vos in Tuinstraat next to Hotel Des Indes is almost literally a jewel box. Behind the gleaming windows in the monumental façade, the gold and precious stones shine out. Iris Camp and her employees Floor and Marleen make most of the jewellery themselves, in the workshop at the back of the shop.


'We are a strong team and we are also friends'

"We are a strong team and we are also friends," Camp notes with satisfaction. "All three of us are goldsmiths and in addition we each have our own expertise: Floor is from the appraisals, Marleen does the repairs and I put the gemstones in the jewellery." Sure, the ladies make free work ("unique pieces, we only make them once") and have their own collection, but they are also the place to go for a personalised design.

Iris Camp (centre) and her collaborators Floor and Marleen.

"Many people do have a broken piece of jewellery or an heirloom that is out of date. You can have a beautiful new piece of jewellery made from that old gold with us, preserving the history and emotion," Camp explains. "From cutting and updating to remelting for your own design: anything is possible."


'It is important that the colour of the gold and that of the stones match the skin tone'

How do Camp and companions then arrive at the right piece of jewellery? "People often collect pictures, so we can see what someone's taste is: lots of frills or just plain, colourful or subdued," says Floor. "And it's important that the colour of the gold and that of the stones match the skin tone. Sometimes people want a blue stone first and end up leaving with a green one!"

They belong together and yet they are different, these 14-carat yellow gold earrings.

Looking at these 14-carat yellow gold earrings, one immediately understands the name of the applied stone: watermelon tourmaline. Here subtly framed by diamonds.  

The extensive use of gemstones is Atelier Camp & Co's trademark. "People who want something unique come to us," says Camp, who describes her style as "classic in a modern way". Floor explains: "Traditionally, a lot of work is done with stones, but because we incorporate them into the jewellery in a slightly different way and use unpredictable colour combinations, the result still becomes contemporary."

Bracelets and necklaces

Currently, a number of fashion trends are reviving in jewellery land. "My grandmother used to wear the 'closed forever', a thin link for bracelets and necklaces," recalls Marleen. "That was out for a long time, but is now totally hip again. By using different link sizes you get a dynamic effect, which makes it of today anyway."

Golden edge

That the studio, coincidentally, consists of only female goldsmiths, Camp calls special: "Until 20 years ago, this was a real male profession." The Limburg native herself knew early on that her future would have a golden edge. "Since I can walk, I have been fascinated by everything that shines. First, I had enrolled in another course. I wasn't accepted there, thank God." 

www.ateliercampco.com