How do you start your working week? If you work for jeweller Fay Page on St. Martin’s, it’s with a bracing dip off St Martin’s flats, one of the island’s silver sand beaches in Lower Town.
Sometimes one of the eight-strong team will return from the outing with a tiny cowrie shell or curiously shaped pebble that later in the day will inspire a charm or pendant. Everyone comes back invigorated, not just by the chilly waters but from the feeling of belonging to a team that’s almost a family. “The swim is part of the working day,” smiles Fay. “It might be unusual, but it helps achieve a work-life balance and brings us together.”
Warmed by coffee brewed by Fay’s husband Rob, also a jeweller, the team settle at the workbenches straddling two floors of a solid granite barn that used to be the packing shed at Ashvale Flower Farm. The whitewashed walls exhibit their delicate creations, which all take their cue from the island. There are silver and gold Scillonian bees and starfish that make eye-catching pendants or earrings, delicate moons and dolphins that dangle from silver wrist chains, and slim silver bracelets, frosted to resemble sand. Wedding rings are made to commission too. “Everything we do is a celebration of our love for Scilly,” says Fay.
It’s not just the jewellery that’s inventive. So are the wooden display cases that are crafted from old ship’s timbers to resemble old flower packing boxes. On the walls, St. Agnes cabinetmaker Piers Lewin has fashioned wooden boxes resembling printers’ letterpress trays. And packing materials – all fully compostable with no ink or glue - are a work of art too. Jewellery pieces rest on a bed of felt made from Lake District wool, topped with layers of recycled coloured cardboard that create an image of the islands viewed from the sea. The top sheet is imprinted with the ‘hallmark’ of the member of staff who created the item.
Fay has loved Scilly all her life, having visited every childhood holiday. Aged eight, then living in Yorkshire, she declared she was going to live there. As a teenager she worked summers in Scilly and at the age of 25 finally fulfilled her dream by moving to St. Mary’s, then, two years later, to St. Agnes.
Fay had dabbled in jewellery while studying drama in London, but it was not until she was 27 that she considered it as a career. Fay was unwell so was unable to continue her job at the council and was looking for an occupation to fill her time. A friend, silversmith Sophie Hooper, suggested joining her on a three-week jewellery-making course in Ireland. They went, and Fay returned not just with some beautiful pieces (like a tiny silver flipflop, which she still keeps on her bench) but the determination to make jewellery her livelihood.
Fay bought some basic tools and started making shell and pebble jewellery in the bedroom of her tiny home. Then she met Rob, who was a boatman on St. Martin’s, and moved her workshop to St. Martin’s. In 2010, Fay took over the tenancy of Ashvale Farm.
The team grew. First Fay was joined by Rob, who had by now given up the boats and discovered a natural talent for jewellery making. “It’s a great partnership,” says Fay. “I have ideas, Rob is the one who makes them happen. He’s now a better jeweller than me.” Others came on board, all contributing their individual skills and personalities. “Originally the business was about the things I loved about Scilly. Now it’s about providing employment and a living wage all year round for people who live on the island. I’m immensely proud that I now have eight on the pay roll.”
Alongside teamwork, another secret of the business’ success is its versatility. The gold- and silverware is small so can easily be posted once it’s been ordered online. A walk or bike ride up to the post office in Higher Town is one of the team’s daily rituals. Christmas is obviously a busy time – and January too, after people see friends being given Fay Page jewellery and want some too. “We always expect a lull after Christmas but it never happens,” smiles Fay. “The jewellery seems to advertise itself.”
Other customers delight in choosing Fay’s jewellery in person and in summer the shop gets seriously busy. “Often people drop in after they’ve arrived on a tripper boat, choose a charm and leave their wrist chain with us to attach it, then pick it up before getting the boat back at the end of the day. The chains take 20 charms but we’ve had customers who have bought 27! They like interacting with the people who have crafted it, and once they get back home to the mainland, enjoy having a little piece of Scilly that they cherish as much as we do.”
Image credit: adjbrown.com
