LOCKDOWN provided an unexpected opportunity for one young jeweller to start making her own designs.

After being furloughed in spring, Hannah Brown from Wroughton used the hours of extra time on her hands to start her own business and has seen orders ramp up ahead of Christmas.

Now back at her day job as a workshop coordinator for a jewellers in Bath, the 28-year-old takes a day each week to focus on her own start-up after working on it round-the-clock for much of the year.

She said: "This was the saving grace of lockdown because it gave me something to do and something to look forward to, though at one point I was working evenings and weekends after returning to my day job and that was too much.

"It's been good and positive, especially in the run up to Christmas, and I've had a lot of commissions which is great because those are what I love most, designing something specific with a client in mind.

"People really want to help small businesses and shop local at the moment and they would rather support little independents than big chains during this horrendous year we have had.

"I'm interested in jewellery because I've always been a bit of a magpie and liked shiny things since I was a child.

"There are so many variations of gemstones that add something different to the work. I like that the metalwork differs depending on what you make, which can be dainty and subtle or chunky and masculine.

"My own jewellery has a different style to what I work on during my day job, and I do everything myself. I usually have an idea or design in mind but sometimes I just sit at the bench and see what happens.

"The octagonal signet rings and droplet rings have been quite popular, as have the radiant pendants which can be personalised with a birthstone.

Hannah has worked in the jewellery industry ever since she left university four years ago. She already had most of the equipment she needed at home but had to stock up on packaging to post her products to customers.

Orders can still be made to arrive in time for Christmas.

Visit the website hannahbrownjewellery.co.uk or have a look at some of the designs at instagram.com/hannahbrownjewellery