Mindful jewellery gains traction in post-pandemic age of reflection

The wellness industry was already gaining traction in the early 2000s, as fitness, spas, beauty, nutrition and even self-help expertise grew into a multitrillion-dollar global business. Then the coronavirus pandemic provided an extra boost, with social media acting as a conduit for promoting physical and mental health advice.

Jewellery — more specifically crystal-healing jewellery — was one of the areas that thrived. Crystals have been part of the jewellery story since early mankind, with spiritual beliefs, built around talismanic gemstones, becoming embedded in many cultures. Buddhism and Hinduism notably invest great importance in the wearing of certain gemstones prescribed to them by healers — people who through Hindu learning are sensitive to people’s energies, their chakras. These are energy centres of the body, such as the nervous system and organs, and it is believed gemstones interact with the energy fields.

It was learning about this through her grandmother and her Hindu healer that London-based jeweller Ananya Malhotra, founder of Ananya, found herself making chakra bracelets using different gemstones and crystals. Initially it was a ruby one for herself to help her feel “rooted” — one of the Hindu chakras — prescribed by her grandmother’s healer because Malhotra was travelling a lot for her design and GIA (Gemological Institute of America) studies.

“I didn’t like the generic beads and so designed my first bracelet with a black onyx bar,” she says. After friends took an interest, Malhotra created a gem glossary as guidance on choosing the right stone for those looking for emotional or spiritual support.

This was six years ago and since then she recounts “special cases [in India] where we’ve had patients with cancer and their [Hindu] healers have suggested certain beads”. However, she swiftly clarifies: “They are coping tools to help you through hard times. This is never a cure. There are people who believe in it and there are people who really don’t believe, and I respect both views.”

Since the pandemic Malhotra has seen a change in people’s awareness of mental health and looking for alternative solutions. Jia-Jia Zhu, a former fashion buyer for New York department store Bergdorf Goodman founded her eponymous ethically sourced precious gemstone and crystal quartz jewellery brand in New York after spending time in Bali on a spiritual journey through yoga and meditation.

“The business launched during Covid, and we took off immediately and our growth hasn’t stopped,” says Zhu. “We have a purpose to be here, to support people find their inner voice and strength.”

She encourages clients to move with their intuition and choose from any of the 55 crystals “and see which one they gravitate towards visually and energetically — and then learn about them”, she says. “Usually, whatever one we gravitate towards first is the best match for us. We don’t go into medical efficacy, as that is not our expertise, [but] crystals have been used as a spiritual tool to support our needs to find the answers within.”

Gold, silver and copper are often used in medical applications; silver for its anti-microbial properties; gold for treating rheumatoid arthritis and copper for rheumatism. Malachite is also being researched, because of its copper content.

“We are not just wearing jewellery because it makes us look pretty; we also wear it because it gives us the energy, the wellbeing,” says Nancy Leach, who last year, with Birgit Rieder, co-founded Sojourn, a self-care website offering health and mental coaching, jewellery and spa products in Austria. The pair shares a long history in the industry as co-founders of Gemedge, a jewellery forecasting and strategy consultancy. Leach also draws parallels with sports psychology and how some athletes wear talismanic jewels for luck and energy, but acknowledges the lack of studies on gem healing remains a problem.

Jessica Jesse, a Dallas-based designer, set up BuDhaGirl after being gifted golden bangles by monks during a trip to Thailand in 2012. Jesse saw the bangles — which for the monks are an expression of Thai heritage and devotion — as the vessel that helped her son’s recovery through certain mindfulness rituals when slipping them on each day. Working with Thai craftspeople, she created her All Weather Bangles, which are polyvinyl carbonate, which makes them lightweight, flexible and resilient.

We are not just wearing jewellery because it makes us look pretty; it also gives us the energy

Jesse points out how recent studies have shown how meditation and mindful living can strengthen the body’s ability to resist stress and illness. However she admits she “didn’t anticipate the scepticism”.

“Wellness was widely embraced in food and fitness a dozen years ago, but mental and emotional wellbeing was simply dismissed [and jewellery] viewed as vain and superficial,” she says. “Nearly 14 years later — after a pandemic and a cultural shift towards mindfulness — it’s clear: BuDhaGirl wasn’t off-track.”