ABOUT OLIVE & OUROBOROSSS

Ouroboros derives its name from the ancient Egyptian symbol of a serpent eating its tail. The Ouroboros embodies transformation, infinity, and the cyclical nature of life. Our designs reflect this philosophy that beauty is born from change, creativity emerges from destruction/chaos, and sexy cycles drive all things. Similarly, our exquisite gemstones acquire their beauty from the Earth's chaotic transformations, embodying the Alchemistic principle of "as above, so below." Olivia Young, the founder of Ouroboros, personally embraces this philosophy in her work and creative life. Each piece of Ouroboros jewellery possesses this badass/bold attitude towards life, encouraging the wearer to embrace the unknown, seek out erotic encounters in everyday experiences, revel in their sensuality, and celebrate their power and agency.

Olivia is never more animated than sharing her love of rare gems and erotica. Whether she's waxing lyrical about an emerald's deep green fire or a long-lost jewel's scandalous history, her passion is infectious. She believes jewellery isn't just about aesthetics; it's power, confidence, and magic. After all, what's more thrilling than draping yourself in history, beauty, and a hint of mischief? Her love affair with jewellery began at sixteen when she was set loose in Aladdin's The Gem Palace in Jaipur. She was entranced with hands buried in chests of pearls, diamonds, and emeralds and never looked back. After earning a degree in philosophy, she returned to Jaipur, working at The Gem Palace and Marie Hélène de Taillac immersing herself in the world of gemstones, jewellery manufacturing, and design. Two years later, she returned to London to complete her gemmology diploma at Gem-A. She then joined Gemfields, the world’s-coloured gemstone mining and marketing company, where she spent four fascinating years deepening her expertise. Armed with knowledge, experience, and an insatiable passion for gems, Olivia founded Ouroboros in late 2017. Her vision was to create jewellery designed for everyday wear—pieces that make you feel powerful, like you can take on the world. Because true luxury isn't keeping jewellery locked away, it's living in them.

Kundan (Hindi for pure gold) setting is a centuries old Moghul technique using 24 karat gold to set gems. Glowing gems of uneven shapes grouped together and edged in gold, in one beautiful constant surface. It is an elaborate process where a framework for a piece of jewellery is filled with shellac and antimony – the adhesive. The piece is then secured onto a rod for handling. The foiled polki (rough cut slices) diamonds are delicately placed into the spaces and gently pressed and heated into place using charcoal. Excess adhesive is removed with the finest chisel. Small squares of gold foil, kundan, are applied to the gold walls of the setting and worked, using the fine chisel to gently serrate the edge, creating a strong bond. This process is repeated, continually folding the gold foil squares, until a thick wall has been created slightly overlapping the edge of the gem. The gold wall is then smoothed and shaped and the jewel is removed from the rod and cleaned. The end result is a snakeskin pattern glinting seductively up at one as it swivels around between your fingers. All the pieces that use this technique can switch to show the hidden darker side, more subdued but no less lustrous and inviting. They capture the dual nature of many of us. For Olivia it also represents the Western formal side and an extravagant, wilder, gaudy Indian element – traditional, yet feminine and modern.

Jewellery is art, never more so than here. This ancient Mogul painting style, often using a single hair to execute the exacting detail, using pure gold as paint in these exquisite pieces of art were begging to be framed in solid gold. The only natural progression. Working closely with the artist to modernise them but paring back the colours and cleaning up the composition. The pieces are inspired by the ancient tantra art of Jaipur, and, of course, the ouroboros.

The slinky movement of articulation felt necessary for jewellery inspired by the ouroboros Every layer of the ‘snakeskin’ is made by hand to fit neatly into the next and then perfectly fitted. It is then pinned on each side inside to allow for this extraordinarily smooth and tactile movement, which is immensely satisfying to play with.

All of the pieces are carved by hand using wheels and chisels. The sign of good gemstone is normally that it looks ‘good enough to eat’ – it was itching to be turned into plump aubergines, juicy little peaches and succulent olives. Being a gemmologist, having spent years in Jaipur looking at parcel after parcel at The Gem Palace and Marie-Helene de Taillac, then completing her gemmology diploma and going on to work with the leading gemstone mining company of the world, Gemfields, writing their grading systems for rough gemstones - she really wanted to celebrate not just the obvious gemstones but all of the rare and wonderful. There is a whole world in every gemstone and the inclusions often give rise the completely unique and mesmerising colours and patterns. It also taught her to value everything that came out of the earth – respecting both the earth and the amount of work it takes for a gemstone to get from the earth to your neck, ears, wrists, fingers…

The Ouroboros packaging uses an old Florentine technique of marbling onto paper and silk, with a novel Indian twist. Reflecting Olivia’s love for all the patterns of gesmtones. A dedicated, bordering on obsessive, man in the deep back streets of Jaipur is taking marbling an interesting new direction. There is nothing he will not marble. And a rhudrakh painted in 24kt gold – the auspicious beads of India.

The collection is solely set in 18 to 24 karat gold. The gemstones are a mix of traditional precious gems such as diamonds and ‘semi-precious’ gems. The semi-precious gems such as agates, moonstone, laboradite and rhodocrosite are, in fact, often rarer than commonly considered ‘precious’ gemstones. All gemstones are precious and finding really beautiful specimens of the more ‘common’ stones is often much more challenging. I believe that anything extracted from the earth should be enormously valued.

On that note, Ouroboros tries to source as responsibly as possible but there is a myriad of difficulties in the jewellery and gemstone industry. I work alongside different institutions such as the Dragon Fly Initiative https://tdi-sustainability.com, the International Coloured Gemstone Association https://www.gemstone.org, Fairmined gold https://fairmined.org etc. to keep up to date with best practises and opportunities to improve the sourcing of all my materials. Where I have more control, for example which artisans I use, I ensure that their conditions and treatment are of a very high standard.

Going forward I am going to supply my materials from auction houses. True recycling.

CHARITY

Ouroboros Jewellery is proud to support The Better Future Collective. A Jaipur based charity that educates, protects and nurtures girls at risk from abusive homes. Please click here to fund out more.

Jewellery and gemstones are precious and as such should be treated with the respect they deserve. All the kundan set jewellery must not go under water at any point – the water will seep in behind the setting and it will erode it and steam up dulling the look of the gemstones. All the Indian miniature jewellery must not go under water at any point – the water will seep in behind the setting and will destroy the painting and make it steam up beforehand. Other gemstones are more fragile and chemically sensitives that others. Of note are; Opals should not be exposed to water and any solvents or soaps as they are fairly sensitive. Mother of pearl – any organic materials are fairly chemically sensitive and fragile by their nature, including fossilied wood. Otherwise most jewellery can be cleaned well with an old toothbrush and warm soapy water.

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ABOUT OLIVE & OUROBOROSSS

ABOUT OILVE

KUNDAN SETTING

INDIAN MINIATURES

ARTICULATION

CARVING

MARBLING

THE MATERIALS

SUSTAINABILITY & PHILANTROPY

CARING FOR YOUR JEWELLERY

Popular Products

Popular Products

ABOUT OLIVE & OUROBOROSSS

ABOUT OILVE

KUNDAN SETTING

INDIAN MINIATURES

ARTICULATION

CARVING

MARBLING

THE MATERIALS

SUSTAINABILITY & PHILANTROPY

CARING FOR YOUR JEWELLERY

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