Jewellery has long been an essential element of our self-expression, from the first decorative stones used by our early human ancestors, signalling our progression into abstract thought, symbolism, and aesthetic appreciation, to the myriad styles, tastes, budgets, and occasions which are catered to today.
From the jewellery which we save for that ‘special’ occasion to the pieces that never leave our skin, the spectrum of jewellery design knows no bounds.
One artist and designer who continually pushes those bounds is Brisbane’s own Christie Nicolaides, whose opulent, languid aesthetic speaks to her motto: it’s always summer somewhere.
Bright colours, silver and gold plated brass, and a sense of luxury and exoticism are the hallmarks of her many and varied creations.
Born and raised in Highgate Hill, Christie found herself enthralled by the bold fashions of the women in the Greek villages of her grandparents, the coastal towns of Italy, and the streets of Turkey.
Through her travels around Europe, she developed her passion for jewellery and her admiration for the boldness of the southern European styles.
When Christie couldn’t find what she wanted back home in Brisbane, she took matters into her own hands.
Having identified a niche in the jewellery design market, the self-taught designer opened her first pop-up store on James St in late 2013.
It quickly became apparent that her designs resonated with many women, and, emboldened by her success, the stylist drew on her contacts in the design world and invested a substantial chunk of her savings into creating her own collection.
More pop-ups followed, and Christie eventually created an online store as well, bringing her collections to fashion-forward women worldwide, who lapped up her exuberant and decadent aesthetic with joyous abandon.
Six years down the line and Christie has forged an international network of trusted manufacturers and suppliers, family-run factories who ensure her products are of authentic and high quality.
This international team, tight-knit despite the distance, know and understand Christie’s aesthetic, helping her to push each collection further than the last.
She focuses on increasing the fluidity, feminity, and wearability of each new collection, always pushing the lengths to which she can go in her designs before giving her jewellers a hernia.
A tango of development and re-development defines her dialogue with her manufacturers, resulting in dynamic, boundary-pushing, yet eminently wearable design stocked in stores worldwide.
Six years down the line and Christie has taken a step which cements her place in the Brisbane design world.
In late 2018, she opened her first (of many, hopefully), brick and mortar stores, basing her business in the city where it all began.
The shop, at the corner of Edwards and Margaret St, is a little haven of European summer in the CBD. The street-level entrance flows down a curved stairway to a pink-marble floor, dark timber beams, and exposed brick basement retail space, where her signature pieces sparkle invitingly in the gentle lighting.
The space doubles as her business headquarters, from which she hopes to expand her stores into Sydney and Melbourne, becoming closer to the sophisticated customer base she has developed in these cities.
By now, almost eight months after opening her shop, Christie has a thriving face-to-face business. She has been working steadily on her August 2019 collection, her bridal collection, and is gleefully working toward adding eyewear, handbags, and clothing to her design portfolio.
This long-standing figure of the Brisbane design world finally has a place to call her own, putting down roots so she can better spread her wings. Her basement boutique brings together her Greek origins, love of Europe, and loyalty to the place in which she was raised, through her luxurious, beautiful, and ever-evolving creations displayed in the heart of the CBD.
For more information about Christie’s journey, check out her website at https://www.christienicolaides.com.au.