Mya Lambrecht: Stories Set in Stone

Drawn to the harmony within chaos, Mya Lambrecht uses unconventional materials and objects to create her jewellery pieces.

Mya Lambrecht is drawn to seemingly out-of-place objects and elements in her jewellery. She plays with unexpected materials like coins, bones, and military pins to add a unique and one-of-a-kind element to her pieces.

During Paris Fashion Week, IRK magazine had the chance to get to know her and discuss her work. She presented her newest collection at the Cube showroom, alongside other remarkable and carefully curated designers.

The Collection

Mya’s work brings together the past and the present, combining antique metals, gemstones, pearls, fossils and bones to create jewellery that tells stories of life. “I like to have kind of an element of, like, the future and the past and history,” she explains. Many of the antique pieces she incorporates come from different parts of the world, allowing her to explore the relationships between cultures, places and backgrounds.

Her collections also extend beyond the darker, more industrial aesthetic of the pieces she brings to the show. “What I bring here for the show is a bit darker, but the range is bigger, actually,” she explains. Elsewhere, her work incorporates softer, lighter and more feminine elements, with designs that are easier to wear every day.

Other pieces explore a more bohemian, Southwestern sensibility. Pearls, in particular, have become an important part of her practice, often juxtaposed with unconventional materials. She enjoys combining their classic associations with industrial elements, creating unexpected contrasts. “A lot of people, I’m doing them also with the industrial pieces, which I think is fun because it feels wrong or something to most people,” she says, adding that the combination has been well received.

Mya’s experimental approach also extends to the objects she incorporates into her jewellery. Among the materials she works with are antique pieces, coins, fossils and unusual found objects. One example is a large safety pin, originally a military blanket pin used for horses, which she sometimes pairs with pearls. Some of the pieces she uses are fossils of ancient squid dating back to the age of dinosaurs, which, placed alongside contemporary components, creates interesting and interporary pieces.

Travelling and Sourcing the Materials

Sourcing the materials is an essential part of Mya’s creative process. Gemstones are acquired through wholesale gem shows and contacts connected to mining, while fossils come from specialist dealers. Travelling is equally important, as it allows her to discover objects that might otherwise remain outside her reach. “Whenever I travel, I love to go from market to market,” she says. “I’m always looking for little treasures.” A trip to India last year, for example, led her to discover particularly old pieces that she later incorporated into her designs.

Some designs remain unique while others are produced in small batches. When Mya Lambrecht discovers an antique object, she might be able to make only three to five pieces around it. Other materials, such as certain pearls, are more readily available and can therefore become recurring elements in her collections. Because each object has its own characteristics and limitations, the process is usually not straightforward or rapid.

There is information accompanying each piece that tells the stories behind the materials. She personally writes descriptions identifying the stones and highlighting any antique elements. For those drawn to the symbolic or spiritual associations of gemstones and crystals, these notes provide another layer of meaning. Each piece, therefore, carries not only its physical materials but also the histories, origins, and interpretations that inform its creation.

About Mya Lambrecht

Mya’s history with jewellery traces back to when she was just 13. At that age, she strung her first necklace for her aunt, Ann Lambrecht, who was also a jewellery designer. Mya would go to her aunt’s house after school to be a helper of the craft. After graduating from college, Lambrecht started working part-time for her aunt, and when Ann abruptly passed away a couple of years later, she took care of selling the remaining inventory.

It was as if Ann had passed the torch of her craft to Mya. Finding herself alone in the studio that Ann had built, Mya started crafting her own jewellery. She took inspiration from Ann’s crafting style: big, exotic statements combining stones and artifacts she collected on travels around the world. Mya, however, is more gritty and tenacious with her designs.

Mya is interested in the story of people and their relationship with the world, bringing this approach to her craft. Her ability to find beauty in chaos inspires her to incorporate seemingly out-of-place objects into delicate pieces of jewellery.

---