Jeweler Bibi van der Velden’s First Flagship Is About Exploration

HOME AT LAST: Should you had requested Dutch jeweler Bibi van der Velden 20 years in the past what she’d by no means do, likelihood is opening a retailer would have been one reply.

But as her model neared the daybreak of its third decade, the need to supply a deeper dive into her world received out.

“Having mentioned that we might by no means do that — and celebrating 20 years this 12 months — the one means [to do] this was to go all in,” she mentioned.

Cue her eponymous label’s first flagship, a two-story unit spanning 800 sq. ft in her hometown of Amsterdam, solely 20 minutes away from the studio gallery the place she would beforehand host shoppers.

“We have been capable of create completely different vibes within the retailer,” mentioned the jeweler, who labored with inside designer Noa Verhofstad on the mission.

Cue vaulted ceilings on the bottom ground for a cathedral really feel that’s “meditative in a sure means,” and on the mezzanine, it’s a ’60s Mad Males vibe “in which you’ll actually envelop your self in with the jewellery,” she mentioned. Hopefully, with a tray of jewellery in your lap and a cup of espresso or cocktail subsequent to you, you’ll be able to acquaint your self with what we do.”

Don’t count on jewels sitting prim and correct in show circumstances.

The throughline of the shop is “unearthing the extraordinary,” which implies minerals and stones but in addition a playful exploratory method.

There are cupboards that you would be able to push to the aspect to disclose hidden areas, an enormous counter with secret drawers, a tucked-away “cave” and a show with an alligator — a recurring determine within the designer’s work — that animates if you crank a close-by lever. 

“It’s the explorative type of journey that you would be able to undergo with the jewellery,” promised van der Velden.