Libyan sisters Mariam, Alia, Dania Sawedeg on creating Kamushki, a fine-jewellery brand inspired by their strong heritage.
What inspired you to launch Kamushki Studio?
We always wanted to do something together as sisters and starting a jewellery brand made perfect sense. We ourselves are jewelry collectors and we believe when one is buying a piece of jewellery, it’s something value this is why we aimed to create collections that are everlasting, something our customers could treasure and cherish. Our pieces are part of history and feature symbols that uplift the wearer. The word “Kamushki” means “precious stones” in Russian. Being born abroad, specifically in Switzerland, we had friends from many different backgrounds, and we were particularly drawn to Russian culture, which is where the name originated.
Your diverse background has inspired you both to create unique designs – tell us more.
We are originally from Libya but were born and raised in Switzerland. Having lived between London, Zurich, and Dubai over the years has significantly shaped our approach to design. It started with a desire to tell the story of our Libyan culture. We wanted to ensure that every piece in our collections have a story and resonates with our brand identity. Our core collection is the Wishbone (The Fish), which in our culture is known to ward off the evil eye and is a symbol of protection. Our jewellery carries a sense of mysticism, as we are deeply spiritual and linked. We wanted our customers to connect with certain archetypes from every cultural and upbringing background we’ve experienced.
Each jewellery piece symbolises something – was this the plan from the outset?
DS: We began with the wishbone, but our true desire has always been to foster a continual dialogue emphasising that each piece we create carries significant meaning and holds a special place in our hearts. We firmly believe that our creations are powerful and truly stand out.
“The word bold can have many different meanings, but to me it represents a strong, intellectual woman who doesn’t take no for an answer.”
Your wrap-around rings are very unique – what led you to creating these designs?
MS: Our wishbone wrap around ring has been one of our first designs, I love the the ring hugs around your finger it just felt like it could be part of ones identity. Creating that spiral feel, sprial are quite significant symbol keep an eye our for this as we plan to implement in our up coming designs
Sourcing high-quality stones plays a key role in producing quality pieces – how important is this for the brand?
We work with colored gem stones and diamonds which are obviously ethically sourced we work with our production here in Dubai to esure that everything is seamless.
You also create bespoke pieces – what are some of the most standout pieces designed so far?
MS: We created many pieces for our client, one of them was a colorful gemstone tennis necklace and we played around with our wishbone once for a client with different diamonds. As the designer I really enjoy creating with my clients and love to see their input we always sit and discuss idea, the brain storming session really give me the drive to create more and I love to see my clients perspective on things it quite eye opening
Tell us about your respective roles?
DS: We are actually three sisters on the brand our younger sister joined us about a year ago We each have distinct roles. I handle the PR and Communications; Mariam oversees Design and Operation and Alla manages Marketing and Sales. While we have different roles, we collectively decide on everything, and the process has been seamless over the years.
What piece of advice would you give to your younger selves?
DS: When I was younger I didn’t know how to manage my stress and anxiety, dealing with obstacles that came my way was very challenging I would just shut down, I would say the advice that I would give to my youngself is to have fun with any challenge that comes my way try to find more postive aspects in any situation rather than focusing on the negative and to be more in the present moment rather than worry about my next steps.
What lies ahead for the brand?
MS: Our long-term goal for Kamushki is to expand into unexplored markets. We want our storytelling designs to reach from the far West to the far East.
DS: My sisters and I have always discussed expanding the brand’s product range and exploring other directions where we can incorporate our designs into different materials. We each have our
own passions, and we want to use Kamushki as a tool to explore them.
This is ‘The Bold Issue’ – what does being bold mean to you?
DS: In my perspective the word bold means pushing the barrier, scribbling outside lines not following the ordinary rules, its something strong and unique.
AS: The word bold can have many different meanings, but to me it represents a strong, intellectual woman who doesn’t take no for an answer. Someone who takes everything as an opportunity.
MS: Bold means taking risk’s and not being afraid to different. We all need to tap into our bold side from time to time.
