X The colour and brilliance of gemstones have mesmerised us through the ages, calling up their mystery, energy and preternatural power. But conventional gem cutting techniques now emphasise stones’ clarity and avoid their natural flaws and colour variations. I believe it is these intrinsic features that make each stone’s individual presence and placement more stirring. For my 2018 MA degree at the Royal College of Art, I explored faceting rough gemstones very simply in an effort to reveal their inner character and bring our attention back to their individuality on an intimate scale. Just as the inclusions of natural emeralds are alluringly called “jardin” for garden, the imperfections of a rough gemstone only need a few windows to open up the stone and reveal their fascinating qualities.

X This 46 carat tourmaline is one half of a pair, each step-cut and faceted at a very low angle to reveal the stones’ inclusions and colour variations. Its rough, striated exterior reflects tourmaline’s naturally elongated, trigonal form with uneven cleavages and iridescent inclusions.

X The brilliance of this 9 carat Rhodolite garnet refracts up from its naturally rough, uneven exterior – a unique play of light and brilliance that evokes the primordial allure of coloured gems.

X This light olive peridot shows its natural orthorhombic and prismatic termination on a composite base. For its final form, I ground a flat base and lightly faceted away the frosted slopes following its natural arch-shaped silhouette to open up its sides and reveal its interior and intricate, composite inclusions.

X An 85 carat iolite like this one is hardly gem quality with its constant inclusions and little clarity. But by faceting it on the wrong side, we get a better insight into the stone’s purple-blue and brown striations and layers, an entrancing view otherwise dismissed as inadequate.