My name is Caroline Bousigué
Global traveler with extensive stays in India, Brazil and Madagascar fuelled my fascination with their resource in semi-precious stones.
From around 2000 I knew I wanted to share this with a wider public. At the time I was working in the French film industry as a contractor and spending more and more time in India as an informal apprentice with the stone traders and artisans. They taught me about the use of noble materials and the importance of provenance, quality and craftsmanship.
Thus Atelier Chokerbali was born.
I often get asked where this name comes from. It is my personal tribute to a novel of the same name written by Rabindranath Tagore, great poet, philosopher and strong advocate in the defence of women rights. Nobel Price in 1913.
My manufacturing process is divided in three steps :
I only use ethically sourced stones from small scale businesses that I know personally. My stones come from the country of origin and each one is unique. When I have gathered some material I work alongside master artisans, and the stones are cut to my specification for my future designs.
They are then set and framed in Vermeil gold which is 18carats Gold Plated Sterling Silver. No nickel is involved at any step therefore no allergies should results from wearing them.
With those elements in hand I mount or string the finished piece of jewellery in my atelier in the Gascony region of France.
Each item being a unique piece -some of them quite large- I take good care in quality and comfort when worn.
My designs are evolving in each new collection yet with a constant source of inspiration from nature, the colours shapes and origins of the stones themselves. Trees and leaves are a recurrent theme in every collections. Some of my pieces are often revealing my taste for antique Indian and mid Oriental jewellery.
My work is often qualified as quirky and original.
It is artisan made and I like to think I am creating a special bond with the ladies who choose to wear my creations.
I hope I am not wrong and I wish to keep it that way.
Global traveler with extensive stays in India, Brazil and Madagascar fuelled my fascination with their resource in semi-precious stones.
From around 2000 I knew I wanted to share this with a wider public. At the time I was working in the French film industry as a contractor and spending more and more time in India as an informal apprentice with the stone traders and artisans. They taught me about the use of noble materials and the importance of provenance, quality and craftsmanship.
Thus Atelier Chokerbali was born.
I often get asked where this name comes from. It is my personal tribute to a novel of the same name written by Rabindranath Tagore, great poet, philosopher and strong advocate in the defence of women rights. Nobel Price in 1913.
My manufacturing process is divided in three steps :
I only use ethically sourced stones from small scale businesses that I know personally. My stones come from the country of origin and each one is unique. When I have gathered some material I work alongside master artisans, and the stones are cut to my specification for my future designs.
They are then set and framed in Vermeil gold which is 18carats Gold Plated Sterling Silver. No nickel is involved at any step therefore no allergies should results from wearing them.
With those elements in hand I mount or string the finished piece of jewellery in my atelier in the Gascony region of France.
Each item being a unique piece -some of them quite large- I take good care in quality and comfort when worn.
My designs are evolving in each new collection yet with a constant source of inspiration from nature, the colours shapes and origins of the stones themselves. Trees and leaves are a recurrent theme in every collections. Some of my pieces are often revealing my taste for antique Indian and mid Oriental jewellery.
My work is often qualified as quirky and original.
It is artisan made and I like to think I am creating a special bond with the ladies who choose to wear my creations.
I hope I am not wrong and I wish to keep it that way.