Designer Spotlight Interview with Ananda Soul

With the launch of the brand new Ananda Soul jewellery collection 'Of Shadows & Light' on the LORE website, we are beyond excited to have had the opportunity to touch base with Ananda Soul founder, Christina Zipperlen.

The inspiration behind the collection is the dance between dark and light. It represents a reimagining of a more primal and empowered expression of femininity. In understanding the interplay between our light and shadow aspects we find the depths of our innate strength and power.

We are honoured to have the opportunity to showcase this new Ananda Soul collection, and invite you to keep reading to discover more of the inspiration behind this beautiful brand, in our exclusive designer spotlight interview with Ananda Soul founder, Christina.

I will love the light for it shows me the way,
yet I will endure the darkness because it shows me the stars.
– Og Mandino

What inspired the launch of Ananda Soul?

“Ananda Soul was born out of my deep desire and calling to combine art, the love for our planet, Bali’s enchanting, rich and life-changing culture, my desire to give back to community and planet, my intention to empower women, and to spread the message of radical inclusivity, body positivity and to normalize the significance of mental health. Over the course of the last decade, our jewelry has brought joy and blessings to thousands of people who got in touch with our designs. This includes everyone – from the people who source our materials to our production team, marketing team, our shop assistants, our fulfillment team all the way to you who gets to wear our creations.”

Why do you think the modern woman is drawn to spiritually significant jewellery?

"In current times that we find ourselves in, there's a lot of us (especially women) with a lot of responsibilities, expectations, and ways to fit in; so, topics like body image, self-confidence, and the bigger purpose of life is coming up even more now.

In the past women were dictated or told what to do with their lives or how to live their own lives, so there is a lot of re-defining and reclining happening around 'what it means to be a woman in today's age?'

So, tuning into purpose, into meaning, and into spirit in the sense of having support or having these messages as reminders to hold on and having these symbols that give us strengths and hopes that remind us to love ourselves, to love each other, to nourish ourselves is very important."

What techniques do your artisans use and how do you source the materials you use?

"We are working with two Bali-based production houses, one based in Denpasar and one in the artisan and silver village named Celuk. Both production sites are as committed to ethical work practices as we are. We ensure and follow up that they comply with fair trade work conditions, offering fair work hours, paid leave, medical and life insurance, and even accommodation for non-local team members along with a day-care for working mothers.

A little family compound in the village of Celuk is where a lot of our magic – the embellishment and the assembly – happens. At every stage of our production, we ensure fair working conditions.

RECYCLED SILVER

The core of our jewelry pieces is made from high-quality, certified recycled 925 sterling silver and is sourced from a German company that refines their metals using environmentally safe practices. We choose the path of recycled Silver which means that no additional mining is necessary for the creation of our products. 

Metal mining generally comes at a high cost for our planet and humanity – causing erosion, the contamination of groundwater and soil through the use of chemicals as a part of the mining process, the loss of biodiversity, landscape damage and human rights abuse, and child labor on the social side.

While we can’t take away the fact that silver used to be taken from the ground in the first place, we can ensure on our end that the Silver used in our products is coming from sources that recycle what is already circulating through our planet. Silver is ethical in a sense that it is never thrown away, hence it can be reused over and over again without compromising its quality over time. 

Artisans are an important part of the traditional communities in Bali. A place where one can find a particular group of artisans is in Celuk Village where silversmiths have been practicing their crafts for decades."

Why is it so important to Ananda Soul to preserve traditional techiques?

"Arts and crafts are a significant part of the Balinese culture, and among their artisans, one can find a community of highly skilled silversmiths. Jewelers here use traditional methods to produce their unique style of silverwork. It doesn't happen very often that these skills are explicitly performed by women, which is why we are even more enraptured by the talent of the women working in the Ananda Soul production.

Many families in Bali can trace their silversmith roots back to the Majapahit Empire (around the 13th century) and the invasion of the Javanese in the 16th century. In Bali, metal smiths are known as ‘Pandai’, a term that translates as both smith and clever. In legends in the area, the first goldsmith clans were taught their craft by the gods that were sent to earth to teach humankind civil behavior."

We love your ethos "Change The World A Little". Can you tell us why this is so important for you?

"Being aware of the imprint we leave on the world through Ananda Soul is one of our biggest focuses. That is that we constantly investigate the most ethical materials and production procedures, causing the least harm possible to our beloved planet. The ability to use our brand as a voice to support communities and projects is one of the main pillars of Ananda Soul. With our #changetheworldalittle initiate, we support individuals, projects, and organizations in their endeavors of making a difference in today’s world. We are in business for a thriving humanity and planet."