Orkney-based jewellery designer Sheila Fleet has opened a new gallery store in St Andrews.

Ms Fleet, together with interior designer and artist Marion Yorston, present a "new retail experience promises to take you through time and space by the blending of elements".

Managing director Martin Fleet said: “When we started to strip back the premises in early March 2020, I didn’t expect a four-month renovation to take over a year. The pandemic has brought delays, but also the ability to change the plan and adapt.

“It has always been an aspiration to open our own shop in St Andrews and the opportunity arose when Richard Henderson, from Matthew Hendersons Jewellers, gave us first refusal to rent the building after deciding to retire. We used to supply the former premises and we did very good business with them. So, this development has been a lot of years in the planning."

The Herald: The storeThe store

He added: “Shops and the high street have had a tough time in recent years, and even more so due to closures brought on by the pandemic. This new shop is not just a jewellery gallery, but a ‘retail theatre’ and we hope visitors to St Andrews will enjoy the experience, which presents our jewellery beautifully in this new location.”

The shopfit has been undertaken by Alexander Oastler Ltd, with the lighting design, a key aspect throughout the shop, designed by Colin Begley of HUS Architecture. Ratho Byres Forge were commissioned to create the stunning seaweed sculpture that wraps around the exterior of the shop.

The store will be the designer’s fifth jewellery gallery.

Ms Fleet is currently one of the only jewellers authorised to make jewellery using 18ct Scottish Gold from the Cononish Gold mine, which is Scotland’s only commercial gold mine.

Ms said: “Over the last 28 years I have built a great team of skilled staff. Working together to get this new St Andrews shop open has kept us all positive and optimistic for the future of our designed-and-made-in-Orkney jewellery. I look forward to welcoming you to the new gallery so you can see for yourself how we’ve transformed a traditional jewellery shop into a contemporary magical space.”

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