- Learn about the history of mudlarking on the River Thames and how it inspired Alex Monroe to create a beautiful new jewellery collection.
- The charms are miniature copies of real items found along the River Thames, such as trade tokens and old glass bottles. Jewellery inspired by marine wildlife such as otters, eels and seahorses feature too.
- View the entire collection here.
No, mudlarking isn't the act of dancing around in mud. It does, however, have more in common with that image than you might think. It's the practice of searching the exposed banks and shores for long-lost treasures, from age-old tokens to fragments of antique glass bottles.
This unique connection to Britain's past is what inspired Alex Monroe's latest Water's Edge jewellery collection.
What is mudlarking?
Mudlarking goes all the way back to the 18th and 19th centuries, when poor Londoners sold whatever they could find on the Thames's banks and shores to scrape a living.
Mudlarks (the name given to people who go mudlarking) ranged from the very young to the old. They battled fast tides, treacherous mud, and an extremely polluted Thames to sell what they could find – copper, iron, bones, coal.
Nowadays, mudlarking is a rewarding hobby, where you hunt for long-lost objects on the banks and shores with your eyes, metal detectors and elbow grease. The London Museum's website is a brilliant place to learn more about mudlarking, including how to get involved yourself.
Water's Edge collection
The Water's Edge collection features many fun and stylish pieces inspired by items you'd find mudlarking or on your travels out at sea. Many of them are available in both gold and silver.
See the full Water's Edge collection here
- All of Alex Monroe's pieces are designed and responsibly handmade in England.
- The silver and gold used by Alex Monroe is recycled. Learn more about its sustainability efforts here.
Alex Monroe has plenty of other jewellery collections inspired by nature that might catch your eye:
- A Garden Gathering: pretty florals meet bumble bees
- Wild Botany: inspired by the rich plant life of the British landscape.
- Into The Woods: venture into the woodland and forests of the UK.
