Designing fine jewellery runs in the Rozendaal family, but only male members apparently possess this inherited trait.
Roos founder and designer Rien Rozendaal.
“I have three sisters but none of them took an interest in our jewellery business, which has been passed from father to son for six generations,” said Rien Rozendaal, who was recently in Bangkok to open a Roos concept showroom at Italthai Tower on New Petchburi Road.
His ancestor Jan Rozendaal founded the Brothers Rozendaal company in 1835, with a goldsmith workshop based in Hoorn, the Netherland’s jewellery centre.
“When I was a child, I was called Ros, which is short for Rozendaal. Roos makes a better brand name, as when translated from Dutch it means rose,” he said. “It also relates to our expertise in traditional rose-cut diamonds, which are more ethereal-looking compared to flashy brilliant-cut diamonds.”
Now based in Belgium, Roos is notable for combining old rose-cut stones in different shapes like round, oval and pear with modern brilliant-cut diamonds. The jewellery is also set with coloured ice diamonds mixed with natural uncut raw or brilliant-cut stones.
Even though Rozendaal studied economics, he always wanted to be a jewellery designer like his father, but his approach differed in creations of smaller everyday pieces, particularly combining white with yellow gold for two-tone jewellery.
“My father studied arts at the Ecole de Beaux-Arts in Paris. He taught me how to design, which I started by sketching boats, houses and watches when I was around 11 or 12. My father looked at my sketches and told me which ones were good or not,” recalled Rozendaal, whose jewellery designing for Roos began in 1980.
“Following my heart, I design pieces that I would love to give to someone. I just design according to what I like, and fortunately there are others who like them too,” he said.
His jewellery designs, however, are influenced from other industries as, he professes, he has an “antenna” to pick up the latest trends.
“You have to keep your eyes open to see what’s happening in fashion, furniture and car designs. The shape of headlights, for example, were round, square, oval then elongated — the different forms sometimes you see them in fashion, furniture and jewellery as everything influences each other.”
The trend now leans toward pink and rose gold jewellery as well as black stones, with Rozendaal incorporating black sapphires and diamonds in his designs.
“In fashion, black is always chic, and jewellery with black stones makes stylish accessories,” he said.
Roos claims to not produce more than 10 pieces of each design, with limited editions priced from 33,000 to 333,000 baht.
A collection of over 200 pieces are showcased at the Bangkok concept showroom, operated by Market Access, who’s also the distributor for other AEC markets. The showroom is only eligible for members with prior appointments. Those interested can get a glimpse of the collection via the online store at www.roos1835bangkok.com.
“My family has been making jewellery for 180 years. The time has come to be here in Asia. We chose to come to Thailand first because the country is a jewellery hub,” Rozendaal said of Roos’ expansion to Asia.
This source first appeared on Bangkok Post Lifestyle.