Edward Janssen is a silversmith for Tiffany’s who also designs a custom line of jewelry under the name This Charming Man. After losing his passion for jewelry-making during a stint in the service industry, Edward rediscovered it during a trip to the United States and built a career. Originally from Australia, he now lives New York with his wife Elizabeth Carey Smith and their daughter.

Tell me how you first got into designing jewelry. Did you wear a lot of jewelry growing up?

I have always been interested in adornment—not just jewelry, but clothing, hairstyles, tattoos, any form of decoration, basically. I’m sure my mother was the predominant reason for this. She has always shared her interest in fashion with me, and is very talented herself. She was actually head of the Australian hand-knitters guild, which, yes, is as odd as it sounds. As well as producing incredible argyle and Fair Isle sweaters, these women and a few men would also take on crazier projects, like reproducing exact replicas of wartime clothing or knitting full desert landscapes out of wool. I was also lucky enough to attend a high school that fostered and encouraged creativity. After I attended an amazing one-year arts program designed to let you try a little of everything, I narrowed my choices down to printmaking or gold and silversmithing. I then pursued my BFA at university, but in a lot of ways I regret learning my craft there as I feel the emphasis was put squarely on concept technique, where technical skill came in a very sorry second. After university, feeling mentally burned out, I went down the hospitality rabbit hole and ended up working in, and then managing a bar. It wasn’t until coming to NYC for the first time in 2005 that I got inspired to start making jewelry again, and from there to creating my This Charming Man jewelry label.

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