For millennia, the ocean has influenced jewellery design – from pearls paying tribute to Poseidon, the god of the sea, in ancient Greece to the flow of water mimicked by art nouveau and the shells we strung onto threads as children. The latest entry to this canon is British designer Laura Vann’s new spring/summer 2026 collection Tides of Movement, which drops March 25.
Incorporating sea-themed motifs like suckers, shells and sailor’s knots, as well as materials like pearls and coral-red-coloured cords, the collection reflects on the intersection between the sea and movement, while nodding to the art deco influences that run through Vann’s work. The Birmingham-based designer founded her jewellery brand in 2013 with an aim to bring art deco design to a wider audience, and is now stocked in Liberty and Selfridges, and the likes of Michelle Obama and Meghan Markle have worn her pieces.
“The starting point was actually very personal,” Vann tells Broadsheet. “My daughter has a small shell collection, and I became fascinated with their natural geometry and saw parallels with the intricate composition of art deco design. As the collection developed, a sense of fluidity began to emerge. We were designing silky snake chains, rope motifs and flowing links in pieces like the tennis bracelet, and the jewellery started to feel inherently oceanic.”
In one piece, a gold-plated charm embedded with white topaz, in the shape of a conch shell, hangs from a cord. Black-plated links of tennis bracelets and necklaces are set with white topazes to mimic the suckers of sea creatures. Vann’s signature bars, blackened metal detailing and sculptural forms regularly appear, as do her signature art deco references. It’s a fusion best seen in the Edith ring, which echoes an ammonite shell while also nodding to geometric art deco design.
“I have always been inspired by the Marine Building in Vancouver, which features incredible ocean themed carvings on its entrance doors, including ammonite shells,” Vann says. “That blend of marine imagery and strong geometry really resonated with what we were creating.”
In the campaign imagery, Royal Ballet principal dancer Francesca Hayward wears the pieces – an alignment Vann says was “natural”.
“The sea is never static, so it felt important that the collection was shown in motion for the campaign. Francesca Hayward immediately came to mind. The way she moves with such grace and precision felt like the perfect expression of that fluidity.”
Tides of Movement is available from March 25.
