Jewellery That Hugs You Back
Brand Spotlight: Fibula Japan
It started, as these things often do, with a doom scroll.
Sliding my thumb down and up, up and down—a fleeting second where something catches your eye before it gets lost forever in the algorithm. But this time, I stopped. A peaceful and beautiful minimalism radiated from the screen—the kind of aesthetic that feels effortless yet entirely deliberate. The account was called Fibula, and before I knew it, I was deep in their world.
You know my love for jewellery, especially pieces that feel like they could stay with me forever. Jewellery, at its best, should feel personal—like a part of you rather than something you put on and take off. I am always looking for new brands and designs, special jewellery pieces that will indeed make or break the outfit for me. So I followed them, they are quite small still and almost as quickly, their team reached out with a message asking me if I would like more information. Of course I did!
Their kindness was unmistakably Japanese. Their designs were unlike anything I’d seen before: minimalist, but never cold; sculptural, but fluid; a balance between structure and imperfection. In perfect Japanese wabi-sabi style.
The girls at Fibula told me that they take inspiration from the fibulae—a brooch used in the ancient Greek and Roman empires to fasten clothing—a distant cousin of buttons. An ancient heirloom that was found in many burial sites or hoards, sometimes buried with its owners. Which tells me it held strong significance even in ancient times, when it was said to be the object that reflected the life passions of the dead.
Well, Fibula creates pieces that are indeed just as significant. Their rings, in fact, don’t just sit on your finger—they hug it.
The curves mould to the skin as if they were always meant to be there; they feel both architectural and fluid at once. Some of their designs can double as ear cuffs, and you know —I love a versatile piece that can adapt to all my different moods.
Now, if you have slightly larger fingers like me (a size 17 EU, which can be frustratingly hard to find), you’ll know the struggle of falling in love with a ring only to realise it doesn’t come in your size. But Fibula made one just for me. A slow approach I absolutely love. I had to wait for my ring to be conceived, designed, produced, and shipped—a wait that made me impatient and excited at the same time.
When it arrived, I was floored by its beauty. I can pair it with almost all of my gold jewellery, especially my spring and summer pieces with freshwater pearls. And I LOVE pearls—the way each one is unique, the way they instantly add freshness and lightness to a look.
But more than that, it feels like something I will keep forever. The kind of piece that won’t get lost in the flow of trends but will instead take on meaning over time.
A modern heirloom. That’s how I see it! And not because it is old, but because it is distinctive in its simplicity. I can see it slowly becoming a little signature ring I will wear all the time—something people will recognise as mine if I ever leave it on the table.
Like those little studs my boyfriend always wears and never takes off, or the Capricorn necklace my friend Giulia always has around her neck. They remind me of them—they are part of them.
This idea of modern heirlooms also reminds me of a necklace my mother used to wear—a gold sun pendant that was so distinctly her. One day it disappeared from her neck, and I discovered only later in my adult life that she had to sell it during a difficult financial time.
For years, I had unknowingly buried the memory of it. I thought I had forgotten. How insignificant, isn’t it?
Then, one Christmas, she gifted me a delicate little sun necklace, and suddenly, it all came back to me—the feeling of holding onto it while lost in her arms, the warmth of something so familiar but almost forgotten. I cried like a baby, and by February, I had gotten her one too. And by June, my sister got one as well.
That, to me, is what a modern heirloom truly is—something that becomes so much a part of you that it’s now your signature. A little object with meaning. Something that feels timeless and worth keeping. Worth passing down.
A second skin that, one day, in some way, will hug you—or someone you love—back.
Hope you enjoyed this piece. I am always on the hunt for small, independent brands from all over the world, and I will keep bringing you only the best.
Thank you for being here, I love you!
Giulia xx
That is so lovely that you found a company whose designs spoke to you so well, Giulia! What a gorgeous ring that is! I have some pieces like this - bought new - that I will eventually pass along to my nieces.
Love, love, love. Such unique designs!