Journal

The Duchess of Edinburgh and Suzanne Innes-Stubb visit Kalevala Jewelry

On 27 October, during the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh’s official visit to Finland, we welcomed Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Edinburgh to our factory in Helsinki. She was joined by the First Lady of Finland, Suzanne Innes-Stubb.

Sophie, The Duchess of Edinburgh, is the wife of Prince Edward, the youngest brother of King Charles III. Mrs Innes-Stubb is the wife of Finland’s President Alexander Stubb, and she has both British and Finnish roots.

The heritage behind Kalevala Jewelry

Our CEO Kirsi Paakkari and Creative Director Aino Ahlnäs hosted the visit.
The Finnish design house was born from the vision of bold women in 1937 and is still owned by the cultural organisation Kalevala Women’s Association. The guests heard this story and saw how a piece of Kalevala jewelry is designed today, from the first sketch to the finished piece.

Inside our jewelry factory in Helsinki

On the guided tour of the factory, they saw the steps behind each piece: casting, shaping, soldering and polishing. All our jewelry is still made here in Helsinki, where traditional Finnish goldsmithing works side by side with modern technology.

Making a silver ring at the goldsmith’s bench

The visit ended at the goldsmith’s bench.
Guided by our goldsmiths, the Duchess and Mrs Innes-Stubb each made a silver ring of their own. They used the same tools and techniques our goldsmiths use every day. It was a chance to try the hand skills that go into every piece of Kalevala jewelry.

“We were honoured to welcome the Duchess of Edinburgh and our First Lady to our factory and to show them where every piece of Kalevala jewelry is made. When you sit at the goldsmith’s bench yourself, you see how much skill goes into even a simple silver ring. That skill is something we have kept in Helsinki for almost 90 years,” says Kirsi Paakkari, CEO of Kalevala Jewelry.

The hand skills our guests tried at the goldsmith’s bench are part of a Finnish design heritage that has shaped Kalevala jewelry since 1937. Many pieces are made to last and passed from one generation to the next. Some have become design icons, such as Björn Weckström’s sculptural Planetoid Valleys and Paula Häiväoja’s geometric Himmeli necklace.

Read more about our history

Discover our design icons