A Family Journey - Preview | Boodles

We’re delighted to announce the upcoming launch of our new High Jewellery collection for 2025: A Family Journey: Around Africa in 10 Days. This collection marks an exciting third chapter in Boodles’ journey around the world, inspired by a trip that Boodles President, Nicholas Wainwright, and Marketing Director, Honour Wainwright went on to buy stones, seek inspiration, and of course, have a bit of Boodles fun along the way!

Boodles presents

Around Africa in 10 Days officially launches on 25th June 2025

Around Africa in 10 Days

We’re delighted to announce the upcoming launch of our new High Jewellery collection for 2025: A Family Journey: Around Africa in 10 Days.

Words by Nicholas Wainwright, Boodles Chairman

It began with a conversation over Sunday lunch… as many things do in our family! We were reflecting on my travels through Europe a few years ago, and on my father’s trip around the world in 1962, something that was almost unheard of at the time. Both journeys inspired travel-themed jewellery collections. More and more, we’ve found that people are looking for jewellery that holds a memory and, of course, tells a story. Very few things in life can do that quite like jewellery: something you look at and are instantly taken back to a moment, a person, or a place.

That idea stayed with us, and ultimately, it’s what led to our next adventure. With this new collection, we wanted to capture the vibrancy, energy and spirit of the African continent, from the animals to the landscapes, and to its extraordinarily multifaceted culture. Africa has given us so much over the years: exceptional gemstones, our Single Mine Origin gold, and diamonds from the Cullinan Mine. So it felt especially fitting that our charity of the year is Just a Drop, which provides communities around the world with access to safe water, with over 380 of its projects based in Africa.

And so, in October 2024, my niece Honour (Director of Marketing at Boodles) and I embarked on a journey that took us from South Africa, where we boarded the iconic Blue Train with our long-time friend and gemstone partner, Saul Goldberg, up through Tanzania and on to the Masai Mara in Kenya. We witnessed the wildebeest migration from a hot air balloon, spent time with craftspeople, swapped stories with local guides, and of course, found some rather special stones…

“There are forty-four pieces in total in the collection - each one full of colour, full of character, & full of memories of a very special trip”

Nicholas Wainwright, Boodles Chairman

The Collection

Around Africa in 10 Days is the result… a collection inspired by the colours, people, wildlife and landscapes we encountered along the way: from majestic lions in the Mara to the deep blue tones of the Tanzanian skies. Some of the stones were purchased during our travels, including the Ashokas in the Victoria Falls rings and a 34 carat tsavorite from Tanzania. We have also set many of the pieces in Single Mine Origin gold from the Sabodala-Massawa Mine in Senegal, ensuring fully traceable, responsibly sourced gold at scale, from the mine into our showrooms. Highlights of the collection include an elephant necklace featuring a 26 carat pear shape morganite and ten white agates that were each carved by hand. Both the pendant and the morganite are detachable, meaning the necklace can be worn three different ways… a versatility we are seeking to offer more and more in our jewellery. There is a zebra collar set with a 3.35 carat Colombian emerald and over 1,000 diamonds, amongst black enamel. My personal favourite is the Zambezi bangle set with an oval 3.03 carat tsavorite overlaid with delicate dark enamel shard, and surrounded by carved mother of pearl – the vivid green of the tsavorite catches the light just like the alligator’s eye we witnessed peeking out from the river did. There are forty-four pieces in total in the collection – each one full of colour, full of character, and full of memories of a very special trip.

Left: The Kilimanjaro, A one of a kind necklace featuring a hexagonal shaped tanzanite of over 33 carats surrounded by brilliant cut tsavorites and diamonds

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Discover The Collection

The Lake Nakuru

“A flamboyance of flamingos” abound at Lake Nakuru – one of the most stunning spots in Kenya’s Rift Valley. And the pinker a flamingo, the more attractive it is – it’s a signal of being a strong forager. Our Lake Nakuru collection is fittingly appealing, resplendent with pink morganites, sapphires and diamonds. The collar, bracelet and earrings feel light as a feather – while the rings both create their own gravity.

The Gazelle

Sleek, swift and surefooted, the gazelle is one of the fastest creatures on the savanna, as well as perhaps the most graceful. Inspired by the long, curved horns of the distinctivelooking male ‘Thomson’, we’ve created a suite of rings and earrings featuring diamonds and mandarin garnets. Look closely and you’ll also see we’ve alternated the mandarin garnets and diamonds across the earring pair, so one forms the flip of the other.

Kasbah Atlas Mountain

The distinctive “kasbah” citadels of the Atlas mountains mark the landscape of north African nations, standing proud on the skyline in rose-golden tones. Once home to great rulers, these fortress watchtowers protected villages from rivalling tribes. Today, we’ve echoed their structure in a necklace, earrings and bracelet of pink oval rhodochrosite cabochons and imperial topaz gemstones.

The Giraffe

A group of giraffes is called a “tower” – how very apt. This suite is a monument to honour them, comprising a ring, bracelet and spellbinding pendant that’s sure to have everyone craning for a closer peek. Did you know giraffes have the same number of neck vertebrae as we do? Just imagine how many coloured diamonds a giraffe’s necklace would need...

The Zebra

On clear evenings, zebras seem invisible: their distinctive striped pattern helps them vanish from view, avoiding the attention of predators. That certainly can’t be said of this suite: it’s guaranteed to draw the eye, day or night. Marquise diamonds and emeralds – not least, a 16.72 carat oval shaped emerald in the ring – are set to dazzle, with contrast provided by black enamel. Good luck evading those lions...

The Zebra

On clear evenings, zebras seem invisible: their distinctive striped pattern helps them vanish from view, avoiding the attention of predators. That certainly can’t be said of this suite: it’s guaranteed to draw the eye, day or night. Marquise diamonds and emeralds – not least, a 16.72 carat oval shaped emerald in the ring – are set to dazzle, with contrast provided by black enamel. Good luck evading those lions...

The Elephant

Enchanting. Exciting. Enormous. These intelligent, magnificent mammals are never less than amazing to see. Troops of adult females and their calves epitomise maternal protection, symbolised by the 26 carat pear morganite in our Elephant necklace’s pendant.

The Green Mamba

Green mambas are surprisingly shy: they like to keep themselves to themselves, preferring to stay hidden in jungle foliage rather than seeking the spotlight. Ours love to coil around opals – and have sparkling heads, set with tsavorites and diamonds.

The Victoria Falls

In the Bantu language of Lozi, the Victoria Falls are called Mosi-oa-Tunya – “The Smoke That Thunders”. They’ve also been known as Seongo, “The Place of the Rainbow”, because of their sparkling spray. Our Ashoka and Asscher cut rings seek to honour them, while the Ashoka cut earrings pour with briolette, baguette and brilliant cut diamonds, creating an asymmetric cascade.

The Maasai Mara

In the Maasai language, ‘Mara’ means ‘spotted’ – that’s how the low, bushy trees which dot the landscape tend to look from afar. Our Maasai Mara pendant, rings and earrings are set to turn heads. They’re inspired by the colours and patterns of Maasai textiles and jewellery, including the traditional red robes known as shúkà , echoed here through fire opal and spessartite garnet.

The Lion

Hic sunt leones – “here are lions”. It was a phrase used by ancient cartographers to indicate as-yet-uncharted lands. Lions would perhaps have preferred evading discovery: the Roman emperor Commodus is said to have slain 100 just in one day. We believe in protecting these marvels, paying tribute with marquise shaped diamonds in white and mixed shades of yellow.

The African Sunset

Two rings – and 694 (!) precious stones between them. In craft terms, these are astounding. The main gems are the show-stoppers: a 21.33 carat tanzanite (acquired on this trip by Boodles’ President, Nicholas Wainwright), and a 20.39 carat pink tourmaline. In each case, these form our African ‘suns’, which in profile you can see setting through the branches of a baobab tree. They are cradled by a pavé-set 'tree's canopy' formed by striking green, orange and pink gemstones.

Kasbah Atlas Mountain

The distinctive “kasbah” citadels of the Atlas mountains mark the landscape of north African nations, standing proud on the skyline in rose-golden tones. Once home to great rulers, these fortress watchtowers protected villages from rivalling tribes. Today, we’ve echoed their structure in a necklace, earrings and bracelet of pink oval rhodochrosite cabochons and imperial topaz gemstones.

The African Sunset

Two rings – and 694 (!) precious stones between them. In craft terms, these are astounding. The main gems are the show-stoppers: a 21.33 carat tanzanite (acquired on this trip by Boodles’ President, Nicholas Wainwright), and a 20.39 carat pink tourmaline. In each case, these form our African ‘suns’, which in profile you can see setting through the branches of a baobab tree. They are cradled by a pavé-set 'tree's canopy' formed by striking green, orange and pink gemstones.

Kasbah Atlas Mountain

The distinctive “kasbah” citadels of the Atlas mountains mark the landscape of north African nations, standing proud on the skyline in rose-golden tones. Once home to great rulers, these fortress watchtowers protected villages from rivalling tribes. Today, we’ve echoed their structure in a necklace, earrings and bracelet of pink oval rhodochrosite cabochons and imperial topaz gemstones.