From floral and mythical creature motifs to intricate filigree, traditional Peranakan jewellery is defined by its distinctive design and enduring craftsmanship. Shaped by a fusion of Chinese, Malay, and European influences, these pieces reflect a culture rich in storytelling, where craft and identity are closely intertwined.
For silversmith Jessie Koh, the values behind that tradition – patience, discipline and pride in workmanship – shaped not only her creative aesthetic, but a work ethic that she carried into a successful 20-year career across retail, sales and operations.
When she stepped away from corporate to pursue silversmithing full-time, the career pivot was less a departure than a return to the same foundations embedded in her life since childhood.
Today, her metalsmithing practice includes the light-hearted everyday pieces of Jessie’s Trinket Trove, the Peranakan-inspired collections of her flagship brand JK Gems, and My Artisan Hub, the studio and workshop she founded to cultivate and share an appreciation for traditional craft.
The makings of a heritage storyteller
Jessie was born in Penang while her father was serving in the army, later moving to Kluang before the family settled in Kuala Lumpur. With a Penang Nyonya mother and a Baba father from Melaka, she grew up in a household where making was not just a hobby but part of everyday life.
“My childhood environment shaped me tremendously. The respect for materials, the patience to see things through, and the belief in doing things properly even when no one is watching were lessons absorbed quietly over time.”
Her father built cabinets and repaired what needed fixing while her mother designed and sewed clothing from fabrics they selected together.
“Craftsmanship was simply part of everyday life. It wasn’t idealised or treated as something special,” she says. “I witnessed the long hours, the physical demands, and the discipline required to make things well.”
The shift from corporate to craft
Jessie completed her MBA at RMIT University in Melbourne before returning to Malaysia in 2010, where she resumed her corporate career. Over the next seven years, she would continue to build on that trajectory, while a quieter instinct persisted – the urge to create with her hands.
In 2017, she finally stepped away from the corporate world to explore metalsmithing more fully.
“Silversmithing eventually became the point where everything aligned,” she explains. “The jeweller’s bench demanded the same discipline I had honed in corporate life, but offered something deeper — tangible outcomes, mastery through repetition, and a direct connection between effort and result.”
What began years earlier as simple experimentation with pliers, wire, beads and a jewellery-making book gradually deepened into a more serious pursuit.
Determined to move beyond hobbyist techniques, Jessie pursued formal training in metalsmithing and stone-setting in Kuala Lumpur at the Lucy Walker Metalsmith Academy, where regular access to a professional studio allowed her to develop both technical skill and confidence at the bench.
“Having regular access to a professional studio environment allowed me to work consistently at the bench — repeating techniques, correcting mistakes, and building confidence through disciplined practice,” she says. “Much of my confidence today comes from remaking the same forms repeatedly until the process becomes intuitive.”
Working in silver
Jessie works primarily with 925 sterling silver and semi-precious gemstones, crafting each piece by hand from her studio. Designed for everyday wear, sterling silver develops character over time while retaining its strength.
“It has a quiet elegance that suits my design language, and it responds well to traditional hand-fabrication techniques without losing its integrity,” she says. “Sterling silver also has a long history in jewellery-making, which aligns with my interest in craft traditions and pieces that are made to be worn, lived in, and kept over time.”
Like all precious metals, sterling silver benefits from mindful care. Exposure to air and everyday wear may cause it to tarnish slightly, but this is easily managed with regular cleaning and proper storage.
Jessie recalls a customer who rarely takes off a favourite piece she made – the Eternal Flora Pendant with Jasper and Citrine.
“Sterling silver suits her and feels natural on her, and knowing the piece was handmade – shaped slowly and intentionally – gives it a sense of presence and permanence. In that way, the jewellery becomes more than an object; it’s something familiar and grounding through its form, weight, and meaning.”
Shaping Peranakan heritage into form under JK Gems
While Jessie’s Trinket Trove represents the lighter and more accessible side of her work, JK Gems – launched in 2025 as her flagship brand – reflects the more technically rigorous side of her metalsmithing practice. The collections focus on statement and collector pieces that require greater time, complexity and mastery at the bench.
“The transition wasn’t about abandoning one for the other,” she says. “It was about clearly defining two distinct brand pillars within my practice.”
Jessie’s Peranakan heritage informs the direction of JK Gems in subtle ways. Rather than reproducing traditional jewellery motifs directly, she studies the underlying design language found in Peranakan pieces and translates these references into contemporary jewellery. This research also extends to traditional forms such as the kerongsang rantai, whose structure and symbolism she continues to study and reinterpret.
“I’m particularly interested in restraint,” she explains. “Simplifying forms, refining proportions, and allowing negative space so the pieces feel contemporary while still carrying cultural memory.”
This approach can be seen in collections such as the Warisan Peranakan Cuffs and Eternal Flora Pendants, both of which received support from the MyCreative Ventures Matching Fund Scheme, recognising the role heritage-informed contemporary craft can play within Malaysia’s creative economy.
Behind JK Gems, Jessie continues to work largely on her own at the bench. While she briefly welcomed interns from Institut Kraf Negara in 2025, the design and making remain entirely her own – each piece slowly developed, tested and refined through repeated bench work.
“Each piece is handcrafted slowly and intentionally, positioned as wearable art rather than trend-driven fashion,” she says. Created in limited numbers, the pieces are intended to be lived with over time, revealing their character through everyday wear.
My Artisan Hub: A space for learning and community
As Jessie’s metalsmithing practice deepened, she recognised the need for a dedicated space that could support both serious making and meaningful learning.
That idea took shape in My Artisan Hub, the studio she opened in Sri Hartamas in 2022. The space allows her to focus on her own work at the bench while also sharing the fundamentals of metalsmithing with others in a structured, professional environment.
For Jessie, teaching goes beyond technique. Through workshops, courses and a rent-a-bench programme, My Artisan Hub encourages participants to develop patience, discipline and a deeper understanding of the craft traditions behind the work.
Since opening the studio, she has noticed a shift in how people engage with handmade objects.
“Participants begin to recognise the patience and skill involved in making, often developing a deeper appreciation for objects shaped by hand. For some, the studio becomes a place to slow down and reconnect with making; for others, it marks the beginning of a more committed creative journey.”
Deepening the practice
“Metalsmithing is a discipline where learning never really ends, and staying curious – while remaining disciplined – is what keeps the work evolving without losing its integrity.”
Looking ahead, Jessie’s focus will be on between deepening her work under JK Gems and strengthening My Artisan Hub as a serious metalsmithing studio.
Rather than expanding quickly, she is continuing to refine her heritage-informed collections – including Eternal Flora Pendants and Warisan Peranakan Cuffs – taking time to test, remake and evolve each piece at the bench.
Meanwhile, she continues to refine My Artisan Hub as both working atelier and learning space, strengthening workshops, supporting practitioners, and maintaining an environment where the connection between making, teaching, and heritage remains visible.
Together, the two sides of her work reflect the same philosophy: steady progress built on discipline.
“Both sides move at a deliberate pace, but together they reflect the same intention: to build work and space that can last, grow steadily and contribute meaningfully to contemporary craft.”
Don’t call out your friend’s name in the jungle. Credits: Pixabay.[/caption]
