Over the following week, we'll be bringing you the work and stories behind six young designers, whose work is being featured at the Oh Comely takeover of the London pop-up, Work-Shop. 

Second in the series is Saadiqah Rahman, an east London-based designer and maker whose work is defined by clean lines and confident forms. We asked her three questions. 

Tell us a little about yourself and the philosophy behind your work. 

I am an independent designer and maker based in east London. My past work ranges from product to events but I’ve found that jewellery is simultaneously the most indulgent and challenging form of design because it doesn’t bear the burden of utility. You have to be something of an alchemist to turn raw materials into something magnetic, and this is a large part of why I design and make jewellery.

I try to be completely objective with my chosen materials, because their qualities determine the form. That’s always the starting point. Not being traditionally trained in jewellery gives me the freedom to use materials in unorthodox ways.

My collection, Weight of Good Grammar, is based on the principle that you can have real presence if you know how to compose the plainest vocabulary. Each piece is a finely tuned composition of gold and leather. How the materials balance and connect is equivalent to the use of grammar, which is everything when working with seemingly simple forms.

Tell us about a piece you've designed with an interesting story. 

The first piece of jewellery I recall making was when I was 6, whilst being taught about the Celts. Each child was given a chunk of clay to carve into as a ‘brooch’. Instead, in secret, I took it apart and made a necklace. I was dead scared of getting caught and told off. In my mind it was for Boudicca the Warrior Queen – she was my heroine. I saw it in gold, silver and bone. The funny thing is that it did in fact get me sent to the Headmistress’s office but for praise rather than punishment. I still have it somewhere.

The Work-Shop takeover will be loosely themed on gardens. What's your favourite piece for the display? 

The collection’s quite androgynous so it gets attention from all sexes. The low hanging fork-like necklace is my favourite because it always gets compliments in equal measure from both men and women. Plus it’s really easy to wear with everything.