Motherhood and a career pivot: How Tania Chan went from Chanel exec to high jewellery designer

CNA

14-07-2025

Hong Kong native Tania Chan has designed high jewellery (haute joaillerie) for the past 17 years. The mother of two wears many hats; she's a lecturer at L'ecole, School of Jewellery Arts (supported by jewellery house Van Cleef & Arpel's), teaching Gouache. As a GIA-certified gemologist, metallurgist, and jewellery designer, she also leads the creative direction of Osmium, the rarest precious metal in the world, and works at her high-end jewellery atelier, Alchemist.
Chan is fluent in French, English, Cantonese, and Mandarin and easily switches between the languages with her poetic descriptions of gouache, a traditional technique from the 18th century using paint pigments to capture precise three-dimensional designs on a 1:1 scale that jewellers use to craft pieces.
Chan stresses the importance of accuracy and precision. 'Even the tiniest details of the prong, we must paint it exactly as it is. Gouache is the blueprint for the team to look at for reference,' she said. 'For the gemologist to pick up the gemstone with the same saturation of the gem's colours, we must paint it with absolute precision. If the ruby is pigeon blood red or a vivid red, you'd better paint it right. Without speaking, based on the gouache, the jewellery team will know precisely how to make it come alive.'
At the annual trade show GemGeneve in Switzerland in May 2025, Chan conducted a series of Awakening the Senses workshops on Osmium gouache. There, she introduced an innovative modern technique to the centuries-old craft. Chan spent six months studying and experimenting with different brushes and brush stroke techniques before finally finding one that worked, creating a traditional three-dimensional gouache that comes alive with the texture of Osmium.
Chan gave me a sampling of a gouche workshop. 'I call it the dance of the dragonfly,' she explained. 'The technique mimics the gentle, graceful rhythm where the dragonfly touches the pond's surface, flies away and returns. You often see dragonflies in Chinese paintings; they are graceful and ephemeral, and in Chinese, we say it's the 'dragonfly dotting the water'. Using the same approach, you use the brush with gouache to lightly dab on the surface, allow it to dry, et viola!'
Chan likens working on gouache to yoga of the mind: 'It's meditative, and we focus on our inner strength and flexibility and connecting to our truest, highest self. I always get lost in the momentum of creating when I'm doing gouache."
The 18th-century art of gouache has survived the test of time, as digital computer-aided design (CAD) cannot replicate the nuances of gemstones – the different cuts, colours, and hues. Gouache, the opaque paint pigment, can create the effects of light and shadow in three dimensions and to an exact scale.
Chan accidentally fell into the craft and vocation of high jewellery as she searched for a career pivot after her first child was born. While looking to juggle full-time motherhood and find flexible part-time work, Chan left the corporate world and her regional roles with Chanel and Publicis Paris to sign up for a gemology course at GIA. She subsequently won a full scholarship to study jewellery design at GIA.
Chan is best known for her transformer jewellery – one piece worn many ways. 'I believe all creatives are driven by passion. It speaks louder than words or actions. Passion speaks for itself through our creations, ideas, and thought processes. People can copy designs but can't take away someone's creativity and passion.'
As a fifth-generation Hong Konger, Chan's late great-great-grandfather owned more than half of Hong Kong's pawnshops, and she grew up among an eclectic treasure trove of antiques from the family business. Chan reminisced: 'You name it gold, jade, Qing dynasty porcelain and all types of jewellery and decorative items.'
With her laser focus on details, joy from problem-solving, and curiosity about how things work, she has designed beautiful, luxurious pieces that can be a ring, pendant, brooch, or scarf accessory all in one. 'I'm not making cheap costume jewellery,' she joked. 'So, when you purchase a one-of-a-kind piece, you better maximise it. One piece, several ways.'
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I felt like Alice in Wonderland entering Chan's world of transformative high jewellery. The beautiful pieces are not just what they seem, but so much more as she takes the jewellery piece apart, clicks, and reattaches parts like a magician. She created a thoughtful design as an engagement ring – the bride-to-be is a nurse and cannot wear her ring at work, so the ring transforms into a pendant during work hours. There are hoop earrings and rings with different motifs on rotation that can also accessorise scarves. Or a yellow diamond brooch that transforms into a ring. The symbols of alpha and omega inspire the butterfly pendant, designed with Osmium, and parts of the butterfly detach from the brooch to become a pendant. She designs each piece to be as versatile as possible for all occasions, and one can travel with just one piece of jewellery instead of a cumbersome set and risk losing it during the travels.
Chan designs with style, power, and pragmatism in mind. "My jewellery is to give people pleasure and confidence. I want my designs to be emotional pieces, bringing joy, happiness, and connection.'
Chan's core idea is that every day is a transformation, and her jewellery reflects this philosophy. Her designs are not static, but evolve with the wearer, adapting to the different roles they play throughout the day. This transformative approach to jewellery is not only innovative but also inspiring, encouraging the audience to embrace change and evolution in their daily lives.
Chan moves gracefully and makes everything look effortless while having laser-sharp focus on details. She credits her background in luxury retail and the years she spent in Paris for her savoir-faire in haute couture and haute joaillerie.
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Currently, Chan has been having fun working on a men's accessories collection as a personal project. She finds so many possibilities in transformative high jewellery that have yet to be explored.
Chan's journey through the world of high jewellery is a remarkable blend of artistry, precision, and innovation. Her mastery of the ancient art of gouache not only preserves a traditional technique but has breathed new life into it with her modern interpretations. Her transformative jewellery pieces are designed to adapt to the wearer's lifestyle, brightening the everyday of those who wear them.
Most of all, what I found truly inspiring was her pivot from motherhood, giving up a successful career to stay home with her children; while searching for answers, she went back to school to learn entirely new skills and found immense joy and success in this second career.