Introduction

Background

As I was walking my dogs in the Pentland Hills above Edinburgh, I asked myself how silversmithing, a tradition reaching back hundreds of years in Scotland, could be made more relevant and interesting in the modern world. Scotland has always been a leader in innovative design, producing life-changing inventions from the telephone to television to Dolly the Sheep, the world's first cloned mammal. It occurred to me that we now needed to adapt the best of our exquisite design and craft traditions to suit today's nano-second world, in which much of our lives are defined and influenced by image, excitement and entertainment.

The Collection

So was born"Silver of the Stars", in which ten international celebrities in the fields of film, fashion, music, theatre and literature, have been paired with ten of Scotland's finest silversmiths. Each pair has collaborated on the design for a piece of silver on that most beautiful moment,"a drink with a close friend", resulting in a hugely varied collection of drinking vessels that ranges from absinthe goblets to teapots to claret jugs. "Silver of the Stars" is a registered charity that will benefit ten charities nominated by each of the celebrities.

Michael Laing OBE DL

Chairman