Jewellery with Heart at Maxine Noosa
Unique beauty surrounds us in Noosa and there is one local jeweller casting the essence of our region into every gorgeous piece she makes. Carlie Wacker meets the maker behind Maxine Noosa – jewellery with a heart!
Master contemporary jeweller Carla Maxine Germann designs jewellery to tell a story and her most recent collection is a most beautiful tale of the magical life we live in Noosa.
Whilst completing her Masters degree at Stellenbosch University in South Africa, Carla embarked on an exchange program with the University of Amsterdam.
“It was just so incredible and inspiring in Amsterdam where I also worked at a contemporary jewellery gallery,” she said. “I was fascinated at how these jewellery pieces were like art with designs that went past the point of just being decorative to tell stories or relay messages.”
For over 20 years Carla has been guided by her musings in jewellery making and works with lovers to create engagement rings and wedding bands under her brand Carla Maxine Jewellery. This business began in her homeland of South Africa then travelled to Sydney where it is based in a gallery in the Strand Arcade.
“The gallery is called Courtesy of the Artist and I am one of five custom artists that they exclusively represent,” she said. “They’ve got this incredible collection of Australian Sapphires that the clients of the gallery get to work with, and then choose a designer to design their piece.”
“It’s such an honour to be involved with this gallery and its clients.”
But this is not the whole Carla Maxine Germann story – you see in 2020 the Germann family relocated to Noosa.
Carla still commutes to Sydney and works remotely on the Carla Maxine brand, but her new venture is what
I want to introduce you to.
Maxine Noosa is the little idea that was inspired by the move to our special UNESCO Biosphere Reserve of Noosa.
“The idea was to have a business that was more at a gifting price point and celebrated everything we love about Noosa,” Carla explains. “We always thought we would retire here but it happened much sooner than retirement.
“While I was on maternity leave I started developing the brand and trying to capture the essence of this place.
“This was the first time in eight years that I was starting a new brand from scratch – the world and the environment is so different now and I wanted to create a brand that had a purpose.
“Sustainability and environmental protection is important to me so I wanted to create a brand built on these values.”
Carla uses mostly recycled metals and everything is done with sustainability in mind, including carbon-offsetting travel and freight and using biodegradable packaging. The casting supplier Carla works with uses 100% recycled metals; the silver and gold are recycled locally from other jewellers’ scraps or from old jewellery that people trade in; and they even get quite a bit of precious metal from computer waste!
Maxine Noosa presents us with a sustainable jewellery label at an affordable price point that shines the light on the elements that make Noosa so awesome and shares our story with the world.
“My first piece was the iconic koala,” says Carla. “On one of our holidays walking National Park every morning, we saw a koala near Tea Tree Bay and it was just so incredibly special that I wanted to honour this experience.”
After learning more about the dwindling koala population in Australia, Carla was motivated to dedicate her debut Maxine Noosa collection to koala conservation and has partnered with the Australian Koala Foundation to provide a donation from the sale of each piece from the Noosa Koala Collection.
The Maxine Noosa collection has now expanded to offer not only the hand-crafted koala pendant but also a green sea turtle, Noosa river fish and the iconic bush turkey – all telling the rich tale of our much loved fauna in Noosa.
The flora gets a mention with designs exploring the banksia and Carla’s other passion point – the mangrove flower.
“The grey mangrove flower is amazing because when the flower actually opens up it has little heart-shaped seeds inside,” Carla excitedly explains.
Appropriately, that jewellery piece was launched on Valentine’s Day.
The Maxine Noosa jewellery collection is quintessentially Noosa – celebrating the icons of our town. This brand is dedicated to making a social impact, giving back, and shining the light on sustainable fashion and business.
When you wear a Maxine Noosa contemporary jewellery piece, you’ll be doing your bit to tell our Noosa story.
The next chapter for Maxine Noosa expands beyond our region to support women and families in South Africa with a collection of bead woven beauties inspired by aerial shots of local beaches that have be seen to be fully appreciated.
Carla also has plans to launch a Coral Reef Collection and will continue to take commissions for Carla Maxine Jewellery. Keep an eye on this creative, clever soul!
