Two Turtle Doves: A Memoir of Making Things

Growing up in 1970s Suffolk in a crumbling giant of a house with wild, tangled gardens, Alex Monroe was left to wreak havoc by invention. Without visible parental influence, but with sisters to love him and brothers to fight for him, he made nature into his world.

Creation became a compulsion, whether it was go-karts and guns, crossbows and booby traps, boats, bikes, or scooters. And then, it was jewelry.

From full-out warfare waged against the local schoolboys to the freedom found in daredevil bike antics to the delicacies of dressmaking and the most intricate designs for jewelry, Two Turtle Doves traces the intimate journey of how an idea is transformed from a fleeting thought into an exquisite design. It is about where we find our creativity, how we remember, and why we make the things we do.

Alex Monroe grew up in rural Suffolk and showed a keen interest in art and design from an early age. Alex trained at Sir John Cass Faculty of Art in Whitechapel. He set up his business in South London in 1986 and Alex Monroe Jewelry is now an iconic and internationally successful brand.

www.alexmonroe.com
@agmonroe