Riham Zaghloul is the heart and soul behind Cairo-based ZAGH, a unique new brand of jewelry.
“Quality and attention to detail are an integral part of the ZAGH DNA,” she said. “We use our studio in Italy more for gold works and our studio in Germany for silver. Locally, you’ll find the know-how in traditional techniques like hammering, traditional stone setting, carving, etc.”
Zaghloul has always been obsessed by precision and attention to detail. Although she began her university studies with mechanical engineering, she eventually graduated with a double major in computer sciences and business. She decided to work as a software engineer before turning to jewelry. She has merged these two disciplines to create ZAGH.
A jewel is not all about bling and branding. It is also about personal choice, self-expression and the conversation about the piece that arises from a compliment, the meaning and history behind it, and what inspired it.
“In my opinion, jewelry is the one thing that’s a real expression of a woman’s personal taste, of one’s values, as well as being a status symbol,” Zaghloul said. “It’s the one accessory that reflects the real personality. I wear jewelry to highlight my mood at a particular point in time. For me, jewelry is a form of expression with metal and stone.”
Zaghloul likes jewelry pieces that have a contemporary look. She is aware that today’s buyers are often young women who buy impulsively. This happens when they see a design they respond to. It is not just about owning a piece but about experiencing it.
Young people are turning increasingly toward the handmade. “Craftsmanship” and “artisan” are buzzwords nowadays. When a piece exudes workmanship, it has an emotional pull. “I loved art since childhood, and found enormous pleasure working with my hands. I felt there was always a truth behind working with hands,” she said.
After graduating, Zaghloul worked for 17 years at Microsoft and Oracle. She never planned to go into jewelry, but discovered it on the way. She always struggled with buying because “I could never find the piece that represented me. I felt that the pieces in the shops made me look like everyone else, so I decided to use my drawing skills and sketch my own.”
For almost 12 years, she designed almost 80 percent of the jewelry she wore or gave as gifts, and describes herself as a “jewelry fanatic.” She added: “It was when I started visiting international jewelry shows and traveling thousands of miles to spend hours in workshops in my free time that it hit me that this should no longer remain a hobby.”
ZAGH was launched in 2015 with an international mindset from the start. Its pieces are thoughtful reiterations of cultural themes that are modern and minimalistic, ready to appeal to an international clientele.
Zaghloul works with gold and silver to create collections that are assertive in character and comfortable to wear, with a focus on strong, simple shapes, and on tone and texture, all underpinned with a depth of meaning to the design. For her “Curves” collection, inspired by the birth of her first child, she has taken a pure, conceptual approach to design. She creates strong, fluid forms intended to reflect human nature.
The “State of the Mind” collection is influenced by her love for calligraphy, which she learned from her grandfather. “I remember as a child watching him carve out his own calligraphy tools from reed. It took hours,” she said. “He paid particular attention to the carving process. In fact, preparing his reeds took much more time than the actual calligraphy work. The carving of the reed ensured it had the right thickness as well as the proper amount of ink on the stylus.”
Zaghloul added: “I started studying calligraphy at the age of 12; it was my first encounter with art. I began learning about the fonts and their history, as well as their various uses in architecture, ancient scriptures and modern applications. I spent long hours experimenting with stroke sequence and thickness, attempting to give character to my letters and words. I loved diacritics more than the letters themselves. I remember it making me very happy.”
“State of Mind,” with its dynamic design, captures the vitality of calligraphy. The strong, linear composition is itself a subtle pointer to the emergence of structured minimalism. The “Orb Piu” ring, part of the “Orb” collection, has all the hallmarks of a collectable piece. It is a combination of great craftsmanship, fine materials and the unexpected. It embodies the essence of ZAGH, a line of jewelry that celebrates the beauty of our feelings.

Source: Arab News