The Ukrainian Dentist turned Jewellery Designer [inside my journal]

When the war in Ukraine started, Anna Kharabuha’s dental clinic closed down. This is how she went from drilling teeth to crafting futuristic finger ‘exoskeletons’ and ear cuffs worn by DJs and fashionistas around the world.

Anna shares how she uses her paper republic journals to run her jewellery business – Broq - (and her life), and how her grand voyageur [pocket] has become her handbag...

You live in Kyiv, Ukraine. What is life like there right now? 

When drone strikes come in the middle of the night, it's frightening. We have become used to it and are trying our best to continue living a normal life. But it’s not very healthy to normalise being bombed every day.

However, right now, I’m super happy because my boyfriend just returned from the front line after nine months there. It was him who introduced me to paper republic journals. Before the war he was a stand-up comedian and he wanted a journal to work on his jokes.

You went from dentist to jewellery designer. What’s your story?

I studied dentistry and was working in a dental clinic in Kyiv. At the same time I was doing a little graphic design on the side and decided to learn about jewellery making so I could create a special ring for my boyfriend of the time. 

When COVID came and everything closed down, I started thinking about how I could earn money from another source. Something stable that couldn’t be shut down by a virus. At that time, no one else was making the pieces I had in mind. So I made a super simple website for my 'Broq' jewellery with a couple of photos, and that was it. A few friends bought a few pieces at 'mate’s rates', but it was just a side project.

Then the war started. Our dental clinic closed on the first day and my job disappeared. I thought about returning to graphic design, but then I started getting more orders for my jewellery from abroad. 

Some of my friends who had bought pieces were DJs and were wearing my jewellery at their shows in front of crowds all over the world. I was quite surprised, but I realised I could make Broq a legitimate business. I have not gone back to dentistry.

Your designs have an organic, fluid style. What inspires you?

The first pieces I made were inspired by muscles and ligaments because I was studying anatomy as part of my dentistry course. Then I began to think about the transformation of organic forms; something being alive, then dying, then decomposing into soil that gives birth to new life. I also thought about the transformation of personality during a lifetime. 

I wanted to create jewellery for people that appreciated this transformation. My pieces are designed to stay with you and transform with you. When you get a silver ring, for example, it will get scratched and marked with time. And its colour will change slowly as it oxidises. So for a lot of Broq pieces, there is this theme of transforming and developing character over time. 

How do you use your paper republic journals for Broq jewellery design?

I don’t just use my journals for jewellery design. I use them for everything! I carry all my day to day stuff in it – several notebooks, cash, some pieces of jewellery. I use it like a bag. I actually could do with a shoulder strap for it!

I have a grand voyageur [pocket] size in olive green. Originally, that one was for my boyfriend, but he decided he didn’t like green any more so he got a brown one and I have the green one.

I use my notebooks to sketch out new jewellery designs, ideas for taglines and ads. I also have a full reading list, a book tracker, and my diary of course. My journal is pretty full.

You’ve been running Broq since 2019. What do you know now that you wish you'd known when you started?

I wish I’d known about the concept of creating an MVP: minimal viable product. I was working in the opposite way at the beginning. I was creating a whole universe of jewellery, and finding most of it wasn’t selling. I have some friends who work at tech startups and they’ve helped me think differently.

Now I use some of the startup ways of working – for example showing my audience new designs with pictures and gauging the appetite before committing to a production run.

Which piece is your absolute favourite creation?

The bq_x, my whole finger ring. I wanted to make something big and brash but still allowed you to work. It doesn’t restrict the joint in any way; I designed it so you can still bend your finger. It’s like a silver exoskeleton. 

What’s your advice for someone out there that wants to start designing and selling their own jewellery?

Perseverance. Start, and don’t stop until everyone else who started at the same time has stopped. Just keep going.

See Anna's full jewellery range at Broq.world

What's inside YOUR journal? Share your story with us!

How? Email: sam@paper-republic.com with a brief summary of how you use your journal, adding 'inside my journal' to the email subject line.