Our story
Foss & Bjørn was born in 2024 when I decided to leave financial services, where I’d worked in internal audit for almost 20 years, to achieve a more flexible working week, after the birth of little J in 2023. Having spent so many years working with spreadsheet and PowerPoint slides, I was keen to do something creative and tangible, and I found inspiration in a hobby I’d had when I lived in Yorkshire in the mid-noughties, where I often visited the bead store Craft Basics on Gillygate and relaxed in my spare time by designing jewellery.
Having been part of the award-winning Neurodiversity Group at Deutsche Bank, and led the Mental Health First Aider Group for the Bank’s UK operations, I started to read up on the mental health benefits of certain types of jewellery for those with ADHD and autism (for more on this, see the Benefits page here), and I noticed that nobody was really providing elegant pieces for anyone wanting to feel beautiful as well as calm – just because you have autism, ADHD, any other sensory sensitivity, or a baby to carry around, doesn’t mean you can’t stay beautiful and chic. Foss & Bjørn was born.
I’m originally from Norway, and I wanted my new venture to give a nod to this heritage; Foss means “waterfall” in Norwegian, and Bjørn means “bear,” and both of these evoke scenes of my hometown, Sarpsborg, in the South East. The town has one of Europe’s largest waterfalls running right through it (the “Sarpsfoss”), and it’s one of Norway’s oldest towns; it was founded in 1016 by Viking King Olav Haraldsson and later run by Earl Alv Erlinggson whose insignia carried a bear. The town’s crest to this day continues this history by incorporating a bear as a core part of the design.
Every piece from the Foss & Bjørn launch collection is inspired by scenery from in and around Sarpsborg and other equally beautiful parts of Norway and the West Coast of Sweden, where I spent my childhood summers. You’ll see lots of blues and greens representing the clear waters of the Norwegian fjords; whites, greys and blacks to mimic the snow-capped mountains, and many other colours besides – there’s something for every taste, just like the Nordic scenery. Future collections will continue this theme too.
If you have a particular spot you want us to use as inspiration for our next collection, or any other comments, please send us a note and your location might just become part of our designs!
Sissel Heiberg
Founder and Owner
