Three London jewellery brands, three completely different reasons to exist, and a habit among people shopping this category of treating them as interchangeable because they occupy the same shelf in the same conversation. They don't. Astrid & Miyu built a retail experience around getting your ears pierced and your bracelet welded shut. Daisy London built a business on the idea that jewellery should mean something specific to the person wearing it. Otiumberg built theirs on the opposite premise: that restraint is the point, and the jewellery should say as little as possible while being made as well as possible.
All three sit in what the industry calls demi-fine: sterling silver as the base, solid gold and gold vermeil as the step up, priced for people who want more permanence than fast fashion and less commitment than a jeweller on Bond Street. Comparisons of this trio usually flatten them into "which one's cheapest," which misses the actual decision. The right question is which philosophy matches how you actually want to buy jewellery, because the three are not competing for the same purchase.
In Brief: Astrid & Miyu (founded 2012) is the experiential choice, built around in-store piercing and permanent jewellery, with prices from roughly £25 in silver up to £400 in solid gold. Daisy London (founded 2009) is the meaning-led choice, working almost entirely in recycled silver and 18ct gold vermeil instead of solid gold, priced £50 to £300, and the most widely stocked of the three. Otiumberg (founded 2016) is the minimalist, higher-price choice, with a genuine solid gold range, RJC-certified suppliers, and prices running from around £150 to £800. None is objectively better; each is built for a different reason to buy.
Astrid & Miyu: the experience is the product
Connie Nam founded Astrid & Miyu in 2012 from a flat in Notting Hill, after finishing an MBA at London Business School and finding nothing in the UK market that replicated the spontaneous, personal way she'd bought jewellery from small sellers in Seoul. What she built instead is less a jewellery brand than a jewellery-adjacent retail format: physical stores that double as piercing studios and tattoo parlours, where the actual product is as much the visit as the object you leave with.
The permanent jewellery service (a bracelet, anklet, or ring measured to your wrist and welded shut on the spot, no clasp) is the clearest expression of this and the thing that actually sets Astrid & Miyu apart from the other two. It's not sold online. It requires a store visit. And it's built the brand's culture around repeat, in-person transactions instead of a single online purchase, which shows in how the loyalty programme, the piercing studios, and the customisable Story Chain pieces all point back toward the same physical destination.
The materials are honest, not aspirational: recycled sterling silver, 18k gold-plated sterling silver, and 9k, 10k, and 14k recycled solid gold across the higher end of the range (on what those carat numbers actually mean for wear, our gold guide covers the difference). A pair of solid gold hoops runs around £230 to £400 depending on weight and finish; silver studs and huggies start much lower, in the £25 to £50 range typical of the category's entry point. The brand also runs a take-back scheme for unwanted sterling silver pieces, recycling them and donating the proceeds to The Felix Project, a London food redistribution charity.
What Astrid & Miyu is not particularly is a place to build a considered, cohesive fine jewellery collection over years. The catalogue is wide and trend-responsive, which suits someone building a stack piece by piece as their ears fill up, and suits it less well if you want three pieces that will still make sense together in a decade.
Daisy London: jewellery that's supposed to mean something
Ruth Bewsey founded Daisy London in 2009, working out of a Hatton Garden studio, on a premise closer to a stationery brand than a jeweller: pieces built around a specific meaning, so the buying decision has a reason attached to it instead of being purely aesthetic. The Healing Stones collection, the Star Sign necklaces, the Evil Eye bracelets: all of it is designed to be given, received, or bought for yourself with a specific occasion or intention behind it, which is a different sales pitch entirely from "this looks good stacked."
Materially, Daisy London is the most consistent of the three and also the most limited. Every piece is 100% recycled 925 sterling silver, and where gold appears, it's 18ct gold plate or vermeil, not solid gold. There is no solid-gold step-up range the way there is at Astrid & Miyu or Otiumberg. That's not a flaw so much as a boundary worth knowing before you buy: if you're after solid gold that will outlast a decade of daily wear without replating, Daisy London isn't building toward that, and it isn't claiming to.
Prices run £50 to £300, and the brand is by some distance the most widely available of the three, stocked in John Lewis, Harvey Nichols, and more than seventy-five stores globally, alongside its own site. That distribution is worth factoring in if you want to see and handle a piece before buying, since Astrid & Miyu and Otiumberg both lean more heavily on their own stores and websites.
Otiumberg: the case for saying less
Sisters Rosanna and Christie Wollenberg started Otiumberg in 2016 from a kitchen table, before either had worked in jewellery specifically, and built the brand around a single restraint: understated design over trend, non-seasonal collections instead of drops, and materials good enough to be worn as an investment, not a decorative purchase. It's the newest of the three brands and, on the evidence of its growth, the one currently pulling hardest away from the other two.
The material range is the most credentialed of the group. Otiumberg works in recycled 9ct solid gold, gold vermeil, and sterling silver, sourced through suppliers certified by the Responsible Jewellery Council, and it's the only one of the three to advertise a formal re-plating scheme for its vermeil pieces: send a worn piece back, and the house replates it instead of leaving you to live with the fade or replace the piece entirely. Given that gold vermeil, at any brand, is a plating and will eventually wear with enough contact with water, lotion, and skin oils, having a stated route back to full colour is a real point of difference, not marketing language, and it's the kind of detail worth checking for at any demi-fine house before you buy vermeil in quantity. Our guide to caring for jewellery covers what actually shortens a vermeil piece's life day to day.
Prices sit meaningfully higher than the other two: mixed-metal pieces from around £150, vermeil hoops and rings in the £180 to £250 range, solid gold moving from around £400 up toward £800 for the more elaborate gemstone-set pieces. The brand's celebrity following (Margot Robbie, Paul Mescal, and Olivia Palermo have all been photographed in it) fits the positioning: this is demi-fine dressed as fine, aimed at someone who wants their jewellery to look considered, not collected.
Which one is actually for you
Building an ear stack, want the in-store experience, or thinking about permanent jewellery: Astrid & Miyu. Nobody else in this comparison offers the welding service, and the piercing studios make it the natural first stop for anyone starting a collection from scratch instead of adding to an existing one.
Buying with a specific meaning attached, gifting, or wanting the widest choice of where to actually see the piece first: Daisy London. The astrology and healing-stone framing does real work if that's really how you think about jewellery, and the retail footprint means you're not buying entirely on faith from photos.
Want the closest thing to fine jewellery at demi-fine prices, plan to wear pieces daily for years, or care about the re-plating question specifically: Otiumberg. It costs more than the other two for a reason, and the solid gold range is a real step toward permanence, not a token upsell.
For how any of these sit in a stack once you've chosen one, the ring stacking guide covers positioning and sizing across mixed pieces from different houses. If Monica Vinader, Mejuri, or Missoma are also on your list, that comparison sits at a similar price point to Astrid & Miyu and Daisy London.
Quick reference
| Astrid & Miyu | Daisy London | Otiumberg | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Founded | 2012 | 2009 | 2016 |
| Price range | £25–£400 | £50–£300 | £150–£800 |
| Solid gold available | Yes, 9k–14k | No, vermeil only | Yes, 9ct |
| Signature offer | Permanent jewellery, piercing | Meaning-led collections | Minimalist design, re-plating scheme |
| Where to buy | Own stores and site | Own site, John Lewis, Harvey Nichols | Own site |
| Best for | Starting or expanding a stack | Gifting, meaning-driven buys | Long-term daily wear, higher price tolerance |
Frequently asked questions
Is Astrid & Miyu good quality?
Astrid & Miyu's solid gold pieces (9k, 10k, and 14k) are genuine solid gold and hold up to daily wear in line with the carat. Its 18k gold-plated silver pieces are a plating, not solid gold, and will wear over time with heavy contact with water and skincare products, which is true of gold-plated jewellery at any brand. The permanent jewellery service uses solid gold or sterling silver welded to fit, so its durability comes down to the underlying metal, not the welding itself.
Does Otiumberg use real gold?
Yes. Otiumberg's solid gold range is genuine 9ct recycled gold, sourced through Responsible Jewellery Council-certified suppliers. Its gold vermeil pieces use a thick layer of gold plated onto sterling silver, a step above standard gold plating but still a coating over silver, not solid metal through. Otiumberg is the only one of the three brands compared here to advertise a formal re-plating service for vermeil pieces that have worn.
Is Daisy London real gold or plated?
Daisy London does not currently offer a solid gold range. Its gold pieces are 18ct gold vermeil or gold plate over 100% recycled sterling silver, not solid gold through the piece. This isn't a quality issue; it's a different product category from Astrid & Miyu's or Otiumberg's solid gold ranges, and worth knowing if you're shopping for solid gold specifically, not a gold finish.
Which is more expensive, Otiumberg or Daisy London?
Otiumberg. Daisy London's range runs roughly £50 to £300, while Otiumberg starts around £150 and moves up toward £800 for solid gold and gemstone-set pieces. The gap reflects Otiumberg's solid gold range and generally heavier-weight pieces. It isn't evidence that one brand is uniformly better made than the other within their comparable price points.
Can you get your ears pierced at Daisy London or Otiumberg?
No. Ear piercing, alongside permanent jewellery welding and tattooing, is specific to Astrid & Miyu's physical stores. Neither Daisy London nor Otiumberg offers piercing services; both are primarily online-first retailers, with Daisy London additionally stocked through third-party retailers such as John Lewis and Harvey Nichols.
Sources: Astrid & Miyu, Daisy London, and Otiumberg brand and product information, 2026; Forbes and The Week interviews with Daisy London and Otiumberg founders.
