Mary van der Sluis has been a passionate jewelry designer for many years.

She grew up in the Hanseatic city of Kampen, known as a city with a lot of tobacco industry, an industry in which her family also played an important role.

In her early childhood Mary came into contact with artist and jewelry designer Onno Boekhoudt. During a course at the center for artistic education "'t Speelwerk" in Kampen, he discovered her qualities.

So it was no surprise to anyone that Mary enrolled after high school at the “Vakschool voor Goud en Zilversmithen” in Schoonhoven, a course she completed in 1983.

Henk's work soon took her to Singapore and Qatar, locations with very different cultures. Her stay in western, but still very Buddhistic Singapore, was particularly inspiring for her later work.

In Singapore, she worked at the respected local jeweler Sunill and was introduced to the style of luxury Chinese jewelry and the associated oriental embellishment techniques.