Tisbé: Buttery Jewelry

Tisbé began as a personal escape—an intimate, hands-on expression born in Medellín during the stillness of the pandemic. What started as a quiet act of creation has evolved into a jewelry brand that honors artisanal tradition, drawing unexpected inspiration from pastry and knitting

We The Cool: Tell us about you?
Paulina: We are Maria Camila and Paulina, two sisters who, about 4 years ago, started their jewelry and costume jewelry business on Paulina's initiative and Maria Camila's help to her sister. María Camila is a fashion designer and Paulina is a biologist, we both live in Medellín Colombia. 

WTC: What's your favorite restaurant or bar in Colombia? 
Paulina: Our favorite restaurant at the moment is primer piso, a place in Medellín where we listen to good music and eat delicious food. As sisters we also love the plan of “tomar el algo”, (get a drink) eating something sweet while drinking a coffee, our favorite coffee shop at the moment is clus clus, which is also in Medellín. 

WTC: How did you start Tisbé? And what does Tisbé mean? 
Pauilina: Tisbé started in 2021 as a hobby for me because of the pandemic issues, this helped me to distract myself by making pieces that I enjoyed. Then, with the help of Maria Camila, we decided to open our Instagram page.  The name of the brand came from researching the story of Pyramus and Thisbe, two young Babylonians with a forbidden love story. We chose the name Tisbe because it was precisely the woman and we added a “tilde” on the “e” to differentiate it. 

WTC: Tell us about your making process, How do you start producing? 
Paulina: All our silver pieces are first made in the lost wax technique, where a wax is molded to make the design we want. Then the rubber is removed to be able to replicate the piece as many times as we want, and then the silver casting is done. For our woven pieces, we sit down to weave the ideas we have, until we reach the desired result. 

WTC: I love the dialogue in your work between the culinary and the ornamental. How did you arrive at this intersection of food and jewelry?
Paulina: The inspiration for our latest collection "de las nubes a la mesa" started at the end of 2023 when my sister was in Copenhagen and saw how they served butter, we found it fascinating! From this moment we had a half idea of what we wanted, then, at the beginning of 2024 we created content for a pastry brand in the city of Medellin, and that's when we began to connect the ideas and inspirations we had. 

WTC: Are there any artists or thinkers that influence your designs?
Paulina: Not a specific artist or thinker, but we are inspired by natural irregular and sculptural forms, the beauty of noble materials, manual techniques, arts and everyday life. 

WTC: You’re based in Colombia—does your environment, culture, or local food culture influence your designs in any way?
Paulina: In one part, we were very inspired by the brand of pastry we work with, it made us understand more how manual the pastries are and this incredible craft. 

WTC: What is your favorite collection? 
Paulina: Our favorite collection so far is “de las nubes a la mesa”.

WTC: What’s next for you and for Tisbe? Any new ideas you’re playing with that we can get a sneak peek at?
Paulina: As one of our goals for this year was to create our website, and we are super excited because we did it! And at the moment we are working on our next collection that will cover more in depth the theme of pastry and jewelry. 

WTC: I also saw knitted pieces, what is the story behind these collections? 
Paulina: Actually, the brand started with handmade pieces made by us, and as we grew, we went into the world of silver and jewelry, but as part of our DNA, there will always be garments and pieces knitted by us.

WTC: This issue is about Rebirth, what does it mean to you? 
Paulina: To be reborn is to grow or change as we go through life, the experiences in the different stages of life are a rebirth as a human being. 

WTC: Are there moments in your artistic or personal journey that felt like a rebirth?
Paulina: We have had many rebirths! Every year has been a rebirth as creative directors of a jewelry brand, we are always growing. 

WTC: Has your relationship with jewelry evolved over time? Has it taken on new meaning as you’ve grown as a creator and CEO?
Paulina: We have always been lovers of jewelry, we find it an exquisite form of expression when you want to show the world your style and essence. And as we have grown as creators of the brand, this meaning has become much stronger and more important to us.