Australian jewellery designer dies aged 86

“She was very elegant and fun with great taste,” says author and former Vogue Australia editor Kirstie Clements. “I can’t walk into a Jan Logan boutique and not come out with something. She had a remarkable understanding of colour.”

“It is impressive that she created a multi-generational brand,” says Clements, who partly credits the success of the business with Logan’s selective eye to Australian fashion. The brand has collaborated with designers Collette Dinnigan, Carla Zampatti, Akira Isogawa and Luke Sales and Anna Plunkett of Romance Was Born.

“She managed to make jewellery that was superb quality, fashionable and relatively affordable. There were also those incredible campaigns supporting young actresses.”

Tapping into Angus’ interest in film, Jan introduced an annual campaign highlighting emerging stars in 2001, with Rose Byrne. Since then, The Crown’s Elizabeth Debicki, Teresa Palmer, Marlo Kelly, Phoebe Tonkin and Sophie Wilde have all appeared in Jan Logan campaigns.

“I feel like it’s kind of a rite of passage,” Strife actress BeBe Bettencourt said after being anointed a brand ambassador in 2023. “I’m really grateful to be doing it when you look at the past line-up of incredible Australian actresses that have done it.”

You don’t have to be potentially famous to appreciate Jan’s legacy. For a generation of women, a piece from Jan Logan, like a gown from Carla Zampatti, was a sign of professional success. Deborah Thomas celebrated her appointment as editor of The Australian Women’s Weekly with a splurge at the Jan Logan boutique in Melbourne.

“I had a tax refund and bought some pearl earrings with diamond studs, and they’ve remained my go-to jewellery,” Thomas says. “It was a time when people were spending huge amounts on costume jewellery but buying from Jan was buying the real thing.”

Thomas, now chief executive of cancer charity Camp Quality, also remembers Jan’s generosity.

“She would never brag about it, but Jan donated to so many charities. She was charity minded, particularly when it came to causes around women’s health. There was a period when you couldn’t go out without a donated Jan Logan necklace or bracelet being auctioned for a worthy cause.”

Thomas also recalls an actress receiving a special present of Jan Logan diamonds after wearing them for a magazine shoot. “Jan was very generous, but she was also a very savvy businesswoman. She wasn’t throwing things away.”

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“Her gift was understanding creativity and business and making them work together.”

A press release issued by the brand said Angus “will continue to lead the brand in Jan’s honour”.

While the business continues making exquisite pieces, in a 2019 interview Jan revealed that she had already decided what she was doing with her personal collection of jewels.

“Oh, I have made an extensive list!” Jan said. “I have eight grandchildren, including three granddaughters. So, of course, I’m giving the girls pieces. And the boys. I’m not going to leave them out.”

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