Some things are worth carrying forward.
A family story of craftsmanship, courage and the enduring beauty of making things by hand.
Discover our storyIt began
with wood.
Our story begins in Bonn, Germany, with Karl Ritzdorf, a master carpenter who passed his knowledge of woodworking to his son, Willy.
In the Ritzdorf family, craftsmanship was learned through practice: through patience, observation and the quiet discipline of making something well.
It was a way of working that would cross an ocean, survive loss and eventually find a new expression in jewellery.
From Bonn to Brazil · The Ritzdorf family story
Across the Atlantic.
With a craft to carry.
Willy followed in his father's footsteps, training as a carpenter. In 1922, the Ritzdorf family left Germany for Brazil, carrying with them their skills and the determination to begin again.
Among the stories passed down through the family is an earlier, extraordinary twist of fate: an invitation to travel aboard the Titanic, and a bicycle accident that kept young Willy and his family from making the journey. We tell it as it has been remembered in our family.
In Brazil, Willy would build a new life around the material he knew best.
A life
built by hand.
In Curitiba, Willy founded W. Ritzdorf & Co., a company creating wooden furniture, toys and crafted objects.
What began with skills passed from father to son grew into a factory whose work became known beyond Curitiba. Objects for everyday life were made with the same attention to material, proportion and finish that had shaped the family trade.
These were things made to be used, loved and kept.
W. Ritzdorf & Co. · Historic family archive
1946.
The night the factory
was lost.
In the early hours of 13 August 1946, a fire destroyed the W. Ritzdorf & Co. factory in Curitiba. The next day, local newspapers reported the loss of a business known for its wooden toys and handcrafted objects.
A lifetime of work, lost in a single night.
But a craft is more than the workshop that holds it.
The knowledge remained. The love of wood remained. And the family name was carried forward.
The first ring.
A new expression.
Willy passed away in 1990, one year before the birth of his granddaughter, Fernanda Ritzdorf Winckler. She never met him, but his story and the family's love of making remained close.
In 2013, Fernanda founded a new company under her grandfather's original name, W. Ritzdorf & Co. She was not setting out to recreate the furniture factory. She wanted to carry its spirit into something new.
Together with her father, goldsmith and artist Jair Winckler, she created the first W. Ritzdorf ring. Wood, once shaped into furniture and toys, became wearable sculpture.
The first ring — the beginning of the contemporary W. Ritzdorf Atelier.
A designer.
A goldsmith.
A shared language.
Fernanda Ritzdorf Winckler
FOUNDER & DESIGNERWith a background in Fine Arts and Design, Fernanda explores unusual forms, natural textures and jewellery as small-scale sculpture.
Jair Winckler
GOLDSMITH & ARTISTWith over four decades of experience, Jair brings the patience, precision and creative instinct of traditional goldsmithing to each piece.
The material
remembers.
From Germany to Brazil, and today between Brazil and Sweden, our work is shaped by places, people and the knowledge they carry.
We make sculptural jewellery from reclaimed wood, natural gemstones, solid 18ct gold and solid 950 silver. Old furniture becomes a source of new forms. A remarkable stone may shape an entire design.
Some pieces are made to order, their proportions considered for the person who will wear them. Others are singular creations, built around stones that cannot be repeated.
We believe in the beauty of objects made with care — and in the stories they may go on to hold for someone else.
Some things are
worth carrying forward.
Made with history. Designed for what comes next.