Archive for June, 2009

Padparadscha and Hand Engraved Accents = A Grand Custom Ring

Saturday, June 27th, 2009

We recently completed this beautiful ring for a very elegant and sophisticated lady, let’s call her Liz. During our initial design consultation, it soon became apparent that we needed to do something extra special for Liz- well educated and artistic, her tastes were refined and she was looking for something exciting and new. She wanted […]

Custom Alexandrite Wedding Rings

Friday, June 26th, 2009

We recently completed the final step for our client Dan- we blogged about creating his engagement ring last November.  After his fiance Ileana received her engagement ring, we made a matching wedding band, and soldered the rings together when they were married this spring.  Notice how beautifully the rings fit together and how nicely the […]

Moonstone, a Gem that Magicks the Light

Saturday, June 20th, 2009

Light has a very special role of gems- in diamonds, it can dance and twinkle, in rubies, it can simmer with vivid passion, or in other gems, it can play tricks. In gemology, we refer to these special gems that magic the light as the phenomenal gems. The soft bluish glow emanating from this beautiful […]

Art Deco Bracelet is a Marriage of Two Items

Tuesday, June 16th, 2009

We just completed an estate appraisal for a client which included this nice looking white gold bracelet. During the take-in process, we noticed a missing stone and a broken hinge. And, somehow the bracelet just didn’t look quite right. When we turned the bracelet over, we immediately noticed some remnant parts that were out of […]

The Pearl Farms of Japan- Going, Going, G….

Saturday, June 13th, 2009

An article I noted in the current AGTA ePrism newsletter refers to the challenges facing the Japanese saltwater cultured pearl industry. Prior to my career with Mardon Jewelers, I worked  with John Latendresse, the creator of the American Freshwater Cultured Pearl, and learned firsthand just how difficult, labor intensive and risky the pearl culturing business […]

Custom Jewelry Takes a Slow Boat to China

Wednesday, June 10th, 2009

Yesterday morning, we delivered this beautiful emerald and diamond ring to a delighted customer.  We really have to thank this couple for their patience– the entire design took almost four months to complete! Our client, let’s call her Mrs. Green, had seen a platinum ring similar to this at a well known gallery in Santa […]

Paraiba Topaz- No Mine Exists

Saturday, June 6th, 2009

I was recently asked to appraise this topaz and a matching pair of 8 mm triangles. At first glance, the stones had a sort of attractive somewhat muted “teal” greenish blue color but something about the look of the stones was not quite right. A quick examination under our trusty gemological microscope revealed a surface […]

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