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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
We recently completed a fun project for Riverside Poly High School’s championship women’s water polo team. One of the mother’s in the booster club showed us a printed foil logo and wanted large pendant/charms made for each of the team members. The award ceremony was to be held about a month away. Our client wanted […]
The classic emerald is a beautiful gemstone with a reputation for fragility. When you understand the rigors that emeralds undergo during their formation, you’ll see that this reputation is mostly undeserved. Colombian emeralds, for example, form when ocean sediments are compressed under tectonic plates and then are metamorphosed and uplifted to the top of the […]
An article on 60 Minutes about Alice Waters of ChezPanisse fame reminded me of my early days of making jewelry. Watching the piece on Alice and the Slow Food movement, I had an epiphany and realized that for most of my career, I’ve been making “Slow Jewelry”. Sterling silver ring, set with “Beggar Bead” agate […]
We really enjoy designing custom rings for our clients but our initial efforts aren’t always successful. The key is always patience and communication—this Mother’s ring is an example of how a jeweler must really listen carefully to hear what his client really wants in order to make that ring that “sings”. Our clients, let’s call […]
Getting your jewelry insured begins by establishing a description and value for the jewelry to be insured. You are entering into a contractual agreement with whomever you choose as your insurer, so you and the company must agree on what it is being insured and for how much. A current retail replacement value appraisal from […]
