I-23147 18K gold, French enamel, diamonds and Burma rubies
Just in time for Valentine’s day, Friday, February 14– fabulous new goodies we recently acquired from a large collection of fine jewelry! If you are looking for something really special for that special someone, this group of vintage jewels may offer the perfect choice– we’ll highlight just a few items from over one hundred new pieces.
I-229501
This spectacular pendant from the early 20th century highlights a parade of items new to our estate department. At 2 1/2 inches long, it’s just killer.
I-22928
We just acquired these beautiful natural Alexandrite jewels from ABC Gems, our supplier who specializes in fine natural Alexandrites. For starters, the delicate pendant above features a round Alexandrite of excellent color change and clarity set in 18K white gold accented with diamonds.
Alexandrite was originally discovered in the Ural Mountains of Russia. A controversial story claims the gem was discovered on the 16th birthday of future Tsar Alexander II and so was named in his honor. Like most myths, the grain of truth is that the stone was indeed named after Alexander, but it’s discovery was almost certainly earlier than the birthday.
A client brought these three stones to our shop looking to sell them. She had purchased the stones while traveling and was under the impression the two 30 ct. greenish blue ones were aquamarines and the peachy pink stone was morganite.
At Mardon, as gemologists, we always buy gems very carefully and only when we know exactly what we are buying. The first things I noticed– that the greenish blue color was not quite right for aquamarine and the peachy pink was unusual for morganite– told me to proceed carefully. A preliminary observation with my trusty gemological microscope indicated the “aquas” were not aqua and the “morganite” was not morganite.
We just completed the most unusual wedding ring we’ve ever done- a Secret Decoder Ring, crafted of 14K white and rose gold and set with diamonds. Greg, one of Jenny’s best friends, an entertainment industry buff, had taken his fiancé Rebecca to a performance of “The Thrilling Adventure Hour”. Greg and Rebecca had such a great time, the idea for the wedding ring came naturally from this plastic souvenir of the show.
We just delivered this remodeled ring to the delight of our client. He came to us looking to buy a 2 carat diamond and to have a custom ring made. We had just recut a damaged and poorly cut 2.44 carat round diamond to the gorgeous 2.09 ideal cut stone shown– we offered it to him at a very advantageous price, but it took most of his budget.
He had a nice platinum ring with a CZ center, given to his fiance by her aunt. He wanted to use the materials to make a new ring. We explained that remelting his ring to make the new piece is not good practice, especially with platinum which is highly susceptible to contamination.
Classic Six Prong Solitaire by Tiffany & Co., I-22723
When you mention engagement ring, most of us think of a simple band with a single diamond, shining and sparkling with love and promise. This is known in the jewelry trade as a solitaire engagement ring. The development of today’s solitaire rings really began in the late 1800’s when several new technologies brought jewelers the means to experiment with fresh ideas and expressions of this most simple of rings. Read the rest of this entry »
Mardon Jewelers would like to thank all of our loyal friends and clients for voting us the Best Jeweler in the Press Enterprise 2013 Reader’s Choice– that make’s five years in a row! Our focus has always been on our community– we’re really appreciative of the support you’ve shown over the years.
This coming year, we’ll continue making new designs and original work. Here’s an example- a dazzling new original piece we just completed. The hand engraved 18K ring is set with over 3 carats of shimmering vintage diamonds– diamonds don’t wear out, so we recycle and reuse good stones whenever possible. Modeled after the Art Deco style, this ring fooled an experienced estate jewelry buyer who visits our store frequently– he thought it was vintage! Read the rest of this entry »
Platinum Art Deco Ring, I-22693
This striking ring is a standout in our latest line-up of fine vintage engagement rings. The ring is pure Roaring 20’s, combining design elements of the delicate Edwardian style along with geometry of the Art Deco look. The low setting gives a nice big look with comfort and wearability. Read the rest of this entry »
Garden fresh, this one-of-a-kind pendant is set with gorgeous Colombian emeralds. Based on my vintage design, the pendant was brought to fruition by our master CAD designer Jenny Sweaney and skillfully set and finished by Scott Reeves. We think its warm peach gold is a perfect accent for the soft green of the emeralds. Read the rest of this entry »