Custom Made Jewelry
Custom orders are a conversation between the client and the artisan. There are different scenarios that can lead to a custom order.
Maybe the client sees some of my jewelry and would like something similar. This is a real compliment for me.
Frequently a client will see jewelry in a store or in a photo and this idea will be the basis from which we develop a jewelry design.
Maybe the client has jewelry that they want renovated by removing or adding elements. Sometimes the client wishes to recycle the gold, silver and/or stones from old or broken jewelry and would like suggestions on how this material could be used.
Let me share with you photos of jewelry resulting from some of these conversations.
Three Sisters
A lady wanted a ring for herself and also to give as a thank you gift of rings to her two sisters. All three sister wanted a wide 9/16 in (15 mm), flat band in white gold engraved with their initials. I saw two problems with this design - the width and the visual impact (I thought that it might look klutzy).
Really wide rings that adhere to the finger can be a nightmare to take off. Also so much width on the underside of the finger limits joint movement. This was solved by very, very slightly doming the band so that only the edges touch the finger and the under side was filed down to a narrower width.
The esthetic aspect was solved when the gifting sister chose to use a fluid script and a relatively small size for the initials. The rings are lovely - elegant and comfortable to wear.
Two Rings for a Young Lady
I am going to be showing fewer photos of the client's gold to be re-cycled and concentrate more on the new jewelry. But I do want to show you how one ring started out.
In this photo of used jewelry there is a silver bracelet that the client wanted to keep. The surface of the silver spheres is engraved with a diamond point to make hundreds of tiny, shiny cuts. When kept clean the spheres sparkle beautifully. But the bracelet was too large, so the client thought to shorten the bracelet by taking out two spheres and have them set into a white gold ring.
Two Rings for a Young Lady
I was given free rein as to the design and chose to make a contemporary jewelry piece for this young lady. It was necessary to set the spheres using cold jointing as any heat applied to the silver would have dulled the engraved surface.
Two Rings for a Young Lady
The second ring is a great classic - the original design by Lady Chanel - here done in three colors, 18K rose, white and yellow gold.
Warm Colors
When clients bring in their old gold to be re-cycled generally there will be broken chains, lonely earrings or cuff links, even just parts of what once were pieces of jewelry. So when a client brings in almost new jewelry or earrings that still are a pair I wonder what she had not liked about that jewelry and I listen extra careful when she talks of what she likes, or doesn't like, in jewelry.
This lady prefers yellow gold to white and said that she did not enjoy strong color contrasts between the gold and the stone. This was clearly a case of preference for warm colors. She chose yellow sapphires in graduated golden colors for the central area of her new earrings.
Warm Colors
Here are the one-of-a-kind, custom made earrings in 18K rose and yellow gold with six yellow sapphires.
I try to make functional, beautiful jewelry and hope that the client will be so satisfied and enjoy wearing the jewelry so much that it will never end up in the re-cycle pile.
