I’m a big fan of the PBS series, Downton Abbey. Actually anything Jane Austin or from a time period where manners and getting dressed for dinner were a part of everyday life. It seems to be lost in our present day society. So with that in mind, well maybe in my unconscious creative thought process… I designed a custom pendant channeling the Victorian era. The design was to accommodate a lovely oval faceted green garnet. My client provided the gemstone along with another tiny round garnet and the yellow gold. Having the two garnets gave me the idea to create the pendant with the small one hanging by itself. Also, the prong setting is an old style of setting that goes along with the rest of the Victorian style. The result is quite stunning and even more so on my client. She could definitely be cast in a period piece.  I should look into getting my work on the next series! I’m sure it’s all old heirlooms and not new designs. Of course, who would know the difference?

My client calls this her “weddings ring” because the redesign I created repurposed the diamonds and metal from a couple of her wedding rings.

Here are a bit of the redesign details. I hand carved the sculptural design in wax and added details of tiny bead drops to give it an organic feel. After sending her old gold off to the refinery, I cast the new design in 14k peach gold. I featured the repurposed diamonds from her old wedding rings with a bead set style texture to compliment the bead drop design in the ring.

The result is pretty amazing and my client loves it! Makes me happy to have a happy client.

You deserve a bit of TLC. Recycle your old jewelry into a new design. Purrrfect!

Contentment. Now wasn’t that worth it?

Custom designed ring using repurposed diamonds and gold. Mandarin Garnet Circle Ring with recycled White Diamonds set in Peach Gold.

Latest custom project with repurposed gold and diamonds provided by client. This pendant was designed with a lily motif. The client’s daughter is named Lily.

Chain attaches seamlessly to pendant and to petal detail with diamonds.

I’ve been working on a custom design project for a client that wants me to create cremation pendant necklaces. I went to the cemetery for some motif ideas. Here are some beautiful textures and lovely quotes I found while on my outing. Stay tuned for the cremation pendants in a future post.

I love this quote so much. I feel it down to my bones…

From the same grave stone. It’s a sweet heart and fleur motif.

I should re-post this one for Valentine’s Day.

Another image from the same gravestone. I’m not usually into stars except the ones in the sky, but this one is beautiful with the leaf wreath.

A leaf shadow. Lovely.

As a metalsmith, I’m all about how surfaces change with age and weather conditions. Amazing.

Here is a lovely testimonial from a very happy client.

“I am always having to take my wedding ring off because people who see it want to look closer at the intricate detail and craftsmanship. It makes me so proud to have others take notice of the beautiful piece of art that is my bec wedding ring!”

The gold, rubies and diamond are all from my client’s discarded fine jewelry in her family. She sent me a bunch of old jewelry to get some ideas and instructions to use the diamond. I loved the little rubies in an old broken ring and thought they should definitely be part of the design.This ring was a collaborative effort between the designer and client. It turned out to be a wonderful piece. All involved are very happy with the results.

I encourage my clients to bring their old fine jewelry to use as materials for a new custom design. It helps the environment and hefty cost of materials.

My latest custom design for a client using her emerald cut diamond and yellow gold from her old discarded jewelry. Beautiful emerald cut diamond nestled in a hand-carved low profile bezel oriented horizontally. The shape of the ring from above has a slight octagonal look with double bands in soft planes. I’ve been making a few of these cutout rings lately. I think this one turned out quite nicely. Soft, yet geometric to make it just a bit different.

Man’s wedding band with a texture inspired by glaciers. Shown in 14K White Gold, using repurposed gold from client. To find out more about this man’s ring along with others, check out the Manlier Collection in the shop.

In the background, horses at play. I love this photo of the one horse biting the other one.

In the foreground, a bas relief style horse head ring.

The horse head is from a white plastic whole horse that came with a bottle of whiskey. Someone gave it to me after they finished the bottle. I don’t know the brand of whiskey, nor did I have the satisfaction of enjoying the mystery whiskey. I did however, live behind the famous White Horse Tavern several years ago during my first stint in NYC. I’ve always adored horses. They are such beautiful and amazing creatures.

Ring shown in 14 karat yellow gold. Custom design for an equestrian client. All materials/metals used in the process were from the client’s old gold.

Right now, I’m working on some new designs for men. I’m still in the wax carving stage, but hope to have some pieces cast in the next couple of weeks.

Since I’m thinking a lot about jewelry for men,  I decided to include some old designs. The rings below are a small selection of custom wedding bands I’ve made for guys.

Rough faceted file marked band. Shown in yellow gold with an antique finish.

The client had made a temporary ring from a washer at a hardware store that he wrapped in rafia. He wanted the custom ring to be similar to his original. Shown in silver with a patina finish.

This custom ring is made for a client that is a green builder. He wanted a ring that looked like a nut that he’d use in his own design projects.  This client was featured in Charleston Magazine and he said my ring is one of his favorite things. That’s so awesome! Shown in white gold.

Custom three ring band. This ring was designed to compliment the bride’s wedding set I made that had several thin stacking rings in different gold hues. Shown in silver.

I call this my doily ring, but that doesn’t sound very masculine. I call it that because the wedding ring for the bride did look like a doily. Her ring was tiny open circles that linked together and very delicate like a doily. His ring is very sturdy and not delicate. Shown in white gold.

My next posting will have some pictures of the bridal rings I’ve been referencing.