Anniversary Bands

Knife Edge Link:

Channel Set Link:

Prong Set Link:

Scanned these from a book we used to use in my Dad’s store. I grew up with this catalog, and several others like it. There are some 800 pages of Fabulous designs here with just this single company! Wild stuff, from broaches to cuff links to charms, etc., styles you won’t find anywhere today!

(above) An original design by Joe Schubach. This solid 14kt white gold hand made, hand fabricated pendant features a 15mm natural gray Tahitian pearl along with 1/3ct total weight pave and bezel set natural diamonds. The piece hangs from a 16" black rubber cord with a 14kt white gold clasp.

As we prepare for Valentine’s Day at our shop in Scottsdale, we began uncovering the meaning behind certain pieces of jewelry. Valentine’s Day is loaded with symbolism and often, it’s reflected in the jewelry: hearts, keys, circles, etc.

Today, we wanted to share with you the information we found out about the Maltese Cross, inspiration for one of Joe’s most popular pieces (seen above):

According to one website:

The Maltese Cross is a symbol of protection and a badge of honor. Its story is hundreds of years old.

When a courageous band of crusaders known as The Knights of St. John fought the Saracens for possession of the holy land, they encountered a new weapon unknown to European warriors. It was a simple, but horrible device of war. It brought excruciating pain and agonizing death upon the brave fighters for the cross.

As the crusaders advanced on the walls of the city, they were struck by glass bombs containing naphtha. When they became saturated with the highly flammable liquid, the Saracens would hurl a flaming torch into their midst. Hundreds of the knights were burned alive; others risked their lives to save their brothers-in-arms from dying painful, fiery deaths.

Thus, these men became our first Fire Fighters and the first of a long list of courageous men. Their heroic efforts were recognized by fellow crusaders who awarded each hero a badge of honor – a cross similar to the one fire fighters wear today. Since the Knights of St. John lived for close to four centuries on a little island in the Mediterranean Sea named Malta, the cross came to be known as the Maltese Cross.

The eight points are said to symbolize the eight points of courage:

• Loyalty
• Piety
• Generosity
• Bravery
• Glory and honor
• Contempt of death
• Helpfulness towards the poor and the sick
• Respect for the church

This is one of the prettiest tanzanites we’ve seen in a long time!

We started with our style 10208 and tried a couple of different shank styles (see the Photoshoped images above) before ending with what you see in the finished piece.

The inspiration

You might gaze longingly at an engagement ring in the window only to find that it’s not as picture perfect when you put it on. Just like clothing should be chosen based on your body type, rings should be purchased according to your hand type. Here are a few pointers:

Long fingers — Marquise shapes often just make long fingers look even longer. The marquise is a stretched out oblong shape with pointed ends. Pear or oval stones may also not be very flattering on long fingers. Round rings are often the most flattering ring for this finger type.

Marquise-shaped stone, good for short or wide fingers.

Short fingers — Round stones can seem to shorten short fingers even further. The marquise shape can help add the illusion of length to short fingers. Pear or teardrop shapes are also usually flattering on short fingers. Big rectangular rings are probably the least flattering as they can overwhelm short fingers.

Narrow fingers — Heart-shaped or round stones may not be the most flattering ring for a hand with narrow fingers. Thicker band styles of rings may help add horizontal lines to narrow fingers to help them look wider. Wearing rings with small stones may also help thinner fingers look wider.

Wide fingers — Wider types of marquise styles may flatter short, wide fingers. The idea with wide fingers is not to have two much skin showing on each side of the ring or fingers may look even wider. Round stones in larger settings may look best on this finger type. Cluster-styles may be the most flattering ring on hands with wide fingers.

Large hands — Rings with small stones may just look lost on large hands. Try larger rings that suit your personality. You may even be able to wear really bulky or chunky ring styles well.

Heart shaped stone for narrow fingers

Yesterday, I read about chandalier earrings and their continuing popularity over the last few years. It got me wondering about the history of chandelier earrings and sure enough, they’ve been around for quite some time. “Everything old is new again” continues to remain true. Chances are, there isn’t a piece of jewelry you possess that doesn’t have a story tell, sometimes reaching back many centuries.

Here’s a little more on chandalier earrings:

Chandelier style, also known as girandole, are characterized by a bow, central stone or circular cluster of stones at the top from which are suspended three gemstone drops. The tops as well as the drops can be from simple to elaborate in execution. This style of earrings, and pendants, is first noted during Roman times, re-emerged during the Renaissance and persisted until the late Victorian period. With the revival of antique style jewelry in the late 20th and early 21st centuries many adaptations of the Chandelier earring are seen.

Source: Antique Jewelry University

Some examples (and remember, if any appeal to you, we’re happy to design a pair with your tastes in mind.)

Cheryl Crow dons pink chandalier earrings

We work with a variety of gems here at Joseph Schubach Jewelers. Today, I’d like to highlight some of the breathtakingly beautiful blue stones. Many people will think of sapphire or lapis or even tanzanite, but there are a number of other blue gemstones which come in different shades including azure, cobalt, navy and indigo.

Lapiz Lazuli

Rainbow Hermatite

Titanium Drusy

London Blue Topaz

Blue Moonstone

Tanzanite

Spectrolite

Boulder Opal

The “Star of Lanka” is a 193-carat, oval, cabochon-cut, high domed, blue star sapphire with a distinct six-rayed star positioned at the center of the dome-shaped face, with its arms extending down to the base of the stone. In terms of the quality of the star, the “Star of Lanka” rivals its more famous cousins such as the “Star of India” and the “Star of Bombay.” The stone is opaque and milky, which tends to reduce the tone of the blue color of the sapphire. The color of the sapphire is a grayish blue. The dimensions of the gemstone are 30mm x 27mm x 23 mm.

We’ve recently seen several of our customer requesting not one, but two wedding rings – one for each side of the engagement ring. I recall many years ago hearing about this trend in Australia and New Zealand. Has it finally caught on here?

Here is an example from one of our customers. They purchased a ring very similar to our style 9617 and added an anniversary style band on each side.