Happy Stories From our customers

I still recall routing through my mom’s jewelry box when I was little. It seemed like a treasure chest of highly magical items, only reserved for her intended wear.

Well…not only. Because I happily piled her beloved pieces and topped it off with a little of her favorite red lipstick. Voila…now I was grown up and pretty, just like her!

Years later, my mother bestowed her daughters with her jewelry, shortly before she died. I chose an unusual pendant necklace made of 18k gold. The pendant itself looks something like a strange sun setting. Or an octopus. I haven’t quite figured it out.

Whenever people see it, they ask, “What is that?”

I never have an answer and ask for their interpretation.

“An insect?”

“A Greek symbol?”

“The spokes of a crooked wheel?”

It’s not my favorite piece of jewelry. But it’s my mom’s. And on days when I miss her, I wear it with pride. Because it doesn’t really matter whether I like the jewelry or not; it just matters that it was hers. 

If you believe in this kind of thing, her vibration, her “energy” is still contained within the piece. Many psychics have used jewelry as a divination method, when say, trying to locate a missing person. Because jewelry absorbs a certain essence of us and remains there for a long, long time. I don’t know about all that. I just know it feels right when I wear it.

As a “grown up” I have a jewelry box of my own now. When I open it, I harken back to that little girl. Sure she’s grown, but she still believes in magical treasures contained neatly in a box.

Our custom designs are a collaborative process with the customer input guiding the way. This design is a distinctive, opulent ring with 5.85ct Natural Yellow Princess Cut Sapphire as the masterful centerpiece.

If you’re looking for a custom design piece like this, let’s talk. We’ve been bringing jewelry dreams to life for over 100 years, specializing in high end custom design that truly matches the heart and soul of the wearer.

You’ve heard of facets before but now, as you’re poised to purchase an engagement ring, you feel like you should know more. We get it! So here’s a fast and furious lesson so you can be better informed.

The short story? Facets are the flat faces on geometric shapes. Gemstones have facets cut into them to improve appearance and reflecting light. Facets are seen in nature as well. Many crystals naturally grow in faceted shapes.

A faceting machine is used when cutting a gem–an art in and of itself. When its done right, there should a balance of brilliance (internal reflections of light) and dispersion (commonly referred to as “fire”). Lastly, those stunning brightly colored flashes from a gem, termed “scintillation.”

There are literally hundreds of facet arrangements but the most well-known is the the round brilliant cut, a cut with a long history:

This first early version of what would become the modern Brilliant Cut is said to have been devised by an Italian named Peruzzi, sometime in the late 17th century. Later on, the first angles for an “ideal” cut diamond were calculated by Marcel Tolkowsky in 1919. Slight modifications have been made since then, but angles for “ideal” cut diamonds are still similar to Tolkowsky’s formula. [Source: Wikipedia]

Round brilliants cut before the “ideal” angles are commonly referred to as “early round brilliant cut” or “Old European brilliant cut.” These cuts are considered by some as poorly cut, at least by today’s standards.

Other gem cuts with a long history include the “Old Mine Cut” which is similar to early versions of the round brilliant, but has a rectangular outline. Or the Rose Cut which is a simple cut consisting of a flat back and various numbers of angled facets on the crown, creating a faceted dome.

Hopefully that gives you a better idea of facets. But we’re here if you have any questions!