Sometimes you simply can't find exactly what you want -- and visiting store after store hoping to find it feels pointless and tiring.
Come to Jewelry Artisans and talk to Jamie. He'll guide you gently through what you're looking for, how you wear jewelry (or how she does, if it's a gift), and what you're trying to capture with the design.
Custom design takes a little time, but it's worth it to get exactly what you want.
Jewelry Artisans can start from scratch with all new stones and gold, or can remount gems from existing jewelry into a style more suitable to today.
Custom design is more affordable than you might think. When you're considering having an original design created, expect it to cost 25% to 35% more than a famous-name designer item with the same stones. The length of time to create it will depend on many factors -- talk to Jamie about wht to expect when you discuss the design.
When does original design add something special? Here are some of Jamie's favorite stories:
Family Heirloom Split Five Ways
A father of three came into the shop with several pieces of old, damaged jewelry that had been in the family for generations. His wife was about to deliver their fourth child, and he wanted to surprise her with a "new heirloom" -- one especially for their family.
He and Jamie consulted and decided to create a bracelet made up of five distinct links. Each child's initials were engraved on the back of one of the links. The mother gets the joy of wearing the bracelet now, and the children will remember that bracelet as easily as they remember her perfume.
Many years from now, when the time comes to divide the estate among the children, each child will inherit the link selected for them by their father.
Mom's Favorite
Two sisters in their late 20's lost their mother after a long illness. The mom had a sapphire and diamond ring that she wore every day, and to the "girls", it was her most prized earthly possession.
They struggled over a way to keep the ring but share it. They consulted with Jamie and a solution was born.
He would remove the stones from the original setting and cut the large sapphire in half. Then he would design a new ring using half the diamonds and one half of the sapphire -- and make two of them; one for each sister.
Now each sister has a piece of their mother's favorite ring, in a form that can be passed on to the third generation.
Three Generations
A woman inherited two pieces of jewelry from her mother -- an opal and diamond ring that had belonged to the mother plus a second opal and diamond ring that had belonged to her grandmother. The stones wouldn't go together easily in a ring, but in working with Jamie, they designed a pendant that showcased all the stones.
The woman became the third generation to enjoy the stones, and the pendant will someday be passed on to her only daughter.
