For the past four years, I have had the pleasure of working for a private fine jeweler in Manhattan. During this time, I have received an education in jewelry design, diamond grading, color stone identification, metal smithing, luxury marketing, and so much more. I continue to learn (and get excited about) something new every day.
Working for such a successful and amazingly supportive company has allowed me the opportunity to discover my love for fine jewelry design. An art unto itself.
The design process is always exciting. Watching your mind's creation slowly to come to life piece by piece is a thrilling experience. The end product after so much thought and work is incredibly rewarding. Fantasy made reality.
Two years ago I found the most beautiful pair of watermelon tourmaline slices at a buying show in New York. After many trial sketches, I recently finalized an earring design for the stones.
My jeweler translated my sketch into a wax model that would fit the stones exactly. Using CAD (computer-aided design) software, he created the design plan for the CAM (computer-aided manufacturing) machine to print out the necessary waxes. More simply put, the wax models were created by 3D printing - a technology that is dramatically changing the jewelry industry.
Molds were made from the wax pieces, which are used to cast the final gold parts. After casting the gold my jeweler assembled the rest by hand - soldering the earring top's loop closed, attaching posts, creating a wire bezel for the dangling diamonds, polishing the gold.
The result: a stunning pair of 18K yellow gold watermelon tourmaline slice earrings rimmed in gold and dripping with dangling diamonds. A fantasy come to life even more beautiful than I imagined.
