sentimental rubies: a custom project

one of my gemology school friends and I were recently discussing pieces of jewelry and gemstones that have sentimental value to us because they remind us of loved ones who have a special place in our heart. she mentioned that rubies are very special to her because her late grandmother's engagement ring had a ruby. then she said she had always wanted a ruby necklace to remind her of her grandmother. ah ha I said, let's make one for you! so I took her to my gemstone dealer in the diamond district and we looked at strand after strand of faceted rubies to find the perfect one. she fell in love with an 89 ct strand of dainty, faceted rondelle rubies. check out the construction process and final product on pj!:

gorgeous rich red rubies

89 cts!

stringing the rubies

ta da!

pj rocking her new ruby necklace!

the creative process: part 2

as I mention in this post, I have been working on a necklace to wear to a friend's wedding next week. I decided to go bold and colorful, with lots of sparkle. I finalized my color combination and then the construction process began! check it out:

I went with colorful chalcedony, spinel, carnelian, labradorite, and amethyst

to make construction easier, I separated the gemstones into piles. it also just looks prettier on my desk :)

started stringing! that's my bead stopper at the end to make sure things don't go flying, although they still tend to anyway

first strand complete!

close up shot of completed necklace

ta da! final necklace. all set for pauline's wedding :)

the creative process

one of my favorite parts of what I do is custom projects. whether it be bridesmaids necklaces, a bridal headpiece, a necklace for a black tie event, or a necklace for my mom to wear with one of her new tunics (she definitely benefits from having a daughter who designs jewelry!)--I love being given a theme or color palette and the opportunity to design a piece.

so here is my newest custom project: a necklace for moi to wear to a friend's wedding later this month!!

this is the dress I'm wearing (its by kara janx and its my friend's favorite dress in my closet):

the wedding is going to be in tribeca so I can go a little trendy (as opposed to pearls). i've decided to go big and colorful.

step one of my creative process: throw lots of gemstones on my work desk

step two: start playing around with different combinations

stay tuned for step three (finalizing the color combination) and step four (construct the necklace)! and feel free to post a comment if any particular color combo strikes your fancy :)