Here's what you'll need -

Dish soap or glass cleaner. Any kind will do, just nothing abrasive. Plain and simple (and cheap) work best. (Or jewelry cleaner from your local jeweler :)).

A Toothbrush - Any kind will do, but preferably soft or extra soft. A Sonicare toothbrush is ideal! I keep an old head just for cleaning jewelry.

A lint-free cotton, or microfiber cloth. You can also use a cotton bath towel. Or, a professional jewelry cloth from your local jeweler! :)

Since you will be doing this in a sink, prepare things before getting your jewelry too close.

Run the water until it is hot. Not too hot. If you can't hold your hand under the water, it's too hot. Next, close the drain! This is the most important part of the entire process! In fact, put a folded wash cloth over the drain, because your jewelry will be very slippery, and will most likely drop it. And this is a jewelry cleaning lesson, not a jewelry finding lesson.

Now, if you have been quarantined for an extended period, or if it has been a long time since your last cleaning, a pre-soak will be helpful. The glass cleaner would be ideal for this. At least an hour, but overnight works as well.

Then scrub with the toothbrush, especially underneath. Rinse with warm water, and dry with the lint free cotton, or microfiber cloth. OR, the professional jewelry cloth! :) Finally, blow out any excess liquid that might be trapped in the nooks. And there you go!

Your jewelry will also be disinfected, as the soap breaks apart any viruses and bacteria present. Which comes in handy during a pandemic!

And now for the most important things - the caveats, warnings, and exclusions.

If your jewelry contains Emeralds, Pearls, Opals, Tanzanite, or Idon'tknows, skip all of the previously outlined steps, and accept that your jewelry will just be dirty until you can get to your professional jeweler. For sensitive gems and pearls, the best you can do is wipe them with a cloth, like the professional jewelry cloth! :)

Something missing from your do-it-yourself cleaning, is the checking. Your professional jeweler will check all of the prongs, and ensure all of the gems are tight. We recommend a professional check-up of your jewels at least twice a year. Especially the jewelry you wear every day, like your engagement and wedding rings.

That's all there is to it! If you found this useful, feel free to share it. And please let us know if you have any comments or questions! Stay Sparkly!

For that, she needed a guide. Someone that could interpret her thoughts, and turn them into ideas. Someone that could transform those ideas into the ring of her dreams. She didn’t know it, but that same person would also know that what’s in style isn’t what some fashion guru says it is. To know what’s in style, she need only know what she likes. There are no rules. Having no rules means there are no constraints. Having no constraints means anything is possible.

When she found Artelle Designs, it was like fate. An international award winning jewelry designer hiding in Plymouth, Minnesota? A Mom and Pop fine jewelry gallery run by, well, Mom and Pop. Or Ellie and Stuart as they are affectionately known. Married for 40 plus years, and in business together for nearly the same time, they truly understand the meaning of jewelry, and the powerful stories that give each piece life. Especially engagement and wedding rings.

More importantly, they are not only experienced, and skilled designers, they also do all of the making on the premises. Nothing is lost to translation. And they put Good Vibes, that you can really feel, into everything!

With this ring, she wasn’t pressured to do anything. With this ring, she was given options, and listened to. With this ring, she fell in love all over again. And she couldn’t wait to start the next chapter of her life…With this ring.

In some cases the repairs can be minor (relatively) and a week or so in the shop will give you many more years of wear. But in a lot of cases, the cost to bring your wedding ring back to it's former glory would make a nice down payment on a brand new ring. And if your ring is more than ten years old, say, twenty years old, then you might be just plain tired of looking at it. After all, your taste has probably changed, and you might be able to afford your dream ring now. So now you have some choices to make. 

You can have your ring repaired or choose a complete ring restoration, or you can put that money toward a brand new ring. I can certainly present you with the options and costs to repair your current ring, but only you can decide if you want to start over. Which, understandably, can be a very daunting prospect. What if you don't know what you want? You just know you want something different. Maybe just an update to your original engagement ring, or a different style altogether, and even a different color gold or platinum. Perhaps your original wedding ring was yellow gold, and you now want white gold. Or the other way around, since yellow gold is coming back now.

But you are thinking that it's probably expensive and time consuming, and you don't want to waste anyone's time looking or designing a wedding ring you don't even know you want. Well...Banish the thought! That's what I do! It's my profession, and my job to help you figure out your style. And the first consultation is f-r-e-e FREE! You've got nothing to lose, and a new gorgeous ring to gain!

If you have found yourself browsing the jewelry ads a little more lately, then you might be ready for a new wedding ring. Do those halo engagement rings look good? That would be a good choice if you want to keep your original diamond. A halo style will make it look larger. Perhaps you have been dreaming of a larger diamond. I work directly with diamond cutters, so there is no middle person. My relationships with the diamond manufacturers I use go back over 25 years. I have access to any shape, or color, of diamond. Would you rather have Created diamond? That is a diamond that is grown rather than mined. Less impact on the Earth, conflict free, and less money too! Options are good, and I can help you narrow them down. And no pressure at all. You take as much time as you need.

So the next time you find yourself looking at your engagement wedding ring hoping to see something different, give me a call, and let's talk about your options. I will give you the costs upfront, in plain language that you can understand. I can show you hundreds of designs that will surely get your creative juices flowing. You will have fun, because, well, it IS fun! To find out more about The Process, click HERE. And if you have any questions at all, please let me know.

If I hurt my arm, I can’t call my doctor and ask him how much to fix it. He needs to know what is wrong, exactly! Is it broken or sprained? Is it swollen, bleeding, movable? He is going to say that I need to come in so he can see it. It might need an x-ray or MRI before he can tell me what needs to be done. Or what if your car breaks? You could try to call your mechanic and ask how much to fix your car, but they can’t answer that question until they see the car in person.

So what do I need to know in order to give you a reasonably accurate cost estimate? Let’s start with what kind of metal. Is it gold, or silver, or platinum, or something else? If it’s gold, what karat is it, 10k, 14k, 18k, yellow or white or other? Platinum is harder to do, so any work on platinum jewelry costs more than gold. The cost of ring resizing depends on metal, color, width, stones, thickness, complexity of design, and how many sizes up or down. Can I tell that over the phone? No, not really. And the tricky part is that all of those factors relate to, and affect the others. I just need to see the jewelry in person, and hold it in my hand in order to give an accurate price. Over the phone I can’t tell anything, because I can’t see it.

Chain repair is almost the same, with some slightly different questions, like hollow or solid? If the clasp is broken, what kind is it? Lobster, spring ring, or other? What size is it? Those things affect the price. And sometimes, the chain is not even repairable.

So you are probably thinking so what, how much different can everything be? Well, I can tell you! Let’s start with a chain. The least expensive chain repair I have done was $0. If it’s yellow gold, the price usually starts at $20 for a simple solder, or $30 for a laser. A what!? A laser. It is another way to solder, without using fire. It actually welds the metal together. Not everyone has one though, as they cost as much as a small car. And just because someone has one, does not mean they know how to use it. It does make more jewelry repairable, though, as sensitive gemstones don’t have to be removed and reset. So there is no additional resetting charge, or prong repair.

In any case, a laser can go where a torch cannot, but because it costs more to operate than a torch, a jewelry repair utilizing a laser costs more. So back to the chain repair. Starts at $20, but could go to…much more. What if the clasp is broken? A spring ring could cost as little as $30, but could go to $300 or more. How about a jump ring? Do you know what that is? It is a loop that connects to the chain itself or to the clasp, and is used to connect one thing to another. A small one could be $20, and a large one could be $60 or more. It depends on the size and the thickness of wire. I can’t tell you on the phone which size it is, and most likely you cannot tell me.

Rings are much more difficult. There are so many variables, that even when I see it in person, something could happen during the repair that could cause the cost to be more. Like loose diamonds, or an unforeseen crack that appears when the metal is bent. Sometimes I cannot even see everything until the ring is cleaned. That just happened recently, and it turns out that a simple prong straightening turned into a complete re-make, because the ring could not be repaired. There was not enough metal, and a previous repair was not done properly. A ring resizing is also something I need to see in person. Has it been sized before? How much does it have to go up or down? How wide is the shank? Yellow or white gold? Yellow gold bends easier than white gold, so yellow gold rings cost less to resize. And what about platinum? If there are stones of any kind, then it will need to be laser welded so the stones don’t get too hot. It takes a lot more fire to solder platinum, and even diamonds will burn. A ring resizing could be as little as $60, but as much as $600 or more.

So as you can see, that simple question – How much to size my ring? – is not so simple. The good news is that in a very short few moments, I can answer that question. As long as I can hold your ring in my hand. 

Dear Mr. Dude,

Your big wedding anniversary is coming up, and you really want to get Mrs. Dude something great to show her how much you appreciate her. But what to get? Allow me to offer you a suggestion. Keep in mind that I have over 40 years of experience with this question, so I feel that I am very qualified to answer it. What does she want for her big wedding anniversary? She wants a new wedding ring (or engagement ring) and more than likely a bigger diamond to put in it.

Now I know what you are thinking. You are thinking that you already gave her an engagement ring, and the salesperson probably told you that you needed to spend a lot, but she would have it forever, so it would be worth it. And you were young, and very nervous, and you bought the ring that you could (barely) afford. It seemed pretty expensive at the time, but you figured you would not have to do that again, so you put it out of your mind. Besides, this engagement ring is special. You gave it to her. She will treasure it always. Yes. Yes. And yes. But what you could not, and did not anticipate, was that in 10 or 20 years you would be in a much different place in your life. More importantly, Mrs. Dude will be in a much different place. She will be more mature both in her tastes, and style. That engagement ring you struggled to pay for 20 some odd years ago is, sorry to say, out of style. And most likely a little on the small side.

I’m not saying that she is not happy with it. She still adores it, and treasures it, but her style is different now. And maybe you both are in a better place as well. As in being able to afford something a little more substantial. Or maybe she just wants an updated, modern style. Either way, the answer is the same. She wants a new and improved diamond/engagement/wedding ring.

Try not to take it as an insult for the ring you worked so hard to get her the first time. Perhaps an explanation of what the engagement ring truly is will help you understand. The engagement ring is a promise first. A promise that you are committing yourself to her, and only her. It’s a promise that you want to spend the rest of your life with her, for better or worse. After the promise, the engagement ring becomes a symbol. A symbol of your commitment to each other. A symbol that tells others that she is in a committed relationship, with you. The ring is not the relationship, and she is not married to the ring. She is married to you. Therefore, changing the ring has no effect on the relationship. Well, that’s not quite true. Changing or upgrading her engagement wedding ring will show her your continued, and renewed commitment. And that will make her feel really good! And you do want her to feel really good, don’t you? Especially on your big anniversary?

The thing is if she did not get to upgrade her engagement ring for your 10th anniversary, then she really wants to change it by the 15th anniversary. And if that anniversary is missed, then by the 20th anniversary, she REALLY wants a new engagement wedding ring. REALLY! If those anniversaries don’t result in a new wedding ring for her, then you better come up with one by your 25th anniversary. Come on Mr. Dude! It’s what she really, really, really wants. But this time, she will do all of the work! You just need to give her permission to let go of that old symbol, so she can get a new, improved, more stylish symbol of your love.

Her engagement ring is the most important thing she owns. To her it symbolizes more than just your relationship. It symbolizes her life with you, both past and present. It is also her main fashion accessory. If she only wears one piece of jewelry, it will be her wedding ring. It is the first thing she puts on in the morning (unless she never takes it off), and last thing to come off at night. It is as much a part of her as the finger it encircles. Changing her engagement ring to an updated modern (or vintage) style, something that represents who she is now, does not change how she feels about you. It does not mean she never liked the ring you gave her, although she might not have. She still married you right? So even if the engagement ring was not her favorite design, she still promised to love you. And if she did love it, she is ready for a new one. Seriously, the answer to the question ‘What does Mrs. Dude want for her anniversary?’ is easy!

She wants a new diamond/engagement/wedding ring! Let her pick this one out though. Better yet, have it custom made just for her. That way she will get everything she wants in an engagement ring. Which technically, is now a wedding ring. So now that you know what she wants for your big anniversary, that brings us to the next question. What do we do with the original engagement ring and diamond? Well it just so happens that I have some ideas about that, and I would be happy to discuss them with you.

Then around 1900, diamonds were discovered in South Africa, and jewelry designers began using small diamonds to surround gemstones. These were more cocktail type rings, but they had the halo look. Sometimes called cluster rings, (or pendants), they were most often worn as right hand rings, and not engagement rings. Probably because they most always had a color gemstone center, which was rarely used as an engagement ring center stone. It was, and is, a great way to frame a gemstone, and because of its simplicity and symmetry, became a classic design style. But they still were not called halos.

Sometime in the 1920’s diamonds were used to surround a center diamond, and the halo engagement ring was invented. But it was still not called a halo. Not until around 2009 were these designs called halos. They are called halo rings, because of the “halo” of diamonds around a center stone. They are a great way to make a smaller diamond look bigger, and a larger diamond look even larger. The halo style creates a focal point that draws your eye to the center of the ring, which tricks your eye. Your eye will see the entire diameter of the center diamond plus the halo of diamonds around it. This effect can be maximized by setting the halo diamonds as close to the center diamond as possible, so there is no perceptible space between them.

This design is great for budget challenged buyers, because they get a lot of diamond look, for less money than buying a large center diamond. Smaller diamonds cost less per carat than larger ones. But a smaller diamond can be made to look larger by simply setting a halo of diamonds closely around it. And the great thing is, that no matter what shape diamond you like, it will work with a halo. Want an even larger, richer look? How about a double halo?! There are many varieties of double halos. Pave, bead set, prong set. Flush set, channel set, bezel set. The effect is the same with any style of setting, although most modern halos use bead or prong set. And contrary to what most advertising says, they are not pave set. But that is a different blog.

The look is classic, and even when the style is no longer in fashion, it will survive the test of time. In other words, it will always be in style. The only problem is, because it is such a popular design right now, halo rings are being mass produced, and are mostly being made in China. A common complaint with modern halos, is that diamonds fall out quite frequently. This is because a setting technique called micro pave is being used. Micro pave is basically setting that uses diamonds smaller than 1.2mm. Now, a millimeter is pretty small. A diamond that is one millimeter has to have a little gold on it, so it will stay in its setting. Trouble is, there cannot be much gold on it, or it will be covered up. This means that the poor little diamond does not have enough gold to hold it in, and the slightest error in setting allows it to fall out. The mass produced halo diamonds suffer this fate more, because the halo rings they are set into are made to be inexpensive. Chinese labor is very cheap, so the manufacturers use more, smaller diamonds to get an expensive look. And, well, the diamonds are poor quality as well, and very susceptible to breakage. So if you can, avoid buying one of these rings, as you will not be getting your money’s worth, and it will not last. And since the engagement ring is a symbol of everlasting love, you do want it to last, right? How do you know if your diamond halo is good or not? Generally speaking, try not to get it from a big box or chain jewelry store.

Like most things, quality is worth paying for. Especially with halo engagement rings. This is a ring that is worn every day, and needs to hold up to everyday wear. Be sure to have it checked twice a year, and get it from someone who warranties that the stones stay put. Because it should be enjoyed on your finger, and not in the shop! 

This is Grandma's ring, after it was repaired by a jeweler who must have been working in the dark. They put on a new shank, they said. Where is it, exactly? It looks like they used an old shank off of an old ring.

The first thing to ask is do they do the work on the premises. This might not seem like a big deal, but to me, this is the most important thing. If they send their repairs out to an offsite jeweler, then that puts your prized jewelry possessions at risk. And that leads to the next question, are they insured? They should be able to show you their policy. In addition, the value of your jewelry should be clearly written on the receipt or claim check they give you. Having a jeweler on the premises, and insurance are not a guarantee that they do good work. But if you don’t get the right answers to these questions, then you can keep looking, regardless of your friends’ recommendation.

Here is the other side, showing excess solder (the discolored section at the top of the photo), and an uneven finish.

If you get the right answers, then the next step is to figure out if they know what they are doing. It starts with a very close examination of your jewelry. I start with a 10x magnification jewelers loupe, and then for a more detailed look I use a microscope. With the microscope, I can show those details on my computer screen, so you can see for yourself what the issues are. Then I will recommend the best course of action to repair it, and make it wearable. And I will do my best to communicate those steps, as well as the price, in a clear and understandable way. We use a jewelry repair price guide so the pricing is consistent and transparent. If the store is just pulling out numbers off the top of their head, then be suspicious. While some repairs are more common, many are quite unique.

This is how it was delivered to the customer. They don't seem to have much of an inspection process. Or what's more troubling is, it passed!

Finally, how much experience do they have? And don’t be fooled by that “combined” experience ploy. Five people with five years each does not give them all 25 years of experience. It gives them 5. By the same token, someone with twenty five years of experience doing things the wrong way is not so good either. But someone with more experience has had more practice, and will have run into more types of repairs. This gives them a decided advantage.

This is after I fixed it the right way, using one new piece of gold, seemlessly attached.

Ultimately, you have to use your gut again. Does what they say make sense? Do they do the work themselves, on the premises? Can you speak to the person doing the work? Are they insured? Have they been doing jewelry repair for over ten years? Has the store been in business for a while? Did you get a claim check that has a description of your jewelry with a clearly written insured value? All of these questions should get satisfactory answers. If not, keep looking.

“I really appreciate all of your work on my Grandma’s ring. I will always cherish it, and think of you.” Cheryl S. 

I think Grandma is Happy!

I sincerely hope this helps you. One of the things that bother me a lot is bad craftsmanship. If you have any questions or comments, or if I can help you at all, please let me know. 

July comes, 2012, and ‘R’ comes in to look for some new earrings. She mentions that she has a big Birthday and Anniversary soon, and would maybe like a nice pendant. So out come the gemstones! Keeping in mind that we are gemaholics, there are many fabulous gems to see. She is ooing and aahing all over the place. And then “the” Citrine comes out. It’s love at first sight! She asks if we will hold it for her, until she can bring in her husband and start the design process. Sure! Her name and the date go on the box, and back into the safe for safe keeping!

I don’t know when the big occasions are, but in my mind they are coming up soon. So instead of trying to make an amazing design, and coming up with nothing, I decide to go the other way. I’ve got this amazing gemstone! It speaks for itself, and sparkles like nothing else! Why am I trying to complicate things by over designing!? Let’s just keep it real simple, frame it with diamonds, put it on a nice gold chain, and let the stone do what it does, shine! Great idea! I make a simple sketch so I will remember what I was thinking, just in case it is a few months until she comes back in with her husband.

A few months goes by, and then another few, and then another few, and a few more, and a few more after that. Etcetera. Until April. 2015! Wow! I had no idea that much time went by! So let’s recap a little. We bought an exquisitely cut Citrine in February 2004, and we are just now starting to design a piece of jewelry around it, in 2015. And sometimes that is how it works. The special gems will wait a long time for the right design, or the right person. In this case, the Citrine waited for, and found, the right person. The person it wanted to be worn by, that it was destined for.

Well it turns out that ‘R’ has a pretty conservative style, and taste to match. However, she does want something dressy, that she can wear to formal occasions. How about just framing it in diamonds, and hanging it on an interesting chain? I can make a simple basket for the Citrine to sit in, with intricate cutouts, and maybe a personalized back plate. I have an idea for the back plate, but I will keep that as a surprise. I’ll have to ask her husband how he would like to personalize it, and I will put that on a cover plate that will be the back of the pendant. Now I am getting excited!

The process starts with a CAD rendering. I make up some designs using some fancy computer aided design software. Which is how I draw, since my artist ancestors somehow forgot to pass along the drawing gene. Luckily, though, I did get a strong sculpting gene. So thanks to CAD software, I can draw! I can draw up as many variations of my idea as I like. A lot of times, I will think of new ideas in the process. But more often than not, the first idea is usually the one that is chosen.

When ‘R’ approved the design, I had a secret meeting with her husband to find out what he wanted to add for personalization. This was to be a 30^th wedding anniversary, and 60^th Birthday present, so 30 and 60 needed to be included. Of course he also wanted to say ‘With all my love – Tony’. Now I just needed to put it all together in an attractive way. After thinking about it for a couple of days, I wasn’t really getting anywhere, until one morning very early. I woke up around 3, and somewhere between being asleep and almost awake, the picture formed in my mind. Now all I had to do was remember it for a few hours until I actually woke up all the way. As soon as I got up I made a quick sketch! Making this personalized back plate meant some tricky construction, especially since the shape of the pendant was triangular, and it needed to be attached prior to setting the Citrine. But the challenges drive me to be more creative and inventive, which in turn makes the project more fun and satisfying when I conquer all the obstacles.

After the design is agreed upon, the process is pretty straight forward. Although sometimes I have to really think about the order of the steps. And this project was extra special, so I made sure of every step. And thankfully, I had plenty of time to complete this special jewel. Which is also nice, because although I (and jewelers in general) need to have a deadline, I don’t like to be rushed. And here are the specs – A little over half an ounce of 18 karat yellow gold; Fifty three ideal cut diamonds weighing half a carat; and one spectacularly amazing triangular cushion concave starburst natural citrine, weighing 16.93 carats. It hangs on a very stylish 18 karat yellow gold link chain, around the neck of a very happy lady, who waited a very long time for just the right Gem!

So now I have this amazing Madeira Citrine in my hand, and out comes the sketch book and my favorite pencil. I start to draw the stone shape first. It’s a pretty simple sketch, nothing elaborate or detailed. Just simple lines at first, until the design starts to form. Then I will start to detail it. But first, I need to come up with something that impresses me. And after 40 years of doing this, it takes a lot to impress me. Nothing like putting undue pressure on myself. But if you recall from my last blog post, this gemstone is for the AGTA Spectrum Design contest, and the deadline is September something, and this is only February. So I have plenty of time! I put a few ideas down, but nothing interesting is coming to me right now, so I’ll get back to designing soon. Away goes the sketch book, and the Citrine goes into the safe.

I start to get busy in March, and by the end of April it’s all I can do to keep up with my work load. It’ll be nonstop until the end of July, at least. But that will still give me a month or two to make up a special piece for the contest. Plenty of time!

Well, now it is September, and I am still slammed with work. Looks like I will miss this years’ contest, but that’s okay, I’ll have even more time to enter in 2005. And boy will I have a great design by then! Meanwhile, our lease was up at the building we were in on May 1, 2005, and there just so happened to be some buildings going up one block away. I could see them working from my office. ‘Own your own office’, the sign said. Okay, we said. That was February. We’ve got three months to move! And the timing is not so great, as our busy time starts at the same time we need to be packing. Oh well, once it is done, we won’t have to do it again.

We are in the new place, and have barely gotten everything set up, and I have got a backlog of work. My calendar fills up through September. Well, there goes another year. Maybe I will get to that fabulous Citrine by Christmas or in the spring for the 2006 contest. Or maybe not. By the end of a crazy busy year, I have forgotten all about the Citrine. I am reminded of it occasionally when the photo pops up on our gallery computer slide show, and I am pretty sure I know where it is in the safe, but it is not on the radar for projects that need doing. There are many other priorities right now, and besides, a contest piece is a big investment that does not pay very much. Oh I would get some great notoriety and a cool trophy, but those things don’t pay the bills, so on to the back burner it goes.

Fast forward to 2011. Maybe this is the year I can finally make up a design for the Citrine, and enter it into the Spectrum Design Contest. They usually send out the information brochure in the summer sometime, so I will find out all the details when I get it. When the brochure does show up, I eagerly read all of the rules, requirements, and categories. The entry deadline is still September, so that’s okay. Wait, how much is the entry fee?! Um, that’s a little much. I think I will have to think about this a little longer.

The show with the best gems (in my opinion, which is a little bent toward higher end stones, and by higher end stones I mean superior cutting, full treatment disclosure, and honest dealers) is the AGTA show, which stands for American Gem Trade Association. The members are carefully screened, and must sign a document in which they promise to conduct business in an ethical and honest manner, and fully disclose any treatment to the gems they sell. In other words, No Shadiness. Most of our gem sources we’ve known for at least 20 years, and a few for close to 40 years. But if we want to try someone new, we can trust most everyone at an AGTA show. Of course we still use our gut to decide if we can work with someone or not. Some of these folks are quite strange, and not so trusting themselves.

So let’s get back to 2004. I was on a particular mission to find a gemstone dazzling enough to impress the judges at next year’s Spectrum Design competition. What’s that you say? It’s the most prestigious colored gemstone contest there is, put on by, you guessed it, the AGTA. I used to enter contests regularly, and have done pretty well in most, but I have never won an AGTA award. Of course I have only entered twice in the last 30 years, but I still have a yearning for that award. But it takes special gems to impress the judges, who you might expect have seen a lot of nice stones, so it takes a lot to impress them. Well actually, I have seen a lot of nice gemstones in my life, so it takes a lot to impress me!

When we are shopping for gemstones we really need for the gem to speak to us. My design inspiration comes from the gem, and if it only whispers, then the design will only whisper. But if it speaks loudly, or yells, well, you get the idea. It’s difficult to make a bad design with a killer stone. But keep in mind that, at the AGTA show, there are hundreds of gemstone dealers. And they collectively are showing hundreds of thousands of gemstones of all sizes, types, and cuts. Not all of them are spectacular, and you have to look at a lot of them to find the right one. And. There. Are. A. Lot! So you need to have a system, because the best gems sell first.

Everyone has their favorite gem dealers and cutters, and the minute the show opens they make a beeline to see their latest offerings. When we exhibited at the show, we had a few regulars that would come first thing, and scoop up our show pieces. Our show pieces were usually made with our favorite gems, and were only completed a day or two before we left for the show. And they were taken away on the first day of a six day show! We barely got to know them! But now we were the shoppers, and we needed to find something special. So instead of doing what most people do, which is start from the front, we went straight to the back. Because that’s what we do. When everyone else zigs, we zag.

And wouldn’t you know it, way in the back row, there was one of our favorite American gem cutters, Mark Gronlund. We had previously only admired his work, and always thought he was too expensive for us. Well not anymore! He did have some very expensive gems, but he also had some very reasonably priced gems, like a gorgeous Madeira Citrine. He developed a special cut for this stone, which he calls a Triangular Cushion Concave Starburst. (Breathe!) We just call it Spectacular! Because of this cutting, the stone seems to glow from within. There are no windows (dead spots you can see through), and no bad angles. The gem literally looks like it has a fire inside it. Sold! I don’t know what I will make yet, but this gemstone will make it sing! Time to start sketching…!