News

History of Marriage Rings and Huge Passions All Around. Posted on 4 Jun 18:27 , 16 comments

Seen in this picture, I'm ready to run away from home and find adventure in the outside world!  Masquerading as a 7 year-old Hobo trick-or-treating in suburban Wheaton, Illinois revealed my early wanderlust.   My earliest history is a fusion of problem solving and making solutions with my hands.  At 16, I installed central air conditioning in my parents house, crawling through all parts of our attic for however many endless hours, for fun!  I had always wanted to become an engineer.  In college that goal totally evaporated because the classes were boring and there were no girls!  Trying out other career possibilities led me to an industrial design class in jewelry making taken on a lark.  That changed my life forever due to the synergy of engaging my head with my hands.  As a 20 year old, I felt I knew everything already from that one class!  Right?  I soon headed west to Aspen to fulfill my destiny.      

I set up a small booth in the hottest spot in town.  Customers sought me out to make contemporary styles of silver and turquoise jewelry, then gold, leading to an unquenchable passion for designing and making precious art to wear that people love more and more over time.  Jewelry is the most intimate connection for people.  As intimate as clothing, so close to the skin, only lasting.  In the earliest histories of cultural commitments, what was exchanged between the two people?  A gold ring.  Gold was rare and hard to find.  This was and is still the message sent with such an exchange:  "you are precious and our relationship is valuable."  My passion has only grown.  I want to continue being a part of creating that precious history.  


I Love The Tradition of Family Jewels, But I'm Starting A New Tradition! Posted on 30 Mar 18:03 , 16 comments

Many families grapple with how to disseminate inheritance.  It isn't easy to stave off bad feelings.  Simply giving the eldest the first choice or the most expensive jewels seems out of step with today's values.  Olwen's sensitivity really captured the possibilities.