Customer Custom Requests

Though all of our designs are custom jewelry pieces; it is much more fun to have an original and unique work of art in jewelry; rather than something that is mass produced or duplicated. Making sure that we keep our designs fresh and unique is often difficult, but a challenge I take on every time I step into the studio to create.



Quite often we get customer custom requests for something a little more to their liking or personality. These requests are usually to make something in their favorite colors or gemstones and are accompanied with a request to add my trademark wire sculpture.










If you would like t0 make a custom request, just contact us for more information!

Goldstone: Old World Folklore Stone

Goldstone is an unusual gemstone in that it is manmade from a type of glass with copper or copper salts in the presence of a reducing flame. Under the right oxidative conditions, the copper ions meld into the silica to produce the transparent bluish-green or red-brown colors. When the goldstone cools, the copper remains in an atomic isolation and becomes small crystalline clusters.
The most common form of goldstone gives the illusion of being reddish-brown, although in fact that color comes from the copper crystals and the glass itself is colorless. Some goldstone variants have an intensely-colored glass matrix, usually blue or violet, more rarely green, and a more silvery appearance to the suspended crystals, whose color may be partially masked by the glass or which may be based on different metals than copper like cobalt, manganese or chromium.

Old World Folklore
Goldstone has been around for centuries and was presumed discovered by accident in the 17th century Venice by the Miotti family. Old World folklore attributes the discovery of Goldstone from an old monastery where monks were trying to make gold out of other materials, specifically alchemy. Molten copper was tipped by accident into a crucible of molten glass and crystallized out in tiny bright triangular crystals and forming a melt from which objects with golden light could be formed. It has an alternate or folklore name of ‘Monk’s Gold’ or ‘Monkstone’ from this discover before it was named Goldstone due to the starry internal reflections of the stone.
Properties
Though Goldstone doesn’t have any associated birthstone or anniversary, it does however have some associated properties. Goldstone is associated with vitality, energy and the uplifting of a persons spirits. It is known to help to reduce tension and believed to be helpful in securing love, protection, riches and inspired diplomacy. It is found in the United States, India and Russia. Has a symbolic meaning for Ambition and Drive.
Blue Goldstone is a stone for wisdom and science
Red/Brownish Goldstone is a stone for physical stimulation

I came across some Goldstone recently that the dealer called “Bad Goldstone” because there are darker striations within the beads and not totally clear starry inclusions. Looking at these beads, I felt they were unique and would make great additions to a jewelry design. Though a very beautiful stone, I have partnered it with Peach Jasper, Cherry Quartz, and gold caged lampwork beads in black-pink-cream colors. It is available for purchase on my website along with many other unique and original natural gemstone jewelry designs.

Traditional Gemstone Properties

Many people know the traditional gemstone properties for their favorites; Turquoise, Agates, Jasper or their own birthstone. When buying jewelry, it’s interesting to note the different gemstone properties for all the different stones nature gives us. Here I’ve listed the ones that I could find; the gemstone and their matching property. Enjoy and keep for reference…when purchasing a piece of gemstone jewelry, impress the person with a little knowledge of the properties the gems hold!

Traditional Gemstone Properties
Agates: Balancing physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual energies; perceptiveness, strength, inspiration, awakening talents.
Amazonite: Success, joy, self-expression, awakening heart, soothing, harmony, balancing.
Amber: Soothing, calming, cleansing.
Amethyst: Contentment, spirituality, dreams, healing, peace, happiness, love, intuition.
Ametrine: Intellectual stimulation, attunement, releasing, dispelling tension, connecting.
Apatite: Intellect, achieving results, healing, insight, humanitarianism, meditation, balance, creativity.
Aquamarine: Courage, purification, peace, intuition, self-expression, balance, preparedness.
Aventurine: Healing, money, mental agility, visual acuity, peace, opening heart, motivation, leadership.
Azurite: Intuitive energy, dreams, healing, insight, stilling the mind, concentration, self transformation.
Bloodstone: Courage, intense healing, renewal, strength, victory, intuitive decision making.
Calcite: Purification, peace, calming, memory, awareness, appreciation of nature.
Carnelian: Precision, analytical capabilities, physical energy, verbal skill, peace, spirituality.
Celestite: Verbal skill, healing, compassion, calming, growth, intuition, hope.
Chrysocolla: Easing heartache, stamina, wisdom, peace, love, communication, vitality, inner strength.
Chrysoprase: Balancing male-female energy, love, grace, compassion, clemency, personal growth.
Citrine: Intuition, comfort, protection, creativity, physical energy, wealth, mental awakening.
Coral: Diplomacy, quieting emotions, visualization.
Crystal Quartz: Intensifying energy, spiritual development, healing, raising consciousness.
Diamond: Courage, strength, healing, protection, spirituality, mental abilities.
Dumortierite: Self-reliance, stamina, patience, recognition of potential, understanding, communication of ideas.
Emerald: Love, domestic bliss, sensitivity, loyalty, memory, mental capacity, harmony, focus, eliminating negativity.
Fluorite: Stability, impartial reasoning, responsibility, concentration, health.
Fossil Stone: Accomplishments, improvement of one’s environment, communication, innovation.
Garnet: Health, removing negativity, awareness, commitment, regeneration, order, insight.
Hematite: Mental attunement, memory, calming, balance, focusing energy and emotions, peace, inner happiness, transforming negativity.
Howlite: Awareness, calm, emotional expression, observation, patience, eliminating negativity.
Iolite: Intuition, spiritual growth, healing, balance, releasing discord, awakening to inner knowledge.
Jade: Fidelity, dreams, realization of potential, peace, accord, resourcefulness, accomplishment.
Jaspers: Protection, nurturing, joy, awareness; balancing of physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual energies.
Labradorite: Alignment, spiritual connection, transformation, clarity, peace, progression, discernment.
Lapis Lazuli: Wisdom, intuition, awareness, objectivity, clarity, creativity, expanded consciousness, dreams, purity, courage, serenity.
Lepidolite: Hope, stress reduction, birth, peace, spirituality, physical strength, luck, protection, emotional balance.
Malachite: Transformation, insight, clarifying emotions, fidelity, loyalty, practicality.
Marble: Charitable actions, original thinking, alleviation of sorrow.
Moonstone: Introspection, reflection, beginnings, insight, tenderness, harmony, peace, travel.
Mother of Pearl: Mental clarity, intuition, sensitivity, imagination, adaptability, cooperation.
Obsidians: Clarity, deflecting negativity, protection, healing.
Onyx: Self-control, decision making, intuition, recognition of personal strengths.
Opal: Creativity, spontaneity, relationships, memory, happy dreams and changes.
Pearl: Purity, faith, charity, innocence, integrity, focus, wisdom, spirituality, sincerity, fertility.
Peridot: Warmth, friendliness, understanding, openness in love and relationships, regulation of cycles.
Pyrite: Defense, prevention, protection from negativity, physical wholeness, memory.
Rhodocrosite: Love, emotional balance, cleansing, renewal, relaxation, expansion of consciousness.
Rhodonite: Peace, generosity, attention to details.
Rhyolite: Change, variety, progress, creativity, transcending barriers.
Rose Quartz: Love, peace, happiness, gentleness, healing emotional wounds.
Ruby: Nurturing, spiritual wisdom, attainment of values, economic stability, protection from distress.
Sapphire: Joy, peace, beauty, intuition, prosperity, fulfillment of dreams.
Serpentine: (see Jade)
Smoky Quartz: Dissolving emotional blockage, clearing the mind, cooperation, personal pride, joy in living, attentiveness to the moment, protection.
Sodalite: Wisdom, logic, calmness, healing, stress reduction, companionship, self-esteem.
Sunstone: Alleviating fears, energizing, cleansing.
Tanzanite: Communication, intuition, protection, symmetry, decision-making, spirituality.
Tiger Eye: Practicality, peacefulness, clarity, intelligence, intuition, new experiences, financial stability, calmness, releasing inhibitions.
Tiger Iron: Artistic endeavors, beauty, vitality.
Topaz: True love, success in endeavors, understanding of interrelationships, expression of ideas, trust, health, personal expansion and growth.
Tourmaline: Energizing, soul-searching, releasing.
Turquoise: Spiritual attunement, cleansing, healing, protection, valor, soothing, peace of mind, guidance through the unknown, romantic spontaneity.
Unakite: Balance, re-birth, foresight, emotional balance.Zoisite: Dispelling laziness, facilitating advancement.

Shades of Red

The Holidays and New Years bring out shades of red in these new designs. I was challenged to design in-particular with the color red, since I don’t often work with that color. The 3 designs that came from the design board and my imagination are bold, classy, flirty, and have some bling!

The first design is new, just finished from the studio is bold, chunky and a little casual. I used chunky pieces of red coral and smaller rondelles, mixed it with onyx and mother-of-pearl spikes. Then accented the piece with several of my signature double coil spiral links in non-tarnish silver wire. The earrings are dangle from fishhooks, in smaller gemstones in coral, onyx and glass silver-lined seed beads.

The second design is also bold and chunky with a side of flirty. Here I used red coral barrel gemstones capped with pewter filigree caps, matching red coral rondelles and silver disks. Then accented with square onyx, silver-lined seed beads and large silver wired charms. The earrings dangle from fishhooks of the red coral barrel beads and filigree caps.

The last design is bold, bling and classy with a splash of sassy. This one incorporates small and medium sized curb silver chain with 3 large Sardonyx Agate ovals in black, red and white tones. And then accented with Smoky Quartz and Swarovski Crystals. The dangle earrings from fishhooks use a silver wired charm with Swarvoski crystals and Smoky Quartz.

For detailed information on all 3 designs see my website where they are available for purchase, along with many new jewelry gemstone designs!