Process - Hand Fabricating
I have been sourcing gemstones for over 12 years, and have nurtured trusted relationships with my suppliers of ethically sourced gems from cutting centres around the world. From Jaipur to Bangkok, Madagascar to Pakistan, or the pristine waters of Fiji, I strive to source the speciality of each region, and take great care in selecting the finest clarity and colour in the form of the best cut and shape, to design each piece around.
A design element that I particularly favour for many reasons is the bezel setting, which provides a protective frame around the gem, and has to be made to exacting size for each stone. As I don’t use commercial grade gems I don’t have the luxury of “calibrated” sizes and colours, which makes each stone’s shape and size, and depth unique, requiring the extra effort to fabricate each setting. It also poses a challenge to create matching pairs for earrings as close as possible, in terms of colour and size matching. And finally, many of the gems used are slightly softer than traditional options, and require that extra protection of the bezel to keep them safe from bumps and scratches.
It starts with a bar of metal that gets melted and rolled out into a long strip, then each gem is measured and the length calculated for a snug fitting circumference. This will be the outer bezel wall which will be used to press over the gem to secure it. Then another smaller strip is measured and cut, which will be the inner bezel wall, which serves to hold the gem in place and support it. The two strips have to be so closely measured that they have to be hammered into each other the soldered together, thus making a snug fit for the gem so it never develops a wobble once set. Once this is complete, it can be filed down to the height of the gem (some gems feature shallower cuts and others are deep), and then the bezel is ready to be added to the jewellery design.
Granulation is one of my signature style design elements. They add little pops of gold and some playfulness to the piece. These are made up from gold scraps that I melt into little balls (technically known as granules). Once made, they love to roll around and get all over the place, so to combat this, each one is grabbed with a plier and a flat spot is filed on the bottom. To add them to the piece, the places where they go are marked precisely with a marker, and then a round needle file is used to file a little notch or groove into which each granule sits, ready to be soldered onto the piece. This helps the positioning and also makes a secure connection so they can’t pop off due to wear. The heat control when soldering these has taken years to perfect, as the bigger piece of the design has to reach soldering temperature at the same time as the tiny granules, else they melt into the bigger metal and sink in, destroying the look of the piece, and causing all the work so far to be a blotched mess, talk about risky! But when executed properly, it’s a sign of accomplishment and dedication, and the finishing touch to truly state the skill of the artisan.
Combining silver and gold is something that can only truly be done by hand, as casting two metals is almost impossible. A lot of two tone jewellery is simply selectively plated with the gold over silver, or one colour of gold over another. To create this by hand means the gold is solid, and will never wear off, thus creating pieces that you can trust to stand the test of time, and look the way they did when you initially bought them. As an extra feature, I love to oxidise the silver, and the juxtaposition of a blackened backdrop makes the gold and gem colours really stand out, and gives a rustic feel to the piece. Silver naturally tarnishes, and if it starts out oxidised, it means there’s very low maintenance, as you don’t have to keep polishing to maintain the bright look.