Summer Jewelry Love

Mr. T is over taking suggestions from my BFF when it comes to gifts...for Mother's Day I secretly wanted this...

via

but instead, I received this...

via

...and to be honest, while I didn't exactly want a clamp set for Mother's Day...I could use one and will probably be thankful for them soon. Not to mention the price difference between the two...

But back to the subject...recently I've noticed a ton of really great bracelets on Etsy. They are all so cute, it proves you don't have to spend a lot of money on jewelry. Here are a few of my favorites:

via

via

via

Some of these would be easy to DIY, others...not so much. I am trying to get Marlene to open an Etsy store, but the conversation went like this:

I really didn't get very far convincing her of a store before she had moved on to diamonds...her specialty. I'm batting zero these days when it comes to the art of persuasion. Maybe I need to sharpen my skills...

Rachel :)

My Kind of Remodeling-Part Deux

You can read Part One of my exciting post about creating a custom piece of jewelry here (could you hear the sarcasm?).  My client gave me a picture of a ring he wants to copy for his girlfriend.  I gave it to Margie, who carves our pieces by hand, to begin the first step in the fabrication process. 

This is Margie doing her thing

This is her amazing work

As a refresher, here is the picture I gave her to copy

I know you are all breathlessly waiting for the piece to be completed, but it will be a couple of weeks!  In the meantime, you can read a detailed version of how a custom piece of jewelry is created on the Ascot Diamonds Blog.  

xoxo,
Marlene

Wish Listing...

It's hard being surrounded by diamonds and gorgeous jewelry day in and day out.  Having to try on fabulous diamond rings, earrings, and necklaces for work is just mentally exhausting. I bet you are feeling really sorry for me right now, aren't you?

O.K., maybe not.  I suppose I can agree that it's not on scale with being say, a Chilean miner (thank you Tina Fey-if you haven't read "Bossypants", go do it now!), but it taxes me sometimes.  More accurately, it taxes my wallet. I keep a running list of my needs wants in my Outlook under a contact aptly titled Marlene-Wish List!  Luckily, my boss (who is actually a very, very close friend of mine and J's) knows where to find it in a gift emergency.  The wish list in my Outlook is reserved for things that require long term saving (long term being 2 months or more).  Recently, I have crossed two things off of that list:  the stack ring J got me for my birthday and 1.50 carat stud earrings. These were a gift to myself because it was too good a deal to pass up.  Honestly, it was such a good deal that J. didn't even argue. Other things on the list are as follows:

Diamond Jackets for studs-Ascot Diamonds

Michele CSX watch

I'd like two of these to go on either side of my birthday ring!

Although diamonds are a girl's best friend (or in Rachel's case, her best friend is a miter saw), it's not always feasible to run out and purchase this stuff.  There are plenty of fantastic fakes. Sshhhhhh....now you are my confidant.  Don't EVER tell anyone I said that!  There are also plenty of pieces that make an outfit and don't fall into the fine jewelry category.  Here is an example of two great fakes that I have fallen in love with:

Pave Double Bar Necklace by Stella and Dot

Layering these together would look amazing!  

Ellipse Necklace by Stella and Dot

Turquoise Layer Necklace

This necklace would look so good with anything!  And it's only $29.99!!!

I love lists.  I really don't get much done without them.  Even having a ridiculous list of jewelry wants keeps me focused on what is truly my style and worth investing in.  The little no-brainers like the turquoise necklace above are fun and playful and really don't require much thought at all!  The best metaphor is this:  diamonds are the Theory little black dress you can wear for years.  The turquoise necklace is the scarf you buy each season to change it up and keep if fresh!  Do you have a wish list?  What's on it?

XOXO,

Marlene

My kind of remodeling

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you probably know that Rachel and I are complete opposites.  She remodels her house, I remodel my jewelry.  You've seen how she does her thang...now here's how I do mine (well, actually, I have about 5 people that help me with my process).

I'm a private jeweler at Ascot Diamonds.  Right now, I'm working with a client on an engagement ring. His mother gave him her 1.70 carat round diamond to use for his fiance.  He wants to create a new custom setting that is more his girlfriend's taste. This is the picture he sent me of the ring he wants to copy.

This is such a simple design that Margie, the woman who HANDCARVES our waxes, could do this in her sleep.  For those of you who don't know, all handmade jewelry starts out as a wax.  Literally, it is the design carved out of wax.  It's then sent off to be cast in the metal of the client's choosing.  Once it's been cast, it comes back here to go through the finishing process and have the stones set.  All in all, it takes about 5 weeks for a custom piece.  

Personally, I am fascinated by this process and could sit and watch Margie for hours.  It gets on her nerves, though, so I don't.  Stay tuned for the wax...she's almost finished!

XOXO,

Marlene

Almost, but not quite...

I found this picture on Pinterest.  It is so sweet that I would ALMOST have another baby just to be able to stage this photo.  Good reason to have a child, no?  I just made this exact ring for a client who got married a month ago.  As soon as I saw this picture, I sent it to her and asked if she would go ahead and have a kid so we could take this photo.  Her answer was something along the lines of an elaborate, slightly rude "NO"!!!  At any rate, I thought I would share it because not only do I love the ring design, I just loooovvveee those newborn baby feet!

xoxo,

Marlene

A little happy for your day!

Here's why I LOVE my job.  We are doing inventory today.  It was my task to weigh all of the loose stones...this was the contents of one tiny vial. Taking inventory isn't so bad when it sparkles like this!

18.31 carats of mother nature's finest!

Have a fantastic weekend!

Marlene

Push Up Bra

Whenever I have clients that come in with champagne dreams on a beer budget, I always suggest a mounting with a halo.  A halo is basically a frame of diamonds around the center stone.  I just read the best description ever for a halo:  "a halo around a diamond acts as a push-up bra for the center stone"

I don't know why, but this totally made my day!  I guess it's the little things.  Here is the theory in practice:

This diamond is a round 1.21 carat in a solitaire mounting

Here is my ring.  It's a round 1.21 carat in a halo mounting.  See my point?

Here they are side by side

Huge difference, right?

Now I'm off to enjoy this gorgeous weather!

XOXO,

Marlene





Fit for a princess

I'm normally a diamond girl.  I don't really gravitate towards colored stones because I see jewelry as a seasonal thing and it's too expensive to have a fine jewelry wardrobe for each season (although I would absolutely love it!  Ooohhh-blog idea!).  Diamonds go with everything, though. The one exception to my color rule is sapphires. My favorite color is blue and I wear it in varying hues year round.  I just came across this ring in our files and I love it.  It is a 4.48 carat sapphire center stone with half-moon diamonds on the sides and diamonds in the band.  We custom-made it for a client several years ago.

I would wear this on my right hand all of the time.  I love the color of the sapphire and the mounting is amazing! 

Another style I like is this one...it's not as dramatic, but still gorgeous!

Ascot Diamonds Sapphire Ring

When Prince William proposed to his girlfriend Kate (who now wants to be known as Catherine) with his mother's 18 carat sapphire ring a couple of weeks ago we saw a huge spike in interest in sapphires from our clients at Ascot. Apparently the same thing happened when Prince Charles proposed to Diana with the ring originally. 

Anywhooo, I'm rambling...I don't know why, but I find it funny that Americans are so interested in and influenced by the British Royal family when we fought so hard to be independent from them.  Hello, 4th of July!

If you had a diamond only rule, what would be the one stone that could make you break the rule?


Happy Hanukkah! 

Marlene

Feeling Good

I know whenever I have on something cute and stylish because when I get dressed in the morning the first thing Mr. T says is, "You look like Marlene today." That's about the biggest compliment I can get. Half of my wardrobe is from Marlene's closet, which I love! However, after her post on layering, I was inspired to put something together on my own. I went to the GAP and here's what I came up with...

of course I also wore these:

and i can't forget this...

So, I was feeling pretty cute....had a few compliments...overall a good day! I'm hardly ever in style, unless Marlene has parted with something prematurely, but I picked these out all by myself (except the jewelry:)) so I was feeling good! Fast forward a week...I had worn my new jean leggings quite a few times and had paired them with some longer tanks and sweaters. I'm into flats these days, so I had worn the new ones almost everyday by now. I was having another cute day when the school called at 11am to let me know Smurfette was sick. After getting her home and settled I spent some time straitening the house and putting things away. As I was doing this I had a thought that went something like this..."My new flats slide all over the hardwood floors..." Random, I know, but it slowly occurred to me that the cute new flats from the GAP I had been sporting all around town weren't flats at all...THEY WERE SLIPPERS!!! And yes, that's how cool I am.

Rachel :)

Lobsters Mate for Life

The only thing better than having a best friend that's a private jeweler...wait a minute...it really doesn't get better than having a best friend that's a jeweler. A few months ago I was reading Skinny Runner when she posted a blog with a picture of her jewelry box. As soon as I saw it, I fell in love with her watch. I didn't know what kind it was, all I had was a somewhat small picture of this random watch to go by. I called Marlene, told her to look, and right away she says...


Skinny Runner's jewelry box...compliments of Skinny Runner

"Oh, that's a Michele watch."

I mean seriously, how does she know this stuff? I had tried to enlarge the picture, search for it online, pretty much everything except call in the FBI and she takes a quick glance at it and knows right away...Turns out she hearts Michele as much as I do, and she's known about them forever while I've known about them for about a nanosecond.

Fast forward to September...Mr. T and I are celebrating 12 years of marriage. The watch he had given me for my 21st birthday (it really wasn't that long ago) has seen better days, like when it would actually tell time, and he would like for me to have a new one. Being the wonderfully awesome husband he is, he calls my #1 BFF to get her input. I am pretty sure when he told Marlene what he wanted to buy she gave her deep Dr. Evil laugh because she knew just what to do.

The bad news is that on the morning of our anniversary Mr. T was out of town at a conference. The good news is that minutes after I opened my eyes, Brainy Smurf brought me this note:

Turns out Mr. T does listen when I ramble on and on about randomness. Did you know that when lobsters mate, they mate for life? I lobster this watch. And Mr. T.

Rachel :)

As promised...repurposing old jewelry!

According to a National Retail Federation consumer poll, 23% of people will ask for jewelry as Hanukkah (or Christmas, or Kwanzaa) gifts this year.  That's up 10% from last year.  Now, that number doesn't tell us how many people will actually RECEIVE jewelry as a gift!  I, for one, am part of the asking group.  J, I BETTER BE PART OF THE RECEIVING GROUP!  I want diamond earring jackets.  I don't have real diamond studs (shhhhh.....) but someday I will (2 carat total weight is all I need).  In the meantime, I want jackets to put around my cz's.




Ascot Diamonds earring jackets





So, back to my original point.  23% of consumers asking for jewelry leaves 77% that either don't want it, or don't think they can afford it.  Here is where the repurposing comes in.  Here are a few ideas for getting "new" jewelry without having to re-finance the house.

1. Upgrade- don't like your current earring, necklace, or ring setting?  Pick out a new one.  This can still be expensive, though.  Is some of your jewelry yellow gold and you are now a white gold gal?  Rhodium Plating to the rescue!  For about $50, you can turn your yellow gold into white through a process called rhodium plating.  Depending on your body chemistry and other environmental factors, it will have to be re-plated a couple of times a year, so it's an ongoing expense.

2. Get a new stone- Do you have a ring with a peridot in it but you aren't feeling green anymore?  How about replacing it with a sapphire? or an Amethyst? Or a blue topaz?  Semi precious stones can be found pretty inexpensively.

3.Sell your gold- If you have old gold jewelry that you don't wear anymore (and will never miss), sell it!  You can make some good money to put toward a new piece of jewelry.  Many jewelers will also buy stones, too.

I think the only piece of jewelry that I wear that wasn't made from family stones or from old jewelry that I had re-set is my wedding band.  My collection isn't growing, it's just evolving!

Hope these ideas spark some creativity!

Marlene



The Minimalist

So, right now I am going through a minimalist phase (more out of necessity than fashion statement. Ya feel me?).  I am really digging Zoe Chicco jewelry.  I love the diamond bar bracelet so much that I melted down an old diamond bangle and used the stones from it (more on repurposing old jewelry later) and had our jewelers at Ascot make it for me in white gold.  I wear it every day!  The only problem is that it's top heavy and is always sliding under my wrist, but I am working on solving that issue.



My minimalist movement doesn't just stop at jewelry; it's worked it's way into my wardrobe and decor.  I could LIVE in leggings and a longish sweater or t-shirt and boots. It's easy and cheap to accessorize this combo with scarves, cheap jewelry or jackets.  I do have a really hard time finding t-shirts or tank tops that are long enough so that I feel covered up, though.  Any suggestions on brands I might try? 

As for the decor, I am changing up my (our) bedroom.  I had my upholstered headboard  recovered in a neutral linen and had a matching bedskirt made.  I am on the prowl for a white duvet cover or quilt, also.  My thinking is that if I have a neutral background, I can change shams, throw pillows, bed scarves, or blankets on a whim with minimal expense.  I'm not going to lie, I'm just following Rachel's lead.

Basically, the repurposing of old jewelry, easy wardrobe, and neutralizing my bedroom comes down to being able to get a new look quickly without having to spend a lot of money. 

Happy Monday!

Marlene