Jewellers Academy Challenge ~ January and February

Not content with doing one challenge, I’ve decided to do this one too! Created by the lovely Jessica Rose at Jewellers Academy, this one also involves a prompt that changes each month.

January ~ Pendant

This pendant has been created in sterling silver, featuring a prong-set druzy gemstone

February ~ Bezel

A bezel setting surrounds the gemstone with a thin layer of silver. This one is thicker than usual as I wanted a chunkier setting. It is textured and holds a beautiful rose-cut Aquamarine, March’s birthstone.

I will be setting up a section in the shop where you will be able to purchase the jewellery created during the challenges.

#RingAMonth ~ January and February

Over on Instagram, I’m taking part in the #RingAMonth Challenge! Each month, there is a different theme and I create a ring using that as a prompt.

January~ “At The Movies”

Inspired by the wintry weather and my daughters favourite filme when they were little, this “Frozen” ring features a sparky 3mm White Topaz

February ~ “Stars, Dots, Spots or Stripes”

I love stars and have always thought that this stament Lapiz Lazuli looks like the night sky with its deep blue and golden flecks. I’ve added pierced stars to the wide band.

These rings are unique and will be available to buy very soon!

A New Partnership

As you will know from my work, I am always inspired by the natural world and the forest in particular. I love walking in the forest every day with my dogs, seeing the numerous species of flora and fauna that call it their home, the changing seasons and the colour.

I know how lucky I am that I have this right on my doorstep. There has been so much of the world’s forest that has been lost, so much of the worlds species that have been lost or are now threatened because of this deforestation. For some time, I have been looking for a way in which my business can give back to the nature that has inspired it.

I am so happy to announce that I have partnered with One Tree Planted! One Tree Planted is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to global reforestation. Planting trees is one of the best ways to combat the damaging effects of climate change. Trees help clean the air we breathe, filter the water we drink, and provide habitat to over 80 percent of the world’s terrestrial biodiversity. Trees also provide tremendous social impacts by providing jobs to over 1.6 billion people, empowering women in underdeveloped nations, and supporting communities devastated by environmental damage.

So how will Scarlett Willow Designs be a part of this? It’s very simple…for every piece of jewellery sold, One Tree Planted will plant a tree! So when you buy a gift for yourself or a loved one, you are helping to restore our world’s beautiful forest

February Birthstone ~ Amethyst

Amethyst is the most precious and valuable gemstone of the quartz family and can be found in Brazil, Bolivia, Canada, India, Madagascar, Mexico, Myanmar, Namibia, Russia, Sri Lanka, the USA, Uraguay and Zambia! Phew!

As purple is considered to be the colour of royalty, beautiful Amethysts can be found in the Crown Jewels and was a favourite of Catherine the Great and Egyptian royalty.  It was also referred to as the "stone of bishops".

It's name is thought to come from the Greek word "Amethystos" meaning "not drunken" and was worn to protect against drunkeness!   Some wine goblets were carved from Amethyst to protect against getting tipsy!  I can't confirm this fact and therefore cannot be held responsible!!  Even to this day, Amethyst is a symbol of sobriety.

There is a Greek myth that tells of Dionysius who was the God of intoxication!  One day, an insult from a human angered him and so swore to take revenge on the next mortal he came across by sending tigers to devour them!  A beautiful maiden, named Amethyst, was on her way to pay tribute to the goddess Diana was that next mortal.  As the tigers sent by Dionysius approached, Amethyst cried out to Diana to protect her.  Diana turned her into pure white crystalline quartz to protect her from the tigers teeth and claws. Dionysius wept tears of wine in remorse at the sight of the beautiful statue, staining the quartz purple.

The Hand Medal Project

This year has seen our care givers, nurses and doctors put their lives at risk around the world during this pandemic. I wanted to be able to show my gratitude to these amazing people and that is why I am taking part in the Hand Medal Project.

This is a global project that means I can use my skills as a jeweller.

“While we are all watching caregivers, nurses, and doctors giving all they can to our communities, risking their lives for us, we want to find a way to honor them. They should all get a medal, a votive offering given in gratitude or devotion.
At some point this crisis will end and there will be a moment when we can thank them for all they do. We propose to present as many health workers as we can with a medal based on a traditional ex-voto, also to mark the moment when we can see a future”

— The Hand Medal Project

Jewellers across the world have come togerther and are making small medals in the shape of a hand that will be given out to hospital, care home and health centre staff to say “thank you” for everything they have done in this difficult year.

If you would like to find out more, click here and see jewellers around the world working on this project

I'm so excited to think that by the end of October, medals I have created will be in the hands of some of our fabulous healthcare staff.  Each one will be stamped with my own unique number so I do hope that I find out who receives one of my medals.

Medal Number One - pre-polish

Ruby! The birthstone for July.

Known as the “King of Gemstones”, this month’s birthstone is Ruby (and also the traditional gift for a 40th wedding anniversary).  Deriving its name from the Latin ‘Ruber’ meaning red, rubies are dark red in colour.  For more than five centuries, Ruby has been found in the Mogok area in Myanmar (formally known as Burma) but is also found in Thailand, Vietnam and Mozambique.

Now you know I love myths and legends, especially when associated with gemstones and the ruby has plenty of these. Rubies have the ability to absorb natural light and then release that light a little while later, causing the gemstone to glow. Legend has it that this was a warning of impending danger or bad luck, giving the wearer time to prepare!  In more recent times, there is a belief that the glowing light from the ruby signifies the essence of life, a reminder that the wearer is full of life.

 In ancient Asia,the ruby’s unique features led people to believe it held mystical powers.  This belief was so strong among Burmese warriors that they wore necklaces of rubies, sure that it made them invincible. 

The root Chakra is represented by a deep red colour and so a connection was made with the ruby by ancient Hindu’s who believed that the gemstone could ward off negative energy, fight evil and treat inflammation.

Thought to contain passion and energy, Rubies can be found in the crowns of kings and queens, the armour and swords of warriors and in the jewellery of those who wanted to increase their energy, gain courage and bring success in gaining wealth and love...and were even buried in the foundations of buildings in China in the hope that it would bring good luck and fortune! 

If you want to bestow a little good luck, wealth and love on yourself or a loved one, get in touch to commission the perfect piece of jewellery.

May's birthstone ~ Emerald

Emerald’s hold a special place in my heart ~ I inherited my grandmother’s engagement ring which feature’s this beautiful gem; my husband bought me an Art Deco emerald ring; and my eldest was born in May!

It has such a vivid, lush colour that I think it’s a perfect representation of Spring and therefore suited to being May’s birthstone. It is also the gem for the twentieth and thirty-fifth wedding anniversaries.

I love interesting and rarely known facts so here are some of my favourites:

If you would like to discuss a commission featuring this beautiful gemstone, don’t hesitate to get in touch!

Send a Smile

Sending gifts and cards in these strange times seems even more poignant.

With this in mind, I wanted to offer a couple of things. I am more than happy to send any of my jewellery bought direct to the loved one you've bought it for (unless you're treating yourself, in which case, you deserve it!). Along with that, I also have some beautiful cards from Alex Sharp Designs (absolutely stunning designs) that I can handwrite your message inside and pop into the box with the chosen piece (no extra charge). Just let me know at checkout in the notes!

It's a strange time....

Hi,

I hope you are all taking care of each other and keeping safe during this uncertain period. The world is a strange old place at the moment, and these are unprecedented times and my thoughts go out to those affected by Coronavirus.

The most important thing is taking these extra precautions to look after everyone and with this in mind, I have made some changes to my business and I just wanted to share these to put customers’ minds at ease.

I am still open for business so if you have been thinking about getting a piece of jewellery commissioned or are looking for a gift to send a loved one, to show you are thinking of them, then please do get in touch. I can take orders via the contact form on my website or email (hello@scarlettwillowdesigns.co.uk). All of my jewellery is on my website, so you can also shop from the comfort and safety of your own home.

Extra measures

Each piece of jewellery I create is made by hand. I am being extra careful when making the jewellery and ensuring my workshop is cleaned more frequently, above and beyond my usual high standards to protect my customers. In addition, I am using soap and hand sanitisation products more regularly when making the jewellery and I do clean each piece before it is posted, to ensure I make your shopping experience as easy and as safe as possible for you.

I also provide shipping via Royal Mail Special Delivery. I am following up-to-date advice from Royal Mail which is ensuring social distancing is adhered to and has additional procedures in place when parcels are being delivered and signed for, in a bid to protect all of our customers, but particularly the most vulnerable.

As I navigate these exceptional times with my business, I want everyone to be assured that my customers safety is paramount to me. If you do make a purchase, I want to thank you for supporting a local, independent business.

Mine and my family’s thoughts are with you and your loved ones, so please take care of yourselves and everyone around you.

Much love

Jac

Gemstones of love to celebrate Valentine's Day

With one week to go until Valentine’s Day, I thought I might look at gemstones that symbolise love, just in case you need some inspiration for that perfect gift!

Amber ~ This beautiful organic gemstone has been considered to be a good luck charm for love and marriage, bringing energies of patience, protection, sensuality, healing and balance

Lapis Lazuli ~ Believed to promote and protect relationships, keeping head and heart balanced. Ancient folklore says that if you give lapis as a gift, you are forging an eternal bond of friendship, loyalty and trust.

Moonstone ~ Moonstone is said to bring luck in love and so throughout history has been goven as a wedding gift. In Indian and European folklore, it’s said that two people wearing moonstone on a full moon would fall passionately in love!

Opal ~ Thought to attract love and passion, opal is said to intensify romance and encourages fidelity in love.

Rose Quartz ~ Rose quartz is the stone of unconditional love, increasing the energy of loving and being loved in your life.

Sapphire ~ Symbolising wisdom, good fortune and virtue, in engagment rings Sapphires represent faithfulness and sincerity too

Hopefully, that’s given you a few ideas, if you’re looking for a special commission, head over to the “Contact” page and we can discuss that special piece of jewellery!

Pantone Colour of the Year 2020 ~ Classic Blue

For over twenty years, Pantone’s Colour of the Year influences so many areas of design, from fashion and home furnishings to industrial design and packaging. Now I’m not normally one who follows trends but I am in love with this year’s chosen colour…

Such a restful colour that evokes trust and honesty, a promise of a new day. As Leatrice Eiseman, Executive Director of the Pantone Colour Institute, says:

“We are living in a time that requires trust and faith. It is this type on constancy and confidence that is expressed by Pantone 19-4052 Classic Blue, a solid and dependable blue hue that we can always rely on. Imbued with a deep resonance, Classic Blue provides an anchoring foundation. A boundless blue evocative of the vast and infinte evening sky, Classic Blue encourages us to look beyond the obvious to expand our thinking; challenging us to think more deeply, increase our perspective and open the flow of communication”

— Leatrice Eiseman

The one gemstone that comes to mind straight away is Lapiz Lazuli, such a perfect match to the Classic Blue, with it’s beautiful flecks of gold reminding me of the stars in the night sky.

Sapphires with their many shades of blue would also evoke that feeling of trust and honesty and confidence. Funnily enough, I recently finished this rose-cut sapphire ring, a beautiful deep shade of blue.

If you would like to commission a beautiful piece of bespoke jewellery with this year’s Pantone Colour of the Year, pop over to the contact page or drop me an email hello@scarlettwillowdesigns.co.uk Don’t forget, as I create all my designs by hand, they can all be changed to feature the gemstone of your choice!

The Five Pieces of Jewellery Every Woman Should Own

A few days ago, there was an article in the Telegraph asking “Is there such a thing as the ultimate jewellery wardrobe?”

The author, Annabel Davidson, makes the point that her top five pieces are not likely to be everyone else’s dream collection! So what has been chosen to be the top five pieces of jewellery that every woman should own?

Number 1 ~ Everyday diamond earrings

Number 2 ~ A pearl necklace

Number 3 ~ Gold bracelet..chunky or dainty but preferably two

Number 4 ~ A meaningful pendant…no wrong size, no wrong shape, just a pendant that means someting to you

Number 5 ~ Cocktail Ring…not necessarily a large rok but a ring that can add a little statement to any outfit

Personally, I don’t own a pair of diamond earrings; I do have a pearl necklace, handed down to me from a Great Aunt; gold bracelet? Prefer silver to be honest; I own quite a few pendants that hold a special meaning; and finally a cocktail ring…most of the rings I wear are statement rings!

Do you own any of the top five pieces of jewellery? What would make your list of the five pieces every woman should own?

The Golden Globes 2020

The 77th Golden Globes last night meant that the famous red carpet was glittering from all the beautiful jewellery adorning the stars of film and television.

Here are my favourites…

Cynthia Erivo’s stunning Bulgari necklace features a huge 40 carat cabochon Sapphire and over 56 carats of diamonds and sapphire, and is worth $3million!

I love this longline necklace worn by Zoey Deutch. Created by Harry Winston, this also features a cabochon Sapphire and diamonds

Jennifer Lopez also wore a necklace by Harry Winston, featuring 21 Emeralds and 56 diamonds. Her earrings, rings and bracelets also featured Emeralds and Diamonds.

Priyanka Chopra’s Bulgari necklace features 56 carats of Diamonds and is worth $1million!

Not to be outdone, Billy Porter wore a fabulous feather tuxedo and paired it with over $2million worth of Tiffany and Co jewels! The beautiful necklace features an 11 carat pear shaped diamonds, surrounded by over 31 carats of brilliant round diamonds, a dragonfly brooch and a selection of Tiffany T rings!

November Birthstones!

November already?! This month has two birthstones, citrine and topaz.  Both gemstones were found on the Mediterranean island known in Ancient times as Topazios.  Since both gemstones are similar in colour, they were often mixed up - the most common colours for Topaz are brown, yellow, yellow-gold and orange...all similar to the shades of Citrine.

Topaz is found in many other colours, ranging from colourless to oranges to blues.  The oranges, reds and pinks are the most rare, one in particular is called Imperial Topaz and has been mistaken for Padparascha Sapphire

Imperial Topaz

Blue Topaz

Blue topaz is rarely found naturally and so now nearly all blue topaz, whether it's Sky, Swiss or Blue topaz, tends to be heat treated.

Blue topaz is the fourth anniversary gemstone while Imperial topaz is the gemstone for the 23rd anniversary.  

Citrine is the gemstone gift for the 13th and 17th anniversaries.

Reed Ring featuring Citrine

The name Citrine is derived fro the French word for lemon - citron- but its most sought after colour is the more warm orange-red colour.  These gemstones seem to have captured the last warm glow of Autumn, bringing sunshine to dull November days.

So, there is a colour for everyone in these two lovely gemstones....which would you choose???

Christmas Posting Dates

I think this is the first time I’ve mentioned the “C” word so far this year…yes, I’m talking about Christmas! If you’re a bit like me, my mum and sister, you’ll already being thinking this far ahead! And as a small business owner, I’ve been planning since July…

If you’re thinking about sending a little gift further afield than the UK, then this little infographic might help with last posting dates. I send all of my pieces to you via Royal Mail Special Delivery within the UK but if you are then posting on to family and friends abroad, you may need to be mindful of these dates!

So...This Happened!

On the 22nd of June this year, I found myself on the train heading to Birmingham, clutching a bag containing a small collection of my jewellery. Hotel du Vin was my destination, to sit in front of a panel of judges from the Midlands Fashion Awards.

I was early (I have this thing about being late!) and so spent half an hour or so in the foyer of this lovely hotel before being called in to talk about my work. Having never done this kind of thing before, I had no idea what I was going to be asked and and around twenty minutes or so, I was heading back out onto the streets of Birmingham. Don’t ask me what was asked or what my reply was as I honestly couldn’t tell you!

On the train on the way home, I could only hope that what I had said impressed the judges enough…

And to my delight (and astonishment!) it was!

I am a finalist in the Accessory Designer of the Year category of the Midlands Fashion Awards 2019!

The final is being held at the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra Centre on the 11th of October where I will be exhibiting my work and watching the catwalk shows before the Awards Ceremony announces the winner in each category.

Keep your fingers crossed for me!

https://www.kidderminstershuttle.co.uk/news/17764082.bewdley-jewellery-designer-reaches-awards-finals/

Ruby ~ July's Birthstone

July babies get the stunning Ruby as their birthstone. Rubies are actually a form of Sapphire and is the most valuable form of the mineral corundum. The most sought after colour is a pure vibrant red to slight purplish red ~ fine ruby glows in sunlight thanks to red fluorescence which intensifies the colour.

Most of the finest Ruby is found in a region of Myanmar (Burma) called Magok, the legendary valley of rubies. In fact, a ruby from this region, set in a ring by Cartier and known as the “Sunrise Ruby”, broke records in 2015 when it was sold in Geneva by Sotheby’s. This huge 25.59 carat ring was expected to sell for between $12-18 million but eventually sold for over $30 million! That’s a whopping $1,185,451 per carat!

Here’s a few lesser known facts about the fabulous Ruby:

• In Sanskrit, rubies are known as Ratnaraj, meaning the king of gems

• the first laser was created in 1960 using the red fluorescence light emitted by ruby

• ruby is the gemstone for the 40th wedding anniversary

• people living in India believed that rubies enabled their owners to live in harmony with their enemies

• warriors in Myanmar possessed rubies to make them invincible in battle but it wasn’t enough to just wear the rubies…they had to insert them into their flesh and make them part of their bodies!

If you would prefer not to go to that extreme(!) and prefer to wear your rubies in a beautiful piece of bespoke, handcrafted jewellery, get in touch

£186 of Unworn Jewellery.......Each!!

A recent study has shown that each woman in the UK owns, on average, £186 of unworn jewellery, equating to a whopping £6.2 billion!!

Even though 70% of the 2000 women surveyed said that they choose to wear the same pieces every day, 1 in 5 admitted that buying new jewellery was their favourite affordable luxury.

It got me thinking , what are these pieces of jewellery that we don’t wear? Are they family pieces that have been handed down? Pieces that we bought years ago and have simply fallen out of love with? Gifts that we never really liked? Items that are not “in fashion” anymore?

So what should you do with these hidden pieces?

One thing I love about working with precious metals and gemstones is the ability to take unworn, unloved pieces and turn them into something new. There have been a few occasions when clients have asked me to take existing jewellery and create something more to their taste, create a statement piece. This usually means removing gemstones and melting the precious metal, whether it’s gold or silver. Being able to give new life to old pieces is something I love to do so if you have forgotten pieces that you would like to turned into a piece of jewellery that you’ll want to wear regularly then get in touch

Before…….

And after! Old Family gold sandwiched between silver to create two rings with a frosted finish

The Moh's Scale ~ What Is It?

The Mohs Scale of Hardness is a relative scale of hardness based on ten minerals that are readily available that range from very soft to very hard. Diamond is the hardest known naturally occurring substance and this is what Austrian mineralologist Friedrich Mohs put at the top of the scale, developed in 1812. Substances are then measured against the scale by finding out the hardest material it can scratch and the softest material it can be scratched by.

Knowing where gemstones lie on this scale helps jewellers decide which to choose for a particular design. For example, Amber lies at 2.5 on the scale and so will need a setting that protects it. Rings take a bit more “punishment” compared to a necklace or earrings and so any gemstones set in rings need to withstand daily wear.

On The Bench!

It’s been a long time since I wrote about what I’m working on so here we are!

One of my newer designs are the “Reed” rings. These rings feature beautiful faceted gemstones surrounded by individually handcrafted “reeds”, inspired by the banks of the river.

“Reed” rings featuring smokey quartz, aquamarine and citrine.

I’m adding a couple of different gemstones to this collection ~ pretty Amethysts…….

Such a delicate colour….

And, of course, lovely Labradorite with such fabulous flashes of blue…..I can’t resist a Labradorite, I may have to keep one of these for myself!

Once complete, these will be heading off to the Assay Office for hallmarking then off to my lovely photographer for some stunning images.

I’ll be adding to this collection this year, what gemstones would you like to see?