Craftsmanship

So here are some details…

Meeting us means hearing us tell you about where our jewelry is made, it’s origin story, and what it means to us to ensure that the best quality is what’s available.

The Jewellery Quarter

The Jewellery Quarter In Birmingham UK, where our Cousin - or “Uncle” lives, works and designs our exclusive collection, is Europe’s largest hub for jewelry business and produces more than 40% of jewelry coming out of Britain. It is also home of the Largest Assay Office in the world - an office which monitors the purity and quality of metals to ensure that the market stays safe from fraud - which, in 1773 was created for the purpose of monitoring Silver to the protestation of the London office, the demand for offices in both Birmingham and also Sheffield due to the expansion of the silversmith industry, required an office in an already established town dedicated to the Jewelry industry. The symbol for Birmingham became the Anchor.

Other points of interest

The Chamberlain Clock

Erected in January 1904 by Mary Crowninshield Endicott, the third wife of Joseph Chamberlain, as a dedication to his trip to South Africa at the end of the Boer War, the Chamberlain Clock is a cast-iron clock tower located in an area called Hockley. Hockley is where V Hermes, our cousin, “uncle”, resides and works.

St Paul’s Church

St Paul’s Church, designed by Roger Eykyn, was built from 1777-1779 when it was completed, although the spire was not added until 1823.

The Jeweller’s Arms

If you’re in Birmingham, in Hockley and your day has been one of work in the trade, workshops or stores, then you’re not unfamiliar with the need to stop in for a pint. The Jeweller’s Arms is the place to be cataloguing many different ales and is one of the oldest establishments in the Jewellery Quarter going back to roughly 1840.

The Rocks That We Got

These and many more….

Our beloved logo which is fast becoming how people identify us as a company. The story behind this photo is a treasured one. Setting the stones into the silver settings is laborious and difficult work but when it comes time, it’s better to focus and do the work then to wax and wane. It was a day dedicated to the job and fifteen hours had passed. It didn’t occur to consider such a vast amount of time had come and gone until hunger set in. Looking down at the beautiful Amazonites, red and black lace agates, Rhodochrosites, Denim Lapis Lazulis, Morganite, Abalone Shells, Rose Quartz, Labradorites, Sunstones and Malachites drew attention to the fact that this was a high calling. The picture is completely authentic. The pieces got tidied together on the paper and the silver dust on the side was just where it was from the grinding. In that moment, it was obvious: a record of that days success needed to be secured.

Points of Interest

Geology

Geology is the Study of the Earth and other astronomical celestial bodies. Where the sciences are concerned, we like to think of Geology as the study of the “muscular skeletal system” of the Earth. Geology being such a complex and far reaching science is a dynamic way to learn more about the stones and gems we carry. From the simple things like where they are from to their key identifiers of their origin, history, structure, and composition- a world of limitless things to learn in pursuit of understanding how to set and nurture the best quality.

The Whole Wide Market

It’s not a surprise that Rocks and Gems have been use for many things. It’s popular to see them in anything from Beauty products like Rose Quartz face rollers, for example, to Marble Counter Tops and much more. This has been commonplace for millennia where humans have been using Rocks in all kinds of ways: aesthetically, commercially, in Monarchies and labour - for example the Golden Jubilee Diamond, Discovered in South Africa in 1985, clocking in a whopping 545.67 carats. It’s the largest brown diamond weighing more than 109g. Today, the diamond is owned by the King of Thailand and is on display in Bangkok. Then there’s also Cement which is an ingredient in concrete and was first made by a bricklayer named Joseph Aspdin in Leeds, England in the early 19th century by burning powdered limestone and clay in his kitchen stove.

Spirituality

Many of the questions we’re asked is “what stone is best for healing?” Or energy, or love, peace, strength, and other things which people need to nurture most in themselves. Strictly from the position of working with stones in the capacity we do, being so excited by what the science offers, and as a person who holds, works with and sets the stones into traditional Celtic Knots, I personally feel as though this is an undervalued field of study by the scientific community. Eight billion people inhabit the planet. Rocks and gems facilitate so many aspect of our lives, they are literally the ground we walk on - the muscular skeletal make up of the planet - its not unreasonable to suggest that at least four billion of the eight billion people believe that stones and gems have a spiritual element, especially as it’s anthropologically documented to be such a fact that civilization after civilization used stones and gems for a variety of purposes which we, in our current way of thinking, would so easily dismiss. I’m using a jaded number for my statistics, but over half of our clientele ask us these questions and I would rather have SOLID facts to rely on. That’s the catalyst for the deep and independent research we do. In upcoming blogs, there will be more evidence, but I also encourage the scientific community to consider the heartbeat of discussions like these ones and to posit theories and move forward with engaging research without bias.

Jewelry

For our part, we deal with high quality semi-precious stones. We custom order precious stones, should that be requested, and we also carry limited quantities of Black Star Sapphires. To be ornate throughout history with meaningful and beautiful iconic stones which can simply never be forgotten has been the goal of Royalty, Armies, Clergy, the Wealthy. We signify our unending love with a binding of rings. We give each other friendship bracelets. We seek out our birthstones unique to our month. We have heirlooms passed down to us from generations, old pieces, beloved pieces and keepsakes. Celtic Jewelry is particularly significant because of the deep meaning each symbol carries with it. My Stepfather wore the Claddagh that his mother gave him and my Claddagh is the Claddagh that my Uncle who does our design work gave me. When we care for our stones and love them, they last for as long as the Earth does.