The Beginning of a New Chapter

Does anyone actually like Monday mornings? The week stretches out before you like the Mote Carlo Rally, all uphills and bendy. For us at Plush, today was a different kind of Monday morning; for the first time in nearly six years there wasn’t a Plush Jewellery shop to open to the eager shoppers of Chichester. At 17:30 on Saturday 28th we turned the Open sign to Closed for the last time.

Our final week was fun and emotional; so many old friends took the time to pop in and see us and wish us luck for the coming year. It was lovely to see everyone and it’s especially nice to remember that Plush Jewellery has touched so many more lives than just ours. While the shop may be closed (actually I’m sitting in the shop writing this blog post, so there’s still some Plush Jewelleryness in Baffins Lane today) we’re segueing into our 2012 plans with little pause for breath (or the chance to spend a week watching daytime telly in pyjamas) more information on that to come.

We have some fantastic bespoke Entwined rings we’re creating for clients right now, you will love them.

Right, this tax return won’t file itself.

May your week be mostly downhill and sunny.

Best

Allie

PS Don’t forget you can easily find us and see more of our work over at www.plushjewellery.co.uk

Sometimes it’s The Most Unassuming Things That Hold The Most History

We have been asked to take a look at this gold ring with a view of using its gold to make a new wedding band.

On first glance the ring appears to just be a slightly battered 6mm gold band, one that has taken a few knocks in its time.

6mm Gold Wedding Band - Slightly Battered

6mm Gold Wedding Band - Slightly Battered

When you look inside the ring though, its story begins to reveal itself.

6mm 22ct Gold Wedding Band

Showing that it is, in fact, two distinct bands that at some point in their history have been joined together.

Hallmarks can tell you so much about older pieces of jewellery.

Chester Hallmarks

The narrower ring bears the makers mark “H.A”, the marks for 22ct gold, the stamp of the Chester Assay Office and the date letter for 1938-39.

Birmingham Hallmarks

The wider ring bears the makers mark “S E”, the marks for 22ct gold, the stamp of the Birmingham Assay office and the date letter for 1849-50.

I’m going to see if I can’t track the Makers Marks down and find out who made the original rings.

Allie

Karen’s Handmade Entwined Ring – 5.5mm Created Using her 22ct Gold Wedding Ring, Sterling Silver and a Hand Picked 6pt Diamond

Karen hadn’t been wearing her original wedding ring (it wasn’t fitting as well as it had originally) and she had been wearing a substitute Sterling Silver ring.

She had been hoping to use her 22ct gold wedding band to create a new ring but hadn’t seen the perfect design.

When she saw Holly’s handmade Entwined rings at Plush Jewellery, she fell in love with the design and the idea of creating her own unique ring. When we told her that of course we could use the gold from the wedding band to make the ring, she was delighted.

She went away to talk the idea over with her husband and they both came in to plan the final design with Holly (to make this stage easier and more visual, we produced artwork to show different precious metal combinations). Karen decided she wanted a yellow gold band with the Vine and Leaf overlay and diamond setting in Sterling Silver.

Next came the choice of diamond to set in the ring. Karen had not had a diamond ring before and didn’t want a diamond that was too big. Discussing the options with Holly; they decided that a 6pt round brilliant cut diamond would compliment the ring perfectly.

Karen’s 22ct gold wedding ring wasn’t going to be sufficient to make her Entwined band, so again having discussed this with Karen, we added an amount of 9ct gold to supplement it. By doing this the entwined band still had a beautiful rich colour.

Once the band was made, we invited Karen in to Plush to ensure that it was a perfect fit before applying the Vine and Leaf detailing (it is easier to make any size adjustments at this stage). Lastly, the hand-picked diamond was set within its sterling silver setting and the vines and leaf were handmade and applied to the ring.

Karen and her husband came to Plush to collect her ring just before Christmas. Her reaction upon seeing her completed ring for the first time was fantastic and this is the reason we make bespoke jewellery. We love being able to bring a much loved piece back to life, bringing it out of the jewellery box and allowing it to be worn and enjoyed once more.

Karen’s Handmade Entwined Ring – 5.5mm Created Using her 22ct Gold Wedding Ring, Sterling Silver and a Hand Picked 6pt Diamond

Karen’s Handmade Entwined Ring – 5.5mm Created Using her 22ct Gold Wedding Ring, Sterling Silver and a Hand Picked 6pt Diamond

Karen’s Handmade Entwined Ring – 5.5mm Created Using her 22ct Gold Wedding Ring, Sterling Silver and a Hand Picked 6pt Diamond

Karen’s Handmade Entwined Ring – 5.5mm Created Using her 22ct Gold Wedding Ring, Sterling Silver and a Hand Picked 6pt Diamond

Karen’s Handmade Entwined Ring – 5.5mm Created Using her 22ct Gold Wedding Ring, Sterling Silver and a Hand Picked 6pt Diamond

Karen’s husband Peter is a potter and has recently started a blog about his work, you’ll find him at http://petespots.wordpress.com/ (Allie is already eyeing up pieces of stoneware featured on the blog).

To speak to us about creating your perfect piece of jewellery you can email us: hello @ plushjewellery.co.uk call us: 01243 778424 skype us: plushjewellery or tweet us: @plushjewellery