PRISMATIC GEMSTONES - TOURMALINE

Hello friends! If you are a lover of gemstones, then you might be familiar with tourmaline. Oh, beautiful tourmaline. It is a semi-precious gemstone with elongated prismatic crystals, and depending on the elements present, it comes in a multitude of different colours. The most common colours are shades of pink and green - my favourite tourmaline is of the watermelon variety, which is a beautiful combination of the two.

Here are some tourmaline crystals.

 Some beautiful watermelon tourmaline crystals. I especially love the deep pink colour of the stone second from the right. Sooo pretty!

A stunning watermelon tourmaline ring in gold, with diamond accents

We love doing custom work here, and it is even more exciting when we get to work with beautiful stones! It's probably time to start thinking about your new tourmaline jewellery collection:)

Spring Special Event Sunday!

Jewel Envy LOVES Special Events!

We at Jewel Envy are always looking for special ways to make our customers happy--from learning how to make your own jewellery in our classes, to redesigning that special heirloom piece into your very own special jewellery, to repairing your most cherished, favourite piece so you can wear it again, to offering you unique one-of-a-kind, handmade jewellery! 

This spring we wanted to offer you even more!  Now you can shop our select collections online!  Each month we will be offering our customers a different featured collection to purchase online.  Just point your browser to the "Shop" on our website, and voila!  Shop the featured collection!!

This month, we are featuring the  "Branch Collection" by  Micheline Roi of atelier J contemporary jewelry (that's me!).

Sterling silver and coral bead branch- $175 plus HST. Illustration by Alexis Kostuk with photo by Paul Ambtman.

 Developing the branch line was a wonderful AND NEW process for me.  The design developed organically without a lot of mediation.  By nature I am a planner, I like to think, analyze, critique and then start work. But in this branch series, I let the material lead the creative process.

Powder-coated sterling silver with a white cultured pearl- $200 plus HST. Illustration and photography by Alexis Kostuk.

The design started with the gemstone on the uppermost curved silver rod.  This original section was left alone for a couple of weeks and in the interim, smaller, curved pieces of silver rod from another piece I was working on were floating around my jewellery bench.  On a whim, I started playing with arranging these pieces with the original section--hoping some pleasing form would present itself.  And it did!  Suddenly the branch form was there.  Who knows where these ideas come from--maybe from all those hours staring out of my studio window at my branches of my garden's tress?

24k-gold-plated sterling silver with a turquoise gemstone- $200 plus HST. Illustration by Alexis Kostuk with photo by Paul Ambtman.

What better time than Spring to add a nature-inspired piece to your own collection?  AND you don't even have to leave your house to do it!  ;-)  Just point your browser to the "Shop" on our website, and voila! You can make one of these wonderful nature-inspired branches your very own!

Want to be sure not to miss out on all our special events?  Make sure to sign up for our monthly e-newsletter. Point your browser to our "Contact Us" on our website and fill in your e-mail address!

Happy shopping!

-Micheline

Make an old collectable into jewellery

I was just struck with a fabulous idea after coming across the beautiful estate piece pictured below. If you have any small collectable figurines we could work with you to create a truly unique piece of jewellery with them! Imagine your own wooden figurine bedazzled and redesigned into something you can wear.

I love browsing through online estate pieces, I find they often spark inspiration and today was no exception! - Alexis

Hand carved walnut wood, eyes set with blue sapphire cabochons, body speckled with 18 karat gold pyramids and bezel set citrines.

Ribbit.

Ribbit, ribbit.

Happy Mother's Day!

Alexis (our very own Glaciale Goldsmith), Rhonda (her mom), and Marusha (her sister) creating jewellery.

This is from one of my first years at Jewel Envy in the old space on Spadina Ave. We invited our moms to a half day class to create cuttlefish pendants. My sister is hard at work with my mom in the background, beaming. I seem very focused on keeping an eye on my sister's progress ;o)

Happy Mother's Day - thank you mom for always supporting my drive to be creative. - Alexis
<3 alexis="" br="" nbsp="">

What I have been up to...

Hi!

 

I am Ivane a resident goldsmith at Jewel Envy. I have been working here for just over a year now since coming back to Canada. I love working here at Jewel Envy as we all draw on each others strengths, motivation and creativity in a never ending process. We also all learn from each others and help each others on a on-going basis and this is all happening in a great and fun environment!

 

This is my week at the Studio!

 

Currently I am working on remodelling an emerald and diamonds ring from a client. The ring doesn’t fit anymore and the design is outdated. In addition my customer also purchased some nice emeralds on her last trip to Columbia! 

 

We worked together in order to fine-tuned her new ring design. She decided that she wanted something simple, easy to wear and quite significant as well whiteout being overpowering.

 

These are the various steps,

 

- Agreed on final design according to her desires and practicalities

- Unmount existing rings and take off the stones (small diamonds and an emerald) to be used in the new design

- Carved the final ring in wax

- Cast the ring in metal

- Finish file and polish the ring

 

This is where I am at today… now the emeralds and the diamonds need to be set into into the metal and the ring will be finished and go to it's forever home to have a new life!

 

You too could give new life to old jewellery!

 

Bring your old jewellery - don’t leave them in a drawer - and have them remodelled into something special that you really like and want to wear!

 

And Oh! Of Course have a wonderful weekend and Happy Mothers day to all the wonderful mums out there!