For his now wife, then girlfriend, K took the plunge by selecting a gemstone which he knew would fit her perfectly. A deep forest green tourmaline.
He came to us looking for a green gemstone, needing suggestions that were not Emeralds and not Tsavorites. As we all know, green tourmalines come in a few shades of green. K wanted green, with no blue modifier and no yellow modifier. It was the sweetest thing as he already had an idea of what designs his then-girlfriend would want for her ring.
While the trend at that time was to go for green tourmalines with a blue modifier (the ‘buzzword’ thrown around was teal tourmaline / peacock tourmaline), K knew she wanted a deep forest green colour.
We narrowed down some options and finally found the colour K was looking for.
There is no other way to describe this beauty. Seeing this piece brings a sense of calm and serenity. Deep forest green against a background of diamonds and 18K Beige Gold.
Did you know that Tourmalines come in a huge variety of dazzling colours? This ranges from colourless, yellow, mustard, raspberry red, fuchsia pink, shades of green and blue, turquoise and lagoon.
Beautiful white opal set in 18K yellow gold, with yellow sapphire and tsavorite garnet. Broadly speaking, opals come in a few different base colours. Mainly, in white, blue, black, fire (ie: red, orange, yellow tones), pink and crystal opals.
What sets the opal apart from other gemstones is that we can immediately notice the rainbow of colours displayed on the surface of the gem as we rock the opal back and forth.
Traditional designs see opals often set with diamonds. As with most of our clients, they wanted something that they know our designers do best. Which is to create a unique, yet aesthetically pleasing and it is to be easy to wear. Often times, in an attempt to create unique, unusual pieces of jewellery, what results is an awkward, mish-mash of colours that look odd and clumsy.
The beautiful white of the opal lends a nice base of which to incorporate other coloured gemstones. This opal also has a nice, soft, almost cashmere-like glow that accentuates the colours of the other gemstones. Elegant, refined, yet unique.
While this opal does not have a distinct colour play, the rainbow of colours can be seen spread evenly across the entire gem, which adds to a premium to the piece.
Also, did you know that Australia is not the only country to product opals? Opal sources include Brazil, Mexico and Ethiopia. All of which produce their fair share of beautiful opals in varying colours and hues.
White opal, yellow sapphire and tsavorite set in 18K Yellow Gold pendant
This pair of grey blue Spinel Sapphire ear studs is just what any woman needs to transition her outfit from day to night. So perfectly neutral, yet not bland.
The beauty of grey spinels lies it its ability to appear youthful, mysterious and elegant all at the same time.
We created a pair of grey blue Spinel Sapphire ear studs that were fancy without the fussy dangle of drop earrings. This pair of grey spinels have a very slight hint of blue, depending on the angle of reflection. Yet, upon another glance, the Spinels now appear to have a hint of lilac? We colour-matched the Spinels with Sapphires in 3 different shades of blue. Look closely and your eye will see the palest blue round Sapphire, a medium-hued tiniest round blue Sapphire, with the large Marquise shape stones in a near-cornflower shade of blue.
The result is a pair of ear studs that look like a bouquet of grey blue flowers floating on her ears. Not only unique, but elegant and pretty. No traditional halo of diamonds as seen on nearly every imaginable pair of diamond ear studs.
Whichever way one prefers to appreciate the beauty of the Grey Spinel, it is obvious that the grey tones have an elegant yet captivating, quiet quality about it. No other shades of Spinel will invoke similar emotions as the grey-hued Spinel.
Emeralds are the birthstones of May babies. Featured below is a pair of beautiful Emerald May birthstone earrings with fairly high levels of transparency, lustre and cleanliness, all of which, is rare to find in a certified matching pair of insignificantly oiled Emeralds.
Level of inclusions in Emeralds:
As most gemstone and jewellery lovers are possibly aware, the level of inclusions in an Emerald gem is something every Emerald lover will have to accept. Emeralds are a naturally highly-included gemstone. It is nearly impossible for an Emerald to be loupe-clean. Having said this though, a fairly eye-clean, highly-transparent Emerald is highly prized. The transparency of a gemstone is assessed by the absence of any type of cloudiness, “milkiness”, and inclusions within the gem. An example of a gem that almost always and usually exhibits high levels of transparency is the Tanzanite. One could almost describe the transparency level of a Tanzanite as being “glass-like”.
Practical longevity in design aesthetic:
Seen below is an exquisite pair of May Birthstone Emerald earrings. If you have been following us for awhile, you would have realised that we lean towards; and prefer creating jewellery with designs that have practical longevity. Now, this does not mean boring. It means creating pieces that one could wear with almost anything and for any occasion, day and night. In trying to create designs that do not date quickly – this means designs putting ourselves in the mindframe of our client and hearing their design preference and needs. Practical longevity means different things to different people. For some, it could mean having a design that they could see themselves gifting it to their daughters or sons. For others, it could be setting it in a design that goes well with most of their apparel in the their wardrobe. Often times, our designs transcends time and generations.
We marvel at that soft luminous glow emanating from the emeralds. Photos below are taken in natural daylight, with no photo edits.
The luminous blue-green glow in a pair of insignificant-oiled Emerald earringsStunning Pair of Green Emeralds that has a nice lively appearance to the gemPair of insignificant oiled Emerald Earrings
Rarity:
Set in a petite floral-esque design, a pair of certified insignificant-oiled Emerald earrings is rare and not easy to source. With more focus on diamonds and emeralds and less on gold work, the final piece is a sight for sore-eyes.
Check us out on Instagram @heritagegems for more videos on this pair of Emerald earrings:
The March birthstone, Aquamarine, is highly prized for its vibrant clear blue colour. Reminiscent of the sky’s blue, even though Aquamarine in Latin means “sea water”. Aquamarines make for very attractive fine jewellery pieces due to its vitreous lustre, which means it has a shiny, glass-like appearance. Hues and shades of Aquamarine ranges from pale, sky blue to pastel shades of green blue. Prized Aquamarines have hues leaning towards the vivid blues of Swiss Blue Topaz. However shades like these from current mines are considered extremely rare.
See below a beautiful Aquamarine engagement ring, we recently customised with a French Micropave setting and featuring a princess cut peekaboo diamond. This piece is designed in a modern-vintage style which is elegant and timeless.
Aquamarines may be a March birthstone, but it is celebrated and worn by women, celebrities and royalties the world over. It has a beautiful, shiny lustre that easily wins the hearts of many.
Unknown to many, it is not often heavily included. GIA classifies Aquamarines as a Type 1 Clarity level. This means these gemstones are often eye-clean. Other types of gemstones also classified as Type 1 Clarity level include Tanzanites, Tourmalines, Morganites, and Blue Zircons. So, simply put, an Aquamarine that has visible inclusions will normally result in a price drop.
View more videos for this Aquamarine ring on our Instagram (@heritagegems) here below:
Did you know that fun cocktail earrings and jewellery is not just limited to engagement and wedding jewellery? It was truly a unique and bespoke piece of jewellery for a client whose style and personality is reminiscent of a time past yet ever so modern. A fairly abstract mix of jewellery is what our client loves to match-and-wear.
The gemstones were handed down to our client from her grandmother. Up until the time she met us, she was unable to decide what to do with her coloured stones! That’s when she enlisted our help So we started with the design discussion and consultation stage. Ideas flowed and what resulted was a whimsical, bespoke and bold piece of jewellery that she could wear with all her other jewellery handed down from her grandmother, in one great eclectic mix.
Fun cocktail jewellery hold special meaning to its owner. Who ever said fine jewellery is strictly limited to engagement and wedding occasions only? 🙂
As with every piece of handcrafted jewellery that goes through the hands of our artisans here at Heritage Gems, right from drawing board to the final piece that ends up in our clients hands, great care is taken every step of the way.
Work in Progress Photos
From the jeweller’s bench, artisans delicately handcrafts the pieces that come together to make the complete jewellery.
Before you know it, we’ve handcrafted a stunning, whimsical pair of earrings in a beautiful colourway of gold, black and red.
Voila! A pair of bold, whimsical earrings that our client is very happy with! Customised bespoke jewellery doesn’t have to be overpriced nor overly grandiose in design. It just has to be fitting and paired just right for its owner.
This is the beauty of customised pieces and what sets customised jewellery apart from ready-to-wear pieces. Customise your jewellery with the correct artisans and you will have a stunning piece of jewellery that fits like a glove and accentuates your best features.
Our client review below:
If you are considering to customise a bespoke piece of your own, a piece specially crafted for yourself, contact us at 97716923. It’s an obligation-free consultation.
inspiration on other projects that are also fun cocktail pieces? Click below:
As with commercial grade unheated natural sapphires, commercial grade Spinels are abundant. Below are some examples of regular Spinels most people come across in stores or at their local jeweller.
commercial grade spinel that has heavily dark zones with 80% of gemstone in shadowcommercial grade spinel with inclusions commercial grade spinel with large window
Commercial grade spinels come as cheaply as $200/ct for sizes under 3cts. However, aesthetically beautiful, well-cut and 100% unheated Spinels are difficult to source. Often times, Spinels, like above, that come through our hands do not make through our quality controls. Investment-grade Spinels in shades of pink, blue and red can command a minimum of $4000/ct and upwards. This is assuming the Spinel is eye-clean/loupe-clean, well-cut with no colour zones, no areas of large windows, no areas of dark shadows.
Some examples of fine quality Spinels are as below. Well-cut, aesthetically beautiful & 100% natural Spinels are becoming increasingly difficult to source.
Beautiful vintage style engagement rings never fail to evoke romantic feelings.
Our client very graciously shared her wedding day photos and nothing says love better than a couple with their megawatt smiles, vintage inspired engagement ring and a stunning lace dress.
Beautiful blue Spinels are extremely rare. Yes, equally as rare as the unheated blue sapphire. Blue spinels and most other Spinels are typically non-treated and non-heated. The unique feature about the blue spinel is that it has a very magnetic shade of blue, one that seemingly grows on you rather than simply catching your eye at the first instance. Spinels have long been mistaken for sapphires, or Corundums, because its lustre and brilliance quite resembles the Sapphires.
It’s nice to be able to create your own history and story by customising a vintage styled engagement ring because there’s just something alluring and romantic about it. They make for great photos as well!
Photo Credit: From Client, taken by Daniel Sim Photography
Photo Credit: From Client, taken by Jasper Avenue Sydney
A bespoke customised piece of jewellery to call your own, in a shade of colour that captures your heart and eyes is truly a gift to be enjoyed and appreciated for the years to come.
There’s always something truly memorable and nostalgic about a vintage style engagement ring.
Congratulations to this lovely couple and wishing you both bliss in your journey!
Wanting to redesign your old jewellery into new? Remodelling your old jewellery is easier than you think. There is special meaning in keeping an inheritance, set in a new style to keep with the times.Â
“Something old, Something new, Something borrowed, Something blue, And a silver six pence in her shoe”
An 1883 English folklore recounts that the old item provided protection for the baby to come and for good luck.
Have you recently inherited some of your mother’s or grandparents’ older jewellery? Would you like to wear it as a part of your “something old, something new”? A piece of jewellery that you could both on your wedding day and even after your wedding? Something you could wear daily or even on special occasions?
Older styles of jewellery, while it has its appeal, may not be as easy to wear with apparel of modern, contemporary styles. And sometimes, it requires a little more than a simple cleaning job at your local jeweller. Remodelling your old jewellery or upcycling your old jewellery is the perfect way to update a special memento. It is a way of keeping a part of you that you cherish, in a style that is relevant to you. KeepÂ
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After redesigning, this pieces looks so much fresher and reminds one of Spring. Not at all ostentatious, dressy enough for an occasion, yet, simple enough for an evening out.
Who ever said wearing Jade pieces needs to look dated or old?  😉
Want some vintage design ideas? Or perhaps tips on how to care for your jewellery? Click below: