OUR PROCESS
My Grandmother’s health deteriorated rather quickly. Something inside of me knew that the approaching Christmas holiday would be bitter sweet. It sparked a flow of creative visions to play through my mind. It became necessary for me to find that one gift to top all other gifts that year. Almost instantly, I knew it would be something made into jewelry. My want was to come up with an idea to bond the four generations of women in my family. My idea worked. It brings me so much comfort to know that my Mom, daughter and I wear the matching lockets to the one my Grandma was laid to rest with.
After my Grandmother passed away, that energy I felt coming up with the original idea sparked the next step in starting my business. It took several attempts and variations of the process I now use to make custom gemstones. My clients can’t believe the overall quality of their finished jewelry pieces.
I have worked with many different materials sent to me by clients:
- Ashes of loved ones
- Ashes of loved pets
- Locks of hair
- Pet hair and fur
- Breast milk
- Dried flowers
- Tiny pieces of fabric
For a complete list of the types of jewelry I make, please visit the “jewelry options” page.
Crystals have always captivated me. They are full of sparkle and shape and energy. Some people adore the overall look of a crystal while others appreciate their significance and uses. Companies had been turning ashes into diamonds for quite some time. When coming up with an idea of what I wanted the gemstones I made to look like, one option seemed to fit better than any other. Instead of being limited in the opaque colour options, my shop was going to offer not only pearl colours and solid coloured gemstones, but transparent as well – including clear.
The technique used now involves breaking down the contents if it is needed, into powder form. Some clients choose not to have their materials broken down because they prefer to see it in the gemstone. The materials are then mixed with a non harmful solution that turns the materials into crystals. You have a choice of the crystals remaining natural and close to clear, or to have colour added to them. Once the crystals are formed to their peak they are carefully placed under lights to help dry them. Depending on the type of gemstone being made, the crystals are either filed or crushed to the consistency needed. At this point they are ready to be molded and set as is, with colour or other types of crystals and or a sparkle colour. With the gemstone cured, it is then set in jewelry.
With this being a new introduction to the world of memorial jewelry, I still offer stones made without the crystallization process. You will have the choice between the two options when choosing your jewelry.
CRYSTALLIZED GEMSTONE
OR
STONE
If you are interested in the different meanings your gemstone can have, please see the, “crystal option meanings”, and “crystal colour meanings”.