Aquamarine Necklace with Sterling Silver Clasp

Jay King Biography

 

I grew up in the Southwestern part of the United States. At an early age I fell in love with the great outdoors and all it had to offer. I became fascinated with rocks and minerals. This probably comes in part from my mother’s side of the family. Who were all hard rock gold and silver miners. I started collecting specimens at an early age and am still adding to my collection to this day.

In the early seventies I started making and selling jewelry as a way of paying my way thru school. My part time job soon turned into a fulltime passion and career. So much for school; that was over thirty years ago, and I’ve never looked back. I feel like I’ve gotten a vast education over the years, but in a different field than I originally started out in.

I’ve been fortunate in the fact that everything I really love to do has come together to form what it is that I do. I love to travel and see different cultures, and make new friends. I love to fly and anything that goes up in the air. I became a private pilot at a very early age and it has allowed me to pilot small aircraft in many locations all over the world. This has allowed me to seek out and explore many remote areas that otherwise might take a very long time to get to, in a shorter amount of time. I’ve landed in a lot of places that know one to my knowledge had ever been before. I love rocks and minerals and all the things Mother Nature has provided us with. I truly enjoy creating pieces of wearable art from the different materials I find.

What sets us apart from most of the people I know in my industry is we do it all. We go directly to the mines, or deal directly with an agent for the miners. There are as few middle men in the process as possible. This allows us to control the quality of our rough materials and obtain the absolute best price. We design all of our jewelry in-house. Everything is manufactured by us all by hand. Everything for the most part is done from scratch. We use only the finest of raw materials and sheet silver. This is almost a lost art today but over the years we’ve stayed true to our course and make the majority of our designs using only simple hand tools and lapidary equipment. This allows us to provide an extremely high quality product and keep our prices reasonable. We don’t mass produce anything but focus more on quality and design. This allows us to provide things that can’t be found anywhere else.

I still work in many of the better known gemstones like opal, turquoise, lapis, amber, and coral. What we are known for is also brining materials to the market that have never been seen in jewelry designs or in most cases been seen at all. I love to share the stories of the how we found them and the route they had to travel to end up as a finished product.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Choker: 12 to 13 inches in length Choker necklaces are made up of one to three or more strands and lie snugly in the middle of your neck. This luxurious look is very Victorian and goes best with off-the-shoulder or elegant V-neck fashions. Collar: 14 to 16 inches in length A classic length that accents virtually any outfit and compliments all necklines. This is the most versatile of all single strand lengths. Princess: 17 to 19 inches in length The princess length necklace is best suited for crew and high necklines. It also compliments low plunging necklines. It's perfect support for a pendant or enhancer. Matinee: 20 to 24 inches in length Longer than the princess, and just a bit shorter than an opera length, the matinee necklace is the right choice for casual or business dressing. Opera: 28 to 34 inches in length The opera necklace is the queen of all lengths. When worn as a single strand, it is refined and perfect for high or crew necklines. When doubled upon itself, it serves as a versatile two strand collar. Rope: 40 inches and over in length Dripping with elegance the rope necklace was a favourite of Coco Chanel. Wrap it to create multi-strand necklaces and bracelets or double it around your waist for a slimming effect.

Aquamarine is the beautiful gemstone that is the colour of the sea. It has been known to man for thousands of years when ancient sailors would take these precious stones on ships when they traveled to stay safe. In medieval ages, it was believed to have mystical qualities such as for one to be happy in marriage and to be honest and faithful. Aquamarine is made beryl comes in many colors, for instance, in bluish green, it is Aquamarine when yellow or yellow orange, it is called Heliodor. Beryl also comes in a pale pink called Morganite, there is even a white Beryl called Goshenite. Besides these colors, one of the most sought after color of Beryl is the rarest of them, a deep red Beryl called Bixbate. Beryl is a mineral that grows hexagonal in nature and its crystal habits are either prismatic, elongated or flattened. The transparency and translucence of this mineral make the Beryl look very glassy adding to the overall beauty of the stone. Aquamarine has been found in large sizes weighing over 200 hundred pounds, however, most Aquamarine that is found is much smaller, usually a few carats. Aquamarine is one of the more popular gemstones around.