A Meaningful Engagement Ring + ReDesign
Certain projects simply hit home, and this particular one was a great example of what makes our job so special…
Fall Engagement Plans? Act now!
Picking the right engagement ring is a decision that should be thoughtful and stress-free. The best ingredient to achieving that goal is time.
Custom Design: Extra Credit - Taking Care of Your Piece
You did it! You successfully designed your first custom design and hopefully the wearer loves it. For many of our clients, our design might be the first introduction they have to true piece of fine jewelry. Fine jewelry is special not simply because it is expensive and made of precious materials; rather, fine jewelry is special because it can be maintained and repaired for years, even decades, to come. Having a serious jeweler who can not only create your piece, but also take care of it as you move through your milestones, is vital. That being said, you can and should take an active role in keeping your jewelry well maintained at home. Here’s what you should keep in mind..
Custom Design 104: The Production Phase
Let’s begin this mini-course with a well-earned congratulations! Once you reach the Production Phase, you can sit back and rest knowing that your work is finished (ours is really just beginning). You have made all the decisions that you will need to make regarding the design, you have finessed the design to perfection, and you have paid your invoice (hopefully) without sweating too much. Now you can kick back and wait for the email letting you know that your piece is ready… oh wait, you might have a proposal speech to plan now…
Custom Design 103: The CAD Review Process
A very special and often unexpected part of working with Alx&Co. for your design is our extremely thorough CAD review process. This is another integral way that we are very different from most fine jewelers: our clients see their designed piece before production, with nearly every element clearly articulated in the design. This involves sharing drafts of designs with clients so that they can envision the piece its ultimate form and make edits according to their own taste. A lot of jewelers who say that they offer custom design services don’t actually engage this process with their clients because they would rather not endure what can be a multiple-iteration back-and-forth conversation of a piece, but we find that when clients have the opportunity to edit their own ideas, the pieces turns out better 100% of the time…
Custom Design 101: What We Cover in Your First Design Appointment
So, you booked your first design appointment with Alexandria & Company - congratulations! You just made a huge step in moving your design idea forward. We know it can take a lot of research, referrals, and thinking to get here so first, allow us to say thank you for considering us for your project. We are very different from the traditional fine jewelry story experience, so you may be wondering what to expect from the process at this point. While every job is different, here are some basic elements we will hope to cover during your first consultation…
Tips to Help You Get the Ring You Want (and Still Be Surprised!)
Picture this: you’re sitting with your partner, enjoying a beautiful scenic overlook after a long hike on one of your favorite trails. The weather is perfect, and the view is stunning. You lean over to rifle through your backpack for a bottle of water, and when you look up you see your partner bent on one knee, holding open a small ring box. You are stunned: you had no idea they were planning this! You peek in the box and the ring is…
Art Deco Design
Art Deco-Inspired design is a personal favorite here at Alx&Co. and we get many requests for custom and bespoke rings that reference this era. It’s easy to see why the aesthetic is so popular: done well, Art Deco design balances intricacy with simplicity and often suites people who want something that feels extremely special without feeling frilly…
The Alx&Co. Experience
Working with Alx&Co. is a totally different experience than most encounter these days in the fine jewelry industry. Over the years, we have created a niche area of custom design expertise with which we pair a truly client-centered service approach that leaves our clients feeling considered from the moment of the initial design request all the way through our lasting guarantee policy. As one of our recent satisfied clients reported…
What to Expect in Your First Design Appointment
One thing we pride ourselves in is that we aren’t your typical jeweler. In this way, if you’re preparing for your first appointment with Alx&Co. you may want to take a look at what to expect from your consultation. If you have visited other jewelers in the past you may be (pleasantly) surprised by the experience…
What a Difference Metal Choice Makes!
When it comes to color choice for your setting, some people have a precise idea of what they like and some people really vary in their decision. Personally, I hold a solid preference for yellow gold in most pieces for myself. That being said, I like the look of platinum for other people and love the seamless look it brings. I also think that in most antique-inspired rings, platinum really reigns supreme. During consultations I explain to clients that a yellow gold setting will draw the eye towards the whole ring so that you notice the design as much as you do the diamond…
Designing For Your Lifestyle
In this profession, the internet is both our best friend and our worst enemy. On the one hand, our clients are able to come to their design consultations fully armed with plenty of ideas, photos, and knowledge that they can use to design their perfect ring. On the other hand, there is SO MUCH out there, and unless you really know jewelry, it can be difficult to really understand the difference between a good design idea and a bad design idea…
Sourcing Gemstones with Alx&Co.
For many clients, a design can barely begin without first figuring out the feature stone. Unless you are working with an heirloom redesign, most clients don’t have loose gemstones available to use and most designs are completely contingent upon that feature stone for everything from budget considerations to design proportion allowances…
How to Design Jewelry… Even If You Aren’t a Jewelry Designer
A common refrain I hear from clients is that they don’t know anything about jewelry and have no idea where to even begin when it comes to custom design. Whenever I hear this I tell them that they have nothing to worry about - jewelry design can be done by anyone, with the right guidance…
Introducing The Stargazer Collection
We are thrilled to introduce to you the newest additions to our Alx&Co. lineup… The Stargazer Collection! Like our other Collection items, this daily-wear ensemble was created with customization in mind…
Custom v. Bespoke v. Private Jeweler: Do You Know the Difference?
When picking the right jeweler for your project, things can get confusing. Most jewelers now advertise some form of “custom design” but it can be difficult to know exactly what this means until you are in the middle of a sales pitch…
Buying a Sapphire with Alx&Co.
I love sapphires and in so many ways I even prefer them to diamonds. From a gemologist’s perspective, walking through different sapphires with clients is a much more interesting process than with a typical round brilliant cut diamond search because there are so many more variables to go over between the stones…
Our Top Three Tips for Buying a Diamond
Starting a diamond search can be a daunting task, but we try to make the process as easy going as possible. Unlike many other jewelers, we do all of our diamond searches on a custom basis, meaning we don’t keep an inventory on hand for selling….