Beyond Bling - The Jewelry from Anna Karenina, The Movie

Lights, Camera, Action!
The minute Keira Knightly put on her diamond wedding rings as Anna, in her new movie, Anna Karenina, I knew I was in for a treat! For the next 2 hours and 10 minutes I was taken into a world of imagination, decadence, drama and oh yes, BLING!

If you love fine jewelry this movie is a must see. The only thing more beautiful than the cast, which features  Keira Knightley and Jude Law, is the magnificent jewelry worn and created for the film.

Each piece is beyond beautiful. As I watched I was trying to figure out if the jewelry was true period  or new creations. If new, my thoughts immediately went to Harry Winston, Graff,  Mikimoto, or my personal favorite Mastoloni Pearls. Later, as I searched the internet for answers, I was pleasantly surprised to learn in an interview by The Fashion Spot with costume designer Jacqueline Durran, 
that Chanel provided the jewelry for Ms. Knightly. Taken from the official movie site, the following photos showcase the magnificent gems worn by Ms. Knightley.

Enjoy - and to fully see the sparkle, I highly recommend seeing the movie :)

Keira Knightley as Anna Karenina wearing Diamond Earrings and rings

Keira Knightley as Anna Karenina wearing a Chanel Diamond Necklace

Keira Knightley as Anna Karenina wearing pearl and diamond earrings and necklace

Keira Knightley as Anna Karenina wearing multiple pearl strand necklace with diamond and pearl earrings

Keira Knightley as Anna Karenina wearing multiple pearl strand necklace with diamond and pearl earrings

Keira Knightley as Anna Karenina wearing diamond cluster earrings

Rustic Diamond Ring - A Creation Story

from sketch to reality

The Story behind the Rustic Diamond Ring:

I was asked to create an engagement ring for a client in Colorado - 

The request:
" I would like a rustic low profile diamond ring with a hammered finish with highly polished finish. She does NOT want to large stone that sticks up high as we are very active outdoors people. unique is best, but it still needs to have "bling." Steve S.

Being that my client was in Colorado and I am in New York, we exchanged and talked about lots of photos from my website as well as a few pre-made setting I had available from a casting house I work with in New York City. While creating a new ring is an amazing experience, I am a huge fan of not recreating the wheel -  especially when there is a tight budget, so I always suggest a few ready-made settings. 

Original Stock Setting from Adwar Castings

One of my casting houses, Adwar Castings, had a setting with four main stones and the upper band was full of diamonds. My client liked the setting but wanted something more rustic and less "blingy" to give to his girlfriend for when he proposes, so we redesigned the setting and recast it with less diamonds and when finished, hand hammered the bands. 

The Process from start to finish:

Using a sketching technique, I modified the pre-cast setting and from the sketch had a raw cast of the ring created. Once Steve approved the photo I had a raw cast made to our specifications and then picked the diamonds...

Sketch of Proposed New Ring

Raw Cast of ring based on sketch

Raw Cast with New Diamonds

Finished Ring with modifications for Client
by The Perfect Setting

Finished Ring on Hand
www.theperfectsetting.com

Are You a Directioner?

Are you Dedicated to something

Do you Follow your Heart

Have you taken control of your life or overcome an obstacle

Have you set goals for yourself that you are in the process of achieving

Are you happy with your decisions 
Is your life moving in a positive direction?

If you answered yes to any of the above questions then you are most definitely a Directioner!

100% Sterling Silver Directioner Necklace
Made in the USA

How I became a Directioner:
I was asked to create a necklace that represented the passion of being dedicated to something and a funny thing happened during the design process of getting input from dozens of young ladies ...I started thinking about my own path - my own direction and passions that I have either followed in my youth or more recently in my adult life. So in the end I created a necklace that is not limited to a teen moment, but rather, in line with my motto of "jewelry should be worn and not collect dust in a box", I created a quality necklace that can be worn at any age and will always be a reminder of keeping your life moving in a positive direction :)

Here's my list as to why I am a Directioner... what's yours?

I am a Directioner because…

Me wearing my Sterling Silver  Directioner Necklace

I am dedicated

I follow my heart

I have overcome many obstacles

I have taken control of my life

I set goals for myself that I am in the process of achieving
I strive to live drama-free

I am happy with the direction of my life and where my decisions are taking me...

.... on a red leather cord

This necklace and any other jewelry I create with the word "directioner" is only available for sale via The Perfect Setting, on my website store. Third parties are not authorized to sell or resell this necklace without my permission. The necklace was created for individual enjoyment to express passion and individualism and is not affiliated with any other organizations.

Butterfly Penant, Necklace & Pin with Diamonds and Amethyst - Creation Story

I was commissioned to create a butterfly pendant in memory of my client's mother. The story was that her favorite color was purple and on the day of her funeral the family spotted a purple butterfly :)

Process for Diamond and Amethyst Butterfly Pendant shown on chain

Custom Jewelry Design Process by The Perfect Setting

STEP #1 Sketch of Butterfly

STEP #2 Computer Rendering of the butterfly sketch

STEP# 3 - Wax Model for Approval

STEP #4 Cast in Gold with outline for diamonds

STEP #5 Diamonds were set

STEP #6 Hand carved amethyst were set into diamond frame

Custom Diamond and Amethyst Butterfly Pendant Jewelry by The Perfect Setting

Claddagh Celtic Knot Ring - Creation Story

Custom Claddagh Celtic Knot Ring

About 30% of my business is with clients that find me on the internet and I never meet in person. I am frequently asked how this can be :)

this is the story of the Custom Claddagh Celtic Knot Diamond Ring.... all in there were about 10 phone conversations and 25 emails. This project took about 6 weeks start to finish.

I was commissioned to create a unique Claddagh ring for an active woman to be used as her engagement ring. After much discussion and exchange of photos with her future fiance, I sketched what we had decided on.

Sketch of proposed Claddagh Celtic Knot Ring

Then a CAD rendering was created based on my sketch

CAD rendering of Claddagh Ring

Revisions to CAD

Changes were made to the structure to allow for a future wedding band.

Diamond was chosen and photo sent to client for scale

Diamond shown in wax 

Cast of Claddagh ring with chosen pink sapphires

Final Claddagh Celtic Knot Ring with Diamond and Pink Sapphires

Claddagh Celtic Knot Ring with GIA LAB Report

Gold Cross Necklace with Turquoise - Creation Story

I was commissioned to create a simple yet elegant 14K Yellow Gold Cross Necklace with some inclusion or representation of a Navajo heritage. We decided on a solid gold cross with a small turquoise accent. Below is the finished product and photos of the process used to create the piece.

Finished Product

Finished Product - Custom Yellow Gold Cross Necklace with Turquoise. Created by The Perfect Setting

The Process of Custom Jewelry Design - From idea to reality

Sketch to CAD to Wax to Cast

STEP #1 - Sketch after first "brainstorming" session

STEP #2 - CAD/Computer rendering of Cross for Client approval

STEP #3 - Wax Model of Cross

The wax model shown with chain before casting in gold.

STEP #4 - Custom Gold Cross with Turquoise Pendant on Chain

Jewelry Gift Receiving Tips for Women

Last week I wrote a blog of gift giving tips for men - letting them know that for a woman, there is nothing worse than getting a gift of jewelry and thinking "Really, am I really going to have to wear this?"

I have worked with countless women who do not like the jewelry they've been given but they don't want to discourage their man from buying them nice things. 

Like much in life, communication is key.  And, contrary to romance novels where the dashing man always knows exactly what his beautiful wife wants, you may need to speak up a bit and get more involved in the process if you want to get jewelry you will love to wear.


If you want your honey to give you jewelry you will be in love with, follow these tips to insure you will always get the jewelry of your dreams!

TIPS for how to be involved in picking out your jewelery:

• If you want something specific, speak up about it.    

• Don’t be afraid to do more than drop a hint; send email photos of a piece you want along with the jewelers contact or website information so the item can be purchased.

• If you like to be surprised or you’re not sure about the budget, pick out three or four items with a jeweler you like and say “you choose and surprise me”

• Consider changing a piece of jewelry you already have and resetting an existing stone.

Remember, you only have ten fingers, one neck and two earlobes, which is why...

• I always recommend quality over quantity for special occasion jewelry; so if the piece you want is more expensive than the budget, delete the notion that you “need” a new piece of jewelry for each and every occasion. Instead, start a wish list file and be willing to wait a bit longer to save for something you really love.

A Message for Men on Jewelry Gift Giving - To Surprise or Not Surprise?

Jewelry Gift-Giving Tips for Men-  To Surprise or Not Surprise?

As a personal jeweler I am hired to help select special occasion jewelry.  Equally as often, I am hired to re-set stones from jewelry men have given to their girlfriends/wives - Sight-Un-Seen - AKA The Big Surprise.

Whether you are eight or eighty, there is nothing worse than a disappointing gift – especially an expensive one like fine jewelry. So, how can you to avoid this? Like everything else with relationships – communication is key.

Many of my clients own jewelry that was a gift from a loved one but they never really enjoyed wearing it. I often hear while conducting jewelry box evaluations that women love jewelry and don't want to discourage men from giving them beautiful gifts. But nothing is worse than receiving a costly piece of jewelry from a boyfriend, fiancé, or husband, and thinking "Am I really going to have to wear this?" 

Contrary to the "Hallmark Moment" of surprise, isn't the point of a gift to give something the recipient will love? What a waste for a beautiful piece of jewelry to sit in a box under the guise of "I'll wear it on special occasions" or "I love it but I don't want to lose it". Trust me, regardless of shape and size; if your honey loves her bling she's going to wear it - as often as possible!

If given the opportunity, most women would prefer to select their own jewelry. As an active participant in picking out my own jewels, I can assure you - there are ways you can pick something special together and still get the big OMG and hug plus-plus when the little box gets opened :)

So, 

TIP #1

• Tell your wife/girlfriend that you want her to be apart of the process.
• ask her if there is anything she wants
• suggest she look "around" and send you photos of things she likes 
• direct her to websites that have a "wish list" function.

If you are not prepared to eliminate the surprise all together, here are additional tips to consider the next time you want to buy your special lady a piece of fine jewelry. 

TIP #2

• Meet with a jeweler that you trust - or visit their website - and select a few things within your budget. Gift-wrap an empty jewelry box containing pictures of each piece. Tell her she can fill this box with any one of the items.

TIP #3

• Meet with a jeweler along with you wife/girlfriend - or look at a chosen website together - and ask her to select several things at various price-points. When you’re ready, surprise her with one of the items. Hopefully over time you will buy them all!